Effect of Electrolysis on Activated Sludge during the Hydrolysis and Acidogenesis Stages in the Anaerobic Digestion of Poultry Manure

Abstract

This paper focuses on the study of the effect of electrolysis on activated sludge in a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) under the anaerobic digestion of poultry manure. This study was conducted using a bioreactor design with and without electrodes (conventional condition). Measurements of pH, redox potential (ORP), and total dissolved solids were carried out, as was the microscopy of activated sludge during treatment and gasometry. There was an increase in the yields of CH4 and CO2 compared to conventional conditions. Thus, on the 14th day, there was an increase in the CH4 yield to 35.1% compared with the conventional conditions—31.6%—as well as in the CO2 yield to 53.5% compared with the cell without electrodes—37.7%. Visually, the microscopy of anaerobic activated sludge showed changes in the aggregation process itself, with the formation of cells of clusters of microorganism colonies with branches of a delineated shape. ORP fluctuations were related to the process of the dissociation into ions during the passage of an electric current through the electrodes, and were observed before and after the inclusion of a current into the system. A model of the effect of electrolysis during anaerobic digestion was developed, taking into account the influencing factors on the condition of the activated sludge.

Intensification of Waste Valorization Techniques for Biogas Production on the Example of Clarias gariepinus Droppings

“…At the same time, the highest TDS values were observed in the control tank; however, at the same time, the level of nitrogenous compounds did not increase, which suggests the presence of other salts in the solution. This agrees with the data for the study of other types of substrates presented in [21,31,35].…”

“…A promising direction in the research is the intensification of anaerobic processes using a constant electric current [17]. The data obtained from previous studies [18][19][20][21] indicate the positive effect of electrolysis on the growth and development of various microbial communities, which suggests the feasibility of using electrolysis as a growth and cell division stimulator during the anaerobic digestion process. In addition, under the action of introducing an electric current to the solutions, various complex organic substances that have a toxic effect on the microorganisms of activated sludge are decomposed, which contributes to a more complete and rapid decomposition of the substrate [22].…”

Destruction of Mycotoxins in Poultry Waste under Anaerobic Conditions within Methanogenesis Catalyzed by Artificial Microbial Consortia

“…The various methods used for the preprocessing of poultry manure can be conditionally divided into physical, chemical, physical–chemical, and biological [ 20 ]. Activated carbon, carbon cloth, biochar, magnetic addition, thermal and electrolysis treatment, etc., are used to extract various micropollutants from the litter [ 13 , 21 ].…”