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Updated: Aug 4, 2026
11:31
Continuously-stirred Anaerobic Digester to Convert Organic Wastes into Biogas: System Setup and Basic Operation
Published on: July 13, 2012
Anaerobic digestion of solid waste: state-of-the-art
1Organic Waste Systems N.V., Dock Noord 4, B-9000 Gent, Belgium.
Summary
Solid waste digestion capacity in Europe surged by 750% between 1990 and 2000, with mesophilic and dry digestion technologies proving reliable. This growth highlights the increasing adoption of anaerobic digestion for organic waste management.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Engineering
- Waste Management Technologies
- Biotechnology
Background:
- Assessing the state-of-the-art in solid waste digestion technology in Europe.
- Focus on plants treating at least 10% organic municipal or market waste.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the development and capacity of solid waste digestion in Europe.
- To evaluate different anaerobic digestion technologies and their performance.
Main Methods:
- Survey of operational and under-construction digestion plants across Europe.
- Analysis of treatment capacity, technology types (mesophilic/thermophilic, wet/dry, single/two-phase), and co-digestion.
- Performance evaluation of a specific single-phase thermophilic dry digestion process (Dranco technology).
Main Results:
- Total treatment capacity increased by 750% from 1990 to 2000 (122,000 to 1,037,000 tons/year).
- Mesophilic (62%) and dry digestion were prevalent; single-phase systems dominated over two-phase.
- Dranco technology demonstrated high performance (18.5 kg COD/m3.day loading, 9.2 m3/m3.day biogas) with diverse feedstocks.
Conclusions:
- Significant growth in European solid waste anaerobic digestion capacity.
- Proven reliability across various anaerobic digestion system types.
- Dry digestion, particularly single-phase thermophilic processes, shows high efficiency and adaptability to different waste streams.
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