Green Technology for Biogas Production through Anaerobic Digestion: An Effective Biomass Management Strategy

Abstract

Taking advantage of the growing production of different kinds of biomass into the waste-to-energy concept has been seen as a global trend of emerging applications. The huge generation of biomass by agriculture and industries is an enormous opportunity as a feedstock for anaerobic digestion (AD) to produce biogas. About 181.5 billion tonnes of lignocellulosic biomass (LCB) are produced annually worldwide, including underutilized agricultural waste and greenhouse biomass materials. This has been considered as a potential source of bioenergy and sustainable means for escalating environmental issues especially, concerning the effects of fossil fuels. This review focuses on the different types of feedstocks available in the market, especially in India and their biogas production potential. The feedstock selection in the basic and foremost important step for accessing the biogas yield. This also discusses the stages of the AD process in detail responsible for the production of biogas. Further, the limitations associated with the AD process have been focused upon. The parameters and the basic reactor configuration are vital for the biogas yield. Therefore, the design and the configuration of the biogas digester/reactors are discussed in detail for shedding light on their importance in the AD process. The improvements and future prospects of this technology have also been talked about for proper utilization of the feedstocks for biogas production.