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New Challenges of Anaerobic Digestion for Bioproducts and Bioenergy Production

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A4: Bio-Energy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 1603

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Université de Technologie de Compiègne, ESCOM, TIMR, Alliance Sorbonne Université, Compiègne, France
Interests: biomass; anaerobic digestion; biogas; hygienization; preatment; drying technology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Anaerobic digestion (AD) has long been recognized as a key technology for the sustainable management of organic wastes and the production of renewable energy in the form of biogas. However, the global transition towards the circular bioeconomy and carbon neutrality introduces new challenges and opportunities for AD systems. In this context, AD is increasingly expected to go beyond simple energy recovery and instead become a versatile biorefinery platform capable of producing a wide range of bioproducts such as organic acids, biohydrogen, biomethane, and nutrient-rich biofertilizers.

In this Special Issue, we aim to gather innovative research and comprehensive reviews addressing the latest scientific and technological advances in anaerobic digestion for bioproducts and bioenergy production. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Optimization, modeling, and control of AD processes for enhanced biogas yield and stability;
  • Sanitary concerns of anaerobic digestion for bioenergy production;
  • Process intensification (e.g., pretreatment, DIET) and reactor design of AD systems;
  • Post-treatment and energy valorisation of digestate, and integration of biogas into the circular bioeconomy
  • Coupling AD with other technologies (e.g., nutriment recovery, gas upgrading and transformation, CO2 valorization, biomethanation);
  • Assessment of environmental, energetic, and economic performance of AD-based systems.

We particularly welcome interdisciplinary contributions that propose novel approaches to improving the efficiency, robustness, and sustainability of anaerobic digestion, as well as contributions that explore AD’s role in the broader context of resource recovery and climate change mitigation.

Dr. Xiaojun Liu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • anaerobic digestion
  • biogas production
  • biomethane
  • bio-CO2
  • bioproducts
  • bioenergy
  • digestate
  • circular economy

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

29 pages, 3165 KB  
Review
Thermal and Dynamic Behavior of Anaerobic Digesters Under Neotropical Conditions: A Review
by Ricardo Rios, Nacari Marin-Calvo and Euclides Deago
Energies 2026, 19(8), 1838; https://doi.org/10.3390/en19081838 - 8 Apr 2026
Viewed by 1190
Abstract
Anaerobic digesters operating under neotropical conditions face significant technological constraints. High humidity, intense solar radiation, and pronounced diurnal temperature variations increase conductive, convective, and radiative heat losses. These factors reduce internal thermal stability and directly affect methane production rates and overall energy efficiency. [...] Read more.
Anaerobic digesters operating under neotropical conditions face significant technological constraints. High humidity, intense solar radiation, and pronounced diurnal temperature variations increase conductive, convective, and radiative heat losses. These factors reduce internal thermal stability and directly affect methane production rates and overall energy efficiency. As a result, thermal instability becomes a recurrent operational bottleneck in biogas plants without active temperature control. This review examines the thermal and dynamic behavior of anaerobic reactors from a process-engineering perspective. It integrates energy balances, heat-transfer mechanisms, and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling. The combined effects of temperature gradients, hydrodynamic mixing patterns, and structural material properties are analyzed to determine their influence on thermal homogeneity, microbial stability, and methane yield consistency under mesophilic conditions. Technological strategies to mitigate thermal losses are evaluated. These include passive insulation using low-conductivity materials, geometry optimization supported by numerical modeling, and thermal recirculation schemes, as these factors govern temperature distribution and process resilience. Current limitations are also discussed, particularly the frequent decoupling between ADM1-based kinetic models and transient heat-transfer analysis. This separation restricts predictive capability under real-scale diurnal temperature oscillations. The development and validation of coupled hydrodynamic–thermal–biokinetic models under fluctuating neotropical boundary conditions are proposed as critical steps. Such integrated approaches can enhance operational stability, ensure consistent methane production, and improve energy self-sufficiency in organic waste valorization systems. Full article
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