IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/rensus/v114y2019ic25.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Pretreatment and co-digestion of wastewater sludge for biogas production: Recent research advances and trends

Author

Listed:
  • Elalami, D.
  • Carrere, H.
  • Monlau, F.
  • Abdelouahdi, K.
  • Oukarroum, A.
  • Barakat, A.

Abstract

Currently, sludge is not considered as a waste any more, since it is capable of producing valuable products. Besides land disposal and thermochemical processes (i.e. pyrolysis, combustion, gasification), biological processes appear as promising valorisation routes to treat wastewater sludge efficiently. Anaerobic digestion (AD) processes are already being applied at industrial scales for the effective disposal and valorisation of sludge. However, methane yields from sludge anaerobic digestion remain low compared to other types of organic waste. Thus, pretreatment and co-digestion contribute to improve the degradability of organic matter and methane potential of sludge, respectively. This paper reviews the recent achievements in sludge pretreatment and co-digestion with other substrates such as the organic fraction of municipal solid waste, fatty waste, lignocellulosic and algal biomass. Furthermore, recent studies combining co-digestion and pretreatment are examined. The paper also provides recommendations to better manage sludge recovery by taking into account multiple aspects such as techno-economic feasibility, the effect of pretreatment on both the physico-chemical properties of sludge and the quality of digestate. The socio-environmental and legislative aspects are also essential in order to ensure the sustainability of the process.

Suggested Citation

  • Elalami, D. & Carrere, H. & Monlau, F. & Abdelouahdi, K. & Oukarroum, A. & Barakat, A., 2019. "Pretreatment and co-digestion of wastewater sludge for biogas production: Recent research advances and trends," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 1-1.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:114:y:2019:i:c:25
    DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2019.109287
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032119304952
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.rser.2019.109287?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Li, Huan & Jin, Chang & Zhang, Zhanying & O'Hara, Ian & Mundree, Sagadevan, 2017. "Environmental and economic life cycle assessment of energy recovery from sewage sludge through different anaerobic digestion pathways," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 649-657.
    2. Monlau, F. & Francavilla, M. & Sambusiti, C. & Antoniou, N. & Solhy, A. & Libutti, A. & Zabaniotou, A. & Barakat, A. & Monteleone, M., 2016. "Toward a functional integration of anaerobic digestion and pyrolysis for a sustainable resource management. Comparison between solid-digestate and its derived pyrochar as soil amendment," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 169(C), pages 652-662.
    3. Cao, Yucheng & Pawłowski, Artur, 2012. "Sewage sludge-to-energy approaches based on anaerobic digestion and pyrolysis: Brief overview and energy efficiency assessment," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 1657-1665.
    4. Di Maria, Francesco & Sordi, Alessio & Cirulli, Giuseppe & Micale, Caterina, 2015. "Amount of energy recoverable from an existing sludge digester with the co-digestion with fruit and vegetable waste at reduced retention time," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 9-14.
    5. Mata-Alvarez, J. & Dosta, J. & Romero-Güiza, M.S. & Fonoll, X. & Peces, M. & Astals, S., 2014. "A critical review on anaerobic co-digestion achievements between 2010 and 2013," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 412-427.
    6. Fan Zhang, 2019. "In the Dark," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 30923.
    7. Pastor, L. & Ruiz, L. & Pascual, A. & Ruiz, B., 2013. "Co-digestion of used oils and urban landfill leachates with sewage sludge and the effect on the biogas production," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 438-445.
    8. Mattioli, A. & Gatti, G.B. & Mattuzzi, G.P. & Cecchi, F. & Bolzonella, D., 2017. "Co-digestion of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste and sludge improves the energy balance of wastewater treatment plants: Rovereto case study," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 980-988.
    9. Premier, G.C. & Kim, J.R. & Massanet-Nicolau, J. & Kyazze, G. & Esteves, S.R.R. & Penumathsa, B.K.V. & Rodríguez, J. & Maddy, J. & Dinsdale, R.M. & Guwy, A.J., 2013. "Integration of biohydrogen, biomethane and bioelectrochemical systems," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 188-192.
    10. Cano, R. & Pérez-Elvira, S.I. & Fdz-Polanco, F., 2015. "Energy feasibility study of sludge pretreatments: A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 176-185.
    11. Martínez González, Aldemar & Silva Lora, Electo Eduardo & Escobar Palacio, José Carlos, 2019. "Syngas production from oil sludge gasification and its potential use in power generation systems: An energy and exergy analysis," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 169(C), pages 1175-1190.
    12. Monlau, F. & Sambusiti, C. & Antoniou, N. & Barakat, A. & Zabaniotou, A., 2015. "A new concept for enhancing energy recovery from agricultural residues by coupling anaerobic digestion and pyrolysis process," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 32-38.
    13. Manara, P. & Zabaniotou, A., 2012. "Towards sewage sludge based biofuels via thermochemical conversion – A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(5), pages 2566-2582.
    14. Gil, A. & Siles, J.A. & Martín, M.A. & Chica, A.F. & Estévez-Pastor, F.S. & Toro-Baptista, E., 2018. "Effect of microwave pretreatment on semi-continuous anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 917-925.
    15. Sebastian Werle & Mariusz Dudziak, 2014. "Analysis of Organic and Inorganic Contaminants in Dried Sewage Sludge and By-Products of Dried Sewage Sludge Gasification," Energies, MDPI, vol. 7(1), pages 1-15, January.
    16. Sambusiti, C. & Monlau, F. & Ficara, E. & Carrère, H. & Malpei, F., 2013. "A comparison of different pre-treatments to increase methane production from two agricultural substrates," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 62-70.
    17. Li, C. & Champagne, P. & Anderson, B.C., 2015. "Enhanced biogas production from anaerobic co-digestion of municipal wastewater treatment sludge and fat, oil and grease (FOG) by a modified two-stage thermophilic digester system with selected thermo-," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 474-482.
    18. Zhang, Jingxin & Li, Wangliang & Lee, Jonathan & Loh, Kai-Chee & Dai, Yanjun & Tong, Yen Wah, 2017. "Enhancement of biogas production in anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and waste activated sludge by biological co-pretreatment," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 479-486.
    19. Fytili, D. & Zabaniotou, A., 2008. "Utilization of sewage sludge in EU application of old and new methods--A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 12(1), pages 116-140, January.
    20. Alexander Keucken & Moshe Habagil & Damien Batstone & Ulf Jeppsson & Magnus Arnell, 2018. "Anaerobic Co-Digestion of Sludge and Organic Food Waste—Performance, Inhibition, and Impact on the Microbial Community," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-13, September.
    21. Bamdad, Hanieh & Hawboldt, Kelly & MacQuarrie, Stephanie, 2018. "A review on common adsorbents for acid gases removal: Focus on biochar," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P2), pages 1705-1720.
    22. Brémond, Ulysse & de Buyer, Raphaëlle & Steyer, Jean-Philippe & Bernet, Nicolas & Carrere, Hélène, 2018. "Biological pretreatments of biomass for improving biogas production: an overview from lab scale to full-scale," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 583-604.
    23. Zhen, Guangyin & Lu, Xueqin & Kato, Hiroyuki & Zhao, Youcai & Li, Yu-You, 2017. "Overview of pretreatment strategies for enhancing sewage sludge disintegration and subsequent anaerobic digestion: Current advances, full-scale application and future perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 559-577.
    24. Jain, Siddharth & Jain, Shivani & Wolf, Ingo Tim & Lee, Jonathan & Tong, Yen Wah, 2015. "A comprehensive review on operating parameters and different pretreatment methodologies for anaerobic digestion of municipal solid waste," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 142-154.
    25. Mirmasoumi, Siamak & Ebrahimi, Sirous & Saray, Rahim Khoshbakhti, 2018. "Enhancement of biogas production from sewage sludge in a wastewater treatment plant: Evaluation of pretreatment techniques and co-digestion under mesophilic and thermophilic conditions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 707-717.
    26. Nghiem, Long D. & Koch, Konrad & Bolzonella, David & Drewes, Jörg E., 2017. "Full scale co-digestion of wastewater sludge and food waste: Bottlenecks and possibilities," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 354-362.
    27. Hassan, Muhammad & Ding, Weimin & Umar, Muhammad & Hei, Kunlun & Bi, Jinhua & Shi, Zhendan, 2017. "Methane enhancement and asynchronism minimization through co-digestion of goose manure and NaOH solubilized corn stover with waste activated sludge," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 1256-1263.
    28. Khan, Shakeel A. & Malla, Fayaz A. & Rashmi, & Malav, Lal Chand & Gupta, Navindu & Kumar, Amit, 2018. "Potential of wastewater treating Chlorella minutissima for methane enrichment and CO2 sequestration of biogas and producing lipids," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 153-163.
    29. Tyagi, Vinay Kumar & Fdez-Güelfo, L.A. & Zhou, Yan & Álvarez-Gallego, C.J. & Garcia, L.I. Romero & Ng, Wun Jern, 2018. "Anaerobic co-digestion of organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW): Progress and challenges," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 380-399.
    30. Rao, P. Venkateswara & Baral, Saroj S. & Dey, Ranjan & Mutnuri, Srikanth, 2010. "Biogas generation potential by anaerobic digestion for sustainable energy development in India," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 14(7), pages 2086-2094, September.
    31. Syed-Hassan, Syed Shatir A. & Wang, Yi & Hu, Song & Su, Sheng & Xiang, Jun, 2017. "Thermochemical processing of sewage sludge to energy and fuel: Fundamentals, challenges and considerations," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 888-913.
    32. Tedesco, S. & Benyounis, K.Y. & Olabi, A.G., 2013. "Mechanical pretreatment effects on macroalgae-derived biogas production in co-digestion with sludge in Ireland," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 27-33.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ullah, Zia & Zeshan,, 2024. "Effect of catholyte on performance of photosynthetic microbial fuel cell for wastewater treatment and energy recovery," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 221(C).
    2. Kumar, Atul & Samadder, S.R., 2020. "Performance evaluation of anaerobic digestion technology for energy recovery from organic fraction of municipal solid waste: A review," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 197(C).
    3. Kasinath, Archana & Byliński, Hubert & Artichowicz, Wojciech & Remiszewska –Skwarek, Anna & Szopińska, Małgorzata & Zaborowska, Ewa & Luczkiewicz, Aneta & Fudala –Ksiazek, Sylwia, 2023. "Biochemical assays of intensified methane content in biogas from low-temperature processing of waste activated sludge," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 282(C).
    4. Justyna Górka & Małgorzata Cimochowicz-Rybicka & Dominika Poproch, 2022. "Sludge Management at the Kraków-Płaszów WWTP—Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-11, June.
    5. Gérard Merlin & Jonathan Outin & Hervé Boileau, 2021. "Co-Digestion of Extended Aeration Sewage Sludge with Whey, Grease and Septage: Experimental and Modeling Determination," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-20, August.
    6. Yemei Li & Yuanyuan Ren & Jiayuan Ji & Yu-You Li & Takuro Kobayashi, 2023. "Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactors for Municipal Wastewater Treatment, Sewage Sludge Digestion and Biogas Upgrading: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-17, October.
    7. He Zhang & Ashish T. Asutosh & Junxue Zhang, 2022. "A quantitative sustainable comparative study of two biogas systems based on energy, emergy and entropy methods in China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(12), pages 13583-13609, December.
    8. Chiappero, Marco & Norouzi, Omid & Hu, Mingyu & Demichelis, Francesca & Berruti, Franco & Di Maria, Francesco & Mašek, Ondřej & Fiore, Silvia, 2020. "Review of biochar role as additive in anaerobic digestion processes," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    9. Manuel García & Paula Oulego & Mario Díaz & Sergio Collado, 2021. "Non-Energetic Chemical Products by Fermentation of Hydrolyzed Sewage Sludge," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-37, May.
    10. Luz Marina Ruiz & María Fernández & Ana Genaro & Jaime Martín-Pascual & Montserrat Zamorano, 2023. "Multi-Parametric Analysis Based on Physico-Chemical Characterization and Biochemical Methane Potential Estimation for the Selection of Industrial Wastes as Co-Substrates in Anaerobic Digestion," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-19, July.
    11. Huang, Bao-Cheng & Lu, Yan & Li, Wen-Wei, 2020. "Exploiting the energy potential of municipal wastewater in China by incorporating tailored anaerobic treatment processes," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 158(C), pages 534-540.
    12. Christine Peyrelasse & Abdellatif Barakat & Camille Lagnet & Prasad Kaparaju & Florian Monlau, 2021. "Anaerobic Digestion of Wastewater Sludge and Alkaline-Pretreated Wheat Straw at Semi-Continuous Pilot Scale: Performances and Energy Assessment," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-15, August.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chiappero, Marco & Norouzi, Omid & Hu, Mingyu & Demichelis, Francesca & Berruti, Franco & Di Maria, Francesco & Mašek, Ondřej & Fiore, Silvia, 2020. "Review of biochar role as additive in anaerobic digestion processes," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    2. Derick Lima & Gregory Appleby & Li Li, 2023. "A Scoping Review of Options for Increasing Biogas Production from Sewage Sludge: Challenges and Opportunities for Enhancing Energy Self-Sufficiency in Wastewater Treatment Plants," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-34, March.
    3. Tayibi, S. & Monlau, F. & Bargaz, A. & Jimenez, R. & Barakat, A., 2021. "Synergy of anaerobic digestion and pyrolysis processes for sustainable waste management: A critical review and future perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    4. Martínez-Ruano, Jimmy Anderson & Restrepo-Serna, Daissy Lorena & Carmona-Garcia, Estefanny & Giraldo, Jhonny Alejandro Poveda & Aroca, Germán & Cardona, Carlos Ariel, 2019. "Effect of co-digestion of milk-whey and potato stem on heat and power generation using biogas as an energy vector: Techno-economic assessment," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 241(C), pages 504-518.
    5. Georgia-Christina Mitraka & Konstantinos N. Kontogiannopoulos & Maria Batsioula & George F. Banias & Anastasios I. Zouboulis & Panagiotis G. Kougias, 2022. "A Comprehensive Review on Pretreatment Methods for Enhanced Biogas Production from Sewage Sludge," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-56, September.
    6. Macintosh, C. & Astals, S. & Sembera, C. & Ertl, A. & Drewes, J.E. & Jensen, P.D. & Koch, K., 2019. "Successful strategies for increasing energy self-sufficiency at Grüneck wastewater treatment plant in Germany by food waste co-digestion and improved aeration," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 242(C), pages 797-808.
    7. Cheng, F. & Brewer, C.E., 2021. "Conversion of protein-rich lignocellulosic wastes to bio-energy: Review and recommendations for hydrolysis + fermentation and anaerobic digestion," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    8. Ma, Chaonan & Liu, Jianyong & Ye, Min & Zou, Lianpei & Qian, Guangren & Li, Yu-You, 2018. "Towards utmost bioenergy conversion efficiency of food waste: Pretreatment, co-digestion, and reactor type," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 700-709.
    9. Negri, Camilla & Ricci, Marina & Zilio, Massimo & D'Imporzano, Giuliana & Qiao, Wei & Dong, Renjie & Adani, Fabrizio, 2020. "Anaerobic digestion of food waste for bio-energy production in China and Southeast Asia: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    10. Francesca Valenti & Attilio Toscano, 2021. "A GIS-Based Model to Assess the Potential of Wastewater Treatment Plants for Enhancing Bioenergy Production within the Context of the Water–Energy Nexus," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-15, May.
    11. Kor-Bicakci, Gokce & Eskicioglu, Cigdem, 2019. "Recent developments on thermal municipal sludge pretreatment technologies for enhanced anaerobic digestion," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 423-443.
    12. Shahbeig, Hossein & Nosrati, Mohsen, 2020. "Pyrolysis of municipal sewage sludge for bioenergy production: Thermo-kinetic studies, evolved gas analysis, and techno-socio-economic assessment," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    13. Chen, Yi-di & Li, Suping & Ho, Shih-Hsin & Wang, Chengyu & Lin, Yen-Chang & Nagarajan, Dillirani & Chang, Jo-Shu & Ren, Nan-qi, 2018. "Integration of sludge digestion and microalgae cultivation for enhancing bioenergy and biorefinery," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 76-90.
    14. Syed-Hassan, Syed Shatir A. & Wang, Yi & Hu, Song & Su, Sheng & Xiang, Jun, 2017. "Thermochemical processing of sewage sludge to energy and fuel: Fundamentals, challenges and considerations," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 888-913.
    15. Wu, Junnan & Liao, Yanfen & Lin, Yan & Tian, Yunlong & Ma, Xiaoqian, 2019. "Study on thermal decomposition kinetics model of sewage sludge and wheat based on multi distributed activation energy," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 185(C), pages 795-803.
    16. Salman, Chaudhary Awais & Schwede, Sebastian & Thorin, Eva & Yan, Jinyue, 2017. "Enhancing biomethane production by integrating pyrolysis and anaerobic digestion processes," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 204(C), pages 1074-1083.
    17. Ghasimi, Dara S.M. & de Kreuk, Merle & Maeng, Sung Kyu & Zandvoort, Marcel H. & van Lier, Jules B., 2016. "High-rate thermophilic bio-methanation of the fine sieved fraction from Dutch municipal raw sewage: Cost-effective potentials for on-site energy recovery," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 569-582.
    18. Kasinath, Archana & Byliński, Hubert & Artichowicz, Wojciech & Remiszewska –Skwarek, Anna & Szopińska, Małgorzata & Zaborowska, Ewa & Luczkiewicz, Aneta & Fudala –Ksiazek, Sylwia, 2023. "Biochemical assays of intensified methane content in biogas from low-temperature processing of waste activated sludge," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 282(C).
    19. Wang, Shule & Yang, Hanmin & Shi, Ziyi & Zaini, Ilman Nuran & Wen, Yuming & Jiang, Jianchun & Jönsson, Pär Göran & Yang, Weihong, 2022. "Renewable hydrogen production from the organic fraction of municipal solid waste through a novel carbon-negative process concept," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 252(C).
    20. Hosseini Koupaie, E. & Lin, L. & Bazyar Lakeh, A.A. & Azizi, A. & Dhar, B.R. & Hafez, H. & Elbeshbishy, E., 2021. "Performance evaluation and microbial community analysis of mesophilic and thermophilic sludge fermentation processes coupled with thermal hydrolysis," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:114:y:2019:i:c:25. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600126/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.