Open AccessHydrogen and methane production from desugared molasses using a two‐stage thermophilic anaerobic process
Author(s) -
Kongjan Prawit,
OThong Sompong,
Angelidaki Irini
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
engineering in life sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.547
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1618-2863
pISSN - 1618-0240
DOI - 10.1002/elsc.201100191
Subject(s) - methanogen , biohydrogen , methanogenesis , hydrogen production , chemistry , methane , hydraulic retention time , methanosarcina , hydrogen , waste management , pulp and paper industry , effluent , organic chemistry , engineering
Hydrogen and methane production from desugared molasses by a two‐stage thermophilic anaerobic process was investigated in a series of two up‐flow anaerobic sludge blanket ( UASB ) reactors. The first reactor that was dominated with hydrogen‐producing bacteria of Thermoanaerobacterium thermosaccharolyticum and Thermoanaerobacterium aciditolerans could generate a high hydrogen production rate of 5600 mL H 2 /day/L, corresponding to a yield of 132 mL H 2 /g volatile solid (VS). The effluent from the hydrogen reactor was further converted to methane in the second reactor with the optimal production rate of 3380 mL CH 4 /day/L, corresponding to a yield of 239 mL CH 4 /g VS. Aceticlastic Methanosarcina mazei was the dominant methanogen in the methanogenesis stage. This work demonstrates that biohydrogen production can be very efficiently coupled with a subsequent step of methane production using desugared molasses. Furthermore, the mixed gas with a volumetric content of 16.5% H 2, 38.7% CO 2 , and 44.8% CH 4 , containing approximately 15% energy by hydrogen is viable to be bio‐hythane.