Effects of organic loading rate and effluent recirculation on the performance of two-stage anaerobic digestion of vegetable waste

The effects of organic loading rates (OLR) and effluent recirculation on dynamics of acidogenic and methanogenic processes in two-stage anaerobic digestion of vegetable waste were investigated. Two systems were performed at OLRs of 1.3, 1.7, 2.1 and 2.6 g VS/L/d. One system recirculated the effluent from the methanogenic reactor to acidogenic reactor. With increasing OLRs, total volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentration increased to approximately 8500 mg/L in acidogenic digester, where pH decreased from 6.4 to 5.2. Daily biogas production and methane content in methanogenic reactor increased from 1.2 to 4.4 L/d and from 27.4% to 60.5%, respectively. However, inhibition of hydrolysis in acidogenic reactor was demonstrated under the OLR of 2.6 g VS/L/d without recirculation, thus indicating system overloading. Effluent recirculation shown a considerable positive effect on alleviating VFA inhibition and improving biogas production in acidogenic reactor because of the effect of dilution and pH adjustment, particularly at high OLRs.