Biological Methanation: Key advances and remaining challenges
Résumé
Biological methanation is a green process able to convert CO2 and hydrogen gas into methane owing to hydrogenetrophic archaea. It can be applied, e.g., to biogas upgrading when coupled to anaerobic digesters to enhance the production of renewable green energy. Even though recent literature has abundantly described the pros and cons and the technologies able to enhance biological methanation, little has been reported on experimental data assessing the H2 gas-liquid mass transfer limitation and on the gas feed strategies which could intensify this process. The aim of this work is to discuss these topics based on recent data from bubble column reactors in order to intensify biomethanation, including pressure, gas flow rate, and the H2:CO2 ratio in the gas feed.