Integrated assessment for anaerobic biodegradability of organic compounds using the analytical hierarchy process.

Anaerobic biodegradability of organic compounds can be assessed from the changes in organic compounds, the end products, and the activity of microorganisms. In this study, all three of these variables were considered to integrate assessment of the anaerobic biodegradability of organic compounds. The analytical hierarchy process (AHP) was introduced to integrate the assessment. Real values between 0 and 10 were determined in the pairwise comparison matrix according to the values of assessment indices of the three variables. A new adjustment method, which can obtain minimum adjustment of the values in matrix, was proposed to reach the acceptable consistency of the matrix. Finally, the anaerobic biodegradability of 14 organic compounds was assessed using AHP.