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The aim of this paper is to describe a study of the anaerobic digestion of industrial citrus solid waste (ISCW) in both batch and semi-continuous modes for the production of bioenergy without the elimination of D-limonene. The study was conducted at the pilot plant level in an anaerobic reactor with a working volume of 220 L under mesophilic conditions of 35 ± 2 °C. Cattle manure (CM) was used as the inoculum. Three batches were studied. The first batch had a CM/ISCW ratio of 90/10, and Batches 2 and 3 had CM/ISCW ratios of 80/20 and 70/30, respectively. In the semi-continuous mode an OLR of approximately 8 g total chemical oxygen demand (COD)/Ld (4.43 gVS/Ld) was used. The results showed that 49%, 44%, and 60% of volatile solids were removed in the batch mode, and 35% was removed in the semi-continuous mode. In the batch mode, 0.322, 0.382, and 0.316 LCH4 were obtained at STP/gVSremoved. A total of 24.4 L/d (34% methane) was measured in the semi-continuous mode. Bioenergy potentials of 3.97, 5.66, and 8.79 kWh were obtained for the respective batches, and 0.09 kWh was calculated in the semi-continuous mode. The citrus industry could produce 37 GWh per season. A ton of processed oranges has a bioenergy potential of 162 kWh, which is equivalent to 49 kWh of available electricity ($3.90).
Erik Rosas-Mendoza; Andrea Alvarado-Vallejo; Norma Vallejo-Cantú; Raúl Snell-Castro; Sergio Martínez-Hernández; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Batch and Semi-Continuous Anaerobic Digestion of Industrial Solid Citrus Waste for the Production of Bioenergy. Processes 2021, 9, 648 .
AMA StyleErik Rosas-Mendoza, Andrea Alvarado-Vallejo, Norma Vallejo-Cantú, Raúl Snell-Castro, Sergio Martínez-Hernández, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Batch and Semi-Continuous Anaerobic Digestion of Industrial Solid Citrus Waste for the Production of Bioenergy. Processes. 2021; 9 (4):648.
Chicago/Turabian StyleErik Rosas-Mendoza; Andrea Alvarado-Vallejo; Norma Vallejo-Cantú; Raúl Snell-Castro; Sergio Martínez-Hernández; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. 2021. "Batch and Semi-Continuous Anaerobic Digestion of Industrial Solid Citrus Waste for the Production of Bioenergy." Processes 9, no. 4: 648.
Wastewater treatment (WWT) is a priority around the world; conventional treatments are not widely used in rural areas owing to the high operating and maintenance costs. In Mexico, for instance, only 40% of wastewater is treated. One sustainable option for WWT is through the use of constructed wetlands (CWs) technology, which may remove pollutants using cells filled with porous material and vegetation that works as a natural filter. Knowing the optimal material and density of plants used per square meter in CWs would allow improving their WWT effect. In this study, the effect of material media (plastic/mineral) and plant density on the removal of organic/inorganic pollutants was evaluated. Low (three plants), medium (six plants) and high (nine plants) densities were compared in a surface area of 0.3 m2 of ornamental plants (Alpinia purpurata, Canna hybrids and Hedychium coronarium) used in polycultures at the mesocosm level of household wetlands, planted on the two different substrates. Regarding the removal of contaminants, no significant differences were found between substrates (p ≥ 0.05), indicating the use of plastic residues (reusable) is an economical option compared to typical mineral materials. However, differences (p = 0.001) in removal of pollutants were found between different plant densities. For both substrates, the high density planted CWs were able to remove COD in a range of 86–90%, PO4-P 22–33%, NH4-N in 84–90%, NO3-N 25–28% and NO2-N 38–42%. At medium density, removals of 79–81%, 26–32, 80–82%, 24–26%, and 39–41%, were observed, whereas in CWs with low density, the detected removals were 65–68%, 20–26%, 79–80%, 24–26% and 31–40%, respectively. These results revealed that higher COD and ammonia were removed at high plant density than at medium or low densities. Other pollutants were removed similarly in all plant densities (22–42%), indicating the necessity of hybrid CWs to increase the elimination of PO4-P, NO3-N and NO2-N. Moreover, high density favored 10 to 20% more the removal of pollutants than other plant densities. In addition, in cells with high density of plants and smaller planting distance, the development of new plant shoots was limited. Thus, it is suggested that the appropriate distance for this type of polyculture plants should be from 40 to 50 cm in expansion to real-scale systems in order to take advantage of the harvesting of species in these and allow species of greater foliage, favoring its growth and new shoots with the appropriate distance to compensate, in the short time, the removal of nutrients.
Luis Carlos Sandoval-Herazo; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; María Cristina López-Méndez; Albino Martínez-Sibaja; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre; Sergio Zamora-Castro; José Luis Marín-Muñiz. Effects of Ornamental Plant Density and Mineral/Plastic Media on the Removal of Domestic Wastewater Pollutants by Home Wetlands Technology. Molecules 2020, 25, 5273 .
AMA StyleLuis Carlos Sandoval-Herazo, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, María Cristina López-Méndez, Albino Martínez-Sibaja, Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre, Sergio Zamora-Castro, José Luis Marín-Muñiz. Effects of Ornamental Plant Density and Mineral/Plastic Media on the Removal of Domestic Wastewater Pollutants by Home Wetlands Technology. Molecules. 2020; 25 (22):5273.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLuis Carlos Sandoval-Herazo; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; María Cristina López-Méndez; Albino Martínez-Sibaja; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre; Sergio Zamora-Castro; José Luis Marín-Muñiz. 2020. "Effects of Ornamental Plant Density and Mineral/Plastic Media on the Removal of Domestic Wastewater Pollutants by Home Wetlands Technology." Molecules 25, no. 22: 5273.
The unsteady laminar flow of an inverse fluidized bed reactor was addressed in this study using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Three-dimensional (3D) and two-dimensional (2D) simulations were carried out using the Eulerian-Eulerian approach with the Syamlal O'Brien and Gidaspow models for modeling the drag between the solid and liquid phases. Reported data of solids expansion and bed porosity were used to validate the simulations. Results show that 2D simulations can satisfactorily reproduce experimental data of fluidized bed reactors, which are essentially equal to those obtained on 3D simulations. The model of Syamlal O'Brien was found to be in better agreement with experiments than that of Gidaspow. It is shown that commonly used correlations for predicting bed porosity fail to provide a reasonable overall description of the evaluated operating conditions. The flow patterns for both phases in the bed section exhibit chaotic recirculation zones with high values of shear stress, and after this, the flow quickly becomes fully developed. The effect of biofilm thickness increase on bed porosity, under similar apparent densities of colonized particles reported for this system, is analyzed. Biofilm growth generates a decrease in the Archimedes number (i.e., decreases the buoyancy of particles) and an increase in the particle Reynolds numbers (Rep), affecting significantly the final porosity of the bed. However, this effect vanishes for Rep < 0.25. Results from this work can be used to develop scale‐up criteria and to establish safe operating conditions (e.g., maximum liquid velocity and biofilm thickness) to avoid loss of support particles.
Jorge Ramírez-Muñoz; Román Guadarrama-Pérez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; José J. Valencia-López; Valaur E. Márquez-Baños. CFD study of the hydrodynamics and biofilm growth effect of an anaerobic inverse fluidized bed reactor operating in the laminar regime. Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering 2020, 9, 104674 .
AMA StyleJorge Ramírez-Muñoz, Román Guadarrama-Pérez, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, José J. Valencia-López, Valaur E. Márquez-Baños. CFD study of the hydrodynamics and biofilm growth effect of an anaerobic inverse fluidized bed reactor operating in the laminar regime. Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering. 2020; 9 (1):104674.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJorge Ramírez-Muñoz; Román Guadarrama-Pérez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; José J. Valencia-López; Valaur E. Márquez-Baños. 2020. "CFD study of the hydrodynamics and biofilm growth effect of an anaerobic inverse fluidized bed reactor operating in the laminar regime." Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering 9, no. 1: 104674.
At the global level, citrus production is around 92 million tons and citrus processing is about 22 million tons generating 28 million m3 of Citrus Effluents. In the last two decades, the generation of wastewater by the citrus industry has increased, and since earlier studies have focused mostly on solid citrus waste, there is inadequate information related to the potential energy value of these effluents. The main contribution of this work is the development of a methodology for conducting an energy analysis to determine the amount of electrical energy that can be derived from the biogas produced in the anaerobic digestion of citrus effluents at the global level. This determination was made through the operation of a novel, high-rate reactor, called the Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor. The aim of this paper was to evaluate the bioenergy potential of the effluents from the citrus industry by using anaerobic digestion to generate electrical energy. As part of the results of this evaluation, it was found that one ton of processed oranges generates 1.25 m3 of citrus effluents, 0.72 m3 of methane at standard temperature and pressure, 7.16 kWh of gross electricity, and 2.15 kWh of net electricity, which represents a cost of 0.17 USD. The worldwide bioenergy potential from citrus effluents by the main citrus processing countries is approximately 16 million m3 of methane/year at standard temperature and pressure, which is equivalent to approximately 159 GWh of gross electricity per year, about 48 GWh of net electricity per year, and about 111 GWh of thermal energy per year. The biogas that is produced can replace as much as 9% of the consumption of fuel oil and natural gas used in a citrus processing plant. Anaerobic digestion is a clean, simple energy technology, and it helps to minimize the social, environmental, and economic problems caused by poor management and the lack of alternatives for the treatment of the effluents from the citrus industry.
Erik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; J.M. Méndez-Contreras; A.A. Aguilar-Lasserre; N.A. Vallejo-Cantú; A. Alvarado-Lassman. Evaluation of bioenergy potential from citrus effluents through anaerobic digestion. Journal of Cleaner Production 2020, 254, 120128 .
AMA StyleErik Samuel Rosas Mendoza, J.M. Méndez-Contreras, A.A. Aguilar-Lasserre, N.A. Vallejo-Cantú, A. Alvarado-Lassman. Evaluation of bioenergy potential from citrus effluents through anaerobic digestion. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2020; 254 ():120128.
Chicago/Turabian StyleErik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; J.M. Méndez-Contreras; A.A. Aguilar-Lasserre; N.A. Vallejo-Cantú; A. Alvarado-Lassman. 2020. "Evaluation of bioenergy potential from citrus effluents through anaerobic digestion." Journal of Cleaner Production 254, no. : 120128.
This article describes the use of the electrical conductivity for measuring bed expansion in a continuous anaerobic biofilm reactor in order to prevent the exit of support material from the reactor with the consequent loss of biomass. The substrate used for the tests is obtained from a two-stage anaerobic digestion (AD) process at the pilot scale that treats the liquid fraction of fruit and vegetable waste (FVW). Tests were performed with the raw substrate before anaerobic treatment (S1), the effluent from the hydrolysis reactor (S2), and the effluent from the methanogenic reactor (S3) to evaluate its effect on the electrical conductivity values and its interaction with colonized support material. The tests were carried out in a 32 L anaerobic inverse fluidized bed reactor (IFBR), which was inoculated with colonized support material and using two industrial electrodes at different column positions. The results with the previously digested samples (S2 and S3) were satisfactory to detect the presence of support material at the points where the electrodes were placed since the electrical conductivity values showed significant changes of up to 0.5 V, while with substrate S1 no significant voltage differences were appreciated. These results demonstrate that electrical conductivity can be used as an economic and simple mean for monitoring the support material expansion in order to avoid over expansion in the IFBR. It was also demonstrated that the conditions of the substrate in the methanogenic stage (pH and presence of volatile fatty acids) do not affect the operation of the electrical conductivity detection system.
Oscar Marín-Peña; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Norma A. Vallejo-Cantú; Isaías Juárez-Barojas; José Pastor Rodríguez-Jarquín; Albino Martínez-Sibaja. Electrical Conductivity for Monitoring the Expansion of the Support Material in an Anaerobic Biofilm Reactor. Processes 2020, 8, 77 .
AMA StyleOscar Marín-Peña, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Norma A. Vallejo-Cantú, Isaías Juárez-Barojas, José Pastor Rodríguez-Jarquín, Albino Martínez-Sibaja. Electrical Conductivity for Monitoring the Expansion of the Support Material in an Anaerobic Biofilm Reactor. Processes. 2020; 8 (1):77.
Chicago/Turabian StyleOscar Marín-Peña; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Norma A. Vallejo-Cantú; Isaías Juárez-Barojas; José Pastor Rodríguez-Jarquín; Albino Martínez-Sibaja. 2020. "Electrical Conductivity for Monitoring the Expansion of the Support Material in an Anaerobic Biofilm Reactor." Processes 8, no. 1: 77.
Recently, Mexico was positioned as one of the main countries in citrus production, with approximately 7.6 million tons per year from an area of 550,000 ha. The annual production is equivalent in value to approximately 930 million USD. Although, the supply of citrus in Mexico is about 7.6 million tons per year, this amount is made up of national production and imports. There are three possible routes that contribute to the supply of citrus, i.e., fresh consumption, processing, and export, which correspond to 63, 27, and 10% of the national supply, respectively. Large amounts of liquid residues are generated when the citrus is processed. Inadequate management of these citrus effluents, which have high organic loads and low pH, causes negative environmental impacts as well as social and economic problems. However, anaerobic digestion is a viable and sustainable alternative for the management of citrus effluents because it takes advantage of the physicochemical characteristics of this type of wastewater to generate biogas as a value-added product. The main objective of the study presented in this chapter was to design a supply chain that analyzes and integrates citrus production and processing, the generation and treatment of citrus effluents by anaerobic digestion, and the production of biogas the generation of electricity which can then be used in the citrus processing plants. The results of this analysis indicated that the estimated 2.7 million m3 of citrus effluents that are being generated annually in Mexico could produce 1.6 million m3 of methane (at standard temperature and pressure) and 4.8 GWh of net electricity.
Erik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; Joahnn Hernando Palacios-Ríos; Juan Manuel Méndez-Contreras; Norma Alejandra Vallejo-Cantú; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Designing a Supply Chain for the Generation of Bioenergy from the Anaerobic Digestion of Citrus Effluents. Springer Texts in Business and Economics 2019, 209 -235.
AMA StyleErik Samuel Rosas Mendoza, Joahnn Hernando Palacios-Ríos, Juan Manuel Méndez-Contreras, Norma Alejandra Vallejo-Cantú, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Designing a Supply Chain for the Generation of Bioenergy from the Anaerobic Digestion of Citrus Effluents. Springer Texts in Business and Economics. 2019; ():209-235.
Chicago/Turabian StyleErik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; Joahnn Hernando Palacios-Ríos; Juan Manuel Méndez-Contreras; Norma Alejandra Vallejo-Cantú; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. 2019. "Designing a Supply Chain for the Generation of Bioenergy from the Anaerobic Digestion of Citrus Effluents." Springer Texts in Business and Economics , no. : 209-235.
This article presents a study that identifies the variables with greatest impact on the biogas and methane production over a process with thermal pretreatment, to accelerate anaerobic digestion process in sewage sludge in a water treatment plant, for a poultry processing factory, by using fuzzy logic. The designed fuzzy logic model includes 688 inference rules, with a correlation of 99.3% between prediction data against experimental data, for the biogas variable; and 97% for the methane variable. The predictions of the fuzzy logic model were analyzed with response surface models, and it is concluded that the temperature and operating time variables are mutually determining in the biogas and methane production. Likewise, this research provides a methodology for the design of an expert decision support system that allows to evaluate and optimize a mesophilic anaerobic digestion process through a previous thermal treatment in order to improve the yields of biogas and methane in the treatment of effluent sludge from agroindustry. These results propose to diffuse logic as a reliable tool to make comparisons, and predictions for operation variables management on the treatment of residual sludge with thermal pretreatment on anaerobic digestion.
Rita Flores-Asis; Juan M. Méndez-Contreras; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Gregorio Fernández-Lambert; Daniel Villanueva-Vásquez; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre. Analysis of the behavior for operation parameters in the anaerobic digestion process with thermal pretreatment, using fuzzy logic. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 2019, 54, 592 -602.
AMA StyleRita Flores-Asis, Juan M. Méndez-Contreras, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Gregorio Fernández-Lambert, Daniel Villanueva-Vásquez, Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre. Analysis of the behavior for operation parameters in the anaerobic digestion process with thermal pretreatment, using fuzzy logic. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A. 2019; 54 (6):592-602.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRita Flores-Asis; Juan M. Méndez-Contreras; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Gregorio Fernández-Lambert; Daniel Villanueva-Vásquez; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre. 2019. "Analysis of the behavior for operation parameters in the anaerobic digestion process with thermal pretreatment, using fuzzy logic." Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 54, no. 6: 592-602.
The cane sugar industry in Mexico depends heavily on the supply of energy, fossil fuels and material resources for its proper operation. The overuse of these resources plus the technical and technological deficiency causes severe environmental consequences. This scientific work aims to analyze the environmental damage attributable to cane sugar production following the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. System boundaries include sugarcane growing and harvesting, sugarcane transportation, sugar milling and electricity cogeneration from bagasse. The associated emissions were acquired from the SimaPro-Ecoinvent database, the Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) and the Agroscope Reckenholz-Tänikon Research Station (ART). The life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) was carried out by SimaPro 8.3.0 software and the characterization method used was IMPACT 2002+. The results show that sugarcane growing and harvesting stage provides the most harmful environmental impacts (52%) followed by electricity cogeneration (25.7%), sugarcane transportation (12.1%) and finally, sugar milling (10.2%). Regarding the environmental contributions at the endpoint categories, the highest percentage of impacts is found in the Human health category (53%), followed by Climate change (21%), Ecosystem quality (16%) and Resources (10%). The LCA in cane sugar production can support the decision-making process to deal with this environmental problem.
Ramiro Meza-Palacios; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre; Luis F. Morales-Mendoza; Jorge R. Pérez-Gallardo; José O. Rico-Contreras; Alejandro Avarado-Lassman. Life cycle assessment of cane sugar production: The environmental contribution to human health, climate change, ecosystem quality and resources in México. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 2019, 54, 668 -678.
AMA StyleRamiro Meza-Palacios, Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre, Luis F. Morales-Mendoza, Jorge R. Pérez-Gallardo, José O. Rico-Contreras, Alejandro Avarado-Lassman. Life cycle assessment of cane sugar production: The environmental contribution to human health, climate change, ecosystem quality and resources in México. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A. 2019; 54 (7):668-678.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRamiro Meza-Palacios; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre; Luis F. Morales-Mendoza; Jorge R. Pérez-Gallardo; José O. Rico-Contreras; Alejandro Avarado-Lassman. 2019. "Life cycle assessment of cane sugar production: The environmental contribution to human health, climate change, ecosystem quality and resources in México." Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 54, no. 7: 668-678.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the mitigation of greenhouse gasses generated in the anaerobic digestion process of physicochemical sludges by evaluating the effect of CO2 supply and light intensity requirements on the growth of microalga Chlorella spp. and measuring the consumption of CO2. The best conditions at a laboratory scale were performed in an airlift photobioreactor (PBR) at pilot-scale plant (26 L) during 60 days with a CO2 supply of 2% v v-1 from an electric generator coupled to an anaerobic digestion of physicochemical sludge process. The maximum %CO2 consumed was 91.92% which was reached in the seventh supply cycle and biomass production was 2.18 g L-1. The results obtained showed that airlift-type PBRs are a suitable complement for anaerobic digestion of physicochemical sludge technologies in order to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases produced during the combustion of biogas.
Margarita Caballero-García; Guillermo Cortés-Robles; María Betsabé Herrera-Yáñez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Juan Manuel Méndez-Contreras. Mitigation of greenhouse gases (CO2) generated in the anaerobic digestion of physicochemical sludges using airlift photobioreactors operated with Chlorella spp. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 2019, 54, 427 -434.
AMA StyleMargarita Caballero-García, Guillermo Cortés-Robles, María Betsabé Herrera-Yáñez, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Juan Manuel Méndez-Contreras. Mitigation of greenhouse gases (CO2) generated in the anaerobic digestion of physicochemical sludges using airlift photobioreactors operated with Chlorella spp. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A. 2019; 54 (5):427-434.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMargarita Caballero-García; Guillermo Cortés-Robles; María Betsabé Herrera-Yáñez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Juan Manuel Méndez-Contreras. 2019. "Mitigation of greenhouse gases (CO2) generated in the anaerobic digestion of physicochemical sludges using airlift photobioreactors operated with Chlorella spp." Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 54, no. 5: 427-434.
The current condition of soils is a major area of interest due to the lack of certainty in their physicochemical properties, which can guarantee the quality and the production of a specific crop. Additionally, methodologies to improve land management must be implemented in order to address the consequences of many environmental issues. To date, many techniques have been implemented to improve the accuracy—and more recently the speed—of analysis, in order to obtain results while in the field. Among those, Near Infrared (NIR) spectroscopy has been widely used to achieve the objectives mentioned above. Nevertheless, it requires particular knowledge, and the cost might be high for farmers who own the fields and crops. Thus, the present work uses a system that implements capacitance spectroscopy plus artificial intelligence algorithms to estimate the physicochemical variables of soil used to grow sugar cane. The device uses the frequency response of the soil to determine its magnitude and phase values, which are used by artificial intelligence algorithms that are capable of estimating the soil properties. The obtained results show errors below 8% in the estimation of the variables compared to the analysis results of the soil in laboratories. Additionally, it is a portable system, with low cost, that is easy to use and could be implemented to test other types of soils after evaluating the necessary algorithms or proposing alternatives to restore soil properties.
Ofelia Landeta-Escamilla; Oscar Sandoval-Gonzalez; Albino Martínez-Sibaja; José De Jesús Agustín Flores-Cuautle; Rubén Posada-Gómez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Intelligent Spectroscopy System Used for Physicochemical Variables Estimation in Sugar Cane Soils. Sensors 2019, 19, 240 .
AMA StyleOfelia Landeta-Escamilla, Oscar Sandoval-Gonzalez, Albino Martínez-Sibaja, José De Jesús Agustín Flores-Cuautle, Rubén Posada-Gómez, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Intelligent Spectroscopy System Used for Physicochemical Variables Estimation in Sugar Cane Soils. Sensors. 2019; 19 (2):240.
Chicago/Turabian StyleOfelia Landeta-Escamilla; Oscar Sandoval-Gonzalez; Albino Martínez-Sibaja; José De Jesús Agustín Flores-Cuautle; Rubén Posada-Gómez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. 2019. "Intelligent Spectroscopy System Used for Physicochemical Variables Estimation in Sugar Cane Soils." Sensors 19, no. 2: 240.
The current knowledge about the role terrestrial ornamental plants play in constructed wetlands (CWs) has scarcely been evaluated. Likewise, little attention has been given towards the use of new support or fill media for subsurface flow CWs, which may result in the reduction of costs when implemented on a large scale. This study evaluated, during nine months, the effect of three terrestrial ornamental plants and two substrates on the elimination of pollutants in wastewaters by using fill-and-drain vertical subsurface flow CWs (FD-CWs). Sixteen microcosms were used, nine filled with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and nine with porous river stone (PRS). For each type of substrate, duplicates of microcosms were used, utilizing Anthurium sp., Zantedeschia aethiopica, and Spathiphyllum wallisii as vegetation and two other CWs without vegetation as controls. The environmental conditions, number of flowers, and height of the plants were registered. The results revealed that both substrates in the FD-CWs were efficient in removing pollutants. The average removal of pollutants in systems with vegetation revealed a positive effect on the reduction of the biochemical oxygen demand (55–70%), nitrates (28–44%), phosphates (25–45%), and fecal coliforms (52–65%). Meanwhile, in units without vegetation, the reduction of pollutants was nearly 40–50% less than in those with vegetation. The use of PET as a filling substrate in CWs did not affect the growth and/or the flowering of the species; therefore, its use combined with the species studied in CWs may be replicated in villages with similar wastewater problems. This may represent a reduction in implementation costs when utilizing PET recycled wastes and PRS as substrates in these systems in comparison with the typical substrates used in CWs. More studies are needed to better understand the interactions among these novel support media and the commercial terrestrial ornamental plants.
Luis Sandoval; José Luis Marín-Muñiz; Sergio Aurelio Zamora-Castro; Fabiola Sandoval-Salas; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Evaluation of Wastewater Treatment by Microcosms of Vertical Subsurface Wetlands in Partially Saturated Conditions Planted with Ornamental Plants and Filled with Mineral and Plastic Substrates. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2019, 16, 167 .
AMA StyleLuis Sandoval, José Luis Marín-Muñiz, Sergio Aurelio Zamora-Castro, Fabiola Sandoval-Salas, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Evaluation of Wastewater Treatment by Microcosms of Vertical Subsurface Wetlands in Partially Saturated Conditions Planted with Ornamental Plants and Filled with Mineral and Plastic Substrates. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2019; 16 (2):167.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLuis Sandoval; José Luis Marín-Muñiz; Sergio Aurelio Zamora-Castro; Fabiola Sandoval-Salas; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. 2019. "Evaluation of Wastewater Treatment by Microcosms of Vertical Subsurface Wetlands in Partially Saturated Conditions Planted with Ornamental Plants and Filled with Mineral and Plastic Substrates." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16, no. 2: 167.
Soil conditions is a major aspect of interest for farmers due to the knowing of the physicochemical properties of the same can help with any necessary restoration of soil that guarantees the quality and the production of their crop. However, technology and analysis of the soil become of difficult access mainly in developing countries, by which the present paper shows the development of a system thought to estimate physicochemical variables of soils growing sugar cane through studies of spectroscopy. Its characteristic is that it is a portable system, with low cost, easy to use and can estimate physicochemical variables in-situ with the objective of knowing the degree of degradation present in the soil and through this help the farmers define possible strategies to restore it. The device uses the frequency response of the soil determining values of magnitude and phase, which are used by algorithms of artificial intelligence capable of getting an estimation of the physicochemical properties. The obtained results show errors below 8% in the estimation of the variables compared to the analysis results of the soil at laboratories.
Ofelia Landeta-Escamilla; Oscar Sandoval-Gonzalez; Albino Martinez-Sibaja; J. J. Agustín Flores-Cuautle; Rubén Posada-Gómez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Intelligent Spectroscopy System Used for Physicochemical Variables Estimation in Sugar Cane Soils. 2018, 1 .
AMA StyleOfelia Landeta-Escamilla, Oscar Sandoval-Gonzalez, Albino Martinez-Sibaja, J. J. Agustín Flores-Cuautle, Rubén Posada-Gómez, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. Intelligent Spectroscopy System Used for Physicochemical Variables Estimation in Sugar Cane Soils. . 2018; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleOfelia Landeta-Escamilla; Oscar Sandoval-Gonzalez; Albino Martinez-Sibaja; J. J. Agustín Flores-Cuautle; Rubén Posada-Gómez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman. 2018. "Intelligent Spectroscopy System Used for Physicochemical Variables Estimation in Sugar Cane Soils." , no. : 1.
The high costs involved in treating wastewater are problems that developing countries confront, mainly in rural areas. Therefore, Constructed Wetlands (CWs), which are composed of substrate, vegetation, and microorganisms, are an economically and ecologically viable option for wastewater treatment in these places. There is a wide variety of possibilities for substrates and ornamental plants that have not yet been evaluated to be implemented in future CW designs. The goal of this study was to evaluate the process of adaptation and removal of wastewater pollutants in CW microcosms using different terrestrial ornamental plants (Lavandula sp., Spathiphyllum wallisii, and Zantedeschia aethiopica). Those plants were sown in two types of substrate: red volcanic gravel (RVG) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). CWs with vegetation reduced 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) by 68% with RVG substrate and 63% with PET substrate, nitrates 50% in RVG substrate and 35% in PET substrate, phosphates 38% in RVG substrate and 35% in PET substrate, and fecal coliforms 64% in RVG and 59% in PET substrate). In control microcosms without vegetation, reductions were significantly lower than those in the presence of plants, with reduction of BOD5 by 61% in RVG substrate and 55% in PET substrate, nitrates 26% in RVG substrate and 22% in PET substrate, phosphates 27% in RVG substrate and 25% in PET substrate. Concerning fecal coliforms 62% were removed in RVG substrate and 59% in PET substrate. Regarding the production of flowers, Lavandula sp. did not manage to adapt and died 45 days after sowing and did not produce flowers. Spathiphyllum wallisii produced 12 flowers in RVG and nine flowers in PET, while Zantedeschia aethiopica produced 10 in RVG and 7 in PET. These results showed that the use of substrates made of RVG and PET is a viable alternative to be implemented in CWs. In addition, the reuse of PET is an option that decreases pollution by garbage. The plants Spathiphyllum wallisii and Zantedeschia aethiopica remarkably contribute in the removal of pollutants in wastewater. Additionally, the use of ornamental plants, with commercial interest such as those evaluated, enables an added value to the CW to be given, which can be used for flower production purposes on a larger scale and favor its acceptance within rural communities.
Luis Sandoval-Herazo; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; José Marín-Muñiz; Juan Méndez-Contreras; Sergio Zamora. Effects of the Use of Ornamental Plants and Different Substrates in the Removal of Wastewater Pollutants through Microcosms of Constructed Wetlands. Sustainability 2018, 10, 1594 .
AMA StyleLuis Sandoval-Herazo, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, José Marín-Muñiz, Juan Méndez-Contreras, Sergio Zamora. Effects of the Use of Ornamental Plants and Different Substrates in the Removal of Wastewater Pollutants through Microcosms of Constructed Wetlands. Sustainability. 2018; 10 (5):1594.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLuis Sandoval-Herazo; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; José Marín-Muñiz; Juan Méndez-Contreras; Sergio Zamora. 2018. "Effects of the Use of Ornamental Plants and Different Substrates in the Removal of Wastewater Pollutants through Microcosms of Constructed Wetlands." Sustainability 10, no. 5: 1594.
This article focuses on the analysis of the behavior patterns of the variables involved in the anaerobic digestion process. The objective is to predict the impact factor and the behavior pattern of the variables, i.e., temperature, pH, volatile solids (VS), total solids, volumetric load, and hydraulic residence time, considering that these are the control variables for the conservation of the different groups of anaerobic microorganisms. To conduct the research, samples of physicochemical sludge were taken from a water treatment plant in a poultry processing factory, and, then, the substrate was characterized, and a thermal pretreatment was used to accelerate the hydrolysis process. The anaerobic digestion process was analyzed in order to obtain experimental data of the control variables and observe their impact on the production of biogas. The results showed that the thermal pre-hydrolysis applied at 90°C for 90 min accelerated the hydrolysis phase, allowing a significant 52% increase in the volume of methane produced. An artificial neural network was developed, and it was trained with the database obtained by monitoring the anaerobic digestion process. The results obtained from the artificial neural network showed that there is an adjustment between the real values and the prediction of validation based on 60 samples with a 96.4% coefficient of determination, and it was observed that the variables with the major impact on the process were the loading rate and VS, with impact factors of 36% and 23%, respectively.
Rita Flores-Asis; Juan M. Méndez-Contreras; Ulises Juárez-Martínez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Daniel Villanueva Vasquez; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre. Use of artificial neuronal networks for prediction of the control parameters in the process of anaerobic digestion with thermal pretreatment. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 2018, 53, 883 -890.
AMA StyleRita Flores-Asis, Juan M. Méndez-Contreras, Ulises Juárez-Martínez, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Daniel Villanueva Vasquez, Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre. Use of artificial neuronal networks for prediction of the control parameters in the process of anaerobic digestion with thermal pretreatment. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A. 2018; 53 (10):883-890.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRita Flores-Asis; Juan M. Méndez-Contreras; Ulises Juárez-Martínez; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Daniel Villanueva Vasquez; Alberto A. Aguilar-Lasserre. 2018. "Use of artificial neuronal networks for prediction of the control parameters in the process of anaerobic digestion with thermal pretreatment." Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 53, no. 10: 883-890.
Erik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; J. M. Méndez‑Contreras; A. Martínez‑Sibaja; N. A. Vallejo‑Cantú; A. Alvarado-Lassman. Correction to: Anaerobic digestion of citrus industry effluents using an Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor. Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy 2018, 20, 1399 -1399.
AMA StyleErik Samuel Rosas Mendoza, J. M. Méndez‑Contreras, A. Martínez‑Sibaja, N. A. Vallejo‑Cantú, A. Alvarado-Lassman. Correction to: Anaerobic digestion of citrus industry effluents using an Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor. Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy. 2018; 20 (7):1399-1399.
Chicago/Turabian StyleErik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; J. M. Méndez‑Contreras; A. Martínez‑Sibaja; N. A. Vallejo‑Cantú; A. Alvarado-Lassman. 2018. "Correction to: Anaerobic digestion of citrus industry effluents using an Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor." Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy 20, no. 7: 1399-1399.
Mexico is one of the main citrus producers, ranking fourth in the world with approximately 7.4 million tons per year, with oranges contributing 4.08 million tons to that total. The effluents from the citrus industry have high loadings of organic matter and low pH levels. These effluents also are suitable for treatment by anaerobic digestion to reduce the organic matter and to obtain a value-added product, such as biogas. The aim of this work was to perform the anaerobic digestion of effluents from the citrus industry by using a high-rate reactor, evaluating the biogas production and use as an alternative energy source. An Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor (AHR) was used to treat the effluent from a citrus processing plant in Martínez de la Torre, Veracruz, Mexico. The AHR was operated at an organic loading rate (OLR) of 8 gCODT/Ld at steady state, obtaining a total and soluble COD removal of approximately 85%, with methane yields around 0.15 LCH4 to STP/gCODrem. An inhibitory effect was observed by the presence of D-limonene in the citrus effluent, although no pretreatment was used for elimination of this essential oil, a decrease in the COD removal and methane yields was observed due to the higher OLR. An energy estimate was obtained with the biogas, and it was found that up to 2.2% of the electricity required for the operation of a citrus processing plant can be generated using anaerobic treatment.
E. S. Rosas-Mendoza; J. M. Méndez-Contreras; A. Martínez-Sibaja; N. A. Vallejo-Cantú; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; A. Lassman-Alvarado. Anaerobic digestion of citrus industry effluents using an Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor. Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy 2017, 20, 1387 -1397.
AMA StyleE. S. Rosas-Mendoza, J. M. Méndez-Contreras, A. Martínez-Sibaja, N. A. Vallejo-Cantú, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, A. Lassman-Alvarado. Anaerobic digestion of citrus industry effluents using an Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor. Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy. 2017; 20 (7):1387-1397.
Chicago/Turabian StyleE. S. Rosas-Mendoza; J. M. Méndez-Contreras; A. Martínez-Sibaja; N. A. Vallejo-Cantú; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; A. Lassman-Alvarado. 2017. "Anaerobic digestion of citrus industry effluents using an Anaerobic Hybrid Reactor." Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy 20, no. 7: 1387-1397.
The high liquid content in fruit and vegetable wastes makes it convenient to mechanically separate these wastes into mostly liquid and solid fractions by means of pretreatment. Then, the liquid fraction can be treated using a high-rate anaerobic biofilm reactor to produce biogas, simultaneously reducing the amount of solids that must be landfilled. In this work, the specific composition of municipal solid waste (MSW) in a public market was determined; then, the sorted organic fraction of municipal solid waste was treated mechanically to separate and characterize the mostly liquid and solid fractions. Then, the mesophilic anaerobic digestion for biogas production of the first fraction was evaluated. The anaerobic digestion resulted in a reduced hydraulic retention time of two days with high removal of chemical oxygen demand, that is, 88% on average, with the additional benefit of reducing the mass of the solids that had to be landfilled by about 80%.
A. Alvarado-Lassman; J. M. Méndez-Contreras; Albino Martinez-Sibaja; Erik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; N. A. Vallejo-Cantú. Biogas production from the mechanically pretreated, liquid fraction of sorted organic municipal solid wastes. Environmental Technology 2016, 38, 1342 -1350.
AMA StyleA. Alvarado-Lassman, J. M. Méndez-Contreras, Albino Martinez-Sibaja, Erik Samuel Rosas Mendoza, N. A. Vallejo-Cantú. Biogas production from the mechanically pretreated, liquid fraction of sorted organic municipal solid wastes. Environmental Technology. 2016; 38 (11):1342-1350.
Chicago/Turabian StyleA. Alvarado-Lassman; J. M. Méndez-Contreras; Albino Martinez-Sibaja; Erik Samuel Rosas Mendoza; N. A. Vallejo-Cantú. 2016. "Biogas production from the mechanically pretreated, liquid fraction of sorted organic municipal solid wastes." Environmental Technology 38, no. 11: 1342-1350.
This work describes a 3D computational fluid dynamic model, which characterizes the hydrodynamic behavior of a mixing strategy applied to egg-shaped reactors that lack a mechanical stirring device. The model is based on Navier-Stokes and material balance equations without a chemical reaction. To describe the behavior of mixing, initial water feed flows of 6, 7.5 and 9 mL s(-1) were used. An experimental validation was subsequently carried out using a pulse technique, with NaCl as a tracer. The residence time distributions were quantitatively determined. Then, the degradation process of the wastewater sludge was characterized by studying the time dependence of the dynamic viscosity, the concentration of volatile solids and the density of wastewater sludge. The data resulting were introduced into the validated model, and five feed flows from 9 to 13 mL s(-1), the best performance found was with feed flow of 11 mL s(-1).
Eduardo Hernandez-Aguilar; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Anselmo Osorio-Mirón; Juan M. Méndez-Contreras. Development of energy efficient mixing strategies in egg-shaped anaerobic reactors through 3D CFD simulation. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 2016, 51, 1 -8.
AMA StyleEduardo Hernandez-Aguilar, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Anselmo Osorio-Mirón, Juan M. Méndez-Contreras. Development of energy efficient mixing strategies in egg-shaped anaerobic reactors through 3D CFD simulation. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A. 2016; 51 (7):1-8.
Chicago/Turabian StyleEduardo Hernandez-Aguilar; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Anselmo Osorio-Mirón; Juan M. Méndez-Contreras. 2016. "Development of energy efficient mixing strategies in egg-shaped anaerobic reactors through 3D CFD simulation." Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 51, no. 7: 1-8.
Thermal pretreatment effect of a mixture of organic wastes (physicochemical sludge, excreta of broiler chickens and sugarcane wastes (SCW)) in the solubilization and biodegradability organic matter as well as bioenergy production by anaerobic digestion was evaluated. Two different mixtures of physicochemical sludge, excreta of broiler chickens and SCW (70%, 15%, 15% and 60%, 20%, 20% of VS, respectively) were treated at different temperatures (80°C, 85°C and 90°C) and contact time (30, 60 and 90 min). Results indicate that, organic matter solubilization degree increased from 1.14 to 6.56%; subsequently, in the anaerobic digestion process, an increase of 50% in the volatile solids removal and 10% in biogas production was observed, while, retention time decreased from 23 up to 9 days. The results obtained were similar to pilot-scale. In both experimental scales it showed that the synergy produced by the simultaneous anaerobic digestion of different substrates could increase bioenergy production up to 1.3 L bio g−1 VS removed and 0.82 L CH4 g−1 VS removed. The treatment conditions presented in this study allow for large residue quantities to be treated and large bioenergy quantities to be produced (10% higher than during conventional treatment) without increasing the anaerobic digester volume.
Noemí Nava-Valente; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Liliana S. Nativitas-Sandoval; Juan M. Mendez-Contreras. Improved anaerobic digestion of a thermally pretreated mixture of physicochemical sludge; broiler excreta and sugar cane wastes (SCW): Effect on organic matter solubilization, biodegradability and bioenergy production. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 2016, 51, 446 -453.
AMA StyleNoemí Nava-Valente, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Liliana S. Nativitas-Sandoval, Juan M. Mendez-Contreras. Improved anaerobic digestion of a thermally pretreated mixture of physicochemical sludge; broiler excreta and sugar cane wastes (SCW): Effect on organic matter solubilization, biodegradability and bioenergy production. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A. 2016; 51 (5):446-453.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNoemí Nava-Valente; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Liliana S. Nativitas-Sandoval; Juan M. Mendez-Contreras. 2016. "Improved anaerobic digestion of a thermally pretreated mixture of physicochemical sludge; broiler excreta and sugar cane wastes (SCW): Effect on organic matter solubilization, biodegradability and bioenergy production." Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A 51, no. 5: 446-453.
This paper proposes a dedicated observer scheme for fault diagnosis and isolation in instruments of an anaerobic reactor. An asymptotic observer is proposed for the estimation of the concentration of Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), the concentration of anaerobic biomass and the produced biogas flow rate for an anaerobic reactor. The proposed observer is based on the ADM1 for applications in continuous UASB reactors and its main feature is that allows the monitoring of a dynamic balance between anabolic (biological synthesis) and catabolic (methane production) fluxes without biomass measurements in the reactor. Experimental results are shown using the ADM1 for the treatment of wastewater with high organic matter content from a brewery. Validation is carried out using real data obtained from a 2.1 L laboratory scale Up-flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor
Albino Martínez-Sibaja; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Rubén Posada-Gómez; Juan M. Mendez- Contreras; Blanca E. Gonzalez-Sanchez; Oscar Sandoval-González. Dedicated Observer Scheme for Fault Diagnosis and Isolation in Instruments of an Anaerobic Reactor. Procedia Technology 2013, 7, 173 -180.
AMA StyleAlbino Martínez-Sibaja, Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman, Rubén Posada-Gómez, Juan M. Mendez- Contreras, Blanca E. Gonzalez-Sanchez, Oscar Sandoval-González. Dedicated Observer Scheme for Fault Diagnosis and Isolation in Instruments of an Anaerobic Reactor. Procedia Technology. 2013; 7 ():173-180.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlbino Martínez-Sibaja; Alejandro Alvarado-Lassman; Rubén Posada-Gómez; Juan M. Mendez- Contreras; Blanca E. Gonzalez-Sanchez; Oscar Sandoval-González. 2013. "Dedicated Observer Scheme for Fault Diagnosis and Isolation in Instruments of an Anaerobic Reactor." Procedia Technology 7, no. : 173-180.