1
|
Kappa S, Nikolaidou C, Noutsopoulos C, Mamais D, Hadjimitsi E, Kougias PG, Malamis S. Investigating upflow anaerobic sludge blanket process to treat forward osmosis effluents of concentrated municipal wastewater under psychrophilic temperature. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2024; 412:131361. [PMID: 39197662 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2024.131361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2024] [Revised: 08/10/2024] [Accepted: 08/25/2024] [Indexed: 09/01/2024]
Abstract
This work investigated the stability of the Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor under psychrophilic temperatures with varying feed streams, simulating typical and concentrated sewage. In Phase I, treating municipal wastewater, chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal dropped from 77 ± 6 % to 41 ± 2 % as hydraulic retention time decreased from 24 to 12 h and organic loading rate (OLR) increased from 0.6 to 1.3 gCOD/(L∙d). In Phase II, at a similar OLR (≈1.2 gCOD/(L∙d)), the UASB treated organic-rich effluents (from 1.0 to 2.1 ± 0.1 gCOD/L) resulting from the pre-treatment of the forward osmosis (FO) process. The UASB performance improved significantly, achieving 87 ± 3 % COD removal and 63 ± 4 % methane recovery, with microbial analysis confirming methanogen growth. The COD mass balance showed up to 30 % more electrical energy recovery from sewage compared to conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), indicating that the FO-UASB combination is a promising approach to achieve energy-neutral operation in WWTPs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Stavroula Kappa
- Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 5 Iroon Polytechniou St., Zographou Campus, 15780-GR Athens, Greece.
| | - Charitini Nikolaidou
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Dimitra, 57001 Thessaloniki, Greece; University Center of International Programmes of Studies, International Hellenic University, 57001 Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Constantinos Noutsopoulos
- Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 5 Iroon Polytechniou St., Zographou Campus, 15780-GR Athens, Greece
| | - Daniel Mamais
- Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 5 Iroon Polytechniou St., Zographou Campus, 15780-GR Athens, Greece
| | - Elpi Hadjimitsi
- Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 5 Iroon Polytechniou St., Zographou Campus, 15780-GR Athens, Greece
| | - Panagiotis G Kougias
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Dimitra, 57001 Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Simos Malamis
- Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 5 Iroon Polytechniou St., Zographou Campus, 15780-GR Athens, Greece
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Rocha ME, Mangiavacchi N, Marques M, Teixeira L. Succession from acetoclastic to hydrogenotrophic microbial community during sewage sludge anaerobic digestion for bioenergy production. Biotechnol Lett 2024:10.1007/s10529-024-03528-6. [PMID: 39261355 DOI: 10.1007/s10529-024-03528-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Revised: 08/06/2024] [Accepted: 08/28/2024] [Indexed: 09/13/2024]
Abstract
To assess microbial dynamics during anaerobic digestion (AD) of sewage sludge (SWS) from a municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), a Biochemical Methane Potential (BMP) assay at 37 °C under mono-digestion conditions was conducted. Utilizing the Illumina MiSeq platform, 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene sequencing unveiled a core bacterial community in the solid material, showcasing notable variations in profiles. The research investigates changes in microbial communities and metabolic pathways to understand their impact on the efficiency of the digestion process. Prior to AD, the relative abundance in SWS was as follows: Proteobacteria > Bacteroidota > Actinobacteriota. Post-AD, the relative abundance shifted to Firmicutes > Synergistota > Proteobacteria, with Sporanaerobacter and Clostridium emerging as dominant genera. Notably, the methanogenic community underwent a metabolic pathway shift from acetoclastic to hydrogenotrophic in the lab-scale reactors. At the genus level, Methanosaeta, Methanolinea, and Methanofastidiosum predominated initially, while post-AD, Methanobacterium, Methanosaeta, and Methanospirillum took precedence. This metabolic transition may be linked to the increased abundance of Firmicutes, particularly Clostridia, which harbor acetate-oxidizing bacteria facilitating the conversion of acetate to hydrogen.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mariana Erthal Rocha
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
- Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Norberto Mangiavacchi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Marcia Marques
- Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Lia Teixeira
- Department of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Feng L, Os Andersen T, Heldal Hagen L, Bilgic B, Jarle Horn S. Bioaugmentation by enriched hydrogenotrophic methanogens into trickle bed reactors for H 2/CO 2 conversion. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2024; 408:131225. [PMID: 39111397 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2024.131225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2024] [Revised: 08/03/2024] [Accepted: 08/04/2024] [Indexed: 08/11/2024]
Abstract
Biomethanation represents a promising approach for biomethane production, with biofilm-based processes like trickle bed reactors (TBRs) being among the most efficient solutions. However, maintaining stable performance can be challenging, and both pure and mixed culture approaches have been applied to address this. In this study, inocula enriched with hydrogenotrophic methanogens were introduced to to TBRs as bioaugmentation strategy to assess their impacts on the process performance and microbial community dynamics. Metagenomic analysis revealed a metagenome-assembled genome belonging to the hydrogenotrophic genus Methanobacterium, which became dominant during enrichment and successfully colonized the TBR biofilm after bioaugmentation. The TBRs achieved a biogas production with > 96 % methane. The bioaugmented reactor consumed additional H2. This may be due to microbial species utilizing CO2 and H2 via various CO2 reduction pathways. Overall, implementing bioaugmentation in TBRs showed potential for establishing targeted species, although challenges remain in managing H2 consumption and optimizing microbial interactions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lu Feng
- Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), P.O. Box 115, 1431 Ås, Norway.
| | - Thea Os Andersen
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| | - Live Heldal Hagen
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| | - Begum Bilgic
- Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), P.O. Box 115, 1431 Ås, Norway; Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| | - Svein Jarle Horn
- Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), P.O. Box 115, 1431 Ås, Norway; Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Biderre-Petit C, Mbarki M, Courtine D, Benarab Y, Vial C, Fontanille P, Dubessay P, Keramati M, Jouan-Dufournel I, Monjot A, Guez JS, Fadhlaoui K. Comparison of methane yield of a novel strain of Methanothermobacter marburgensis in pure and mixed adapted culture derived from a methanation bubble column bioreactor. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2024; 406:131021. [PMID: 38909868 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2024.131021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2024] [Revised: 06/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/25/2024]
Abstract
The ongoing discussion regarding the use of mixed or pure cultures of hydrogenotrophic methanogenic archaea in Power-to-Methane (P2M) bioprocess applications persists, with each option presenting its own advantages and disadvantages. To address this issue, a comparison of methane (CH4) yield between a novel methanogenic archaeon belonging to the species Methanothermobacter marburgensis (strain Clermont) isolated from a biological methanation column, and the community from which it originated, was conducted. This comparison included the type strain M. marburgensis str. Marburg. The evaluation also examined how exposure to oxygen (O2) for up to 240 min impacted the CH4 yield across these cultures. While both Methanothermobacter strains exhibit comparable CH4 yield, slightly higher than that of the mixed adapted culture under non-O2-exposed conditions, strain Clermont does not display the lag time observed for strain Marburg.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Corinne Biderre-Petit
- Université Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes : Génome et Environnement, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France.
| | - Mariem Mbarki
- Université Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes : Génome et Environnement, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Damien Courtine
- Université Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes : Génome et Environnement, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Yanis Benarab
- Université Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes : Génome et Environnement, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Christophe Vial
- Université Clermont Auvergne, Clermont Auvergne INP, CNRS, Institut Pascal, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Pierre Fontanille
- Université Clermont Auvergne, Clermont Auvergne INP, CNRS, Institut Pascal, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Pascal Dubessay
- Université Clermont Auvergne, Clermont Auvergne INP, CNRS, Institut Pascal, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Misagh Keramati
- Université Clermont Auvergne, Clermont Auvergne INP, CNRS, Institut Pascal, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Isabelle Jouan-Dufournel
- Université Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes : Génome et Environnement, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Arthur Monjot
- Université Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes : Génome et Environnement, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Jean Sébastien Guez
- Université Clermont Auvergne, Clermont Auvergne INP, CNRS, Institut Pascal, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France
| | - Khaled Fadhlaoui
- Université Clermont Auvergne, CNRS, Laboratoire Microorganismes : Génome et Environnement, F-63000, Clermont-Ferrand, France; Université Clermont Auvergne, UMR 454 MEDIS UCA-INRAE, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Ghiotto G, Zampieri G, Campanaro S, Treu L. Strain-resolved metagenomics approaches applied to biogas upgrading. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 240:117414. [PMID: 37852461 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.117414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2023] [Revised: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023]
Abstract
Genetic heterogeneity is a common trait in microbial populations, caused by de novo mutations and changes in variant frequencies over time. Microbes can thus differ genetically within the same species and acquire different phenotypes. For instance, performance and stability of anaerobic reactors are linked to the composition of the microbiome involved in the digestion process and to the environmental parameters imposing selective pressure on the metagenome, shaping its evolution. Changes at the strain level have the potential to determine variations in microbial functions, and their characterization could provide new insight into ecological and evolutionary processes driving anaerobic digestion. In this work, single nucleotide variant dynamics were studied in two time-course biogas upgrading experiments, testing alternative carbon sources and the response to exogenous hydrogen addition. A cumulative total of 76,229 and 64,289 high-confidence single nucleotide variants were discerned in the experiments related to carbon substrate availability and hydrogen addition, respectively. By combining complementary bioinformatic approaches, the study reconstructed the precise strain count-two for both hydrogenotrophic archaea-and tracked their abundance over time, while also characterizing tens of genes under strong selection. Results in the dominant archaea revealed the presence of nearly 100 variants within genes encoding enzymes involved in hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis. In the bacterial counterparts, 119 mutations were identified across 23 genes associated with the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway, suggesting a possible impact on the syntrophic acetate-oxidation process. Strain replacement events took place in both experiments, confirming the trends suggested by the variants trajectories and providing a comprehensive understanding of the biogas upgrading microbiome at the strain level. Overall, this resolution level allowed us to reveal fine-scale evolutionary mechanisms, functional dynamics, and strain-level metabolic variation that could contribute to the selection of key species actively involved in the carbon dioxide fixation process.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele Ghiotto
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35131, Padova, Italy
| | - Guido Zampieri
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35131, Padova, Italy
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35131, Padova, Italy.
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35131, Padova, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Vieira Turnell Suruagy M, Ross AB, Babatunde A. Influence of microwave temperature and power on the biomethanation of food waste under mesophilic anaerobic conditions. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2023; 341:117900. [PMID: 37150174 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Revised: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Food waste is an attractive feedstock for Anaerobic Digestion due to its high biodegradability and moisture content. Nevertheless, due to its complex structure and composition, methane yield is typically compromised with 50-60% of the theoretical maximum obtained. The well-known limitation of the hydrolysis step can be circumvented by adopting feedstock pre-treatments, such as microwave irradiation. It improves solubilization of various FW components making them more readily available for the microorganisms and reducing AD process duration. In this work different heating rates (7.8, 3.9 and 1.9 °C/min) and temperatures (85, 115, 145, 175 °C) were applied when pre-treating food waste as a substrate for AD. Increase in the solubilization of organic matter in the form of Soluble Chemical Oxygen Demand was the most significative change in FW characteristics after pre-treatment, with final temperature of 175 °C and heating rate of 3.9 °C showing a 73.19% increment. Nevertheless, process performance of AD of MW FW was optimum at 85 °C 7.8 ramp, showing no intermediate products accumulation, up to 77% more methane produced in the first week of digestion compared to the other conditions tested and reduction of 96.36% on the lag phase duration, compared to the control. On the other hand, samples treated at 175 °C, regardless of heating rate, consistently showed poor process performance, with low methane yield, possibly due to the formation of hard-to-digest compounds. This work underlines the importance of adjusting microwave temperature and power when pre-treating FW for biomethane production so the process is optimized.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mariana Vieira Turnell Suruagy
- BioResource Systems Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom.
| | - Andrew Barry Ross
- School of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, United Kingdom
| | - Akintunde Babatunde
- School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Serna-García R, Tsapekos P, Treu L, Bouzas A, Seco A, Campanaro S, Angelidaki I. Unraveling prevalence of homoacetogenesis and methanogenesis pathways due to inhibitors addition. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2023; 376:128922. [PMID: 36940878 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2023.128922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2023] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Three inhibitors targeting different microorganisms, both from Archaea and Bacteria domains, were evaluated for their effect on CO2 biomethanation: sodium ionophore III (ETH2120), carbon monoxide (CO), and sodium 2-bromoethanesulfonate (BES). This study examines how these compounds affect the anaerobic digestion microbiome in a biogas upgrading process. While archaea were observed in all experiments, methane was produced only when adding ETH2120 or CO, not when adding BES, suggesting archaea were in an inactivated state. Methane was produced mainly via methylotrophic methanogenesis from methylamines. Acetate was produced at all conditions, but a slight reduction on acetate production (along with an enhancement on CH4 production) was observed when applying 20 kPa of CO. Effects on CO2 biomethanation were difficult to observe since the inoculum used was from a real biogas upgrading reactor, being this a complex environmental sample. Nevertheless, it must be mentioned that all compounds had effects on the microbial community composition.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca Serna-García
- CALAGUA - Unidad Mixta UV-UPV, Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Universitat de València, Avinguda de la Universitat s/n, 46100 Burjassot, Valencia, Spain.
| | - Panagiotis Tsapekos
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Søltofts Plads 228A, Technical University of Denmark, DTU, 2800 Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35121, Italy
| | - Alberto Bouzas
- CALAGUA - Unidad Mixta UV-UPV, Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Universitat de València, Avinguda de la Universitat s/n, 46100 Burjassot, Valencia, Spain
| | - Aurora Seco
- CALAGUA - Unidad Mixta UV-UPV, Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Universitat de València, Avinguda de la Universitat s/n, 46100 Burjassot, Valencia, Spain
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35121, Italy
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Søltofts Plads 228A, Technical University of Denmark, DTU, 2800 Lyngby, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Yellezuome D, Zhu X, Liu X, Liu X, Liu R, Wang Z, Li Y, Sun C, Hemida Abd-Alla M, Rasmey AHM. Integration of two-stage anaerobic digestion process with in situ biogas upgrading. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2023; 369:128475. [PMID: 36509302 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.128475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Revised: 12/05/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
High impurity concentration of biogas limits its wide commercial utilization. Therefore, the integration of two-stage anaerobic digestion process with in situ biogas upgrading technologies is reviewed, with emphasis on their principles, main influencing factors, research success, and technical challenges. The crucial factors that influence these technologies are pH, alkalinity, and hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis. Hence, pH fluctuation and low gas-liquid mass transfer of H2 are some major technical challenges limiting the full-scale application of in situ upgrading techniques. Two-stage anaerobic digestion integration with various in situ upgrading techniques to form a hybrid system is proposed to overcome the constraints and systematically guide future research design and advance the development and commercialization of these techniques. This review intends to provide the current state of in situ biogas upgrading technologies and identify knowledge gaps that warrant further investigation to advance their development and practical implementation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dominic Yellezuome
- Biomass Energy Engineering Research Centre, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China; Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China
| | - Xianpu Zhu
- Biomass Energy Engineering Research Centre, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China; Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China
| | - Xin Liu
- Biomass Energy Engineering Research Centre, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China; Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China
| | - Xuwei Liu
- Biomass Energy Engineering Research Centre, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China; Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China
| | - Ronghou Liu
- Biomass Energy Engineering Research Centre, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China; Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China.
| | - Zengzhen Wang
- Biomass Energy Engineering Research Centre, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China; Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China
| | - Yingkai Li
- Biomass Energy Engineering Research Centre, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China; Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-environmental Change and Management Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Science and Technology, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China
| | - Chen Sun
- College of Biological, Chemical Science and Engineering, Jiaxing University, Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province 314001, PR China
| | - Mohamed Hemida Abd-Alla
- Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, Assiut University, Assiut 71516, Egypt
| | - Abdel-Hamied M Rasmey
- Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, Suez University, Suez 43721, Egypt
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Kim HH, Saha S, Hwang JH, Hosen MA, Ahn YT, Park YK, Khan MA, Jeon BH. Integrative biohydrogen- and biomethane-producing bioprocesses for comprehensive production of biohythane. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 365:128145. [PMID: 36257521 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.128145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2022] [Revised: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The production of biohythane, a combination of energy-dense hydrogen and methane, from the anaerobic digestion of low-cost organic wastes has attracted attention as a potential candidate for the transition to a sustainable circular economy. Substantial research has been initiated to upscale the process engineering to establish a hythane-based economy by addressing major challenges associated with the process and product upgrading. This review provides an overview of the feasibility of biohythane production in various anaerobic digestion systems (single-stage, dual-stage) and possible technologies to upgrade biohythane to hydrogen-enriched renewable natural gas. The main goal of this review is to promote research in biohythane production technology by outlining critical needs, including meta-omics and metabolic engineering approaches for the advancements in biohythane production technology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hoo Hugo Kim
- Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Republic of Korea
| | - Shouvik Saha
- Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Republic of Korea
| | - Jae-Hoon Hwang
- Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816-2450, USA
| | - Md Aoulad Hosen
- Department of Microbiology, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur, Bangladesh
| | - Yong-Tae Ahn
- Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Republic of Korea
| | - Young-Kwon Park
- School of Environmental Engineering, University of Seoul, Seoul 02504, Republic of Korea
| | - Moonis Ali Khan
- Chemistry Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Byong-Hun Jeon
- Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Republic of Korea.
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Ebrahimian F, De Bernardini N, Tsapekos P, Treu L, Zhu X, Campanaro S, Karimi K, Angelidaki I. Effect of pressure on biomethanation process and spatial stratification of microbial communities in trickle bed reactors under decreasing gas retention time. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 361:127701. [PMID: 35905873 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2022] [Revised: 07/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The current study investigated the effect of elevating gas pressure on biomethanation in trickle-bed reactors (TBRs). The increased pressure led to successful biomethanation (CH4 > 90 %) at a gas retention time (GRT) of 21 min, due to the improved transfer rates of H2 and CO2. On the contrary, the non-pressurized TBR performance was reduced at GRTs shorter than 40 min. Metagenomic analysis revealed that the microbial populations collected from the lower and middle parts of the reactor under the same GRT were more homogeneous compared with those developed in the upper layer. Comparison with previous experiments suggest that microbial stratification is mainly driven by the nutrient provision strategy. Methanobacterium species was the most dominant methanogen and it was mainly associated with the bottom and middle parts of TBRs. Overall, the increased pressure did not affect markedly the microbial composition, while the GRT was the most important parameter shaping the microbiomes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Farinaz Ebrahimian
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark; Department of Chemical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, Iran
| | - Nicola De Bernardini
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Panagiotis Tsapekos
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark.
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Xinyu Zhu
- School of Engineering, Westlake University, No.18, Shilongshan Road, Cloud Town, Xihu District, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Keikhosro Karimi
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, Iran; Department of Chemical Engineering, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Potential for Biomethanisation of CO2 from Anaerobic Digestion of Organic Wastes in the United Kingdom. Processes (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/pr10061202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
The United Kingdom (UK) has a decarbonisation strategy that includes energy from both hydrogen and biomethane. The latter comes from the growing anaerobic digestion (AD) market, which in 2020 produced 23.3 TWh of energy in the form of biogas. According to the strategy, this must be upgraded to biomethane by removal of carbon dioxide (CO2): a goal that could also be fulfilled through CO2 biomethanisation, alleviating the need for carbon capture and storage. Results are presented from a survey of publicly available datasets coupled with modelling to identify potential scale and knowledge gaps. Literature data were used to estimate maximum biomethane concentrations by feedstock type: these ranged from 79% for food wastes to 93% for livestock manures. Data from various government sources were used to estimate the overall potential for CO2 biomethanisation with current AD infrastructure. Values for the uplift in biomethane production ranged from 57% to 61%, but the need for more consistent data collection methodologies was highlighted. On average, however, if CO2 biomethanisation was applied in all currently operating UK AD plants an energy production uplift of 12,954 GWh could be achieved based on 2020 figures. This is sufficient to justify the inclusion of CO2 biomethanisation in decarbonisation strategies, in the UK and worldwide.
Collapse
|
12
|
Stability of the Anaerobic Digestion Process during Switch from Parallel to Serial Operation—A Microbiome Study. SUSTAINABILITY 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/su14127161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Anaerobic digestion is a common procedure of treating sewage sludge at wastewater treatment plants. However, plants differ in terms of the number of reactors and, in case of several reactors, their operation mode. To confirm the flexibility of well adapted, full-scale anaerobic digestion plants, we monitored the physicochemical process conditions of two continuously stirred tank reactors over one hydraulic retention time before and after the operation mode was switched from parallel to serial operation. To investigate changes in the involved microbiota, we applied Illumina amplicon sequencing. The rapid change between operation modes did not affect the process performance. In both parallel and serial operation mode, we detected a highly diverse microbial community, in which Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Claocimonetes were high in relative abundance. While a prominent core microbiome was maintained in both configurations, changes in the involved microbiota were evident at a lower taxonomical level comparing both reactors and operation modes. The most prominent methanogenic Euryarchaeota detected were Methanosaeta and cand. Methanofastidiosum. Volatile fatty acids were degraded immediately in both reactors, suggesting that the second reactor could be used to produce methane on demand, by inserting easily degradable substrates.
Collapse
|
13
|
Anagnostopoulou C, Kontogiannopoulos KN, Gaspari M, Morlino MS, Assimopoulou AN, Kougias PG. Valorization of household food wastes to lactic acid production: A response surface methodology approach to optimize fermentation process. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 296:133871. [PMID: 35157886 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.133871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2021] [Revised: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Lactic acid is a valuable compound used in several industrial processes such as polymers, emulsifiers manufacturing, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic formulations. The present study aims to evaluate the potential use of food waste to produce lactic acid through fermentation, both by indigenous microbiota and by the bio-augmentation with two lactic acid bacteria, namely Lactobacillus plantarum BS17 and Lactobacillus casei BP2. Fermentation was studied both in batch and continuously fed anaerobic reactors at mesophilic conditions and a Response Surface Methodology approach was used to optimize the bioprocess performance and determine the environmental parameters (namely pH and time) that lead to the enhancement of lactic acid production during the batch fermentation by indigenous microorganisms. Results revealed an optimum set of conditions for lactic acid production at a pH value of 6.5 and a fermentation period of 3.5 days at 37 °C. Under these conditions lactic acid production reached a value of 23.07 g/L, which was very similar to the mathematically predicted ones, thus verifying the accuracy of the experimental design. This optimum set of conditions was further employed to examine the production of lactic acid under continuous fermentation operation. Furthermore, concentrations of volatile fatty acids and ethanol were monitored and found to be relatively low, with ethanol being the dominant by-product of fermentation, indicating the presence of heterofermentative bacteria in the food wastes. A final step of downstream process was performed resulting in the successful recovery of lactic acid with purity over 90%.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chrysa Anagnostopoulou
- Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, School of Chemical Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | | | - Maria Gaspari
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organisation Dimitra, Thermi, Thessaloniki, 57001, Greece
| | - Maria Silvia Morlino
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121, Padova, Italy
| | - Andreana N Assimopoulou
- Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, School of Chemical Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece; Natural Products Research Centre of Excellence (NatPro-AUTh), Center of Interdisciplinary Research and Innovation of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (CIRI-AUTh), Thessaloniki, 57001, Greece
| | - Panagiotis G Kougias
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organisation Dimitra, Thermi, Thessaloniki, 57001, Greece.
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Ghofrani-Isfahani P, Tsapekos P, Peprah M, Kougias P, Zervas A, Zhu X, Yang Z, Jacobsen CS, Angelidaki I. Ex-situ biogas upgrading in thermophilic trickle bed reactors packed with micro-porous packing materials. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 296:133987. [PMID: 35176296 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.133987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2021] [Revised: 01/13/2022] [Accepted: 02/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Two thermophilic trickle bed reactors (TBRs) were packed with different packing densities with polyurethane foam (PUF) and their performance under different retention times were evaluated during ex-situ biogas upgrading process. The results showed that the TBR more tightly packed i.e. containing more layers of PUF achieved higher H2 utilization efficiency (>99%) and thus, higher methane content (>95%) in the output gas. The tightly packed micro-porous PUF enhanced biofilm immobilization, gas-liquid mass transfer and biomethanation efficiency. Moreover, applying a continuous high-rate nutrient trickling could lead to liquid overflow resulting in formation of non-homogenous biofilm and severe deduction of biomethanation efficiency. High-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that the liquid media were predominated by hydrogenotrophic methanogens. Moreover, members of Peptococcaceae family and uncultured members of Clostridia class were identified as the most abundant species in the biofilm. The proliferation of hydrogenotrophic methanogens together with syntrophic bacteria showed that H2 addition resulted in altering the microbial community in biogas upgrading process.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Parisa Ghofrani-Isfahani
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs, Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Tsapekos
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs, Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark.
| | - Maria Peprah
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs, Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Kougias
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organisation Dimitra, Thermi, Thessaloniki, 57001, Greece
| | - Athanasios Zervas
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Xinyu Zhu
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs, Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Ziyi Yang
- Biomass Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Center, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, 100029, China
| | - Carsten S Jacobsen
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs, Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Palù M, Peprah M, Tsapekos P, Kougias P, Campanaro S, Angelidaki I, Treu L. In-situ biogas upgrading assisted by bioaugmentation with hydrogenotrophic methanogens during mesophilic and thermophilic co-digestion. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 348:126754. [PMID: 35077815 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.126754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2021] [Revised: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
In this study, the effects of bioaugmentation of typically dominant hydrogenotrophic methanogens to CSTR co-digesting cheese whey and manure, under in-situ biomethanation operations were investigated. Reactors working at mesophilic (37 °C) and thermophilic (55 °C) conditions were independently treated and examined in terms of microbial composition and process dynamics. Addition of Methanoculleus bourgensis in the mesophilic reactor led to a stable biomethanation, and an improved microbial metabolism, resulting in 11% increase in CH4 production rate. 16S rRNA and biochemical analyses revealed an enrichment in syntrophic and acidogenic species abundance. Moreover, nearly total volatile fatty acids conversion was observed. Differently, Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus addition in the thermophilic reactor did not promote biogas upgrading performance due to incomplete H2 conversion and inefficient community adaptation to H2 excess, ultimately favoring acetoclastic methanogenesis. Bioaugmentation constitutes a viable tool to strengthen in-situ upgrading processes and paves the way to the development of more sophisticated and robust microbial inoculants.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Palù
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35121, Italy
| | - Maria Peprah
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Tsapekos
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Kougias
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organisation DIMITRA, Thermi, Thessaloniki 57001, Greece
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35121, Italy; CRIBI Biotechnology Center, University of Padova, Padova 35131, Italy.
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35121, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Tondello A, Fasolo A, Marcato S, Treu L, Bonato T, Zanardi W, Concheri G, Squartini A, Baldan B. Characterization of bacterial communities isolated from municipal waste compost and screening of their plant-interactive phenotypes. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 806:150592. [PMID: 34592304 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 07/26/2021] [Accepted: 09/22/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Four batches of commercial compost obtained from the organic fraction of municipal solid waste were analyzed from chemical and microbiological standpoints. The working hypothesis was that, being this type of compost derived partly from plant waste, it could contain plant-growth promoting bacterial endophytes, prone to be active again upon its usual delivery as fertilizer. Culturable bacteria were isolated at different temperatures, quantified by colony morphology, identified taxonomically by 16S sequencing and screened for plant-growth promoting phenotypes including auxin and siderophore production, phosphate solubilization and peptide mineralization to ammonia. In parallel, the total community was assessed by culture independent DNA metabarcoding. The capability of plants to select, uptake and internally multiply bacteria from these compost samples was analyzed using grapevine in-vitro rooting cuttings from which acquired bacteria were reisolated, quantified and their identities determined as above. Major differences in compost bacterial composition were observed as function of the season, with the winter sample being rather distinct from the summer ones. Bacillales and Actinomycetales dominated the culturable communities while Alteromonadales, Oceanospirillales and Flavobacteriales prevailed in the total community. In spite of the challenging composting cycle conditions, the plant nature of the main input substrates appeared determinant in guaranteeing that 82% of the culturable bacteria were found endowed with one or more of the plant growth-promoting phenotypes tested. Beside its fertilization role, compost proved to be also a potential inoculant carrier for the in-soil delivery of plant beneficial microorganisms. Furthermore, upon an in vitro passage through grapevine plants under axenic conditions, the subsequently recoverable endophyte community yielded also members of the Rhizobiales order which had not been detectable when culturing directly from compost. This observation further suggests that compost-borne plant-interacting taxa could be also rescued from non-culturable states and/or enriched above detectability levels by a contact with their potential host plants.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alessandra Tondello
- Department of Biology, UniPD, Padova, Italy; Department of Agronomy Food Natural Resources Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), UniPD, Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | | | | | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, UniPD, Padova, Italy
| | - Tiziano Bonato
- Società Estense Servizi Ambientali S.E.S.A., Este, PD, Italy
| | - Werner Zanardi
- Società Estense Servizi Ambientali S.E.S.A., Este, PD, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Concheri
- Department of Agronomy Food Natural Resources Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), UniPD, Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Andrea Squartini
- Department of Agronomy Food Natural Resources Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), UniPD, Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Barbara Baldan
- Department of Biology, UniPD, Padova, Italy; Botanical Garden, UniPD, Padova, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
da Silva Duarte V, Lombardi A, Corich V, Giacomini A. Assessment of the microbiological origin of blowing defects in Grana Padano Protected Designation of Origin cheese. J Dairy Sci 2022; 105:2858-2867. [PMID: 35086714 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2021-21097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Recognized worldwide for its history, flavor, and high nutritional quality, Grana Padano (GP) is one of the most traditional Italian raw-milk, hard-cooked, long-ripened cheese. Throughout GP manufacturing, some well-known and undesired bacterial species, such as clostridia, can proliferate and lead to spoilage defects that mischaracterize the final product; however, little is known about the development of late-blowing defects in hard cheese samples without clostridia. Therefore, in this study we aimed to use metataxonomic analysis to identify bacterial taxa associated with the development of late-blowing defect in GP samples. Furthermore, the presence of several heterofermentative lactobacilli species in defective zones were verified by primer-specific PCR assay. Considering α- and β-diversity analyses, no statistically significant differences were detected between cheese samples with and without blowing defect. Following taxonomic assignment, Lactobacillus and Streptococcus were the dominant genera, whereas clostridia-related taxa were not detected in any of the 20 analyzed samples. Using EdgeR, the genera Propionibacterium and Acinetobacter were found to be prevalently more abundant in samples categorized as having "big regular holes." In samples with "small regular holes," multiplex PCR amplification revealed differences in terms of Lactobacillus population composition, mainly obligate homofermentative lactobacilli, between defective and non-defective zones of the same cheese wheel. This study demonstrated that GP samples with blowing defects not caused by clostridial development share similar biodiversity indices with GP collected from control zones, but an imbalance of obligate homofermentative lactobacilli was noticed between samples, which requires further analysis to better comprehend the exact mechanism involved in this process.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vinícius da Silva Duarte
- Department of Agronomy Food Natural Resources Animals and Environment, University of Padova, 35020 Legnaro (Padua), Italy
| | - Angiolella Lombardi
- Department of Agronomy Food Natural Resources Animals and Environment, University of Padova, 35020 Legnaro (Padua), Italy
| | - Viviana Corich
- Department of Agronomy Food Natural Resources Animals and Environment, University of Padova, 35020 Legnaro (Padua), Italy.
| | - Alessio Giacomini
- Department of Agronomy Food Natural Resources Animals and Environment, University of Padova, 35020 Legnaro (Padua), Italy
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Braga Nan L, Trably E, Santa-Catalina G, Bernet N, Delgenes JP, Escudie R. Microbial community redundance in biomethanation systems lead to faster recovery of methane production rates after starvation. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 804:150073. [PMID: 34517312 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2021] [Revised: 08/11/2021] [Accepted: 08/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The Power-to-Gas concept corresponds to the use of the electric energy surplus to produce H2 by water electrolysis, that can be further converted to methane by biomethanation. However, the fluctuant production of renewable energy sources can lead to discontinuous H2 injections into the reactors, that may interfere with the adaptation of the microbial community to high H2 partial pressures. In this study, the response of the microbial community to H2 and organic feed starvation was evaluated in in-situ and ex-situ biomethanation. The fed-batch reactors were fed with acetate or glucose and H2, and one or four weeks of starvation periods were investigated. Methane productivity was mostly affected by the four-week starvation period. However, both in-situ and ex-situ biomethanation reactors recovered their methane production rate after starvation within approximately one-week of normal operation, while the anaerobic digestion (AD) reactors did not recover their performances even after 3 weeks of normal operation. The recovery failure of the AD reactors was probably related to a slow growth of the syntrophic and methanogen microorganisms, that led to a VFA accumulation. On the contrary, the faster recovery of both biomethanation reactors was related to the replacement of Methanoculleus sp. by Methanobacterium sp., restoring the methane production in the in-situ and ex-situ biomethanation reactors. This study has shown that biomethanation processes can respond favourably to the intermittent H2 addition without compromising their CH4 production performance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- L Braga Nan
- INRAE, Univ. Montpellier, LBE, 102 AV. des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | - E Trably
- INRAE, Univ. Montpellier, LBE, 102 AV. des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | - G Santa-Catalina
- INRAE, Univ. Montpellier, LBE, 102 AV. des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | - N Bernet
- INRAE, Univ. Montpellier, LBE, 102 AV. des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | - J-P Delgenes
- INRAE, Univ. Montpellier, LBE, 102 AV. des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | - R Escudie
- INRAE, Univ. Montpellier, LBE, 102 AV. des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France.
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Yuan T, Zhang Z, Lei Z, Shimizu K, Lee DJ. A review on biogas upgrading in anaerobic digestion systems treating organic solids and wastewaters via biogas recirculation. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 344:126412. [PMID: 34838626 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.126412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2021] [Revised: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/19/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Biogas upgrading is an essential process for efficient and safe utilization of biogas produced from anaerobic digestion (AD), a cost-effective and environmentally friendly technology for bioenergy recovery from organic wastes. Biogas recirculation in AD reactors has been recently reported as a cost-effective and promising method to enhance methane content in biogas. This review aimed to summarize the state-of-the-art of biogas recirculation-based AD systems to better understand the possible mechanisms and main factors relating to in-situ biogas upgrading. It shows that biogas recirculation in the AD reactor can not only enhance methane content via both physicochemical and biological effects, but also help establish a robust AD system with high buffering capacity for highly efficient treatment of various organic wastes. More research works are demanding for a better understanding of the mechanisms and the optimization of the whole AD system, targeting its further development for high-calorie bioenergy production.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tian Yuan
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan
| | - Zhenya Zhang
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan
| | - Zhongfang Lei
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan.
| | - Kazuya Shimizu
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan
| | - Duu-Jong Lee
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan; Department of Mechanical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tang, Hong Kong
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Zhao J, Li Y, Dong R. Recent progress towards in-situ biogas upgrading technologies. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 800:149667. [PMID: 34426339 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Revised: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Jing Zhao
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands.
| | - Yu Li
- College of Engineering, China Agricultural University, Qinghuadonglu No.17, 100083 Beijing, China.
| | - Renjie Dong
- College of Engineering, China Agricultural University, Qinghuadonglu No.17, 100083 Beijing, China.
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Ghofrani-Isfahani P, Tsapekos P, Peprah M, Kougias P, Zhu X, Kovalovszki A, Zervas A, Zha X, Jacobsen CS, Angelidaki I. Ex-situ biogas upgrading in thermophilic up-flow reactors: The effect of different gas diffusers and gas retention times. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2021; 340:125694. [PMID: 34352646 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2021] [Revised: 07/25/2021] [Accepted: 07/27/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Four different types of ceramic gas distributors (Al2O3 of 1.2 μm and SiC of 0.5, 7 and 14 μm) were evaluated to increase biomethane formation during ex-situ biogas upgrading process. Each type of gas diffuser was tested independently at three different gas retention times of 10, 5 and 2.5 h, at thermophilic conditions. CH4 production rate increased by increasing input gas flow rate for all type of distributors, whereas CH4 concentration declined. Reactors equipped with SiC gas distributors effectively improved biomethane content fulfilling natural gas standards. Microbial analysis showed high abundance of hydrogenotrophic methanogens and proliferated syntrophic bacteria, i.e. syntrophic acetate oxidizers and homoacetogens, confirming the effect of H2 to alternate anaerobic digestion microbiome and enhance hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis. A detailed anaerobic bioconversion model was adapted to simulate the operation of the R1-R4 reactors. The model was shown to be effective for the simulation of biogas upgrading process in up-flow reactors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Parisa Ghofrani-Isfahani
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Tsapekos
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark.
| | - Maria Peprah
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis Kougias
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organisation Demeter, Thermi-Thessaloniki 57001, Greece
| | - Xinyu Zhu
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Adam Kovalovszki
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Athanasios Zervas
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, Roskilde DK-4000, Denmark
| | - Xiao Zha
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, China.
| | - Carsten S Jacobsen
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, Roskilde DK-4000, Denmark
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Zhang L, Gong X, Wang L, Guo K, Cao S, Zhou Y. Metagenomic insights into the effect of thermal hydrolysis pre-treatment on microbial community of an anaerobic digestion system. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 791:148096. [PMID: 34118665 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2021] [Revised: 05/22/2021] [Accepted: 05/24/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Thermal hydrolysis process (THP) is an effective pre-treatment method to reduce solids volume and improve biogas production during anaerobic digestion (AD) via increasing the biodegradability of waste activated sludge (WAS). However, the effects of THP pre-treated sludge on microbial diversity, interspecies interactions, and metabolism in AD systems remain largely unknown. We therefore setup and operated an anaerobic digester during a long-term period to shed light on the effect of THP pre-treatment on AD microbial ecology in comparison to conventional AD via Illumina based 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and genome-centric metagenomics analysis. Results showed THP sludge significantly reduced the microbial diversity, shaped the microbial community structure, and resulted in more intense microbial interactions. Compared to WAS as the feed sludge, THP sludge shaped the core functional groups, but functional redundancy ensured the system's stability. The metabolic interactions between methanogens and syntrophic bacteria as well as the specific metabolic pathways were further elucidated. Hydrogenotrophic methanogens, Methanospirillum sp. and Methanolinea sp., were the primary contributors for methane production when treating THP and WAS, respectively, which also have potential for acetate oxidation to methane. Collectively, this study provides in-depth information on the interspecies interactions to better understand how THP pre-treatment influences AD microbial community.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Liang Zhang
- Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 637141, Singapore
| | - Xianzhe Gong
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, Shandong 266237, China
| | - Li Wang
- Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 637141, Singapore
| | - Kun Guo
- Ecological and Environmental Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Shenbin Cao
- Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 637141, Singapore
| | - Yan Zhou
- Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 637141, Singapore; School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore.
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Iglesias-Iglesias R, Portela-Grandío A, Treu L, Campanaro S, Kennes C, Veiga MC. Co-digestion of cheese whey with sewage sludge for caproic acid production: Role of microbiome and polyhydroxyalkanoates potential production. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2021; 337:125388. [PMID: 34166928 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 06/03/2021] [Accepted: 06/04/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The main aim of this work was to evaluate the efficiency of producing caproic acid and other volatile fatty acids using a co-digestion between cheese whey and sewage sludge in a continuous reactor. The effect of two different feeding regimes (one and two per day) and three hydraulic retention times (HRT) (15, 10 and 6 days) on the organic acids production were studied. The optimal conditions for the process were 10 days HRT, 2 feeding cycles per day, reaching a maximum degree of acidification of 44%. Under these conditions, the most abundant organic acid was caproic acid. The analysis of the microbial community dynamics in the reactor during the HRT changes revealed a microbiome enriched in organisms involved in caproic acid production. Additionally, the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates using the organic acids stream as feeding was verified in a fed-batch experiment obtaining a copolymer formed by hydroxybutyrate, hydroxyvalerate and hydroxyhexanoate.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Iglesias-Iglesias
- Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Sciences and Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (CICA), University of A Coruña, A Coruña 15008, Spain
| | - Ana Portela-Grandío
- Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Sciences and Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (CICA), University of A Coruña, A Coruña 15008, Spain
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121 Padua, Italy
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121 Padua, Italy; CRIBI Biotechnology Center, University of Padova, 35131 Padua, Italy
| | - Christian Kennes
- Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Sciences and Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (CICA), University of A Coruña, A Coruña 15008, Spain
| | - Maria C Veiga
- Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Sciences and Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (CICA), University of A Coruña, A Coruña 15008, Spain.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Yan M, Zhu X, Treu L, Ravenni G, Campanaro S, Goonesekera EM, Ferrigno R, Jacobsen CS, Zervas A, Angelidaki I, Fotidis IA. Comprehensive evaluation of different strategies to recover methanogenic performance in ammonia-stressed reactors. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2021; 336:125329. [PMID: 34052546 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/21/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
In this study, strategies for recovery of ammonia-stressed AD reactors were attempted, by addition of preserved bioaugmentation consortium in gel (BioG), fresh consortium in liquid medium (BioL), woodchip biochar (BW), and straw biochar (BS). In comparison to control group with ammonia, effective treatments, i.e., BioG, BioL, BW and BS raised the maximum methane production rate by 77%, 23%, 35%, and 24%, respectively. BW possibly acted as interspecies electrical conduits for Direct Electron Transfer based on conductivity and SEM analysis. BioG facilitated slow release of bioaugmentation inocula from gel into the AD system, which protected them from a direct environmental shock. According to microbial analysis, both BioG, BioL and BW resulted in increased relative abundance of Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus; and BS induced selective raise of Methanosarcina thermophila. The increase of methanogens via these strategies led to the faster recovery of the AD process.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Miao Yan
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Xinyu Zhu
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 227, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35121, Italy
| | - Giulia Ravenni
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 313, Roskilde 4000, Denmark
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35121, Italy
| | - Estelle Maria Goonesekera
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Rosa Ferrigno
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Carsten S Jacobsen
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, Roskilde DK-4000, Denmark
| | - Athanasios Zervas
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Frederiksborgvej 399, Roskilde DK-4000, Denmark
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 227, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Ioannis A Fotidis
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark; Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland; School of Civil Engineering Southeast University Nanjing, 210096, China.
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Wahid R, Horn SJ. Impact of operational conditions on methane yield and microbial community composition during biological methanation in in situ and hybrid reactor systems. BIOTECHNOLOGY FOR BIOFUELS 2021; 14:170. [PMID: 34416924 PMCID: PMC8379887 DOI: 10.1186/s13068-021-02019-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Biogas can be upgraded to methane biologically by adding H2 to biogas reactors. The process is called biological methanation (BM) and can be done in situ in a regular biogas reactor or the biogas can be transferred to a separate ex situ upgrading reactor. The hybrid BM concept, a combination of in situ and ex situ BM, has received little attention, and only a few studies have been reported. The hybrid BM has the advantage of resolving the issue of pH increment during in situ BM, while the size of the ex situ BM reactor could be reduced. RESULTS In this study, the efficiency of in situ and hybrid biological methanation (BM) for upgrading raw biogas was investigated. The hybrid BM system achieved a CH4 yield of 257 mL gVS-1 when degrading a feedstock blend of manure and cheese waste. This represented an increase in methane yield of 76% when compared to the control reactor with no H2 addition. A 2:1 H2:CO2 ratio resulted in stable reactor performance, while a 4:1 ratio resulted in a high accumulation of volatile fatty acids. H2 consumption rate was improved when a low manure-cheese waste ratio (90%:10%) was applied. Furthermore, feeding less frequently (every 48 h) resulted in a higher CH4 production from CO2 and H2. Methanothermobacter was found to dominate the archaeal community in the in situ BM reactor, and its relative abundance increased over the experimental time. Methanosarcina abundance was negatively affected by H2 addition and was nearly non-existent at the end of the experiment. CONCLUSIONS Our results show that hybrid BM outperforms in situ BM in terms of total CH4 production and content of CH4 in the biogas. In comparison to in situ BM, the use of hybrid BM increased CH4 yield by up to 42%. Furthermore, addition of H2 at 2:1 H2:CO2 ratio in in situ BM resulted in stable reactor operation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Radziah Wahid
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| | - Svein Jarle Horn
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Kakuk B, Wirth R, Maróti G, Szuhaj M, Rakhely G, Laczi K, Kovács KL, Bagi Z. Early response of methanogenic archaea to H 2 as evaluated by metagenomics and metatranscriptomics. Microb Cell Fact 2021; 20:127. [PMID: 34217274 PMCID: PMC8254922 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-021-01618-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2021] [Accepted: 06/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The molecular machinery of the complex microbiological cell factory of biomethane production is not fully understood. One of the process control elements is the regulatory role of hydrogen (H2). Reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) by H2 is rate limiting factor in methanogenesis, but the community intends to keep H2 concentration low in order to maintain the redox balance of the overall system. H2 metabolism in methanogens becomes increasingly important in the Power-to-Gas renewable energy conversion and storage technologies. RESULTS The early response of the mixed mesophilic microbial community to H2 gas injection was investigated with the goal of uncovering the first responses of the microbial community in the CH4 formation and CO2 mitigation Power-to-Gas process. The overall microbial composition changes, following a 10 min excessive bubbling of H2 through the reactor, was investigated via metagenome and metatranscriptome sequencing. The overall composition and taxonomic abundance of the biogas producing anaerobic community did not change appreciably 2 hours after the H2 treatment, indicating that this time period was too short to display differences in the proliferation of the members of the microbial community. There was, however, a substantial increase in the expression of genes related to hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis of certain groups of Archaea. As an early response to H2 exposure the activity of the hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis in the genus Methanoculleus was upregulated but the hydrogenotrophic pathway in genus Methanosarcina was downregulated. The RT-qPCR data corroborated the metatranscriptomic RESULTS: H2 injection also altered the metabolism of a number of microbes belonging in the kingdom Bacteria. Many Bacteria possess the enzyme sets for the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway. These and the homoacetogens are partners for syntrophic community interactions between the distinct kingdoms of Archaea and Bacteria. CONCLUSIONS External H2 regulates the functional activity of certain Bacteria and Archaea. The syntrophic cross-kingdom interactions in H2 metabolism are important for the efficient operation of the Power-to-Gas process. Therefore, mixed communities are recommended for the large scale Power-to-Gas process rather than single hydrogenotrophic methanogen strains. Fast and reproducible response from the microbial community can be exploited in turn-off and turn-on of the Power-to-Gas microbial cell factories.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Balázs Kakuk
- Institute of Medical Biology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Roland Wirth
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
- Institute of Plant Biology, Biological Research Center, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Gergely Maróti
- Institute of Plant Biology, Biological Research Center, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Márk Szuhaj
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Gábor Rakhely
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
- Institute of Biophysics, Biological Research Center, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Krisztián Laczi
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Kornél L Kovács
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.
- Department of Oral Biology and Experimental Dental Research, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.
| | - Zoltán Bagi
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Okoro-Shekwaga CK, Ross AB, Camargo-Valero MA. Enhanced in-situ biomethanation of food waste by sequential inoculum acclimation: Energy efficiency and carbon savings analysis. WASTE MANAGEMENT (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2021; 130:12-22. [PMID: 34044360 DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2021.04.053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2021] [Revised: 04/10/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The increasing rate of food waste (FW) generation globally, makes it an attractive resource for renewable energy through anaerobic digestion (AD). The biogas recovered from AD can be upgraded by the methanation of internally produced carbon dioxide, CO2 with externally sourced hydrogen gas, H2 (biomethanation). In this work, H2 was added to AD reactors processing FW in three successive phases, with digestate from preceding phases recycled in succession with the addition of fresh inoculum to enhance acclimation. The concentration of H2 was increased for succeeding phases: 5%, 10% and 15% of the reactor headspace in Phase 1 (EH1), Phase 2 (EH2) and Phase 3 (EH3), respectively. The H2 utilisation rate and biomethane yields increased as acclimation progressed from EH1 through EH3. Biomethane yield from the controls: EH1_Control, EH2_Control and EH3_Control were 417.6, 435.4 and 453.3 NmL-CH4/gVSadded accounting for 64.8, 73.9 and 77.8% of the biogas respectively. And the biomethane yield from the test reactors EH1_Test, EH2_Test and EH3_Test were 468.3, 483.6, and 499.0 NmL-CH4/gVSadded, accounting for 77.2, 78.1 and 81.0% of the biogas respectively. A progressive in-situ biomethanation could lead to biomethane production that meets higher fuel standards for gas-to-grid (GtG) injections and vehicle fuel - i.e. >95% CH4. This would increase the energy yield and carbon savings compared to conventional biogas upgrade methods. For example, biogas upgrade for GtG by in-situ biomethanation could yield 7.3 MWh/tFW energy and 1343 kg-CO2e carbon savings, which is better than physicochemical upgrade options (i.e., 4.6-4.8 MWh/tFW energy yield and 846-883 kg-CO2e carbon savings).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cynthia Kusin Okoro-Shekwaga
- BioResource Systems Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom; Department of Agricultural and Bioresources Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Minna P.M.B. 65, Niger State, Nigeria
| | - Andrew Barry Ross
- School of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom
| | - Miller Alonso Camargo-Valero
- BioResource Systems Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom; Departamento de Ingeniería Química, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Campus La Nubia, Manizales, Colombia.
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Duan N, Kougias PG, Campanaro S, Treu L, Angelidaki I. Evolution of the microbial community structure in biogas reactors inoculated with seeds from different origin. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 773:144981. [PMID: 33940708 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.144981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2020] [Revised: 12/10/2020] [Accepted: 01/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The aim of this work was to provide solid proofs regarding the achievement of "steady-state conditions", which means that the performance of the anaerobic digester is representative of the applied environmental conditions. For this reason, we investigated how, starting from different inoculum sources (i.e., municipal wastewater treatment, bio-waste treatment, and agricultural waste biogas plant), the microbial community adapted to the operational parameters and led to stable biogas production in thermophilic digesters treating the same influent feedstock. The results revealed that the different system achieved similar process performance and microbial community structure after a period that was equal to four hydraulic retention times, approved by a constant pH of 7.89 ± 0.08, 7.92 ± 0.05 and 7.85 ± 0.08, respectively, and stable TAN concentration of 1500 mg/L. Moreover, it was found that the microbial composition of the inocula was a key factor for the speed of achieving stable process performance; thus, a pre-adapted to the influent feedstock inoculum can shorten the stabilization process. On the contrary, after long term reactor operation, the microbial structure was shaped according to the chemical composition of the influent feedstock. The results of the study can also be used as a guide in future researches on anaerobic degradation, particularly in determining the time interval of an experiment to reflect changes in the microbial community of anaerobic digester.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Na Duan
- College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China; Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis G Kougias
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark; Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organisation- DEMETER, 57001 Thermi-Thessaloniki, Greece.
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy; CRIBI - Centro di Ricerca Interdipartimentale per le Biotecnologie Innovative Viale G. Colombo, 335131 Padova, Italy
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark; CRIBI - Centro di Ricerca Interdipartimentale per le Biotecnologie Innovative Viale G. Colombo, 335131 Padova, Italy.
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Okoro‐Shekwaga CK, Ross A, Camargo‐Valero MA. Enhancing bioenergy production from food waste by in situ biomethanation: Effect of the hydrogen injection point. Food Energy Secur 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/fes3.288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Cynthia Kusin Okoro‐Shekwaga
- BioResource Systems Research Group School of Civil Engineering University of Leeds Leeds UK
- Department of Agricultural and Bioresources Engineering Federal University of Technology Minna Nigeria
| | - Andrew Ross
- School of Chemical and Process Engineering University of Leeds Leeds UK
| | - Miller Alonso Camargo‐Valero
- BioResource Systems Research Group School of Civil Engineering University of Leeds Leeds UK
- Departamento de Ingeniería Química Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Campus La Nubia Manizales Colombia
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Cao L, Yang L, Swanson CS, Li S, He Q. Comparative analysis of impact of human occupancy on indoor microbiomes. FRONTIERS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & ENGINEERING 2020; 15:89. [PMID: 33425458 PMCID: PMC7783699 DOI: 10.1007/s11783-020-1383-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Revised: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 10/23/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Educational facilities serve as community hubs and consequently hotspots for exposure to pathogenic microorganisms. Therefore, it is of critical importance to understand processes shaping the indoor microbiomes in educational facilities to protect public health by reducing potential exposure risks of students and the broader community. In this study, the indoor surface bacterial microbiomes were characterized in two multifunctional university buildings with contrasting levels of human occupancy, of which one was recently constructed with minimal human occupancy while the other had been in full operation for six years. Higher levels of human occupancy in the older building were shown to result in greater microbial abundance in the indoor environment and greater proportion of the indoor surface bacterial microbiomes contributed from human-associated microbiota, particularly the skin microbiota. It was further revealed that human-associated microbiota had greater influence on the indoor surface bacterial microbiomes in areas of high occupancy than areas of low occupancy. Consistent with minimal impact from human occupancy in a new construction, the indoor microbiomes in the new building exhibited significantly lower influence from human-associated microbiota than in the older building, with microbial taxa originating from soil and plants representing the dominant constituents of the indoor surface bacterial microbiomes. In contrast, microbial taxa in the older building with extensive human occupancy were represented by constituents of the human microbiota, likely from occupants. These findings provide insights into processes shaping the indoor microbiomes which will aid the development of effective strategies to control microbial exposure risks of occupants in educational facilities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Liu Cao
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 USA
| | - Lu Yang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 USA
| | - Clifford S. Swanson
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 USA
| | - Shuai Li
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 USA
| | - Qiang He
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 USA
- Institute for a Secure and Sustainable Environment, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 USA
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Microbiota of the Therapeutic Euganean Thermal Muds with a Focus on the Main Cyanobacteria Species. Microorganisms 2020; 8:microorganisms8101590. [PMID: 33076380 PMCID: PMC7650686 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms8101590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2020] [Revised: 10/12/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The Euganean Thermal District has been known since Roman times for the therapeutic properties of peloids, obtained from natural clays that have undergone a traditional maturation process. This leads to the growth of a green microbial biofilm with Cyanobacteria and the target species Phormidium sp. ETS-05 as fundamental components for their ability to synthetize anti-inflammatory molecules. Currently, in-depth studies on the microbiota colonizing Euganean peloids, as in general on peloids utilized worldwide, are missing. This is the first characterization of the microbial community of Euganean thermal muds, also investigating the effects of environmental factors on its composition. We analysed 53 muds from 29 sites (Spas) using a polyphasic approach, finding a stable microbiota peculiar to the area. Differences among mud samples mainly depended on two parameters: water temperature and shading of mud maturation plants. In the range 37-47 °C and in the case of irradiance attenuation due to the presence of protective roofs, a statistically significant higher mud Chl a content was detected. Moreover, in these conditions, a characteristic microbial and Cyanobacteria population composition dominated by Phormidium sp. ETS-05 was observed. We also obtained the complete genome sequence of this target species using a mixed sequencing approach based on Illumina and Nanopore sequencing.
Collapse
|
32
|
Yan M, Treu L, Zhu X, Tian H, Basile A, Fotidis IA, Campanaro S, Angelidaki I. Insights into Ammonia Adaptation and Methanogenic Precursor Oxidation by Genome-Centric Analysis. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2020; 54:12568-12582. [PMID: 32852203 PMCID: PMC8154354 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c01945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2020] [Revised: 08/22/2020] [Accepted: 08/27/2020] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Ammonia released from the degradation of protein and/or urea usually leads to suboptimal anaerobic digestion (AD) when N-rich organic waste is used. However, the insights behind the differential ammonia tolerance of anaerobic microbiomes remain an enigma. In this study, the cultivation in synthetic medium with different carbon sources (acetate, methanol, formate, and H2/CO2) shaped a common initial inoculum into four unique ammonia-tolerant syntrophic populations. Specifically, various levels of ammonia tolerance were observed: consortia fed with methanol and H2/CO2 could grow at ammonia levels up to 7.25 g NH+-N/L, whereas the other two groups (formate and acetate) only thrived at 5.25 and 4.25 g NH+-N/L, respectively. Metabolic reconstruction highlighted that this divergent microbiome might be achieved by complementary metabolisms to maximize biomethane recovery from carbon sources, thus indicating the importance of the syntrophic community in the AD of N-rich substrates. Besides, sodium/proton antiporter operon, osmoprotectant/K+ regulator, and osmoprotectant synthesis operon may function as the main drivers of adaptation to the ammonia stress. Moreover, energy from the substrate-level phosphorylation and multiple energy-converting hydrogenases (e.g., Ech and Eha) could aid methanogens to balance the energy request for anabolic activities and contribute to thriving when exposed to high ammonia levels.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Miao Yan
- Department of Environmental
Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Bygningstorvet Bygning 115, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University
of Padova, Via U. Bassi
58/b, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Xinyu Zhu
- Department of Environmental
Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Bygningstorvet Bygning 115, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Hailin Tian
- Department of Environmental
Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Bygningstorvet Bygning 115, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
- NUS Environmental Research Institute, National
University of Singapore, 1 Create Way, 138602, Singapore
| | - Arianna Basile
- Department of Biology, University
of Padova, Via U. Bassi
58/b, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Ioannis A. Fotidis
- Department of Environmental
Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Bygningstorvet Bygning 115, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
- School of Civil Engineering, Southeast University, 210096 Nanjing, China
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University
of Padova, Via U. Bassi
58/b, 35121 Padova, Italy
- CRIBI Biotechnology Center, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Environmental
Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Bygningstorvet Bygning 115, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Synbiotic VSL#3 and yacon-based product modulate the intestinal microbiota and prevent the development of pre-neoplastic lesions in a colorectal carcinogenesis model. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2020; 104:8837-8857. [DOI: 10.1007/s00253-020-10863-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2020] [Revised: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 08/26/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
|
34
|
Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus strain ΔH as a potential microorganism for bioconversion of CO2 to methane. J CO2 UTIL 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcou.2020.101210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
|
35
|
Braga Nan L, Trably E, Santa-Catalina G, Bernet N, Delgenès JP, Escudié R. Biomethanation processes: new insights on the effect of a high H 2 partial pressure on microbial communities. BIOTECHNOLOGY FOR BIOFUELS 2020; 13:141. [PMID: 32793302 PMCID: PMC7419211 DOI: 10.1186/s13068-020-01776-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/29/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Biomethanation is a promising solution to upgrade the CH4 content in biogas. This process consists in the injection of H2 into an anaerobic digester, using the capacity of indigenous hydrogenotrophic methanogens for converting the injected H2 and the CO2 generated from the anaerobic digestion process into CH4. However, the injection of H2 could cause process disturbances by impacting the microbial communities of the anaerobic digester. Better understanding on how the indigenous microbial community can adapt to high H2 partial pressures is therefore required. RESULTS Seven microbial inocula issued from industrial bioprocesses treating different types of waste were exposed to a high H2 partial pressure in semi-continuous reactors. After 12 days of operation, even though both CH4 and volatile fatty acids (VFA) were produced as end products, one of them was the main product. Acetate was the most abundant VFA, representing up to 94% of the total VFA production. VFA accumulation strongly anti-correlated with CH4 production according to the source of inoculum. Three clusters of inocula were distinguished: (1) inocula leading to CH4 production, (2) inocula leading to the production of methane and VFA in a low proportion, and (3) inocula leading to the accumulation of mostly VFA, mainly acetate. Interestingly, VFA accumulation was highly correlated to a low proportion of archaea in the inocula, a higher amount of homoacetogens than hydrogenotrophic methanogens and, the absence or the very low abundance in members from the Methanosarcinales order. The best methanogenic performances were obtained when hydrogenotrophic methanogens and Methanosarcina sp. co-dominated all along the operation. CONCLUSIONS New insights on the microbial community response to high H2 partial pressure are provided in this work. H2 injection in semi-continuous reactors showed a significant impact on microbial communities and their associated metabolic patterns. Hydrogenotrophic methanogens, Methanobacterium sp. or Methanoculleus sp. were highly selected in the reactors, but the presence of co-dominant Methanosarcinales related species were required to produce higher amounts of CH4 than VFA.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lucia Braga Nan
- INRAE, Univ Montpellier, LBE, 102 Avenue des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | - Eric Trably
- INRAE, Univ Montpellier, LBE, 102 Avenue des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | | | - Nicolas Bernet
- INRAE, Univ Montpellier, LBE, 102 Avenue des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| | | | - Renaud Escudié
- INRAE, Univ Montpellier, LBE, 102 Avenue des Etangs, 11100 Narbonne, France
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Biological CO2 fixation in up-flow reactors via exogenous H2 addition. J Biotechnol 2020; 319:1-7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2020.05.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2020] [Revised: 05/06/2020] [Accepted: 05/19/2020] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
|
37
|
A Rapid, Sensitive, Low-Cost Assay for Detecting Hydrogenotrophic Methanogens in Anaerobic Digesters Using Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification. Microorganisms 2020; 8:microorganisms8050740. [PMID: 32429197 PMCID: PMC7284894 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms8050740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2020] [Revised: 05/11/2020] [Accepted: 05/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding how the presence, absence, and abundance of different microbial genera supply specific metabolic functions for anaerobic digestion (AD) and how these impact on gas production is critical for a long-term understanding and optimization of the AD process. The strictly anaerobic methanogenic archaea are essential for methane production within AD microbial communities. Methanogens are a phylogenetically diverse group that can be classified into three metabolically distinct lineages based on the substrates they use to produce methane. While process optimization based on physicochemical parameters is well established in AD, measurements that could allow manipulation of the underlying microbial community are seldom used as they tend to be non-specific, expensive, or time-consuming, or a combination of all three. Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assays combine a simple, rapid, low-cost detection technique with high sensitivity and specificity. Here, we describe the optimization of LAMP assays for the detection of four different genera of hydrogenotrophic methanogens: Methanoculleus, Methanothermobacter, Methanococcus, and Methanobrevibacter spp. By targeting archaeal elongation factor 2 (aEF2), these LAMP assays provide a rapid, low-cost, presence/absence indication of hydrogenotrophic methanogens that could be used as a real-time measure of process conditions. The assays were shown to be sensitive to 1 pg of DNA from most tested methanogen species, providing a route to a quantitative measure through simple serial dilution of samples. The LAMP assays described here offer a simple, fast, and affordable method for the specific detection of four different genera of hydrogenotrophic methanogens. Our results indicate that this approach could be developed into a quantitative measure that could provide rapid, low-cost insight into the functioning and optimization of AD and related systems.
Collapse
|
38
|
Comparative evaluation of cheese whey microbial composition from four Italian cheese factories by viable counts and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Int Dairy J 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.idairyj.2020.104656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register]
|
39
|
Xu H, Wang K, Zhang X, Gong H, Xia Y, Holmes DE. Application of in-situ H 2-assisted biogas upgrading in high-rate anaerobic wastewater treatment. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2020; 299:122598. [PMID: 31869628 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2019.122598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2019] [Revised: 12/06/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The H2-assisted biogas upgrading approach has recently attracted much interest as a low-cost and environmentally friendly alternative to commonly used ex-situ/ physiochemical biogas upgrading techniques. However, most studies conducted to date have been limited to anaerobic solid-waste treatment characterized by flocculant sludge and low organic loading rates (OLR). In an attempt to expand its application to high-rate anaerobic wastewater treatment, an innovative two-stage up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor system was employed using anaerobic granular sludge. We found that the CH4 content of product gas was consistently >90% and that H2 and CO2 concentrations stayed below 5%, even when OLR was increased from 1 to 5 g L-1 d-1 and H2 feeding rates were increased from 0.13 to 0.63 g L-1 d-1. We were also able to show that CO (5-10%) in H2-rich syngas didn't inhibit methanogenesis or had significant impact on microbial community structure, suggesting that H2-assisted biogas upgrading with H2-rich syngas is feasible.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Heng Xu
- School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China; State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Kaijun Wang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
| | - Xiaoqian Zhang
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Center for Rural Environmental Protection, Chinese Academy for Environmental Planning, Beijing 100012, China
| | - Hui Gong
- State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Yu Xia
- School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China
| | - Dawn E Holmes
- Department of Physical and Biological Sciences, Western New England University, Springfield, MA 01119, USA
| |
Collapse
|
40
|
Zhu X, Campanaro S, Treu L, Seshadri R, Ivanova N, Kougias PG, Kyrpides N, Angelidaki I. Metabolic dependencies govern microbial syntrophies during methanogenesis in an anaerobic digestion ecosystem. MICROBIOME 2020; 8:22. [PMID: 32061251 PMCID: PMC7024554 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-019-0780-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2019] [Accepted: 12/27/2019] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Methanogenesis, a biological process mediated by complex microbial communities, has attracted great attention due to its contribution to global warming and potential in biotechnological applications. The current study unveiled the core microbial methanogenic metabolisms in anaerobic vessel ecosystems by applying combined genome-centric metagenomics and metatranscriptomics. Here, we demonstrate that an enriched natural system, fueled only with acetate, could support a bacteria-dominated microbiota employing a multi-trophic methanogenic process. Moreover, significant changes, in terms of microbial structure and function, were recorded after the system was supplemented with additional H2. Methanosarcina thermophila, the predominant methanogen prior to H2 addition, simultaneously performed acetoclastic, hydrogenotrophic, and methylotrophic methanogenesis. The methanogenic pattern changed after the addition of H2, which immediately stimulated Methanomicrobia-activity and was followed by a slow enrichment of Methanobacteria members. Interestingly, the essential genes involved in the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway were not expressed in bacterial members. The high expression of a glycine cleavage system indicated the activation of alternative metabolic pathways for acetate metabolism, which were reconstructed in the most abundant bacterial genomes. Moreover, as evidenced by predicted auxotrophies, we propose that specific microbes of the community were forming symbiotic relationships, thus reducing the biosynthetic burden of individual members. These results provide new information that will facilitate future microbial ecology studies of interspecies competition and symbiosis in methanogenic niches. Video abstract.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xinyu Zhu
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
- US Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA, USA
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121, Padua, Italy
- CRIBI Biotechnology Center, University of Padua, 35131, Padua, Italy
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, Via U. Bassi 58/b, 35121, Padua, Italy.
| | - Rekha Seshadri
- US Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA, USA
| | - Natalia Ivanova
- US Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA, USA
| | - Panagiotis G Kougias
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
- Soil and Water Resources Institute, Hellenic Organisation-DEMETER, 57001, Thermi-, Thessaloniki, Greece.
| | - Nikos Kyrpides
- US Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA, USA
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Building 115, DK-2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Iglesias-Iglesias R, Campanaro S, Treu L, Kennes C, Veiga MC. Valorization of sewage sludge for volatile fatty acids production and role of microbiome on acidogenic fermentation. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2019; 291:121817. [PMID: 31374412 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2019.121817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2019] [Revised: 07/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/15/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
This work explored the production of volatile fatty acids (VFA) through the anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge (SS). The first experiment took place at batch scale to evaluate the combined effect of using a thermal pre-treatment (120 °C, 15 min) and different Substrate/Inoculum ratios (S/I) (1, 2, 4 and 6 g VS substrate/g VS inoculum) on the acidogenic potential of the SS. The results showed that the thermal pre-treatment influenced positively the degree of acidification of the SS at low S/I ratios, reaching maximum of 45%. Afterwards, a continuous lab-scale experiment, was set-up to study two ranges of organic loading rates (OLR): 1300-1600 mg COD L-1 d-1 and 2400-3500 mg COD L-1 d-1. The highest degree of acidification (22%) was achieved at the lowest OLR. Analysis of the microbial community in the reactor revealed that OTUs most abundant present genes related with amino acids and carbohydrates fermentation being crucial for VFA production.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Iglesias-Iglesias
- Chemical Engineering Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences and Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (CICA), University of Coruña, Rua da Fraga 10, E - 15008 A Coruña, Spain
| | - Stefano Campanaro
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35131, Italy; CRIBI Biotechnology Center, University of Padova, Viale G. Colombo 3, Padova 35131, Italy
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via U. Bassi 58/b, Padova 35131, Italy
| | - Christian Kennes
- Chemical Engineering Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences and Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (CICA), University of Coruña, Rua da Fraga 10, E - 15008 A Coruña, Spain
| | - Maria C Veiga
- Chemical Engineering Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences and Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (CICA), University of Coruña, Rua da Fraga 10, E - 15008 A Coruña, Spain.
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Lebranchu A, Blanchard F, Fick M, Pacaud S, Olmos E, Delaunay S. Pilot-scale biomethanation of cattle manure using dense membranes. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2019; 284:430-436. [PMID: 30978646 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2019.03.140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2019] [Revised: 03/27/2019] [Accepted: 03/28/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
This study aimed at studying the biomethanation process using a 100 L pilot-scale digester equipped with a dense membrane for hydrogen injection. Hydrogen mass transfer was characterized and the impact of hydrogen flowrate, agitation rate and of the co-injection of CO2, on biogas production and composition, was precisely studied. A linear relationship between H2 flowrate and the CO2 and CH4 rates in biogas was found but no impact on biogas flowrate was shown. It was also noticed that, without exogenous CO2 injection, and for high H2 injection flowrates, residual H2 could be found at the digester outlet due to local CO2 limitation. Thus, this study suggested that biogas production in biomethanation process at the pilot scale was probably rather limited by the dissolved CO2 transport within the liquid phase than by the hydrogen mass transfer itself.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Aline Lebranchu
- CNRS, Laboratoire Réactions et Génie des Procédés, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France; Université de Lorraine, LRGP, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France
| | - Fabrice Blanchard
- CNRS, Laboratoire Réactions et Génie des Procédés, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France; Université de Lorraine, LRGP, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France
| | - Michel Fick
- CNRS, Laboratoire Réactions et Génie des Procédés, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France; Université de Lorraine, LRGP, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France
| | - Stéphane Pacaud
- ENSAIA, Université de Lorraine, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France
| | - Eric Olmos
- CNRS, Laboratoire Réactions et Génie des Procédés, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France; Université de Lorraine, LRGP, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France.
| | - Stéphane Delaunay
- CNRS, Laboratoire Réactions et Génie des Procédés, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France; Université de Lorraine, LRGP, UMR 7274, 2 avenue de la forêt de Haye, TSA 40602, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy F-54518, France
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Wahid R, Mulat DG, Gaby JC, Horn SJ. Effects of H 2:CO 2 ratio and H 2 supply fluctuation on methane content and microbial community composition during in-situ biological biogas upgrading. BIOTECHNOLOGY FOR BIOFUELS 2019; 12:104. [PMID: 31164923 PMCID: PMC6489297 DOI: 10.1186/s13068-019-1443-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2019] [Accepted: 04/16/2019] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Commercial biogas upgrading facilities are expensive and consume energy. Biological biogas upgrading may serve as a low-cost approach because it can be easily integrated with existing facilities at biogas plants. The microbial communities found in anaerobic digesters typically contain hydrogenotrophic methanogens, which can use hydrogen (H2) as a reducing agent for conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) into methane (CH4). Thus, biological biogas upgrading through the exogenous addition of H2 into biogas digesters for the conversion of CO2 into CH4 can increase CH4 yield and lower CO2 emission. RESULTS The addition of 4 mol of H2 per mol of CO2 was optimal for batch biogas reactors and increased the CH4 content of the biogas from 67 to 94%. The CO2 content of the biogas was reduced from 33 to 3% and the average residual H2 content was 3%. At molar H2:CO2 ratios > 4:1, all CO2 was converted into CH4, but the pH increased above 8 due to depletion of CO2, which negatively influenced the process stability. Additionally, high residual H2 content in these reactors was unfavourable, causing volatile fatty acid accumulation and reduced CH4 yields. The reactor microbial communities shifted in composition over time, which corresponded to changes in the reactor variables. Numerous taxa responded to the H2 inputs, and in particular the hydrogenotrophic methanogen Methanobacterium increased in abundance with addition of H2. In addition, the apparent rapid response of hydrogenotrophic methanogens to intermittent H2 feeding indicates the suitability of biological methanation for variable H2 inputs, aligning well with fluctuations in renewable electricity production that may be used to produce H2. CONCLUSIONS Our research demonstrates that the H2:CO2 ratio has a significant effect on reactor performance during in situ biological methanation. Consequently, the H2:CO2 molar ratio should be kept at 4:1 to avoid process instability. A shift toward hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis was indicated by an increase in the abundance of the obligate hydrogenotrophic methanogen Methanobacterium.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Radziah Wahid
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| | - Daniel Girma Mulat
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| | - John Christian Gaby
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| | - Svein Jarle Horn
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Porté H, Kougias PG, Alfaro N, Treu L, Campanaro S, Angelidaki I. Process performance and microbial community structure in thermophilic trickling biofilter reactors for biogas upgrading. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2019; 655:529-538. [PMID: 30476832 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.11.289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2018] [Revised: 11/05/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
This study evaluated the process performance and determined the microbial community structure of two lab-scale thermophilic trickling biofilter reactors used for biological methanation of hydrogen and carbon-dioxide for a total period of 94 days. Stable and robust operation was achieved by means of a single-pass gas flow. The quality of the output gas (>97%) was comparable to the methane purity achieved by commercial biogas upgrading systems fulfilling the specifications to be used as substitute to natural gas. The reactors' methane productivity reached >1.7 LCH4/(LR·d) at hydrogen loading rate of 7.2 LH2/(LR·d). The spatial distribution of the microbial consortia localized in the liquid media and biofilm enabled us to gain a deeper understanding on how the microbiome is structured inside the trickling biofilter. Sequencing results revealed a significant predominance of Methanothermobacter sp. in the biofilm. Unknown members of the class Clostridia were highly abundant in biofilm and liquid media, while acetate utilising bacteria predominated in liquid samples.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hugo Porté
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis G Kougias
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark.
| | - Natalia Alfaro
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark; Institute of Sustainable Processes, Department of Chemical Engineering and Environmental Technology, Escuela de Ingenierías Industriales, Sede Dr. Mergelina, University of Valladolid, Dr. Mergelina s/n, 47011 Valladolid, Spain
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| | | | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby DK-2800, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
Treu L, Tsapekos P, Peprah M, Campanaro S, Giacomini A, Corich V, Kougias PG, Angelidaki I. Microbial profiling during anaerobic digestion of cheese whey in reactors operated at different conditions. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2019; 275:375-385. [PMID: 30599281 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2018.12.084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2018] [Revised: 12/20/2018] [Accepted: 12/23/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
This study investigates the efficiency in methane production of lab-scale mesophilic (37 °C) and thermophilic (54 °C) continuous stirred tank reactors fed with cheese whey at different operational conditions. Results showed that whey mono-digestion was feasible at mesophilic conditions, while at thermophilic conditions frequent acidification incidents were recorded. The limited buffer capacity of the influent feedstock was responsible for the unstable anaerobic digestion process. The co-digestion of cheese whey with cattle manure maintained the pH levels higher than 7.0, and therefore, stable methane production rates were achieved without any significant accumulation of volatile fatty acids. An additional enhancement of the methane productivity was achieved by in-situ H2 dispersion. Microbial community composition was investigated using high-throughput 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and results were correlated with process parameters. Hydrogenotrophic methanogens were the dominant archaea during the whole experiment at mesophilic and thermophilic conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Laura Treu
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark; Department of Biology, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy; Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padua, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Panagiotis Tsapekos
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark.
| | - Maria Peprah
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| | | | - Alessio Giacomini
- Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padua, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Viviana Corich
- Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padua, 35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy
| | - Panagiotis G Kougias
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark; Institute of Animal Science, Hellenic Agricultural Organisation Demeter, Paralimni 58100, Greece
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, DK-2800, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
46
|
Fontana A, Kougias PG, Treu L, Kovalovszki A, Valle G, Cappa F, Morelli L, Angelidaki I, Campanaro S. Microbial activity response to hydrogen injection in thermophilic anaerobic digesters revealed by genome-centric metatranscriptomics. MICROBIOME 2018; 6:194. [PMID: 30368244 PMCID: PMC6204281 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-018-0583-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 10/18/2018] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The expansion of renewable energy produced by windmills and photovoltaic panels has generated a considerable electricity surplus, which can be utilized in water electrolysis systems for hydrogen production. The resulting hydrogen can then be funneled to anaerobic digesters for biogas upgrading (biomethanation) purposes (power-to-methane) or to produce high value-added compounds such as short-chain fatty acids (power-to-chemicals). Genome-centric metagenomics and metatranscriptomic analyses were performed to better understand the metabolic dynamics associated with H2 injection in two different configurations of anaerobic digesters treating acidic wastes, specifically cheese manufacturing byproducts. These approaches revealed the key-genes involved in methanation and carbon fixation pathways at species level. RESULTS The biogas upgrading process in the single-stage configuration increased the CH4 content by 7%. The dominant methanogenic species responsible for the upregulation of the hydrogenotrophic pathway in this reactor was Methanothermobacter wolfeii UC0008. In the two-stage configuration, H2 injection induced an upregulation of CO2 fixation pathways producing short-chain fatty acids, mainly acetate and butyrate. In this configuration, the abundant species Anaerobaculum hydrogeniformans UC0046 and Defluviitoga tunisiensis UC0050 primarily upregulated genes related to electron transport chains, suggesting putative syntrophisms with hydrogen scavenger microbes. Interestingly, Tepidanaerobacter acetatoxydans UC0018 did not act as an acetate-oxidizer in either reactor configurations, and instead regulated pathways involved in acetate production and uptake. A putative syntrophic association between Coprothermobacter proteolyticus UC0011 and M. wolfeii UC0008 was proposed in the two-stage reactor. In order to support the transcriptomic findings regarding the hydrogen utilization routes, an advanced bioconversion model was adapted for the simulation of the single- and two-stage reactor setups. CONCLUSIONS This is the first study investigating biogas reactor metatranscriptome dynamics following hydrogen injection for biomethanation and carbon fixation to short-chain fatty acids purposes. The same microbes showed different patterns of metabolic regulation in the two reactor configurations. It was observed an effect of the specialized acidogenic reactor on the overall microbial consortium composition and activity in the two-stage digester. There were also suggested the main species responsible for methanation, short-chain fatty acids production, and electron transport chain mechanisms, in both reactor configurations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alessandra Fontana
- Department for Sustainable Food Process, DiSTAS, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, 29122, Piacenza, Italy
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Panagiotis G Kougias
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Laura Treu
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Adam Kovalovszki
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Giorgio Valle
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, 35131, Padua, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Cappa
- Department for Sustainable Food Process, DiSTAS, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, 29122, Piacenza, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Morelli
- Department for Sustainable Food Process, DiSTAS, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, 29122, Piacenza, Italy
| | - Irini Angelidaki
- Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | | |
Collapse
|