Statistical Optimization of Biohydrogen Production from Palm Oil Mill Effluent by Natural Microflora

Abstract

In this study, palm oil mill effluent (POME) was used as the substrate for biohydrogen production. Heat-treated POME sludge acclimated with POME incubated at 37°C for 24 hours was used as seed culture. Preliminary screening on the effects of inocula sizes, heat treatment, substrate concentration and pH of incubation by using a factorial design (FD) were conducted under mesophilic condition (37°C) using a serum vial (160 mL). The experimental results from two-level FD showed that pH and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) of POME significantly affected biohydrogen production. Optimizations of the specific hydrogen production (P_s) and the hydrogen production rate (R_m) were achieved by using a central composite design (CCD). The maximum P_s of 272 mL H₂/g carbohydrate was obtained under optimum conditions of pH 5.75 and substrate concentration of 80 g/L. The maximum R_m of 98 mL H₂/h was calculated under the optimum conditions of pH 5.98 and substrate concentration of 80 g/L. The optimized conditions obtained were subjected to a confirmation run and it showed reproducible data with a P_s of 226 mL H₂/g carbohydrate and R_m of 72 mL H₂/h.