Efficient Anaerobic Digestion Process For Wastewater Treatment And Biogas Production

Effective wastewater treatment is one of the major global challenges that we face today.

It is essential to control and manage waste properly as it results in polluted water resources, soil quality degradation and disturbs the environment.

Anaerobic digestion process in wastewater treatment is regarded as one of the most potent ways to deal with wastewater and its management.

The process has been in use for a long time, and innovative anaerobic solutions today are helping massively in the treatment of wastewater.

The biological treatment of wastewater is one of the most important processes. In this process, aerobic and anaerobic digestion processes are used to break down organic waste.

All kinds of waste reach wastewater treatment facilities. This includes household waste like food waste and municipal solid waste collected by authorities.

A large amount of industrial waste and pre-treated effluent and agricultural and animal waste is found in wastewater. The anaerobic digestion process takes place in the absence of oxygen.

The microorganisms act aggressively on the organic waste present in the wastewater. This includes fats, oils, grease, food waste, bio-solids, animal manure, etc. The output received is in the form of biogas

There are many distinct advantages of the anaerobic digestion process over the aerobic:

• Less amount of sludge is retained after the anaerobic process.
• Sludge treatment cost is thus reduced.
• High organic load rates are made possible.
• Efficient COD reduction.
• Toxic waste is converted into by-products that are harmless.
• Comparatively more energy-efficient process.
• The by-products of the anaerobic digestion process are a great source of energy and biogas production.

Biogas is made up of methane and carbon dioxide mainly. Depending upon the system, methane gas constitutes almost 60 -70% of biogas whereas carbon dioxide present is around 20-30%.

Now, biogas as an energy source can be used to run the wastewater treatment plant itself. Moreover, it acts as the source of heat energy and can be transformed into a renewable source of energy and fuel for running vehicles too.

Thus, an anaerobic digestion process is essential for a sustainable future.

The other components include nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, and also hydrogen sulphide and ammonia. The final material or residue that remains is known as digestate.

It is rich in nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Thus, it can be used for soil fertility. It is widely used for composting, soil amendments, bedding for livestock, etc.

See Also: Anaerobic Treatment of Wastewater for Production of Biogas

The anaerobic digestion process consists of four biochemical steps; Hydrolysis, Acidogenesis, Acetogenesis, and Methanogenesis at the end of which we get CH4 and CO2 as output.

Thus, the quality and quantity of biogas depend on all these steps. The biochemical reaction, in turn, is dependent on the quality of the microbial activity.

Different types of hydrolysing, acidogenic and similar microbes act on the waste. It is important to understand that microbes are naturally present in the wastewater, and they are meant to act on it.

Till recently, only the right non-oxygen environment set-up and other factors were needed to be provided for the best performance from microbes.

In 2020, the amount of wastewater generated is unbounded. This has put immense pressure on wastewater treatment plants. The extra load of wastewater has limited the efficiency and function of microbes.

This is where the latest innovations in biological treatment solutions are helping boost the productivity of wastewater treatment plants.

Organica Biotech’s Cleanmaxx ANB is one of the best products in the market to boost the anaerobic digestion process and biogas production.

Also Read: Anaerobic Process for Treating Sewage

Cleanmaxx ANB consists of a highly diverse and concentrated community of anaerobic microbes that convert organic waste into biogas and support the hydrolysis and acidification processes.

It maximized COD/BOD reduction as well and enhances biogas production. Thus, it is one of the best solutions for efficient anaerobic digestion process in wastewater treatment and biogas production.