Maximizing bio-methane potential from municipal landfill leachate through ultrasonic pretreatment

Salaheddine Farsad; Aboubakr Ben Hamou; Ayoub Chaoui; Asma Amjlef; Saaida Lhanafi; Said Et-Taleb; Noureddine El Alem

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e21347

Maximizing bio-methane potential from municipal landfill leachate through ultrasonic pretreatment

Heliyon. 2023 Oct 20;9(11):e21347. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e21347. eCollection 2023 Nov.

Authors

Salaheddine Farsad¹, Aboubakr Ben Hamou¹, Ayoub Chaoui¹, Asma Amjlef¹, Saaida Lhanafi¹, Said Et-Taleb¹, Noureddine El Alem¹

Affiliation

¹ Laboratory of Materials and Environment, Ibn Zohr University, Agadir, 80000, Morocco.

Abstract

In the quest for sustainable waste management solutions, this study explores the integration of ultrasonic pretreatment as a preparatory step for the anaerobic digestion of landfill leachate. Employing response surface methodology (RSM) coupled with central composite design (CCD), we systematically optimize the process parameters, including pH, inoculum volume, and ultrasonic pretreatment duration, to maximize the yield of bio-methane potential (ml CH₄/g VS). The results demonstrate the effective application of RSM-CCD for predicting and modelling methane generation, with a highly significant model (R² = 0.899). The optimized conditions reveal a remarkable biomethane potential of 177 ml CH₄/g VS. Additionally, this study contributes to the understanding of the positive effect of ultrasound pretreatment on the anaerobic digestion of landfill leachate, and the quality of the digestate obtained after anaerobic digestion was studied and different valorisations were proposed.

Keywords: Anaerobic digestion; Bio-methane potential; Digestate; Landfill leachate; RSM-CCD; Ultrasound pretreatment.