Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro Waste
The coir industry in India’s southern coastal regions, especially in the state of Kerala, is becoming increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of the accumulation and incremental increase of coir pith each year. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of pretreatment on the...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Technoscience Publications
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Nature Environment and Pollution Technology |
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| Online Access: | https://neptjournal.com/upload-images/(55)B-4082.pdf |
| _version_ | 1827319947784617984 |
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| author | Smitha Krishna Warrier and P. Sindhu |
| author_facet | Smitha Krishna Warrier and P. Sindhu |
| author_sort | Smitha Krishna Warrier and P. Sindhu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The coir industry in India’s southern coastal regions, especially in the state of Kerala, is becoming increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of the accumulation and incremental increase of coir pith each year. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of pretreatment on the anaerobic digestion of coir pith. The characterization study of coir pith shows high organic content, which can be anaerobically digested to produce biogas. But, the high lignin content (30.91%) makes the process slow. To overcome this, a biological pretreatment method was tried using two microbial cultures belonging to fungal genera known to be lignin decomposers, viz., Trichoderma and Pleurotus. By using Trichoderma, lignin content was reduced by 3.7%, and the maximum gas production was obtained in a shorter time (19 days) in comparison with the sample without any pretreatment (24 days). When Pleurotus was used for lignin degradation, the lignin content was reduced by 6.78%, and the maximum gas production was obtained in a much shorter time period (14 days) in comparison with the former two methods. The gas produced comprises 74 ppm of methane, which has fuel value. The sludge after digestion was tested, which indicated a marginal increase in NPK value and hence can be used as fertilizer. The results of the study appear to be quite promising in the transition towards green energy by providing scope for the process of biomethanation, with the conclusion that further research can transform coir pith into a good renewable energy resource. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-25T00:37:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ecf1a4aff58849e4bdd4a3256ead9bab |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0972-6268 2395-3454 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-25T00:37:03Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Technoscience Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Environment and Pollution Technology |
| spelling | doaj.art-ecf1a4aff58849e4bdd4a3256ead9bab2024-03-12T16:37:29ZengTechnoscience PublicationsNature Environment and Pollution Technology0972-62682395-34542024-03-0123157758210.46488/NEPT.2024.v23i01.055Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro WasteSmitha Krishna Warrier and P. SindhuThe coir industry in India’s southern coastal regions, especially in the state of Kerala, is becoming increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of the accumulation and incremental increase of coir pith each year. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of pretreatment on the anaerobic digestion of coir pith. The characterization study of coir pith shows high organic content, which can be anaerobically digested to produce biogas. But, the high lignin content (30.91%) makes the process slow. To overcome this, a biological pretreatment method was tried using two microbial cultures belonging to fungal genera known to be lignin decomposers, viz., Trichoderma and Pleurotus. By using Trichoderma, lignin content was reduced by 3.7%, and the maximum gas production was obtained in a shorter time (19 days) in comparison with the sample without any pretreatment (24 days). When Pleurotus was used for lignin degradation, the lignin content was reduced by 6.78%, and the maximum gas production was obtained in a much shorter time period (14 days) in comparison with the former two methods. The gas produced comprises 74 ppm of methane, which has fuel value. The sludge after digestion was tested, which indicated a marginal increase in NPK value and hence can be used as fertilizer. The results of the study appear to be quite promising in the transition towards green energy by providing scope for the process of biomethanation, with the conclusion that further research can transform coir pith into a good renewable energy resource.https://neptjournal.com/upload-images/(55)B-4082.pdfanaerobic digestion, biogas, coir pith, fungal culture, pleurotus, trichoderma |
| spellingShingle | Smitha Krishna Warrier and P. Sindhu Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro Waste Nature Environment and Pollution Technology anaerobic digestion, biogas, coir pith, fungal culture, pleurotus, trichoderma |
| title | Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro Waste |
| title_full | Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro Waste |
| title_fullStr | Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro Waste |
| title_full_unstemmed | Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro Waste |
| title_short | Experimental Investigations on the Effect of Pretreatment in Anaerobic Digestion of Coir Pith Agro Waste |
| title_sort | experimental investigations on the effect of pretreatment in anaerobic digestion of coir pith agro waste |
| topic | anaerobic digestion, biogas, coir pith, fungal culture, pleurotus, trichoderma |
| url | https://neptjournal.com/upload-images/(55)B-4082.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT smithakrishnawarrierandpsindhu experimentalinvestigationsontheeffectofpretreatmentinanaerobicdigestionofcoirpithagrowaste |