Improving the biogas yield of manure: Effect of pretreatment on anaerobic digestion of the recalcitrant fraction of manure

Anaerobic digestion of animal manure show a maximum of ca. 50% conversion of volatile solids due to recalcitrance of lignin and crystalline cellulose under anaerobic conditions. The aim of this study is to evaluate different pretreatments on anaerobic digestion of manure fibers after anaerobic digestion. Physical, chemical, thermal, and thermal combined with alkaline pretreatments using sodium hydroxide were tested on manure fiber fraction separated out after anaerobic digestion of cow manure. The anaerobic digestion after pretreatment along with untreated controls were done in semi-continuous anaerobic bioreactors. All pretreatments showed positive effect and the highest increase in VS conversion (42.4%) and methane yield (ca. 127%) was found for 3% NaOH pretreated sample at 180 degrees C. Composition analysis showed that cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin in digested manure fibers were optimally reduced by 24.8, 29.1 and 9.5% respectively during pretreatment and 76.5% of cellulose and 84.9% of hemicellulose was converted to methane during AD.