G. SREELAL AND R. JAYANTHI
Abstract
One of the major crops cultivated in India is sugarcane. After sugarcane harvest, a vast amount of trash is generated and left in the field for natural degradation which would seize several months for degradation. Open burning of trash practiced for disposal, consequences local atmospheric pollution with an intense expenditure of nutrients. Anaerobic digestion of cane trash will alleviate these problems through rapid degradation of waste; biogas recovery and the digested products rich in nutrients ensure farmland fertility. In this study, biogas production through anaerobic digestion of cane trash under the influence of manure inoculums sources was evaluated. The experiments were carried out on a batch reactor and the anaerobic digestion process was evaluated through the appliance of three pre-digested slurries (Dairy manure, Swine manure and Poultry Manure) as inoculums. Highest biogas production (106.1 mL gVS1) and better lignocellulose degradation were recorded in reactors inoculated with dairy manure followed by reactors with swine and poultry manure.