ABSTRACT
Anaerobic digestion, as a process for the conversion of biomass and wastes to methane and cell mass, has been demonstrated to be technically feasible for a variety of feedstocks and in sizes ranging from small household units to largescale systems in wastewater treatment plants. Among several advantages of anaerobic digesters, described elsewhere," two are very important: production of clean gas fuel with high heating value and reduction of the amount of stabilized effluent solids. In order to rationally design the digester and specify operating conditions for maximum methane production and to be able to predict methane production and effluent quality, an understanding of process kinetics is essential.
