RETRACTED: Biogas production–A review on composition, fuel properties, feed stock and principles of anaerobic digestion

Abstract

In the prevailing scenario, the aberrant use of conventional fuels and the impact of greenhouse gases on the environment have leveraged the research efforts into renewable energy production from organic resources and waste. The global energy demand is high and most of the energy is produced from fossil resources. Recent studies refer the anaerobic digestion (AD) as alternative and efficient technology which combines biofuel production and sustainable waste management. There are different technological trends in biogas industry in order to enhance the production and the quality of biogas. Nevertheless, the success of AD for further investments will rise from the low cost of feedstocks availability and the wide variety of usable forms of biogas (heating, electricity and fuel). Biogas, a combination of two-thirds of methane (CH4) and the rest is mostly carbon dioxide (CO2) with traces of hydrogen sulfide. The spent slurry from the produced biogas can be enriched to be utilized as manure for agricultural crop, promoting sustainable biomass production in the world. Biogas can be utilized to produce centralized or distributed power supply in rural and urban areas and are considered to be cost beneficial. The aim of this review paper is to analyze various feedstocks, which are widely used all over the world. The working operations of anaerobic digestion process, current trends along with its merits and demerits are also discussed in order to draw more research and development towards producing a sustainable environment.