Solid-state anaerobic digestion of fungal pretreated Miscanthus sinensis harvested in two different seasons

• Solid-state anaerobic digestion of miscanthus harvested in fall and spring.
• Both miscanthus harvest seasons generated similar specific methane yield.
• Fungal pretreatment was effective for spring miscanthus, not for fall miscanthus.
• Fungal pretreatment increase specific methane yield by 25% for spring miscanthus.

Solid-state anaerobic digestion of Miscanthus sinensis harvested in fall and spring was compared under different total solids contents and feedstock-to-inoculum ratios. The highest specific methane yields reached 170–175 L CH4/kg volatile solids for both harvest seasons. Miscanthus harvested in fall generated a 6% higher methane yield in average than miscanthus harvested in spring. Fungal pretreatment with Ceriporiopsis subvermispora decreased the lignin content of miscanthus harvested in spring by 25.7%, but there was no significant delignification observed for miscanthus harvested in fall. Fungal pretreatment of miscanthus harvested in spring increased the specific methane yield by 25%, but fungal pretreatment caused a slight methane yield reduction for miscanthus harvested in fall. Methane yields for miscanthus were comparable with those from other energy crops.