Preface

Vegetable waste, alternatively described as, organic waste, kitchen waste,

or in some cases, fresh food waste (probably mixed with some cooked
waste), and also called “wet organic refuse” in China, refers to the wastes
that are produced in food processing by householders, canteens, restau-
rants, shops, and urban markets, and is favorable to biological treatment,
such as anaerobic fermentation for biomethane production. The compo-
nents and composition of vegetable waste vary with location, climate, and
even from day to day.
Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), an aquatic plant of the genus
Eichhornia of the pickerelweed family (Pontederiaceae), native primarily to
tropical America, and introduced into China in the 1930s, has spread very
quickly in recent years because of water eutrophication in watershed areas.
It has become a social problem as it occupies waterways, disturbs the
aquatic ecosystem equilibrium, and impacts local economies. Its fantastic
growth pattern and rapid spreading mechanism in the field, as well as
anaerobic fermentation for biogas production, are very important for the
control and recycling of water hyacinth. It can be collected and treated
anaerobically to produce biomethane.
There are many processing methods for the treatment of
vegetable and water hyacinth wastes. According to the treatment princi-
ple, the treatments can be divided into thermochemical and biochemical
methods. Thermochemical treatment is the process of decomposing
organic waste by oxidation. The most frequently used treatment methods
include incineration, pyrolysis, and wet oxidation. Biochemical treatment
utilizes microorganisms to degrade organic waste, and can be divided into
aerobic composting, semiaerobic fermentation, and anaerobic fermenta-
tion, depending on the oxygen content.
Anaerobic digestion is considered to be a favorable option for the
effective treatment of waste, enabling methane gas and fertilizer to be pro-
duced while the wastes are stabilized. Traditionally, only methane has
been obtained. Fermentation technology has become the mainstream for
energy utilization of vegetable waste. Compared with aerobic treatment,
anaerobic fermentation with low power consumption does not need arti-
ficial aeration to provide oxygen; in addition, it can also produce large
amounts of clean energy. Anaerobic fermentation to dispose of organic

xix
xx Preface

wastes has broad prospects for the development of renewable energy utili-
zation and environmental protection.
Whether using composting or fermentation, some metabolites will be
produced by microorganisms, which can be utilized as a resource. During
the metabolism process the main products are methane gas, volatile fatty
acids (VFAs), and residue. The methane gas can be used for incineration
power generation as clean energy, VFAs can be used as chemical raw
materials after separation, and the residue can be used as a fertilizer in agri-
culture and forestry.
In this book, biomethane production from vegetable and water hya-
cinth waste via anaerobic fermentation technology, principles, process
development and engineering design, and practical applications are dis-
cussed in depth. In Chapter 1, Anaerobic Fermentation Process for
Biomethane Production From Vegetable Waste, the anaerobic fermenta-
tion process for biomethane production from vegetable waste is fully
introduced, including crushing technology, the making of protein feed
and organic acids, mixed anaerobic/microaerobic fermentation, vermi-
composting, methods of improving methane productivity such as the use
of additives, substrate reflux, raw material pretreatment, anaerobic fermen-
tation reactors such as plug flow reactor, upflow solids reactor, upflow
anaerobic sludge bed, upflow anaerobic sludge blanket, plug flow reactor,
internal circulation reactor, anaerobic sequence batch reactor, expanded
granular sludge bed, and anaerobic digestion reactor construction are illus-
trated. The principles of anaerobic fermentation of organic waste, that is,
the definition of anaerobic fermentation, microbial communities in anaer-
obic fermentation, theory and calculation of methane formation, and the
thermodynamics and kinetics of anaerobic fermentation are described.
Equipment and technology used in anaerobic fermentation, such as tradi-
tional biogas fermentation equipment, modern large-scale industrial biogas
fermentation equipment, wet fermentation and dry fermentation pro-
cesses, and comprehensive utilization of biogas and residue are discussed.
Biological hydrogen and methane production in the fermentation of
organic waste, biological hydrogen production, integrated equipment
combining hydrogen and methane production with a daily processing
capacity of 10 t of kitchen waste are also described.
In Chapter 2, Bioproduction of Volatile Fatty Acids From
Vegetable Waste, bioproduction of VFAs from vegetable waste is intro-
duced, including pretreatment, analysis of the modified Gompertz equation,
VFA production via anaerobic fermentation using inoculating yeast and
 Preface xxi

acetic acid bacteria, pH and yield of acetic acid in microaerobic fermenta-

tion, hydrolysis of microaerobic fermentation by adding yeast and acetic
acid bacteria, and the temperature effect on the pH of vegetable waste
inoculated with yeast and acetic acid bacteria are discussed. The mechanism
of acid production by microaerobic fermentation inoculated with yeast and
acetic acid bacteria, degradation of vegetable waste using primary micro-
electrodes coupled with microbial stimulation, antimicrobial degradation of
organic waste in the presence of acetic acid bacteria, and a conceptual land-
fill for organic waste are illustrated. Fe C microelectrolysis on VFA pro-
duction enhancement of organic waste by fermentation, iron powder with
different diameters on anaerobic fermentation of vegetable waste, 18 µm
iron powder effect on acid production of vegetable waste (total solid 10%)
anaerobic fermentation, 74 µm iron powder effect on acid production of
anaerobic fermentation of vegetable waste, Fe powder addition effect on
anaerobic acidogenic fermentation of kitchen wastes, and iron carbon
microelectrolysis effect on fermentation of excess sludge anaerobic fermen-
tation are elucidated.
In Chapter 3, Methane Production by Two-phase Anaerobic
Digestion for Vegetable Waste, methane production by two-phase anaer-
obic digestion is fully described, including biomethane based on residue
after biohydrogen production, a pilot-scale test of methane production by
two-phase anaerobic digestion for biohydrogen and biomethane produc-
tion, design of a methane production pilot test, and variations in methane
and hydrogen production and metabolites composition and content.
Determination of the maximum gas production rate and first-order kinetic
parameters of biohydrogen and methane, biodegradability at different
organic load rates in the hydrogen and methane fermentation step, treat-
ment of anaerobic fermentation residues by earthworms, the bottleneck of
methane production by two-phase anaerobic digestion, and methane pro-
duction based on the residue after biohydrogen production are reviewed.
In Chapter 4, Recovery of Resources From Anaerobic Fermentation
Liquid and Residues of Vegetable Waste, recovery of resources from
anaerobic fermentation liquids and residues is introduced in detail, includ-
ing the characteristics of VFAs produced by microaerobic fermentation in
vegetable waste under a semicontinuous model, proportional relation of
components in VFAs produced by microaerobic fermentation of
vegetable waste under a semicontinuous model, and variation of oxida-
tion reduction potential with time in anaerobic fermentation in
vegetable waste under a semicontinuous model. The separation and
xxii Preface

extraction of VFAs from fermentation mixed liquid from kitchen waste

and utilization of residual residues, extraction of VFAs in mixed fermenta-
tion liquid of vegetable waste by tributyl phosphate, with a suggestion for
preparing refuse derived fuel-5 waste-derived fuel from residues of
vegetable waste fermentation, C&N recovery and application for anaero-
bic fermentation liquid from vegetable waste, product properties and
application performance, and making coal water slurry with
vegetable waste fermentation residue are examined.
In Chapter 5, Technical Development and a Pilot Trial for Anaerobic
Digestion of Water Hyacinth, technical and pilot-trail anaerobic digestion
of water hyacinth is introduced, including single-phase fermentation of
water hyacinth under constant temperature, two-phase fermentation of
water hyacinth under constant temperature, a comparison between two-
phase and single-phase digestion, fragmentation of water hyacinth for
anaerobic digestion, acidification of water hyacinth at room temperature,
and water hyacinth compost pretreatment. The engineering design of a
water hyacinth anaerobic reaction tank, anaerobic fermentation equip-
ment and process engineering design of water hyacinth, anaerobic reactor
start-up for engineering facilities, and water hyacinth anaerobic reaction
engineering tank operation are explored. Comprehensive utilization of
water hyacinth anaerobic fermentation products, comparison with other
anaerobic treatments of organic waste, a kinetic model of digestion pro-
cess, economic analysis of the anaerobic engineering of water hyacinth,
and prospects for application in engineering are given.
In Chapter 6, Anaerobic Fermentation Engineering Design for a
Vegetable Waste Treatment Plant PPP Project, the anaerobic fermenta-
tion engineering design for a vegetable waste treatment plant Public-
Private Partnership (PPP) project is designed and practiced in full,
including the process of overall scheme selection and determination, selec-
tion of the production process, overall design thoughts, process route,
technological process, material balance, heat equilibrium, and water equi-
librium. Process system design, anaerobic fermentation system layout,
methane cleansing and refining system, biogas residues composting system,
sewage treatment system, odor treatment system, process system composi-
tion and production line configuration, and environmental education cen-
ter are discussed in detail.
This book is aimed at a readership including solid waste engineers,
managers, technicians and maintenance staff, recycling coordinators and
government officials, undergraduates and graduates, and researchers.
 Preface xxiii

This book is financially supported by the National Key R&D Program

of China (no. 2018YFC1901400), Social Development Programs of
Science and Technology Committee Foundation of Shanghai (nos.
19DZ1204600, 19DZ1204703, and 18DZ1202604), National Natural
Science Foundations of China (nos. 51878470 and 51678419), and the
Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (no.
22120190232).