Hydrogen Production from Biomass and Organic Waste Using Dark Fermentation: An Analysis of Literature Data on the Effect of Operating Parameters on Process Performance

In the context of hydrogen production from biomass or organic waste with dark fermentation, this study analysed 55 studies (339 experiments) in the literature looking for the effect of operating parameters on the process performance of dark fermentation. The effect of substrate concentration, pH, temperature, and residence time on hydrogen yield, productivity, and content in the biogas was analysed. In addition, a linear regression model was developed to also account for the effect of nature and pretreatment of the substrate, inhibition of methanogenesis, and continuous or batch operating mode. The analysis showed that the hydrogen yield was mainly affected by pH and residence time, with the highest yields obtained for low pH and short residence time. High hydrogen productivity was favoured by high feed concentration, short residence time, and low pH. More modest was the effect on the hydrogen content. The mean values of hydrogen yield, productivity, and content were, respectively, 6.49% COD COD−1, 135 mg L−1 d−1, 51% v/v, while 10% of the considered experiments obtained yield, productivity, and content of or higher than 15.55% COD COD−1, 305.16 mg L−1 d−1, 64% v/v. Overall, this study provides insight into how to select the optimum operating conditions to obtain the desired hydrogen production.

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Bio-electrochemical production of hydrogen and electricity from organic waste

10.21203/rs.3.rs-1032725/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Giorgia De Gioannis ◽

Alessandro Dell'Era ◽

Aldo Muntoni ◽

Mauro Pasquali ◽

Alessandra Polettini ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Production ◽

Electron Flow ◽

Dark Fermentation ◽

Electrochemical Process ◽

Integrated System ◽

Galvanic Cell ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Cell Coupling ◽

Production Of Hydrogen ◽

Acid Metabolites

Abstract This study investigated the performance of a novel integrated bio-electrochemical system for synergistic hydrogen production from a process combining a dark fermentation reactor and a galvanic cell. The operating principle of the system is based on the electrochemical conversion of protons released upon dissociation of the acid metabolites of the biological process and is mediated by the electron flow from the galvanic cell, coupling biochemical and electrochemical hydrogen production. Accordingly, the galvanic compartment also generates electricity. Four different experimental setups were designed to provide a preliminary assessment of the integrated bio-electrochemical process and identify the optimal configuration for further tests. Subsequently, dark fermentation of cheese whey was implemented both in a stand-alone biochemical reactor and in the integrated bio-electrochemical process. The integrated system achieved a hydrogen yield in the range 75.5 – 78.8 N LH2/kg TOC, showing a 3 times improvement over the biochemical process.

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Hydrogen Production from Coffee Mucilage in Dark Fermentation with Organic Wastes

Energies ◽

10.3390/en12010071 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

pp. 71 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Edilson Cárdenas ◽

Arley Zapata-Zapata ◽

Daehwan Kim

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Production ◽

Manufacturing Industry ◽

Nitrogen Sources ◽

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Dark Fermentation ◽

Organic Wastes ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Hydrogen Metabolism ◽

Wholesale Market ◽

Experimental Conditions

One of primary issues in the coffee manufacturing industry is the production of large amounts of undesirable residues, which include the pericarp (outer skin), pulp (outer mesocarp), parchment (endocarp), silver-skin (epidermis) and mucilage (inner mesocarp) that cause environmental problems due to toxic molecules contained therein. This study evaluated the optimal hydrogen production from coffee mucilage combined with organic wastes (wholesale market garbage) in a dark fermentation process. The supplementation of organic wastes offered appropriate carbon and nitrogen sources with further nutrients; it was positively effective in achieving cumulative hydrogen production. Three different ratios of coffee mucilage and organic wastes (8:2, 5:5, and 2:8) were tested in 30 L bioreactors using two-level factorial design experiments. The highest cumulative hydrogen volume of 25.9 L was gained for an 8:2 ratio (coffee mucilage: organic wastes) after 72 h, which corresponded to 1.295 L hydrogen/L substrates (0.248 mol hydrogen/mol hexose). Biochemical identification of microorganisms found that seven microorganisms were involved in the hydrogen metabolism. Further studies of anaerobic fermentative digestion with each isolated pure bacterium under similar experimental conditions reached a lower final hydrogen yield (up to 9.3 L) than the result from the non-isolated sample (25.9 L). Interestingly, however, co-cultivation of two identified microorganisms (Kocuria kristinae and Brevibacillus laterosporus), who were relatively highly associated with hydrogen production, gave a higher yield (14.7 L) than single bacterium inoculum but lower than that of the non-isolated tests. This work confirms that the re-utilization of coffee mucilage combined with organic wastes is practical for hydrogen fermentation in anaerobic conditions, and it would be influenced by the bacterial consortium involved.

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Dark Fermentation of Sweet Sorghum Stalks, Cheese Whey and Cow Manure Mixture: Effect of pH, Pretreatment and Organic Load

Processes ◽

10.3390/pr9061017 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (6) ◽

pp. 1017

Author(s):

Margarita Andreas Dareioti ◽

Aikaterini Ioannis Vavouraki ◽

Konstantina Tsigkou ◽

Constantina Zafiri ◽

Michael Kornaros

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acids ◽

Hydrogen Production ◽

Sweet Sorghum ◽

Volatile Fatty Acids ◽

Cheese Whey ◽

Dark Fermentation ◽

Organic Load ◽

Anaerobic Sludge ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Cow Manure

The aim of this study was to determine the optimal conditions for dark fermentation using agro-industrial liquid wastewaters mixed with sweet sorghum stalks (i.e., 55% sorghum, 40% cheese whey, and 5% liquid cow manure). Batch experiments were performed to investigate the effect of controlled pH (5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5) on the production of bio-hydrogen and volatile fatty acids. According to the obtained results, the maximum hydrogen yield of 0.52 mol H2/mol eq. glucose was measured at pH 5.5 accompanied by the highest volatile fatty acids production, whereas similar hydrogen productivity was also observed at pH 6.0 and 6.5. The use of heat-treated anaerobic sludge as inoculum had a positive impact on bio-hydrogen production, exhibiting an increased yield of 1.09 mol H2/mol eq. glucose. On the other hand, the pretreated (ensiled) sorghum, instead of a fresh one, led to a lower hydrogen production, while the organic load decrease did not affect the process performance. In all experiments, the main fermentation end-products were volatile fatty acids (i.e., acetic, propionic, butyric), ethanol and lactic acid.

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Energy Analysis of Hydrogen Production from Methanol under Atmospheric Pressure and Supercritical Water Conditions

Advanced Materials Research ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.1119.548 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 1119 ◽

pp. 548-553

Author(s):

Nawadee Srisiriwat

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Production ◽

Reaction Temperature ◽

Supercritical Water ◽

Atmospheric Pressure ◽

Energy Analysis ◽

Ideal Gas ◽

Operating Conditions ◽

Optimum Operating ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Water Amount

The energy analysis of hydrogen production from the methanol reforming and oxidation under atmospheric (ATM) pressure and supercritical water (SCW) conditions was performed. The equilibrium hydrogen was investigated by the minimization of the Gibbs free energy based on Peng-Robinson equation of state for high pressure and ideal gas equation for atmospheric pressure. An objective of this study was to obtain the optimum operating conditions to maximize the net hydrogen yield, defined as the hydrogen yield taking into account also the methanol consumed by combustion to generate heat. This was done by investigating the effect of operating parameters over the following ranges: temperatures between 773 and 1273 K, pressures between 0.1 and 25.0 MPa, water-to-methanol (H2O:MeOH) ratios between 1 and 5, and oxygen-to-methanol (O2:MeOH) ratios between 0 and 1.05. At ATM pressure, it was found that the equilibrium hydrogen yield increases with increasing H2O:MeOH ratio but the peak of equilibrium H2yield is at 973 K for higher H2O:MeOH ratio than 1:1. Additionally, the total heat load increases significantly as the reaction temperature and the water amount increase. Therefore, the optimum net H2yield is at the H2O:MeOH ratio of 2:1 and the reaction temperature at 973 K. Under SCW conditions, an increase of temperature and water amount in the system constantly increases the equilibrium H2yield. It means that the high H2O:MeOH ratio and temperature are required in SCW. The presence of oxygen in hydrogen production was investigated that an increase of O2:MeOH ratio constantly decreases the H2yield and also the net H2yield for reaction at ATM pressure whereas under SCW conditions, the equilibrium H2yield and the net H2yield increase with increasing oxygen up to 0.42 and 0.84, respectively.

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Bio-Hydrogen Production from Wastewater: A Comparative Study of Low Energy Intensive Production Processes

Clean Technologies ◽

10.3390/cleantechnol3010010 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 156-182

Author(s):

A K M Khabirul Islam ◽

Patrick S. M. Dunlop ◽

Neil J. Hewitt ◽

Rose Lenihan ◽

Caterina Brandoni

Keyword(s):

Wastewater Treatment ◽

Hydrogen Production ◽

Scale Up ◽

Clean Energy ◽

H2 Production ◽

Dark Fermentation ◽

Low Energy ◽

Synthetic Wastewater ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Wastewater Remediation

Billions of litres of wastewater are produced daily from domestic and industrial areas, and whilst wastewater is often perceived as a problem, it has the potential to be viewed as a rich source for resources and energy. Wastewater contains between four and five times more energy than is required to treat it, and is a potential source of bio-hydrogen—a clean energy vector, a feedstock chemical and a fuel, widely recognised to have a role in the decarbonisation of the future energy system. This paper investigates sustainable, low-energy intensive routes for hydrogen production from wastewater, critically analysing five technologies, namely photo-fermentation, dark fermentation, photocatalysis, microbial photo electrochemical processes and microbial electrolysis cells (MECs). The paper compares key parameters influencing H2 production yield, such as pH, temperature and reactor design, summarises the state of the art in each area, and highlights the scale-up technical challenges. In addition to H2 production, these processes can be used for partial wastewater remediation, providing at least 45% reduction in chemical oxygen demand (COD), and are suitable for integration into existing wastewater treatment plants. Key advancements in lab-based research are included, highlighting the potential for each technology to contribute to the development of clean energy. Whilst there have been efforts to scale dark fermentation, electro and photo chemical technologies are still at the early stages of development (Technology Readiness Levels below 4); therefore, pilot plants and demonstrators sited at wastewater treatment facilities are needed to assess commercial viability. As such, a multidisciplinary approach is needed to overcome the current barriers to implementation, integrating expertise in engineering, chemistry and microbiology with the commercial experience of both water and energy sectors. The review concludes by highlighting MECs as a promising technology, due to excellent system modularity, good hydrogen yield (3.6–7.9 L/L/d from synthetic wastewater) and the potential to remove up to 80% COD from influent streams.

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Effects of different operating parameters on hydrogen production by Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius DSM 6285

AMB Express ◽

10.1186/s13568-019-0931-1 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Teresa Mohr ◽

Habibu Aliyu ◽

Lars Biebinger ◽

Roman Gödert ◽

Alexander Hornberger ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Production ◽

Alternative Energy ◽

Fermentation Medium ◽

Hydrogen Gas ◽

Operating Parameters ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Strong Basis ◽

Individual Parameter ◽

Promising Alternative ◽

Parageobacillus Thermoglucosidasius

AbstractHydrogen gas represents a promising alternative energy source to dwindling fossil fuel reserves, as it carries the highest energy per unit mass and its combustion results in the release of water vapour as only byproduct. The facultatively anaerobic thermophile Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius is able to produce hydrogen via the water–gas shift reaction catalyzed by a carbon monoxide dehydrogenase–hydrogenase enzyme complex. Here we have evaluated the effects of several operating parameters on hydrogen production, including different growth temperatures, pre-culture ages and inoculum sizes, as well as different pHs and concentrations of nickel and iron in the fermentation medium. All of the tested parameters were observed to have a substantive effect on both hydrogen yield and (specific) production rates. A final experiment incorporating the best scenario for each tested parameter showed a marked increase in the H2 production rate compared to each individual parameter. The optimised parameters serve as a strong basis for improved hydrogen production with a view of commercialisation of this process.

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BIOHYDROGEN PRODUCTION FROM WASTES OF PLANT AND ANIMAL ORIGIN VIA DARK FERMENTATION

Journal of Environmental Engineering and Landscape Management ◽

10.3846/jeelm.2019.9806 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 27 (2) ◽

pp. 101-113 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Weronika Cieciura-Włoch ◽

Sebastian Borowski

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Production ◽

Sugar Beet ◽

Dark Fermentation ◽

Biohydrogen Production ◽

Animal Origin ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Vegetable Waste ◽

Fruit And Vegetable ◽

Kitchen Waste ◽

High Hydrogen

This study investigated the batch experiments on biohydrogen production from wastes of plant and animal origin. Several substrates including sugar beet pulp (SBP), sugar beet leaves (SBL), sugar beet stillage (SBS), rye stillage (RS), maize silage (MS), fruit and vegetable waste (FVW), kitchen waste (KW) and slaughterhouse waste (SHW) including intestinal wastes, meat tissue, post flotation sludge were tested for their suitability for hydrogen production. Generally, the substrates of plant origin were found to be appropriate for dark fermentation, and the highest hydrogen yield of 280 dm3 H2/kg VS was obtained from fruit and vegetable waste. Contrary to these findings, slaughterhouse waste as well as kitchen waste turned out to be unsuitable for hydrogen production although their methane potential was high. It was also concluded that the combined thermal pretreatment with substrate acidification was needed to achieve high hydrogen yields from wastes.

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Biohydrogen production by fermentive bacterium Clostridium sp. Tr2 using batch fermenter system controlled pH under dark fermentation

Journal of Vietnamese Environment ◽

10.13141/jve.vol9.no1.pp4-10 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 4-10

Author(s):

Thi Thu Huyen Nguyen ◽

Thi Yen Dang ◽

Thuy Hien Lai

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Production ◽

Alternative Energy ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Dark Fermentation ◽

Gas Production ◽

Biohydrogen Production ◽

Great Promise ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Promising Alternative ◽

Fermentative Bacteria

Limitation of fuels reserves and contribution of fossil fuels to the greenhouse effect leads to develop anew, clean and sustainable energy. Among the various options, biohydrogen appears as a promising alternative energy source. The fermentative hydrogen production process holds a great promise for commercial processes. Hydrogen production by fermentative bacteria is a very complex and greatly inﬂuenced by pH. This paper presents biohydrogen production by bacterial strain Clostridium sp. Tr2. Operational pH strongly affected its hyrogen production. Its gas production rate as well as obtained gas product were roughly increase twice under controlled pH at 6 than non-controlled condition. Dark fermentation for hydrogen production of strain Tr2 was performed under bottle as well as automatic fermenter scale under optimal nutritional and environmental conditions at 30°C, initial pH at 6.5, then pH was controlled at 6 for bioreactor scale (BioFlo 110). Bioreactor scale was much better for hydrogen production of strain Tr2. Clostridium sp. Tr2 produced 0.74 L hydro (L medium)-1 occupying 72.6 % of total gas under bottle scale while it produced 2.94 L hydro (L medium)-1 occupying 95.82 % of total gas under fermenter scale. Its maximum obtained hydrogen yield of Clostridium sp. Tr2 under bioreactor scale Bioflo 110 in optimal medium with controlled pH 6 was 2.31 mol hydro (mol glucose)-1. Dự trữ nhiên liệu có giới hạn và việc sử dụng nhiên liêu hoá thạch góp phần không nhỏ gây hiệu ứng nhà kính dẫn đến cần phải phát triển năng lượng mới, sạch và bền vững. Trong số các giải pháp, hydro sinh học xuất hiện như một nguồn năng lượng thay thế đầy hứa hẹn. Quá trình lên men sản xuất hydro có tiềm năng lớn để áp dụng trong sản xuất thương mại. Tuy nhiên qúa trình này rất phức tạp và chịu ảnh hưởng lớn bởi pH. Nghiên cứu này trình bày sản xuất hydro sinh học do chủng vi khuẩn Clostridium sp. Tr2. Quá trình sản xuất hydro của chủng này bị ảnh hưởng mạnh mẽ bởi pH thay đổi trong quá trình lên men. Tốc độ tạo khí cũng như lượng khí thu được của chủng này tăng gần gấp đôi trong môi trường có duy trì pH ở pH 6 so với môi trường không kiểm soát pH. Quá trình lên men tối sản xuất hydro của chủng Tr2 được thực hiện ở quy mô bình thí nghiệm cũng như bình lên men tự động trong điều kiện môi trường tối ưu ở 30°C, pH ban đầu 6.5, ở qui mô bình lên men tự động (BioFlo 110), pH môi trường sau đó được duy trì ổn định ở pH 6. Lên men sản xuất hdyro của chủng Tr2 trong bình lên men tự động tốt hơn rất nhiều so với lên men trong bình thí nghiệm. Clostridium sp. Tr2 chỉ tạo ra được 0,74 L hydro (L medium)-1 chiếm 72,6 % tổng thể tích khí thu được ở điều kiện lên men bình thí nghiệm trong khi chủng này sản xuất được 2,94 L hydro (L medium)-1 chiếm 95,82 % tổng thể tích khí ở điều kiện lên men tự động. Sản lượng hydro thu được lớn nhất của chủng này trong bình lên men tự động BioFlo 110 trong trong môi trường tối ưu có kiểm soát pH tại pH 6 là 2,31 mol hydro (mol glucose)-1.

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Optimization of Hydrogen Production by Co-Culture of Clostridium beijerinckii and Rhodobacter sphaeroides Bacteria

Advances in Science and Technology ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/ast.93.90 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 93 ◽

pp. 90-95 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Roman Zagrodnik

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Production ◽

Rhodobacter Sphaeroides ◽

Hydrogen Generation ◽

Nitrogen Sources ◽

Dark Fermentation ◽

Single Step ◽

Clostridium Beijerinckii ◽

Hydrogen Yield ◽

Batch Tests ◽

Pure Cultures

The biological methods of hydrogen generation have attracted a significant interest recently. In this work the hybrid system applying both dark fermentation bacteria in co-culture was tested. Objective of this work was to investigate the optimization of different parameters on co-culture of Clostridium beijerinckii DSM-791 and Rhodobacter sphaeroides O.U.001. The effect of glucose concentration (1–5 g/L), temperature and initial pH (6,5–7,5) was analyzed. Moreover the influence of organic nitrogen sources were tested for their capacity to support hydrogen production (yeast extract, peptone, glutamic acid). Fermentations were conducted in batch tests with glucose as sole substrate. Hydrogen production in mixed culture was compared with pure cultures. The process was greatly affected by pH and light/dark bacteria ratio. Liquid metabolites, namely acetic and butyric acids, from the dark fermentation step were the source of organic carbon for photosynthetic bacteria. This increased the hydrogen yield in comparison to single-step dark fermentation to over 4 mol H2/mol glucose. Obtained results showed that combination of photo and dark fermentation may increase hydrogen production and conversion efficiency of complex substrates or wastewaters.

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