Title:
Optimization of Hydrogen Feeding Strategies via Membrane Contactor to Enhance Anaerobic Digestion Efficiency under Mesophilic Conditions
Author(s):
Kalauz-Simon, V., Komáromy, P., Nemestóthy, N., Rózsenberszki, T., Bélafi-Bakó, K.
Document(s):
Paper
Poster
Abstract:
Hydrogen-assisted anaerobic digestion (AD) represents a promising approach for enhancing methane production through in situ biological methanation. In this study, the effect of hydrogen supplementation, modulated by polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane contactors with different active membrane lengths, was investigated under mesophilic conditions. Batch experiments were performed using kitchen waste as substrate and anaerobic sludge from a municipal wastewater treatment plant as inoculum. Hydrogen supplementation significantly influenced methane production and final gas composition. All H2-supplemented treatments achieved strong methane enrichment, with final methane concentrations exceeding 95%, compared to 84% in the control reactors. The highest cumulative methane production was obtained in the 150 cm PDMS treatment (9.52 ± 1.53 L), while the average increase across hydrogen-supplemented treatments was approximately 64% compared to the control. Although differences were observed among the investigated membrane lengths, increasing membrane length did not yield a proportional enhancement in biomethanation performance. The results highlight the importance of controlled hydrogen transfer in membrane-assisted biomethanation systems and demonstrate that PDMS membrane contactors can provide stable hydrogen delivery without direct gas sparging. These findings contribute to optimizing membrane-assisted biological methanation technologies for renewable biomethane production and biogas upgrading.
Keywords:
anaerobic digestion, biogas upgrading, kitchen waste, biomethanation, hydrogen supplementation, PDMS membrane contactor, methane enrichment
Topic:
Biomass Conversion for Bioenergy
Subtopic:
Anaerobic digestion for biogas and biomethane production
Event:
34th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition
Session:
4CV.1.18
Pages:
683 - 687
ISBN:
978-88-89407-27-1
Paper DOI:
10.5071/34thEUBCE2026-4CV.1.18
Price:
FREE
