Abstract
Attempting to associate waste treatment to the production of clean and renewable energy, this research sought to evaluate the biological production of hydrogen using wastewater from the cassava starch treatment industry, generated during the processes of extraction and purification of starch. This experiment was carried out in a continuous anaerobic reactor with a working volume of 3L, with bamboo stems as the support medium. The system was operated at a temperature of 36°C, an initial pH of 6.0 and under variations of organic load. The highest rate of hydrogen production, of 1.1 L.d-1.L-1, was obtained with application of an organic loading rate of 35 g.L-1.d-1, in terms of total sugar content and hydraulic retention time of 3h, with a prevalence of butyric and acetic acids as final products of the fermentation process. Low C/N ratios contributed to the excessive growth of the biomass, causing a reduction of up to 35% in hydrogen production, low percentages of H2 and high concentrations of CO2in the biogas.
Highlights
A source of efficient and clean energy, hydrogen has been proposed as a promising replacement for fossil fuels
The complex organic matter is converted into simpler compounds such as hydrogen, carbon dioxide, free sugars, volatile organic acids and alcohols (McCARTY, 1964)
The reactor was divided into three compartments, which were separated by a stainless steel mesh
Summary
A source of efficient and clean energy, hydrogen has been proposed as a promising replacement for fossil fuels. This study sought to evaluate the production of hydrogen from cassava-processing wastewater in a continuous anaerobic fixed bed reactor, submitted to variations of influent organic loading rate.
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