Thermal-alkali and enzymes for efficient biomethane production from co-digestion of corn straw and cattle manure

Abstract

This research evaluated a sequential process of thermal-alkali pretreatment, enzymatic hydrolysis, and anaerobic co-digestion applied on a mixture of corn straw (CS) and cattle manure (CM). The results showed that the optimal conditions of thermo-alkaline pretreatment were a Ca(OH)2 dosage of 1.5% and temperature of 120 °C. The optimal conditions of enzymatic hydrolysis in terms of cellulase loading, operational time, and protease loading were determined. Co-digestion with enzymes and thermal-alkali pretreatment achieved the highest methane yield of 0.41 m3 kg-1-VS from the liquid of hydrolysates. An maximum applicable organic loading rate (OLR) of 13.7 kg-SCOD m-3 d-1 was found with a soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) removal of 96.4% in an expanded granular sludge blanket (EGSB) reactor. The optimization of conditions could lead to the industrial-scale treatment of organic solids with a high energy yield and efficiency.