Anaerobic treatment of agricultural wastes
Agricultural wastes are considered to be part of pollutants that affect the environment negatively. These wastes are also known to represent one of the largest anthropogenic sources of methane present in the atmosphere. The use of anaerobic digesters is one of the key strategies employed in managing agricultural wastes. These digesters work by turning agricultural wastes into biogas, which is, in turn, used as renewable energy. However, this energy contains at least 50% of methane and other solid residuals, but are utilized in effective ways. Methane and these residuals are turned into fertilizers, which are usually rich in nutrients. This strategy has a long history since anaerobic digested began to be used in the 10th Century (Merlin & Boileau 2013). During this time, biogas was used in heating water. Today, many digesters are implemented in plantations and farms with the goal of managing agricultural wastes.
There are different types of anaerobic digesters, from simple to the most complex ones, used for managing agricultural wastes. There is no standard designed digester for different reasons. Besides, there are key principles of anaerobic digestion, which help in understanding how the management of agricultural wastes is done. It is also essential to note that the production of agricultural yields results in the creation of inedible residuals, especially from crops and other materials. These materials and wastes form key components of anaerobic digestion, which give rise to other economic products like biogas energy. Fruits and vegetables are also part of agricultural wastes managed with the use of anaerobic mechanisms. Worth noting, these wastes have a high content of moisture and are organic in nature. Therefore, these wastes are readily biodegraded, thus suiting, resulting in more energy recovery through anaerobic digestion. Also, animal and livestock products like meat and their droppings are part of agricultural wastes that require proper management strategies (Prateek et al., 2009). Fortunately, these wastes are also managed with the use of anaerobic mechanisms.
Key words: anaerobic digester, anthropogenic, biogas, renewable energy, solid residuals, inedible residuals, organic, and biodegradation.
References
Adams, F. V., Niyomugabo, A., & Sylvester, O. P. (2017). Bioremediation of crude oil contaminated soil using agricultural wastes. Procedia Manufacturing, 7, 459-464.
Merlin, G., & Boileau, H. (2013). Anaerobic digestion of agricultural waste: state of the art and future trends. Anaerobic digestion: types, processes and environmental impact. New York: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Mostafa, N. A., Farag, A. A., Abo-dief, H. M., & Tayeb, A. M. (2018). Production of biodegradable plastic from agricultural wastes. Arabian journal of chemistry, 11(4), 546-553.
O’Connor, S., Ehimen, E., Pillai, S. C., Lyons, G., & Bartlett, J. (2020). Economic and Environmental Analysis of Small-Scale Anaerobic Digestion Plants on Irish Dairy Farms. Energies, 13(3), 637.
Prateek, S., Gopal, R., Mayur, S., & Shilpkar, D. (2009). Biomethanation potential of Jatropha (Jatropha curcas) cake along with buffalo dung. African Journal of Agricultural Research, 4(10), 991-995.