Mabatho Moreroa, Speaker at Catalysis Conferences
University of South Africa, South Africa
Title : Co-digestion of abattoir effluent and rumen content for waste management and biogas production – A case study

Abstract:

This study examined the feasibility of utilizing two primary waste types from a local abattoir for waste management and subsequent biogas production. In the study, wastewater (WW) and rumen content (RC) found at a red meat abattoir were used as substrates during anaerobic digestion (AD). An automated methane potential test system (AMPTS III) was employed to digest the substrates at different doses at 37°C. The raw WW exhibited a chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 74 g/l, indicating excessively high levels. Following anaerobic digestion, the maximum COD removal was observed at a ratio of 70:30 (RC:WW), achieving a removal rate of 70.3%, a COD of 19.3 g/l. The production of biogas was attributed to high RC loadings, wherein a cumulative biogas production of 1791 Nml/gCODremoved was produced over 24 days, while biomethane and carbon dioxide production was 491.1Nml/gCODremoved and 1299.9 Nml/gCODremoved over the same period. The study indicated that the inclusion of RC reduced the rate of pH decline in the digester, suggesting its viability as a material for anaerobic digestion. Typically, mono-digestion of the abattoir WW yields biomethane with a purity of up to 96.96%, whilst mono-digestion of RC yields high amounts of carbon dioxide

Biography:

Dr Moreroa acquired both a Master's and a Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Johannesburg. In her Ph.D she studied the biodegradation of Fischer-Trosch effluents. In her research, Dr Moreroa has published scholarly articles on acid mine drainage, Fischer-Tropsch effluent treatment, kinetic models, and slaughterhouse waste treatment. Dr Moreroa is a registered candidate technologist with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA). She is presently a researcher at the University of South Africa's Institute for Catalysis and Energy Solutions (ICES), where her research is based on clean energy production from biomass and carbon capture.

Youtube
WhatsApp WhatsApp