pH-Based Control of Anaerobic Digestion to Maximise Ammonium Production in Liquid Digestate

A typically overlooked by-product of the anaerobic digestion process is the liquid digestate. The digestate is generally high in valuable nutrients like nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus, which are essential for plant growth. This indicates that digestate can be an effective fertilizer. In this study, the pH of the anaerobic digestion process was controlled at three different set points (6, 7, and 8) for three different substrates (banana peels, cow dung, and red lentils) in order to determine the ammonium release characteristics at each set point. This was achieved by using two different set-ups; one set-up, named the daily dosing set-up (DDS), incorporated pH corrections once a day, and the other set-up, named the continuous dosing set-up (CDS), corrected the pH every minute. It was discovered that a pH of 7 is the optimal set point for both ammonium release as well as the gas production rate. In terms of a comparative analysis between precise pH control being performed every minute and pH control that was performed once a day, there were differences present in the gas production profiles with the CDS providing enhanced rates compared to the DDS. However, there was a negligible difference in the ammonium release rate.

Automated summary

The liquid digestate, a by-product of the anaerobic digestion process, is rich in essential nutrients for plant growth. This study investigated the ammonium release characteristics and gas production rate by controlling the pH of the digestion process. Results showed that a pH of 7 was optimal for both ammonium release and gas production.