Patent ID: 9458474
Filing Date: 2016-10-04
CPC Classification: C12M,C12P,C25B,Y02E

Claim Text:
1. A system for producing hydrogen from bio-organic material by microbial electrolysis, comprising: a completely mixed bioreactor having an inlet for continuously receiving bio-organic material and anaerobic, hydrogen producing microorganisms; a completely mixed reactor chamber containing a dark fermentation broth including the bio-organic material and the anaerobic microorganisms suspended therein for breaking down the bio-organic material into H a gravity settler downstream of the bioreactor and hydraulically connected by a drain conduit to the second outlet for receiving at least a portion of the first liquid effluent and separating at least a portion of the first liquid effluent into a concentrated biomass including at least a portion of the hydrogen-producing microorganisms and a second liquid effluent including at least a portion of the fatty acids and of the alcohols, the gravity settler hydraulically connected by a return conduit to the bioreactor for recovering at least a portion of the concentrated biomass and returning the recovered portion of the concentrated biomass into the completely mixed reactor chamber; and at least one pair of electrodes suspended in at least one of the dark fermentation broth in the bioreactor and the first liquid effluent in the gravity settler, each pair of electrodes including an anode and a cathode with exoelectrogenic, hydrogen-producing microorganisms on the anode for releasing electrons to the dark fermentation broth or the first liquid effluent upon breakdown of the bio-organic material into products including H a controller constructed for supplying an input voltage of 0.5 V to 1.8 V to each pair of electrodes for supporting microbial electrolysis at the anode for development of hydrogen at the cathode.