Date of Award
1-23-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Engineering, MSE
First Advisor
Chiqian Zhang
Committee Members
Rajesh Sharma; Zahid Hossain
Abstract
Hydrolysis is a slow and energy-intensive process and a rate-limiting step in anaerobic digestion (AD). This research investigates performance strategies for integrating hydrothermal treatment (HT) with AD. HT-AD systems were less economically viable than AD-only options because of the high energy consumption of HT. Therefore, we used solar energy to conduct HT via either solar cookers or solar panels. The HT method significantly improved digestion performance, reducing the lag phase from 60 to 24 h, and increasing overall yield. Hydrothermally treated rice, rice bran, and rice hulls produced 22,932 mL, 13,136 mL, and 1283 mL, respectively. However, untreated rice, rice bran, and rice hulls produced 6,246 mL, 8,577 mL, and 980 mL, respectively. Furthermore, the addition of pH-regulating agents like magnesium oxide (MgO) was identified as the most effective and economic, achieving optimal yields up to 32,500 mL with a minimal dosage of 2.4 g.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Rahnuma, Kainat, "Direct Solar-Energy Powered Hydrothermal Treatment to Promote Biomethane Production from Anaerobic Digestion of Rice Processing Waste" (2026). Student Theses and Dissertations. 1153.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/1153
