Moisture Content Of Waste Research Articles

Exploring PCDD/Fs and potentially toxic elements in sewage sludge during smouldering treatment.

Potentially toxic elements (PTEs), persistent organic pollutants, and emerging contaminants make sewage sludge management challenging. There is significant interest in thermal treatment technologies that can destroy these compounds. The most common thermal treatment, incineration, poses risks due to formation and/or release of hazardous substances in process emissions such as polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and PTEs. Smouldering has been introduced recently as a potential treatment for managing sewage sludge. Smouldering systems present several advantages over traditional incinerators; however, there are still uncertainties regarding process by-products. This key question was investigated in three laboratory-scale tests (0.08m radius) and five oil drum-scale tests (0.3m radius) that were evaluated for PCDD/Fs and PTEs in the mixture before and after treatment as well as in process emissions. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were also measured. These experiments represent a broad spectrum of conditions to evaluate process emissions, from robust self-sustaining to extinction of smouldering. Robust smouldering had negligible PCDD/Fs in process emissions. Weak smouldering had low levels of PCDD/Fs (emissions factor: 3.3±0.3μg TEQ/Mg dried sludge destroyed), levels less than uncontrolled emissions from commercial incinerators. Overall, smouldering acted as a sink for PCDD/Fs, as only 0-3% of the PCDD/Fs originally present in the sludge were released in the emissions, and >99% of the remainder were destroyed with <1% remaining in post-treatment ash. No evidence was found to support de novo synthesis or precursor reactions forming new PCDD/Fs. In addition, 94-100% of all the PTEs analyzed were retained in the post-smouldered material. These results indicate that only minimal emissions treatment for PTEs, PCDD/Fs, and VOCs may be necessary for future sewage sludge smouldering systems. These low emissions risks combined with its unique ability to handle high moisture content waste, indicate that smouldering has significant potential as a valuable waste management technique.

Rapid determination of moisture content of multi-source solid waste using ATR-FTIR and multiple machine learning methods

Rapid determination of moisture content plays an important role in guiding the recycling, treatment and disposal of solid waste, as the moisture content of solid waste directly affects the leachate generation, microbial activities, pollutants leaching and energy consumption during thermal treatment. Traditional moisture content measurement methods are time-consuming, cumbersome and destructive to samples. Therefore, a rapid and nondestructive method for determining the moisture content of solid waste has become a key technology. In this work, an attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and multiple machine learning methods was developed to predict the moisture content of multi-source solid waste (textile, paper, leather and wood waste). A combined model was proposed for moisture content regression prediction, and the applicability of 20 combinations of five spectral preprocessing methods and four regression algorithms were discussed to further improve the modeling accuracy. Furthermore, the prediction result based on the water-band spectra was compared with the prediction result based on the full-band spectra. The result showed that the combination model can efficiently predict the moisture content of multi-source solid waste, and the R2 values of the validation and test datasets and the root mean square error for the moisture prediction reached 0.9604, 0.9660, and 3.80, respectively after the hyperparameter optimization. The excellent performance indicated that the proposed combined models can rapidly and accurately measure the moisture content of solid waste, which is significant for the existing waste characterization scheme, and for the further real-time monitoring and management of solid waste treatment and disposal process.

Migration and transformation of main components during perishable waste bio-drying process

Bio-drying can significantly reduce the moisture content of waste. The factors, functional microorganisms, and the transformation of main components were investigated during bio-drying of perishable waste. This study provides a scientific basis for the improvement of the bio-drying process and the necessity for secondary pollutant control. Reaction temperature and microbial biomass were main factors during the bio-drying process. The ideal bio-drying conditions included an initial temperature above 20 °C, intermittent ventilation, and appropriate microbial inoculation. The main microorganisms included Alcaligenes, Aquamicrobium, and Brevundimonas. From each gram of the carbonaceous, nitrogenous, sulfur-containing compounds, and phosphorus-containing substances in the perishable waste, approximately 0.74 g, 0.66 g, 0.40 g, and 0.94 g, respectively, were transferred as gas-phase products; consisting mainly of ammonia and volatile organic compounds: 2-heptanone, dimethyl heptanone, and benzene. In the leachate, the respective amounts of the carbonaceous, nitrogenous, sulfur-containing compounds, and phosphorus-containing substances were 3.20 × 10−3 g, 4.08 × 10−3 g, 0.33 g, and 9.52 × 10−3 g, while those of the residual substances remaining in solid were 0.26 g, 0.33 g, 0.28 g, and 0.05 g.

Food waste type and moisture content influence on the Hermetia illucens (L.), (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) Larval Development and Survival

Black Soldier Fly (BSF) or its scientific name Hermetia Illucens is insect native to most tropical and subtropical region. The larvae (BSFL) are capable of eating almost any substrate supplied to it, making it one of the saprophagous insects that is very useful as a recycler. BSFL digests these substrates into a source of nutrients that help their growth. With biomass that is full of absorbed nutrients makes it rich in protein that is suitable as livestock feed. For this purpose, the composition of BSFL is important to be observed as it can affect their quality for further application. Usually, in further applications of BSFL, the weight of biomass is one of the criteria that can provide a good profit return. Therefore, identifying the appropriate type of food waste and the most economical way for the rearing process of BSF is important for this purpose. In this research, the larval growth and survival in the bio-conversion process were tested using two types of food waste with several levels of moisture contents. The two types of food waste were the vegetable trimming (VT) and left over (LO) food waste. The moisture contents for each type of food waste were adjusted to 60, 70 and 80% for three different replicated batch of larvae. The larvae of these different duplicated batch were sampled every day to measure their survival rate as well as changes in wet weight. Results obtained from this study indicate that, larvae supplied with 80% moisture content of food waste (VT and LO) showed the fastest growth rate (wet weight basis) compared to others. The result also suggest that the survival rate of the larvae was not significantly affected by the high content of moisture. It was found that the survival rate of BSFL were more than 95% throughout the experiment. As a conclusion, this study provides valuable insights for the profitable waste management industry employing the BSFL as agent of bioconversion for food waste recycling.

Feasibility of sewage sludge and food waste aerobic co-composting: Physicochemical properties, microbial community structures, and contradiction between microbial metabolic activity and safety risks

Co-composting of sludge and food waste eliminates the disadvantages of composting these waste products separately. Specifically, co-composing neutralizes the pollutants and improves the organic matter that occur in sewage sludge, and solves the problem of the low pH values and high moisture content of food waste. However, little is known about the functional microorganisms, microbial metabolic capacity, and biosecurity risks involved in sewage sludge and food waste co-composting. Therefore, this study established four lab-scale composting reactors [T1 (separate composting of food waste), T2 (separate composting of sewage sludge), T3 (sewage sludge and food waste co-composting at a C/N ratio of 25), and T4 (equal proportions composting of sewage sludge and food waste)] to assess the feasibility of sewage sludge and food waste aerobic co-composting. Our findings indicated that polysaccharides and proteins in T3 could be effectively degraded, and the total nutrient levels in T3 were higher than those in the other groups. After composting, the microbial diversity and richness of T3 were higher than that of T1. In later composting stages, the functional microorganisms in T1 maintained higher metabolic activity, however, it also had a higher biosecurity risk than T3 due to the presence of pathogenic bacteria such as Enterococcus_faecalis and Bacillus_circulan. Although the product of T3 could not be used as a microbial fertilizer, its biosecurity risk was lower than that of T1 and could therefore be used as an organic fertilizer. Redundancy analysis (RDA) results indicated that changing the microbial community structure by adjusting key environmental factors could improve composting quality and reduce microbial safety risks. Collectively, our results provide a theoretical basis for the development of co-composting strategies for the biodegradation of perishable solid organic waste, in addition to proposing the risk of pathogenic bacteria exposure that could endanger human and animal health.

Estimation of spontaneous waste ignition time for prevention and control of landfill fire.

Openmunicipal solid waste(MSW) dumpsites in India are significant hotspots of spontaneous fire and associated air and ground water pollution. Unscientific dumping of MSW poses a major threat to the surrounding environment and human health. One-year-old biodegradable waste components comprised of paper, cardboard, newspaper, textile, wood, grass leaves and coconut shell were analyzed for the determination of the moisture content (MC), smoldering temperature, ignition temperature, and ignition time. Principal component analysis of the old waste components revealed that cardboard, paper, newspaper and leaves are most susceptible waste components for spontaneous ignition. In contrast, MC was the most influential parameter for resulting changes in ignition temperature (0C) on ignition time (min). A numerical equation was developed to estimate the time required for the spontaneous waste ignition at MSW dumpsite. The results of the study showed that the aged waste (age≥3year) having MC below 6 % and initial surface temperature of 78 0C might smolder and ignite during the hottest time of the day in∼6 and∼26days, respectively. Estimates showed that the time required for spontaneous waste ignition of aged waste is moderately dependent on waste MC (∼5-55 %), surface temperature (∼40-100 0C), monthly pattern of average high temperature (∼36.6-42.6 0C), biodegradable waste components having smoldering temperature≤150 0C and ignition temperature≤270 0C. The present study also showed that the occurrence of landfill fire events at MSW dumpsites is more prominent during the pre-monsoon season i.e. during the elevated temperature level.

Modelling, Composition and production rate of medical solid waste in Tikrit: A case study of Tikrit Teaching Hospital (TTH) in Iraq

Tikrit Teaching Hospital (TTH), Tikrit, Iraq, was selected for investigation as a case study. Data collection was carried out during TTH visits and by questionnaires. Sampling was performed during a 10-month period, one week each sampling month. The medical waste analyzed was comprised of 63.04% general waste (non-risk) and 36.96% hazardous waste. The results indicated that the medical waste generation rate is 0.9 kg/bed.day and 0.75 kg/patient.day. Statistically significant linear correlations were established between the daily production of medical solid waste and the respective number of patients and the occupied beds in TTH as whole. Based on the average daily production of medical solid waste produced by the departments of TTH (kg /d), the larger producer of general medical solid waste was obstetric department with average daily production of 25 kg/d, while the larger producer of hazardous medical solid waste was obstetric department with average daily production of 11 kg/d. The average specific weight of total medical waste, general waste, and hazardous waste were determined to be 218.6, 206.5 and 225.54 kg/m3, respectively. The average moisture content of total medical waste, general waste, and hazardous waste were determined to be 21, 20.4 and 23.4 %, respectively. The average general medical waste composition was: 40% organics, 21% plastics, 19% paper, 11% glass and 9% metals. Pathological wastes and sharp objects comprised 43% and 25% of the hazardous medical waste components.&#x0D;

Techno-enviro-economic investigations on self-sustainable solar powered blackwater treatment system

In this work, a sustainable way of blackwater treatment using solar energy is proposed and analyzed. This proposed system is designed for a small scale treatment capacity of 55 kg/day wastewater and 2.4 kg/day semisolid waste. The mixture of wastewater and semisolid waste (blackwater) is separated and passed through distillation and drying circuits powered by solar collectors making the system self-sustainable. The viability of the proposed system is assessed by thermodynamic, environment and economic aspects using a developed mathematical model for varying solar radiation and ambient conditions of Chennai, India. Upon year around analysis, this system is found to deliver a maximum average distillate yield of 15.54 kg/day and 20.82 kg/day showing the distillate efficiency of 28.25% and 37.85% under two modes of operation, normal and evacuated. The final moisture ratio and moisture content of semisolid waste can be reduced to a minimum of 0.028 and 6.82% wet basis. The environmental analysis performed shows effective net CO2 mitigations of about 68.49 tons and 95.31 tons under NM and EM operation during its lifetime of 20 years. From the economic analysis, the system payback period is reduced further with a decrease in the financed interest rate and an increase in distillate production cost when operated under EM. The system performance upon deployment in various water-stressed regions worldwide is analyzed and presented in an atlas that shows the proposed system's potential.

Health risks of odorous compounds during the whole process of municipal solid waste collection and treatment in China

The high moisture content and perishable organic waste of municipal solid waste (MSW) in China have caused the severe odor nuisance to be one of the crucial reasons for resident complaints. Understanding the environmental risks of odorous compounds lays the foundations for resolving the problems. This study collected concentration data of 86 odorous compounds in five types of MSW processing facilities/equipment which can well represent the whole process of MSW stream, including waste bins and transfer stations for collection, compost plants and anaerobic digestion plants for utilization, and landfills for final disposal. The results revealed that the occupational health risks of odorants were not fully consistent with the compound concentrations and olfactory annoyance. Higher odorous compound concentrations and more severe olfactory annoyance can be found in the MSW utilization and disposal facilities, but the occupational carcinogenic risk (2.79 × 10−5–1.12 × 10−3) was non-negligible along the whole MSW stream. Aromatic hydrocarbons and halogenated hydrocarbons were crucial contributors to the carcinogenic risk of odorous compounds emission from these facilities. Particularly for estimating the adverse impact range of MSW facilities, the carcinogenic risk was the most critical factor, implying impact distance of ∼1.5 km for MSW transfer station and ∼5 km for landfill, and even higher for the regions (such as southwest China) with lower wind speed and higher atmospheric stability. In addition to current regulations, another 5 compounds (acetaldehyde, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene, 1,2-dichloroethane, acrolein, and benzyl chloride) that displayed high carcinogenic risks were suggested to be concerned. This study provided insights for the policymakers regarding MSW odors management, especially underscoring the importance of considering the health risks of odorous compounds.

Design and evaluation of a conceptual waste-to-energy approach integrating plasma waste gasification with coal-fired power generation

A hybrid design that combines waste gasification and coal-fired power generation has been proposed for improving the waste-to-energy process. In the integrated scheme, municipal solid waste is fed into the plasma gasifier and converted into syngas, which is precooled by the feedwater of the coal power plant and then conveyed directly into the coal-fired boiler for combustion. Consequently, the syngas energy is exploited for electricity production through the steam cycle of the coal power plant. The benefits of this concept were examined based on a 4.0 kg/s (waste feed rate) plasma gasifier and a 660 MW coal power plant in the thermodynamic and economic aspects. Once the net power generated from coal remains constant, 16.12 MW net power can be produced from waste with a net waste-to-electricity efficiency of 35.16% in the hybrid design. Only 4.58 years is required to recover the initial investment of the proposed waste-to-energy system, and a net present value of 40,341.00 k$ can be achieved in its 25-year lifetime. Besides, the effects of the waste moisture content, equivalence ratio, and gasification temperature on the performance of the hybrid system were discussed.

System design and thermo-economic analysis of municipal solid waste power system integrated with steam dryer

High moisture content of municipal solid waste (MSW) decreases the efficiency of power plant firing MSW directly. The MSW power system integrated with an external steam dryer and waste heat recovery system (WHRS) is proposed to enhance the MSW power plant (MSWP) efficiency. A reference case study with a 12 MW MSWP is carried out. The efficiency of MSWP integrated with a steam dryer can be enhanced by 1.07 percentage points (%-pts) and 0.36%-pts with 0.21 and 1.13 MPa steam extraction, respectively, as dryer heating source at a dryness degree of 0.25. Furthermore, when the WHRS is integrated, the power plant efficiency is enhanced by 1.79%-pts and 1.08%-pts. Then, economic analysis is carried out, and results show that the MSWP can bring profits with the integration of a steam dryer with steam 1.13 MPa steam as heat source at rated degree of dryness.

Sustainable Waste Management at Household Level with Black Soldier Fly Larvae (Hermetia illucens)

Waste management service is inefficient in peri-urban and rural areas where biowaste is a major component of the household waste produced. Biowaste recycling using black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) at source can reduce the burden on the authorities and add economic value to a yet underutilized resource. This study evaluated the practicability of BSFL bin use at the household level to handle kitchen biowaste by placing three bins per house after 15 days interval of larval feeding. It was found that 50% of the households contacted cooperated well to continue the experiment. A set of instructions for handling BSFL bins based on reasons of agreement and disagreement was developed and shared. Key parameters to evaluate waste treatment performance and larval development were waste dry matter weight reduction (89.66%, SD 6.77%), volumetric reduction (81.3%, SD 4.8), final prepupal dry weight (69 mg/larvae, SD 7.1), biomass conversion rate (12.9%, SD 1.7), metabolism (77.3%, SD 6.0) and residue (10.4%, SD 6.8). On average, 87.7% (SD 9.1) of waste was actually digested, with 16.6% (SD 2.2) efficiently converted into biomass. Initial moisture content of waste was found to be more significant for achieving greater waste dry weight reduction as compared with the feeding rate. Source separation of biowaste and cooperation between households and authorities may lead to successful implementation of BSFL-assisted biowaste bins.

SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IN BIKANER CITY, RAJASTHAN (INDIA)

Waste as one of the major environmental issues in the current world can be seen scattered ubiquitously. There is a dire need to properly manage the waste due to the negative effects on public and environmental health. The present study aims to do analysis of the solid waste management practices in Bikaner municipal area (Rajasthan). Solid waste samples were collected from 10 selected locations of the study area. Physical composition and physicochemical parameters of solid waste were determined. Physicochemical parameters such as pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, salinity, moisture content and organic matter of solid waste were analyzed by using the standard methods. Organic matter made the highest content (27% to 76%) in the composition of all solid wastes. However, glass, metal and wood comprised the lowest content (1%). The pH range of samples was 5.1 to 7.5. Water holding capacity (%) was below 100 in all the samples though organic carbon ranged from 15.4 % to 19.6 %. Goga gate dumping site showed the highest solid waste content. It was found that waste management practices in Bikaner municipal area are not sustainable yet due to improper waste collection, waste dumping and lack of awareness among people. Solid waste need to be segregated at the source and segregation of recyclable waste should also be done for effective waste management. The organic fractions of solid waste could be utilized in composting.

Pengaruh Variasi Tekanan Terhadap Kerapatan, Kadar Air Dan Laju Pembakaran Pada Biobriket Limbah Kayu Mahoni

Abstract— The use of biomass from mahogany wood waste briquettes as a substitute fuel for oil and gas requires briquette technology. Mahogany wood briquette is able to convert into fuel with a fairly good conversion efficiency, high density and ease of storage and distribution. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of pressure variations on the density, moisture content and rate of burning of mahogany wood waste briquettes. The process of making charcoal biobriquettes begins with the carbonization process with a temperature of 400 ̊C, then smoothed and sieved with a size of 80 mesh - 100 to get the same size, and using tapioca adhesive 30% of the weight of the mixture. The mixture is put into a molding machine and then printed with a pressure of 80 kg/cm2, 115 kg/cm2, 150 kg/cm2, and 185 kg/cm2. Charcoal biobriquettes are dried in an oven at 105 ̊C for 1 hour. In this research, the mass density and moisture content of the mahogany wood waste met the Indonesian biobriquette standards, the results of this study obtained the higher density of 0,55 g/cm3at a pressure of 150 kg/cm2. The results lowest water content of 47,2% at a pressure of 185 kg/cm2. The lowest combustion rate is 0,257 g/min at a pressure of 185 kg/cm2. Keywords—: mahoni wood waste; pressure; moisture content; combustion rate.

Experimental study on biological dehydration pretreatment of kitchen waste

Aerobic fermentation treatment technology is one of the effective means of kitchen waste resource treatment at present. Due to the high moisture content of kitchen waste, dehydration pretreatment is needed before aerobic composting.At present, China usually adopts mechanical methods such as forced extrusion for dehydration treatment, which not only has high energy consumption, but also has high content of solid suspended solids (SS) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) in sewage. Sewage is difficult to meet discharge standards.In this paper, biological dehydration technology is proposed to pretreat kitchen waste. Experiments show that biological dehydration pretreatment can dehydrate kitchen waste, effectively reduce the SS and COD values in sewage, which is of great significance to the resource treatment of kitchen waste.

BIOGAS PRODUCTION FROM WASTE IN A SANITARY LANDFILL REACTOR

In this research study, the feasibility of waste to biogas conversion in a sanitary landfill unit was investigated. The academic work was about quantifying the methane emission values during the wet season, by applying the FOD method on a static flux chamber and a pilot-scale sanitary landfill, and the methane emission potential table was established. The study was conducted for a period of 16 weeks from November 2018 to February 2019. The waste used in the pilot-scale sanitary landfill included food and cattle waste. It was observed that the methane emission rate peaked at 0.25 g/m2.d during week 10 and decreased to 0.12 g/m2.d during week 16. In addition, the carbon dioxide concentration obtained was 45% during the anaerobic phases and around 50% during the aerobic phases. The academic work studied the contribution of leachate pH, waste moisture content, and gas temperature to change methane emission values. The waste moisture content proved to have a direct relationship with the methane emission values, unlike the gas temperature. The leachate pH value during week 10/5th test day was found to be 7.92, and increased steadily throughout the remaining study period, even though the methane emission values decreased during that period (after week 10/5th test day).It was observed that the leachate recirculation process decreased the leachate content even though it affected the methane emission values.

Generalized models to predict the lower heating value (LHV) of municipal solid waste (MSW)

Accurately and efficiently predicting the LHV of MSW is vital for designing and operating a waste-to-energy plant. However, previous prediction models possess limited geographical applicability. In this paper, we employ multiple linear regression and artificial neural network (ANN) techniques to predict LHV. These data-driven models utilize 151 globally distributed datasets identified during a systematic literature review, describing the wet physical composition of MSW and measured LHV. The results show that models built via both methods exhibited acceptable and compatible levels of performance in predicting LHV, based on the multiple statistical indicators. However, the ANN model proved to be more robust in handling of datasets of diverse quality. Models developed from both methods demonstrate clearly that the wet proportion of food waste has a negative impact on LHV. Supported by the strong and significant correlation between food waste and moisture content, we concluded that the negative impact of high moisture content in food waste on LHV outweighed its calorific value. Separating food waste or any other waste with high moisture content from the MSW for incineration can significantly improve energy recovery efficiency. Contrary to expectation, the models also reveal a higher contribution of paper waste to the LHV of MSW than plastic waste.

Pelletization of Post-Harvest Tobacco Waste and Investigation of Flue Gas Emissions from Pellet Combustion

The paper presents the results of the pelletization (agglomeration) tests of post-harvest tobacco waste as a feedstock for fuel pellet production. The experiment was conducted on a prototype pelleting–briquetting device with a flat matrix. The influence of the tobacco waste moisture content (17, 21 and 25wt.%) and the rotational speed of the agglomerating rolls (120, 170 and 220 rpm) on the power demand and on the pellet’s kinetic durability and density were determined. It was found that the moisture content has a significant impact on the pellet’s density but slightly affects its kinetic durability. The obtained pellets were characterized by a high density above 1000 kg·m−3 and kinetic durability above 97%. In order to examine the exhaust composition, the obtained pellets were combusted in a 25 kW fixed great boiler. High amounts of CO, SOx, NO and HCl were obtained, which suggests that the selection of a different technology for tobacco waste pellet combustion should be made.

Comparative Biodrying Performance of Municipal Solid Waste in the Reactor under Greenhouse and Non-greenhouse Conditions

The high moisture content of municipal solid waste yields a lower energy content of solid fuel that affects the thermal conversion efficiency. Biodrying is an alternative drying method using bio-heat generated by microbial metabolism to reduce the moisture content of municipal solid waste. This research was conducted in three pilot-scale biodrying reactors, two under greenhouse conditions compared with one conventional non-greenhouse condition. Two bunkers with greenhouse cladding were connected with aerators, and airflow rates were set at 0.4 and 0.6 m3/(kgwaste·day), respectively. Meanwhile, a passive aeration method was applied to the non-greenhouse bunker. This study aims to investigate the effect of the greenhouse condition on the biodrying process and assess the performance of the drying process through different operating conditions. The result shows that the greenhouse mainly affects the air temperature rise in the reactor. The aeration rate is positively correlated with weight reduction (r = 0.93). At 0.6 m3/(kgwaste·day) airflow rate, the treatment can reach a moisture content less than 30% on average within ten days, while at 0.4 m3/(kgwaste·day) airflow rate, it takes 15 days to reduce the moisture content to less than 30%. Biodrying under the greenhouse condition with active aeration potentially achieves desirable moisture content reduction and heating value increase more efficiently than the common biodrying. However, the airflow rate is a crucial factor in determining the suitable drying time in biodrying under the greenhouse condition.

Optimizing food waste hydrothermal parameters to reduce Maillard reaction and increase volatile fatty acid production

The occurrence of the Maillard reaction and melanoidins formation during the hydrothermal treatment of food waste can reduce the yield of volatile fatty acids (VFA); however, few studies have investigated the adverse effects of the Maillard reaction. This study identified the impact of hydrothermal treatment parameters on hydrolysis and melanoidins formation and optimized the hydrothermal treatment conditions to enhance VFA production by minimizing the impact of the Maillard reaction. A response surface methodology was employed to optimize the hydrothermal treatment parameters and VFA production was evaluated. Results showed that temperature, reaction time, and pH were significant interacting factors with respect to hydrolysis and melanoidins formation while the C/N ratio and moisture content of food waste had little impact. The optimal conditions for hydrothermal treatment (temperature of 132 °C, reaction time of 27 min, and a pH of 5.6) enhanced VFA production by 22.1%. Under optimal hydrothermal treatment conditions, a higher initial C/N ratio further increased VFA production.