The Operating Diagram for a Two-Step Anaerobic Digestion Model

The Anaerobic Digestion Model No. 1 (ADM1) is a complex model which is widely accepted as a common platform for anaerobic process modeling and simulation. However, it has a large number of parameters and states that hinder its analytical study. Here, we consider the two-step reduced model of anaerobic digestion (AM2) which is a four-dimensional system of ordinary differential equations. The AM2 model is able to adequately capture the main dynamical behavior of the full anaerobic digestion model ADM1 and has the advantage that a complete analysis for the existence and local stability of its steady states is available. We describe its operating diagram, which is the bifurcation diagram which gives the behavior of the system with respect to the operating parameters represented by the dilution rate and the input concentrations of the substrates. This diagram, is very useful to understand the model from both the mathematical and biological points of view.