Anaerobic Digestion of Kitchen Waste to Produce Biogas

The present work on kitchen waste was conducted to estimate the biogas production potential in local scenario with high alkalinity of water, and overall high mean temperature in the Sultanate of Oman. A 32 L anaerobic digester was designed and the studies were conducted in two combinations; namely biogas only from Cow dung manure (CD) and, biogas from Kitchen Waste and Cow dung mixture. Cow dung was used as a source of methanogens and was obtained from a local cattle farm in Sur, Oman. Temperature, pH, TSS, loading rate, retention time, and C/N ratio are among the key parameters studied in this biogas production process. All the experiments were run in triplicate. The digestion was carried out in a 32 liters anaerobic digester at a temperature of 31-32°C and under controlled pH in the range of 6.5-7 for a period of one month. The pH of the batch-fed digester was adjusted using NaOH as and when required during the entire cycle. A maximum of 5.75 L of biogas was produced on the 20^th day of the study.