Work

Integrated anaerobic membrane bioreactor-yeast biorefinery for co-production of hydrogen, volatile fatty acids, and microbial oil from food waste

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: With growing food waste challenges globally, acidogenic fermentation using an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) was developed for the co-production of hydrogen, volatile fatty acids (VFAs), and microbial oil from food waste. Batch experiments identified optimal conditions of pH 6.0 and substrate/inoculum ratio of 3:1, which were applied in a semi-continuous AnMBR with in situ VFA recovery. At an organic loading rate of 3.3 g-VS L -1 ·d -1 , the system achieved hydrogen production of 223.9 ± 3.4 mL L -1 ·d -1 and VFA productivity of 1.68 ± 0.15 g-COD VFA L -1 ·d -1 . A critical total suspended solids threshold of 15.7 g L -1 was identified for stable membrane performance. The VFA-rich permeate was dominated by acetic and butyric acids. Cultivation of Candida tropicalis on the VFA-rich permeate resulted in biomass and lipid yields of 0.47 and 0.15 g g-VFA consumed -1 , respectively, with 94.2% VFA consumption. These findings indicate that the integrated AnMBR-yeast system offers promising potential as a biorefinery platform for converting food waste into multiple value-added bioproducts.

Source: Scientific Reports

DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-32939-2

Authors: Prawat Sukphun, Panitan Jutaporn, Alissara Reungsang

Institutions: Khon Kaen University, Office of the Royal Society

Language: English

Topic: Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Production

Subfield: Building and Construction

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Responsible consumption and production, Affordable and clean energy

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,690