Brewers’ spent grain (BSG) had a suitable C/N ratio for hydrogen (H2) production.
BSG solubilization increased with the increasing calcined-red mud (CRM) load.
Higher CRM concentration could cause Maillard reaction and alkaline pH in broth.
The highest H2 yield was 198.62 ml/g-VS for the 10 g/L of CRM pretreating BSG.
Modified Gompertz model showed better fit to the data than the first-order model.