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Hydrogen peroxide pretreatment of aqueous phase product of hydrothermal sludge liquefaction for enhanced anaerobic and aerobic biodegradability

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  • Rahman, Nahian
  • Eskicioglu, Cigdem

Abstract

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) generate municipal sludge (MS) that contains high organic and inorganic matter, creating disposal challenges. Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a promising method for converting sludge into value-added products (biocrude oil, hydrochar) but generates a large volume of aqueous by-product (HTLaq) with soluble inhibitory organics to downstream biological treatment. This creates a bottleneck to incorporate HTL to WWTPs. This study investigated hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) pretreatment of HTLaq to improve its biodegradability for downstream treatment. Pretreatment with H2O2 dosages of 0.25, 0.50, and 0.75 g H2O2/g chemical oxygen demand (COD) of HTLaq, followed by quenching with sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), significantly reduced total COD (tCOD) and phenolic compounds. The highest tCOD removal (18%) occurred with 0.75 g H2O2/g COD, while the 0.25 g H2O2/g COD with Na2CO3 quencher showed the highest (63%) increase in cumulative methane yield under thermophilic conditions. Aerobic biodegradability index, quantified by biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)/tCOD ratio, also increased from 0.75 to 0.85. The results suggest that low-dosage H2O2 pretreatment enhances the biodegradability of HTLaq, making it more amenable for downstream biological treatment.

Suggested Citation

  • Rahman, Nahian & Eskicioglu, Cigdem, 2026. "Hydrogen peroxide pretreatment of aqueous phase product of hydrothermal sludge liquefaction for enhanced anaerobic and aerobic biodegradability," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 256(PE).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:256:y:2026:i:pe:s0960148125019275
    DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2025.124263
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sapillado, Gilda & Zhang, Yuanhui & Summers, Sabrina & Ribeiro, Rogers & Tommaso, Giovana, 2024. "Energy recovery of residual yeast via hydrothermal liquefaction with multi-cycle reuse of the post-HTL wastewater and subsequent anaerobic digestion," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 236(C).
    2. Gollakota, A.R.K. & Kishore, Nanda & Gu, Sai, 2018. "A review on hydrothermal liquefaction of biomass," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 1378-1392.
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