Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-2025
Publisher
Wiley
Source Publication
Water Environment Research
Source ISSN
1061-4303
Original Item ID
DOI: 10.1002/wer.70135
Abstract
Monod kinetic coefficient values (km and Ks) as well as methanogen concentrations (Xac and Xh2) for various anaerobic bioreactors are required to gain a deeper understanding of anaerobic biotechnology. However, there are no existing, practical methods to measure or estimate these parameters or variables in typical anaerobic digester biomass that contains mixed cultures with inert organic solids. Current measurement methods rely on pure cultures developed in the laboratory. In this work, a novel respirometric method was developed and used to determine methanogen Monod parameters and active biomass concentration for samples from 27 full-scale anaerobic reactors. Differences (one to three orders of magnitude) were observed among acetate and H2 km values and active biomass fractions for the different biomass microbial communities. Average km values for acetate and H2 were 14.6- and 48-g COD/g CODx-d, whereas average Ks values were 21.9- and 0.32-mg COD/L, respectively. Average Xac as a fraction of total VSS was 0.80% and ranged from 0.02% to 2.49%, whereas average Xh2 was 1.16% and ranged from 0.04% to 8.23%. Granular biomass km values were approximately three times greater than flocculant biomass values, indicating significant fundamental differences ostensibly exist in methanogenesis between the two process configurations. In the future, relationships may be developed to predict kinetic constant values based on microbial community composition.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Benn, Nicholas; Martins, Antonio; and Zitomer, Daniel H., "Novel Respirometry Measurement and Comparison of Monod Kinetic Constants and Methanogen Concentrations for 27 Full-Scale Anaerobic Bioreactors" (2025). Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications. 421.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/civengin_fac/421
Comments
Published version. Water Environment Research, Vol. 97, No. 7 (July 2025): e70135. DOI. © 2025 The Author(s). Water Environment Research published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Water Environment Federation. Used with permission.
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non- commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.