Skip to main content

Mathematical Modeling Challenges Associated with Waste Anaerobic Biodegradability

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Advances in the Domain of Environmental Biotechnology

Abstract

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a biological process, which, due to the multiple stages and microorganisms it involves, is complex to model. The feasibility of AD is highly dependent on the organic matter content, as well as physical and chemical factors that regulate the microbiological activity. Mathematical models are a constant challenge for the simulation and prediction of organic matter degradation and biogas production. This chapter is an overview of part of the great diversity of AD mathematical models from the stoichiometric and kinetic perspectives as well as microbiological and physicochemical points of view. The effect of waste composition and the changes in operational parameters on the AD modeling is analyzed. Stoichiometric, kinetic, and dynamic models are discussed. According to the review, it was confirmed that a wide number of researchers prefer the Buswell model, the first-order model, the modified Gompertz model, and the anaerobic digestion model (ADM) depending on available data and lab infrastructure. The literature related to AD modeling does not present a consensus regarding the use of statistical criteria, being a key factor to reflect the goodness of fit of the models. It was observed that there are still gaps in the co-digestion modeling due to the mixing effects on the kinetics of the anaerobic digestion. Current co-digestion models are derived from the experimental design to prove synergy or antagonism. Nevertheless, there is a need to predict the co-substrate synergy or antagonism with the kinetics, an aspect that is not solved at present using current models. To fill this scientific gap, an additive model is proposed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 149.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ricardo J. Baquerizo-Crespo .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2021 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Baquerizo-Crespo, R.J., Astals, S., Pérez-Ones, O., Pereda-Reyes, I. (2021). Mathematical Modeling Challenges Associated with Waste Anaerobic Biodegradability. In: Maddela, N.R., García Cruzatty, L.C., Chakraborty, S. (eds) Advances in the Domain of Environmental Biotechnology. Environmental and Microbial Biotechnology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8999-7_14

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics