Two-phase methane fermentation of municipal-industrial sludge

Conference · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1984

OSTI ID:6087789

Ghosh, S; Sajjad, A

This paper presents the development of an innovative two-phase methane fermentation process that provided a mesophilic methane yield of about 0.5 SCM/kg VS (8 SCF/lb VS) added from digestion of a municipal-industrial sludge at a system hydraulic residence time (HRT) of about 6 days compared with a yield of 0.22 to 0.31 SCM/kg VS (3.5 to 5.0 SCF/lb VS) added obtained from single-stage conventional high-rate digesters operated at HRT's of 10 to 20 days. This innovative process has substantive beneficial impact on the production of net energy and availability of surplus digester methane for sale or conversion to such other energy forms as substitute natural gas, electric power, hot water, or low-pressure steam. The research was conducted with a high-metal-content and difficult-to-treat primary sludge from the South Essex Sewerage District (SESD) water pollution control plant, Salem, Massachusetts. Wastewaters received at the plant include 40 to 60 vol % industrial wastes, the remainder being residential liquid wastes. Incineration, which was the sludge disposal process at the plant, is now unacceptable because it leads to the production of hexavalent chromium and other oxidized metals, and the incinerator ash containing these materials cannot be landfilled. The two-phase process does not generate oxidized species such as Cr/sup 6 +/, produces renewable energy and a highly stabilized residue, and could be an answer to the sludge disposal problems of SESD or other sewage districts. Results of bench-scale process development work are presented here. Design and operation of a 7500 L/day (2000 gal/day) two-phase pilot plant will be started this year with support from the above industrial sponsors and other governmental and public agencies. 6 references, 1 figure, 5 tables.

• Research Organization: Institute of Gas Technology, Chicago, IL (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6087789
• Report Number(s): CONF-8409146-2; ON: TI85900681
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
090122* -- Hydrocarbon Fuels-- Preparation from Wastes or Biomass-- (1976-1989)
ALKANES
ANAEROBIC DIGESTION
BENCH-SCALE EXPERIMENTS
BIOCONVERSION
DATA
DIAGRAMS
DIGESTION
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FLOWSHEETS
HYDROCARBONS
INDUSTRIAL WASTES
INFORMATION
MANAGEMENT
METHANE
MUNICIPAL WASTES
NUMERICAL DATA
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PROCESSING
PRODUCTION
SLUDGES
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WASTES