Biochemical methane potential of organic municipal solid waste components.

With the aim of evaluating the possibility to estimate the biogas production of a real scale anaerobic digestion plant, the Biochemical Methane Potential (BMP) of several components of the Organic Fraction of the Municipal Solid Waste (OFMSW) were tested. In particular, five different fractions and a mixed food waste sample were tested. Both the BMP after 21 days (BMP21) and final BMP (BMPf) were measured in specific batch anaerobic digesters at 37°C. In particular, from the lab tests, it was found that the mixed food waste substrate is characterized by a BMP21 of about 405 NL/kgVS and a BMPf of 484 NL/kgVS and an average methane content of 57%.