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Flow sculpting enabled anaerobic digester for energy recovery from low-solid content waste
Renewable Energy
  • Sophia Ghanimeh, Notre Dame University-Louaize, Lebanon
  • Charbel Abou Khalil, Notre Dame University-Louaize, Lebanon
  • Daniel Stoecklein, Iowa State University
  • Aditya Kommasojula, Iowa State University
  • Baskar Ganapathysubramanian, Iowa State University
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Accepted Manuscript
Publication Date
2-22-2020
DOI
10.1016/j.renene.2020.02.071
Abstract

Traditionally, energy recovery from low-solid-content wastes occurs in Continuously Stirred Tank Reactors, whereas Plug Flow Reactors (PFR) are used to treat high-solid-content wastes. In comparison, this study uses a special configuration of anaerobic PFR (AnPFR), consisting of a coiled tubular structure, for energy recovery from a mixture of Food Waste and Wastewater, fed at a loading rate of 3 gVS.L−1.d−1 and a solids content of 2.5%. The AnPFR was upgraded into a Flow Sculpting enabled Anaerobic Digester (FSAD), an innovative plug flow design relying on flow sculpting via a sequence of pillars to provide passive mixing. The purpose of the FSAD design is to optimize operational performance while maintaining minimum mixing energy requirements. Computational fluid dynamics simulations revealed that pillars induce local vorticity in the fluid and contribute to the inertial deformation of the flow to enhance mixing. Coherently, experimental results proved that upgrading the AnPFR to FSAD resulted in a better stability (VFA dropped from 4433 to 2034 mg L−1) and a higher efficiency (removal efficiencies of COD and volatile solids increased from 75% to 77%–88% and 91%, respectively). Equally important, the methane yield, indicative of energy generation potential, increased from 181 L kg VSfed−1 to 291 L kg VSfed−1.

Comments

This is a manuscript of an article published as Ghanimeh, Sophia, Charbel Abou Khalil, Daniel Stoecklein, Aditya Kommasojula, and Baskar Ganapathysubramanian. "Flow sculpting enabled anaerobic digester for energy recovery from low-solid content waste." Renewable Energy (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2020.02.071. Posted with permission.

Creative Commons License
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International
Copyright Owner
Elsevier Ltd.
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Citation Information
Sophia Ghanimeh, Charbel Abou Khalil, Daniel Stoecklein, Aditya Kommasojula, et al.. "Flow sculpting enabled anaerobic digester for energy recovery from low-solid content waste" Renewable Energy (2020)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/baskar-ganapathysubramanian/98/