Anaerobic digestion enhancement with microbial electrolysis cells: Is biomethane production the direction to go for commercialization?

Ellie Vipond, Pattanathu Rahman

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter

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    Abstract

    The engineering of replacements for crude oil is a priority within industrial biotechnology. Biogas, produced by anaerobic digestion (AD) during organic waste degradation, has been used for electricity generation and heating. Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) are an emerging technology which when combined with AD can produce higher yields of such energy whilst simultaneously treating waste water and sludge. MECs are bioelectrochemical systems which utilize the metabolism of microbes to oxidize organics. The majority of the research has been focused on biohydrogen production, despite associated issues, which has resulted in poor commercialization prospects. Consequently, scientists are now suggesting that methane production should be the focus of MEC technology. This chapter presents lab research on the bioprocessing of biomethane using AD and MECs and addresses important issues, namely the lack of pilot-scale studies. Downstream processing techniques are discussed, as well as a novel suggestion of further utilising MECs in the purification process.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationHandbook of Research on Microbial Tools for Environmental Waste Management
    EditorsV. M. Pathak
    Place of PublicationHershey, Pennsylvania
    PublisherIGI Global
    Chapter12
    Pages259-269
    Number of pages11
    ISBN (Print)9781522535409
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Apr 2018

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