title: Benefit of sodium hydroxide pretreatment of ensiled sorghum forage on the anaerobic reactor stability and methane production.
abstract: The assessment of the pretreatment effect on the anaerobic digestion process is generally based on the results of batch tests, which may fail in truly predicting full-scale anaerobic reactors performance. Therefore, in this study, the effect of alkaline pretreatment on the anaerobic digestion of ensiled sorghum forage was evaluated by comparing the results of two semi-continuous CSTR (Continuously Stirred Tank Reactor) anaerobic reactors. Results showed that an alkaline pretreatment step, prior to the anaerobic digestion of ensiled sorghum forage, can have a beneficial effect both in enhancing methane production (an increase of 25% on methane production was observed, if compared to that of untreated sorghum) and in giving more stability to the anaerobic digestion process.
authors.affiliation: Politecnico di Milano, DICA, Environmental Section, Milano, Italy. cecilia.sambusiti@mail.polimi.it
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sambusiti
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ficara
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Malpei
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Steyer
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Carrère
mesh_terms: D000468:Alkalies / Q000737:chemistry; D000693:Anaerobiosis / Q000187:drug effects; D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis*; D019149:Bioreactors / Q000382:microbiology*; D005232:Fatty Acids, Volatile / Q000032:analysis; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration / Q000187:drug effects; D008697:Methane / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D012820:Silage / Q000032:analysis*; D012972:Sodium Hydroxide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D045868:Sorghum / Q000737:chemistry*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000468:Alkalies; D005232:Fatty Acids, Volatile; D012972:Sodium Hydroxide; D008697:Methane
keywords: Alkaline pretreatment; Alkalinity; Anaerobic digestion; Biogas; Lignocellulosic biomass