Particle Size Effect on Biodegradability and Kinetics During Anaerobic Digestion of Fruit and Vegetable Waste

Vigueras-Carmona, Sergio Esteban; Velasco-Pérez, Alejandra; Montes-García, María Monserrat; Puebla, Hector; Rodríguez-Jara, Mariana; Vian, José

doi:10.3390/pr13040937

Open AccessArticle

Particle Size Effect on Biodegradability and Kinetics During Anaerobic Digestion of Fruit and Vegetable Waste

by

Sergio Esteban Vigueras-Carmona

¹

,

Alejandra Velasco-Pérez

²,

María Monserrat Montes-García

³,

Hector Puebla

⁴

,

Mariana Rodríguez-Jara

⁵ and

José Vian

^2,6,*

¹

Tecnológico Nacional de México/Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Ecatepec, Av. Tecnológico S/N Colonia Valle de Anáhuac, Ecatepec de Morelos 55210, Mexico

²

Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Veracruzana, Región Orizaba-Córdoba, Orizaba 94340, Mexico

³

Unidad de Estudios Superiores Tultitlan, Universidad Mexiquense del Bicentenario, San Antonio s/n, Villa Esmeralda, Tultitlán de Mariano Escobedo 54910, Mexico

⁴

Departamento de Energía, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Azcapotzalco, Ciudad de México 02128, Mexico

⁵

Departamento de Procesos y Tecnología, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana Cuajimalpa, Ciudad de México 05348, Mexico

⁶

Unidad Chocamán, Universidad Politécnica de Huatusco, Chocamán 94160, Mexico

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Processes 2025, 13(4), 937; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13040937

Submission received: 18 February 2025 / Revised: 13 March 2025 / Accepted: 16 March 2025 / Published: 21 March 2025

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Progress on Biomass Processing and Conversion)

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Abstract

This study examines the anaerobic digestion (AD) of fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) and digestates to assess the effect of particle size on anaerobic biodegradability (AB) and process rate at different stages of digestion progress. Batch assays were conducted with FVW mixtures and digestates from 5, 10, and 15 days of digestion, using four particle size ranges: Ø1 < 1.8 µm, 1.8 < Ø2 < 500 µm, 500 < Ø3 < 1000 µm, and Ø4 > 1000 µm. While AB and specific methanogenic activity (SMA) showed no significant differences among FVW mixtures, particle size significantly influenced these variables. Methane yields were 298.2 and 309.8

m L C H_{4} \cdot g^{- 1} V S

for Ø4 and Ø3 particles, exceeding the 186.7 and 161.8

m L C H_{4} \cdot g^{- 1} V S

obtained for Ø2 and Ø1, respectively. These results indicate that particle size reduction enhanced methane production; however, reducing the particle size below 500 µm inhibits methanogenesis due to intermediate accumulation. Compared to FVW, digestates exhibited a 23% reduction in AB, a 73.9% decrease in SMA, and methane yields of 55.8–294

m L C H_{4} \cdot g^{- 1} V S

. Additionally, the surface-based kinetic constant (

K_{S B K}

) decreased from 0.4523

g \cdot d m^{- 2} \cdot d^{- 1}

for FVW to 0.0437

g \cdot d m^{- 2} \cdot d^{- 1}

for digestates. These differences are attributed to the rapid consumption of easily biodegradable fractions within the first 5 days of digestion.

Keywords: anaerobic digestion; fruit and vegetable waste; biodegradability; kinetic parameters; particle size effect

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MDPI and ACS Style

Vigueras-Carmona, S.E.; Velasco-Pérez, A.; Montes-García, M.M.; Puebla, H.; Rodríguez-Jara, M.; Vian, J. Particle Size Effect on Biodegradability and Kinetics During Anaerobic Digestion of Fruit and Vegetable Waste. Processes 2025, 13, 937. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13040937

AMA Style

Vigueras-Carmona SE, Velasco-Pérez A, Montes-García MM, Puebla H, Rodríguez-Jara M, Vian J. Particle Size Effect on Biodegradability and Kinetics During Anaerobic Digestion of Fruit and Vegetable Waste. Processes. 2025; 13(4):937. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13040937

Chicago/Turabian Style

Vigueras-Carmona, Sergio Esteban, Alejandra Velasco-Pérez, María Monserrat Montes-García, Hector Puebla, Mariana Rodríguez-Jara, and José Vian. 2025. "Particle Size Effect on Biodegradability and Kinetics During Anaerobic Digestion of Fruit and Vegetable Waste" Processes 13, no. 4: 937. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13040937

APA Style

Vigueras-Carmona, S. E., Velasco-Pérez, A., Montes-García, M. M., Puebla, H., Rodríguez-Jara, M., & Vian, J. (2025). Particle Size Effect on Biodegradability and Kinetics During Anaerobic Digestion of Fruit and Vegetable Waste. Processes, 13(4), 937. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13040937

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Particle Size Effect on Biodegradability and Kinetics During Anaerobic Digestion of Fruit and Vegetable Waste

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