Experimental Contribution to the Phenomena of Methanisation by Co-digestion of Organic Waste from the Residence of the Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar

In this work we undertook a series of experiments to evaluate the biogas potential of the waste from the UCAD university residence. The first experiment revealed several types of waste at room temperature in a 1.5-litre canister equipped with an empty inflatable balloon used to recover biogas, which was our bio-digester. A shaking is done on each digester once a day. The pH was measured at the beginning and end of each experiment. The production of biogas appeared after two days. The second experiment consisted in allowing a temperature of 40°C (mesophilic temperature) and continued at room temperature by shaking the reactor once a day. For this experiment, we found that some bio-digesters started to produce after two hours of time. The inflatable balloon increased in volume every hour until 24 hours before remaining constant or continued to produce throughout the experiment. Then it was a question of co-digesting waste with the best biogas potential. It appears that the co-digestion composed of cow dung and UCAD sewage sludge gives the best production. In the last experiment, the assembly of a two-liter bio-digester equipped with a manual mixing and grinding system and a gasometer made it possible to produce biogas under the influence of temperature and agitation, which took place almost three times a day. The objective of this work is to propose a new biogas production technique that will allow better management of organic waste, the production of flammable gas and open up a new alternative to the development of the rural world because biogas production in the rural world cannot have the same temperature conditions as the industrial one, so our research will provide part of the solution to this problem. Finally, we solve an environmental problem and contribute to the edifice of sustainable development