The impact of four design parameters on the performance of a high‐solids anaerobic digestion of municipal solid waste for fuel gas production

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Abstract
The impact of four design parameters on the performance of a pilot scale high‐solids anaerobic digestion process is evaluated and discussed in this paper. Results obtained from this study indicate that the rate of methane gas production was inversely proportional to the average feedstock particle diameter. Feedstock with various C/N ratios, ranging from 8 to 125, were fed into the reactor and an optimum C/N ratio, based on biodegradable carbon and total nitrogen, was found to be about 25 to 30. Biogas production increased with an increase of organic loading rate up to a rate of 7.5 g BVS kg‐1 active reactor mass?d. Organic overload occurred at 7.6 g kg‐1 and continued up to 11.5 g kg‐1 active reactor mass at which point the volatile fatty acids accumulation in the reactor reached an inhibitory limit and caused digester failure. Mass retention times of 30, 20, and 15 days were investigated, while the organic loading rate was kept constant at about 7 g BVS kg‐1 active reactor mass. Shorter MRT's resulted in decreased gas production, presumably due, at least in part, to the removal of active micro‐organisms from the reactor.