Chapter 10
Substrate Characterization
in the Anaerobic Digestion Process
Pietro Bartocci, Sara Massoli, Mauro Zampilli, Federia Liberti, Yan Yunjun,
Qing Yang, Haiping Yang, Hewen Zhou, Eid Gul, Gianni Bidini, and
Francesco Fantozzi
Abstract Anaerobic digestion, for the production of biogas and digestate, can be a
powerful technology to obtain a gaseous fuel used for combined heat and power
generation and for transportation (if upgraded to biomethane) and simultaneously
obtain also a fertilizer. Anaerobic digestion is a biochemical process in which wet
biomass is converted into gas by bacteria. To optimize the process at both research
and industry level, it is necessary to characterize in detail the substrate before and
during the process. Analytical methods applied to anaerobic digestion start from
substrate characterization (which can be done through proximate and ultimate
analysis and calorimetry, but also through the analysis of COD, alkalinity, pH,
FFA, and other inhibitors); then also the microbial community has to be monitored
during the process, and gas analysis has to be performed to determine the heating
value and also the contaminants inside it (e.g., siloxanes). All these measurements
have to be carefully standardized and are discussed in this chapter to provide
information to researchers and operators in the field of anaerobic digestion.
Keywords Biogas · Anaerobic digestion · Methanation · Substrate · Analytical
methods · Microbia
P. Bartocci (*) · S. Massoli · M. Zampilli · F. Liberti · E. Gul · G. Bidini · F. Fantozzi
Department of Engineering, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
e-mail: bartocci@crbnet.it
Y. Yunjun
Key Lab of Molecular Biophysics of Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and
Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China
Q. Yang · H. Yang · H. Zhou
China-EU Institute for Clean and Renewable Energy, Huazhong University of Science and
Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China
State Key Laboratory of Coal Combustion, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,
Wuhan, Hubei, China
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
M. Srivastava et al. (eds.), Bioenergy Research: Basic and Advanced Concepts, Clean
Energy Production Technologies, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4611-6_10
307
Substrate Characterization
in the Anaerobic Digestion Process
Pietro Bartocci, Sara Massoli, Mauro Zampilli, Federia Liberti, Yan Yunjun,
Qing Yang, Haiping Yang, Hewen Zhou, Eid Gul, Gianni Bidini, and
Francesco Fantozzi
Abstract Anaerobic digestion, for the production of biogas and digestate, can be a
powerful technology to obtain a gaseous fuel used for combined heat and power
generation and for transportation (if upgraded to biomethane) and simultaneously
obtain also a fertilizer. Anaerobic digestion is a biochemical process in which wet
biomass is converted into gas by bacteria. To optimize the process at both research
and industry level, it is necessary to characterize in detail the substrate before and
during the process. Analytical methods applied to anaerobic digestion start from
substrate characterization (which can be done through proximate and ultimate
analysis and calorimetry, but also through the analysis of COD, alkalinity, pH,
FFA, and other inhibitors); then also the microbial community has to be monitored
during the process, and gas analysis has to be performed to determine the heating
value and also the contaminants inside it (e.g., siloxanes). All these measurements
have to be carefully standardized and are discussed in this chapter to provide
information to researchers and operators in the field of anaerobic digestion.
Keywords Biogas · Anaerobic digestion · Methanation · Substrate · Analytical
methods · Microbia
P. Bartocci (*) · S. Massoli · M. Zampilli · F. Liberti · E. Gul · G. Bidini · F. Fantozzi
Department of Engineering, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
e-mail: bartocci@crbnet.it
Y. Yunjun
Key Lab of Molecular Biophysics of Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and
Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China
Q. Yang · H. Yang · H. Zhou
China-EU Institute for Clean and Renewable Energy, Huazhong University of Science and
Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China
State Key Laboratory of Coal Combustion, Huazhong University of Science and Technology,
Wuhan, Hubei, China
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
M. Srivastava et al. (eds.), Bioenergy Research: Basic and Advanced Concepts, Clean
Energy Production Technologies, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4611-6_10
307