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Producing Biogas?
Combustion File no.: 81
Author: Jen Kovcs
Version no.: 1
Referee: Peter Roberts
Date: 15-10-2001
Source: See end
1. Anaerobic Digestion
The rate of breakdown depends on the nature of the incoming material and the
operating temperature.
The biogas is typically made up of 65% methane and 35% carbon dioxide with traces of
nitrogen, sulphur compounds, volatile organic compounds and ammonia. This biogas can be
combusted directly in modified gas boilers or can be used to run an internal combustion
engine. The calorific value of this biogas is typically 17 to 25 MJ/m3, approx. between
50% and 70% that of natural gas and can be combusted directly in modified natural gas
boilers or used to run internal combustion engines. Typical composition of biogas is given
in Table 1.
Biogas can also be generated in landfill (landfill gas) through the similar digestion
process. However, the composition of the landfill gas is different because of the wide
mixture of organic waste.
The remainder, fibre, consists of an odour free residue with appearance similar to peat
(although they are not strictly comparable as peat is nutrient-free), and which has some
value as a soil conditioner in some instances as an alternative to peat. Peat extraction is
a major environmental problem, destroying the fragile ecosystems of the peatlands.
The biogas produced through the AD process usually needs to be cleaned to varying
degrees as soon as possible after generation for two main reasons:
The other digestate, the liquid has a low but diverse level range of nutrients. It can be
used as a liquid fertiliser in a planned fertiliser regime. As it has high water content, the
liquor also has irrigation benefits, so it can be used for fertigation on agricultural land.
However, as it contains particles, it should not be used for fertigation in greenhouses
because it can block feeder pipes if not separated effectively.
2CH3CH2OH
Ethanol
CO2
Carbon dioxide
CH4
Methane
CO2
Carbon dioxide
4H2
Hydrogen
CO2
Carbon dioxide
CH4
Methane
CH4
Methane
2CH3COOH
Acetic acid
2H2O
Water
The above equations show that many products, by-products and intermediate products
are produced in the process of digestion of inputs in an anaerobic condition before the
final product (methane) is produced. Obviously, there are many facilitating and inhibiting
factors that play their role in the process, such as material fed, pH value, temperature,
loading rate, retention time, toxicity, etc.
During the digestion process 30 - 60% of the digestible solids are converted into biogas.
This gas is a relatively rich fuel gas and may be fired to generate heat or electricity or
both. It can be burned in a conventional gas boiler and used as heat for nearby buildings
including farmhouses, and to heat the digester. It can be used to power associated
machinery or vehicles. Alternatively, it can be burned in a gas engine to generate
electricity. If generating electricity, it is usual to use a more efficient combined heat
and power (CHP) system, where heat can be removed in the first instance to maintain
the digester temperature, and any surplus energy can be used for other purposes. A
larger scale CHP plant can supply larger housing or industrial developments, or supply
electricity to the grid.
Feedstock
digestate
Digester
Separator
- liqour storage and
distribution
- fibre straight to land
- fibre composting
biogas
Biogas cleaning
Biogas storage
- process heat
- electricity
- combined heat and power
- transportation
As fresh feedstock is added to the system, digestate is pumped from the digester to a
storage tank. Biogas continues to be produced in the storage tank; collection and
combustion may be an economic and safety requirement. The residual digestate can be
stored and then applied to the land at an appropriate time without further treatment, or
it can be separated to produce fibre and liquor. The fibre can be used as a soil
conditioner or composted prior to use or sale. The liquor contains a range of nutrients
and can be used as a liquid fertiliser, which can be sold or used on-site as part of a crop
nutrient management plan.
Nutrient analysis data for typical liquids and fibres are given in Table 2.
Table 1. Typical data on composition of biogas. Source: [2]
Compound
AD biogas
Methane, CH4
55-75 %
Carbon dioxide, CO2
25-45 %
Carbon monoxide, CO
0-0.3 %
Nitrogen, N2
1-5 %
Oxygen, O2
Traces
Hydrogen, H2
0-3 %
Hydrogen sulphide, H2S
0.1-0.5 %
Chlorine
Fluorine
-
Landfill gas
54%
42%
3.1 %
0.8 %
88 mg/m3
22 mg/m3
5 mg/m3
Table 2. Nutrient analysis of the fibre and liquor from the AD of farm slurry/manure
[1]
Liquor (kg/100 l)
Fibre (% of dry matter)
Nitrogen
0.8
3
Phosphate
0.5
4
Potassium
0.5
2
1 Figures are not for elemental mass but mass of compounds of nitrogen, phosphate and potash.
2 The fibre and liquor also contain trace elements including magnesium, manganese, sulphur, calcium, zinc,
copper, boron and sodium
AD offers a great potential for using a renewable energy source for electricity, heat
and combined heat and power generation. It is also carbon neutral, i.e. it does not
generate extra carbon dioxide, and can therefore reduce overall quantities of carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere. The digestate, if correctly used, can reduce demand for
synthetic fertilisers and other soil conditioners, which may be manufactured using less
sustainable methods.
The environmental benefits of the AD processes can be briefly summarised as follows
[1]: better energy balance than in another energy production, reducing greenhouse gases,
displacing use of finite fossil fuels, recycling nutrients, reducing land and water
pollution, reducing demand for peat, supporting organic farming, reducing odour,
efficient electricity distribution.
The following problems may occur in AD farms: potential emissions, traffic movements,
noise, health and safety hazards, animal disease, and visual impact.
Glossary terms:
Keywords:
Source:
The information contained in this Combustion File is derived from the IFRF Combustion Handbook
(http://www.handbook.ifrf.net)
IFRF 1999 - 2001