Anaerobic digestibility of aerobic granular sludge from continuous flow reactors: the role of granule size distribution

There is an increasing interest in integrating aerobic granular sludge (AGS) technology into wastewater industries. Several projects are being performed to cultivate the aerobic granules for continuous flow reactors (AGS-CFR), while there is a scarcity of those projects that investigate the bio-energy recovery from AGS-CFR. This research was designed to examine the digestibility of AGS-CFR. Beyond that, it aimed at defining the role of the granule size on their digestibility. For this purpose, a series of bio-methane potential (BMP) tests have been run at mesophilic conditions. The results showed that AGS-CFR has a lower methane potential (107.43+ 4.30 NmL/g VS) compared to activated sludge. This may be the result of the high sludge age (30 days) of AGS-CFR. Additionally, the results revealed that the average size of granules is among the main factors that reduce their digestibility, but it does not inhibit it. It was noticed that granules of size.250 mu m have a significantly lower methane yield than the smaller ones. Kinetically, it was noticed that the kinetic models with two hydrolysis rates fit well with the methane curve of AGS-CFR. Overall, this work showed that the average size of AGS-CFR characterizes its biodegradability, which in turn defines its methane yield.

Automated summary

There is a growing interest in integrating aerobic granular sludge (AGS) technology into wastewater industries. While there are several projects on cultivating aerobic granules for continuous flow reactors (AGS-CFR), there is a scarcity of projects investigating bio-energy recovery from AGS-CFR. This research aims to examine the digestibility of AGS-CFR and the role of granule size on their digestibility. BMP tests were conducted at mesophilic conditions, showing that AGS-CFR has a lower methane potential compared to activated sludge, possibly due to the high sludge age. The average size of granules is a key factor in reducing their digestibility, with larger granules yielding significantly less methane than smaller ones.