Abstract

This study focuses on the kinetics of volatile solids (VS) biodegradation of the biodrying process using pulp and paper secondary sludge. The experiments were carried out with air-flow rates of 0.51, 1.61, 3.25 and 5.26 L/min kg(VS)) and initial moisture content of 64-66% w.b. Using five kinetic models and a nonlinear regression method, kinetic parameters were estimated and the models were analyzed with two statistical indicators. Higher air-flow rates cause greater moisture content reduction, lower temperature in the matrix, and lower VS reduction. At an air-flow rate as high as 5.26 L/min kgVS there is no biodrying but only convective drying. The kinetic models used successfully simulate the VS biodegradation under biodrying conditions, with a root mean square error (RMSE) between 0.007929 and 0.02744. In conclusion, we show for the first time that VS biodegradation in the biodrying process can be successfully modeled with a kinetic model. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.