Stimulation of lipid extraction efficiency from sewage sludge for biodiesel production through hydrothermal pretreatment

Abstract

In this study, two types of sewage sludge (primary sludge and waste activated sludge) were hydrothermally treated at 125-250 °C to enhance the lipid extraction efficiency and obtain a higher biodiesel yield. The enhanced effciency of the lipid extraction method was compared with the efficiency of the organic solvent extraction method. The results confirmed that a hydrothermal reaction could be an appropriate option for disrupting sludge cell walls and increasing the lipid extraction from sewage sludge. The highest lipid recovery efficiency was observed at 200 °C, and the lipid recovery efficiency of primary sludge and waste activated sludge increased from 7.56% and 5.35% to 14.01% and 11.55% by weight, respectively. Furthermore, transesterified lipids, such as biodiesel from sewage sludge, mostly consist of C16 and C18 methyl esters, and have features similar to those of jatropha oil-based biodiesel. During the hydrothermal treatment, the carbon content in the sludge decreased as the carbon transformed into lipids and the lipids were extracted. The volatile matter and fixed carbon content in the solid residue decreased and increased, respectively, through chemical dehydration and decarboxylation reactions under hydrothermal reaction conditions.