Journal article

Publication year: 2022

Journal: Processes

Volume number: 10

Issue number: 6

eISSN: 2227-9717

Open access status: Gold

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10061048

Publisher: MDPI

Abstract: 
The increasing demand for renewable energy sources and demand-oriented electricity provision makes anaerobic digestion (AD) one of the most promising technologies. In addition to energy crops, the use of lignocellulosic residual and waste materials from agriculture is becoming increasingly important. However, AD of such feedstocks is often associated with difficulties due to the high content of lignocellulose and its microbial persistence. In the present work, the effect of hydrothermal pretreatment (HTP) on the digestibility of wheat straw is investigated and evaluated. Under different HTP temperatures (160-180 degrees C) and retention times (15-45 min), a significant increase in biomethane potential (BMP) can be observed in all cases. The highest BMP (309.64 mL CH4 g(-1) volatile solid (VS) is achieved after pretreatment at 160 degrees C for 45 min, which corresponds to an increase of 19% of untreated wheat straw. The results of a multiple linear regression model show that the solubilization of organic materials is influenced by temperature and time. Furthermore, using two different first-order kinetic models, an enhancement of AD rate during hydrolysis due to pretreatment is observed. However, the increasing intensity of pretreatment conditions is accompanied by a decreasing trend in the conversion of intermediates to methane.

Harvard Citation style: Zerback, T., Schumacher, B., Weinrich, S., Huelsemann, B. and Nelles, M. (2022) Hydrothermal Pretreatment of Wheat Straw-Evaluating the Effect of Substrate Disintegration on the Digestibility in Anaerobic Digestion, Processes, 10(6), Article 1048. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10061048

APA Citation style: Zerback, T., Schumacher, B., Weinrich, S., Huelsemann, B., & Nelles, M. (2022). Hydrothermal Pretreatment of Wheat Straw-Evaluating the Effect of Substrate Disintegration on the Digestibility in Anaerobic Digestion. Processes. 10(6), Article 1048. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10061048