Choline chloride assisted thermal hydrolysis pretreatment improves short-chain fatty acid yield in anaerobic fermentation of sludge

Slow dissolution/hydrolysis efficiency has been widely recognized as a limiting factor for the production of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) from anaerobic fermentation of waste activated sludge (WAS). In this study, the application of choline chloride (ChCl) assisted thermal hydrolysis (TH) pretreatment was proposed for the first time for the treatment of WAS, and its effectiveness in improving SCFA yield was evaluated.