The Effect of Pre-treatment of Water Hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) and the Use of Cow Dung on Biogas Production

Abstract

Renewable energy biogas technology, applying the concept of zero waste, can offer an alternative source of energy to deal with environmental problems. The water hyacinth is a type of weed that grows fast and abundantly in rivers. Aside from being considered a pest and waste of no value, it can also be used for biogas production because of its high hemicellulose content. The purpose of this research was to make use of water hyacinths that are abundant in rivers as a source of biogas. The variables used were mixes of water hyacinth, cow dung, and water at variant ratios to be used in the initial treatment. The fermentation process undertaken used a batch system, and the biogas produced was measured every day. The parameters used were the volume of the biogas produced, degree of acidity (pH), C/N ratio, flame color, and composition test using gas chromatography (GC). The results of this study show that the highest biogas volume of 11,233 ml was obtained from the use of water:water hyacinth:cow ratio of 1:0.5:1 and that the lowest biogas volume of 4,370 ml was obtained from the use of the water:water hyacinth:cow dung ratio of 1:1:0. The pH range after the process was complete was between 6.9 and 7.6. The results of the gas chromatography (GC) analysis show that the methane content in the biogas was 80.78% of the area.