Optimization of conditions for hydrogen production from brewery wastewater by anaerobic sludge using desirability function approach

Brewery wastewater was converted H2 by anaerobic sludge in batch experiments. A three-factor three-level experimental design of Box-Behnken method was adopted to find the optimum H2 production conditions. The effects of three major influence factors, temperature, pH and brewery wastewater concentration (BWC), on H2 yield and H2 maximum production rate (Rmax) were evaluated by applying response surface methodology (RSM) integrating a desirability function approach. Desirable H2 yield and Rmax simultaneously were achieved under temperature 35.9 °C, pH 5.95 and BWC 6.05 g/l by a desirability function approach which produced the maximum overall desirability 0.894. Correspondingly, the H2 yield and Rmax were 149.6 ml H2/g COD and 53.6 ml/h, respectively. The verification test confirms that the optimum H2 yield and Rmax measured were in good agreement with the predicted values, suggesting that the desirability function approach with RSM was a useful technique to get the maximum H2 yield and Rmax simultaneously.