Effect of Organic Waste Concentration on Reactor Performance in Anaerobic Co-Fermentation of Wastewater of Tofu Industry and Organic Solid Waste

Abstract

Fuel crisis of oil and gas that are faced currently requires a thought to look for an alternative energy. The objective of this study was to observe the effect of organic waste addition on reactor performance and to increase the production of biogas as an alternative renewable energy. The wastewater used was the wastewater from agglomeration of soy pulp in tofu industry, while the solid waste used was a mixture of organic waste from household and market waste. The study was conducted by fermenting the wastewater and organic waste together with sample volume 300 ml. The reactors were operated semi-continuously with substrate feeding every two weeks. The treatment used in this study were mass comparison of organic waste and wastewater (0:100)%; (5:95)%; (10:90)%; (20:80)%; (30:70)%; and (40:60)%. The results showed that the addition of organic waste affected the reactor performance and the amount of biogas produced. Anaerobic co-fermentation of wastewater from tofu industry and organic waste produced biogas more than fermentation of wastewater without organic waste. The highest amount of biogas was obtained in the treatment of organic waste addition as much as 30% with average volume of biogas was 728 ml in steady state condition.