Optimization of the Production of Biogas in Anaerobic Digestion by the Addition of Hydrolytic Microorganisms

It is well known that fossil fuels are one of the major pollutants that contribute to climate change and there is a need to develop alternatives to their uses.One option is the use of a renewable fuel such as biogas obtained from the breaking down of organic matter in the anaerobic digestion process.When biogas is cleaned up to a certain quality,it can substitute the use of natural gas.However,this slow process requires optimization to increase the amount of gas.There are chemical,physical and biological treatments for organic matter to increase the amount and quality of biogas.In the former research,a biological treatment was tested by adding a selection of microorganisms that showed hydrolytic activity to an anaerobic digester for its optimization.First,a selection of microorganisms with the ability to grow in fresh sewage sludge as only nutrient was selected.Then,the lipolytic,cellulolytic and PA(Proteolytic Activity)of microorganisms was tested using selective growth media.Finally,10 samples with the greatest hydrolytic activity were used to evaluate their effects in the increasing of biogas production in the anaerobic process.The results showed that 83%of the microorganisms with the ability to grow in sewage sludge were proteolytic,while the percentage of lipolytic and cellulolytic microorganisms was smaller.Furthermore,it was found that proteolytic microorganisms are the ones that increase biogas yield in a maximum of 80%with a COD(Chemical Oxygen Demand)reduction of 58%.

Effects of Phytoremediation on Soil Contaminated with Pb and Cd in Tolerant Bacterial Populations

Bacterial populations isolated from treated soil,artificially contaminated with lead(Pb)and cadmium(Cd)and undergoing a phytoremediation process were studied to determine their potential application in soil remediation.The physicochemical parameters evaluated in the soil varied significantly.Ten bacterial strains were selected from each polluted soil to test tolerance and growth in contaminated media.The concentrations of heavy metals tested were 1,000 ppm for lead and 850 ppm for cadmium.These strains were morphologically identified through Gram staining.Four strains showing the most significant growth in both contaminants were then selected to verify their tolerance to different concentrations of heavy metals.The results demonstrated that the selected bacteria have high tolerance to Pb,resisting inhibition up to 2,000 ppm.In contrast,strains exposed to cadmium tended to slow their growth as the concentration increased.