Biogas

Turning waste into fuel

Biogas is a gas produced by the breakdown of organic matter. It is obtained through a process called anaerobic
digestion of a wide variety of biodegradable materials, including manure, landfill and sewage waste, municipal waste,
agricultural waste and plant waste.

Biogas is a renewable and flexible source of energy, is easily stored on-site in storage tanks and can be used for
cooking, heating, the production of electricity, as a transport fuel or upgraded to natural gas quality for injection into
a gas grid. It is a particularly suitable fuel for rural areas that are not connected to the mains gas grid. In these areas it
may provide people and businesses with an environmentally friendly alternative compated to LPG, and especially
compared to the use of coal, heating oil or diesel. In combination with energy efficient conversion technologies such
as condensing boilers and micro-CHP systems, further carbon and energy savings can be established.

Usually the production costs of biogas are higher than those for natural gas. Subsidies for the production of biomass
are available in many European countries.

In rural areas, however, animal and organic waste is usually available plentiful and often considered as having little
value. The production of biogas can make such residue streams of value and may provide economic opportunities for
the agricultural and forestry sector in rural areas. In those situations, biogas plants may be profitable without support.
Additional earnings can be obtained from waste treatment, emission reduction credits or fertiliser production. The
economics of installations also depend on the availability and the type of biomass or feedstock that is used to
produce the biogas.

GENERAL INFO

What is it? Biogas is a gas produced by the breakdown of organic

matter. It is obtained through a process called anaerobic
digestionwith micro-organisms of biodegradable materials
such as manure, landfill and sewage waste, municipal waste,
agricultural waste and plant waste.

Biogas can be the energy source for the production of

electricity, heat (and the cogeneration of heat and power,
CHP), be used as a transport fuel or upgraded to natural gas
quality for injection into the natural gas grid.

What are the benefits? Flexible: biogas can be used as fuel for the production of
electricity, heat and transportation fuel.
 The input material as well as the biogas itself can be stored
and used when needed (e.g. for demand driven electricity
and/or heat production, in a vehicle). Biogas can also be
upgraded to natural gas quality and injected into the natural
gas grid. Such purified biogas is very similar to natural gas
(as this is also mostly methane) so that it can be used with
common household appliances and industrial processes,

Locally available: In rural areas, materials that can be fed

into a biogas digester are mostly readily and locally
available: agricultural residues, manure, crops, etc. Industrial
residues such as from beverage, beer and food production are
locally or regionally available and often perceived as waste.
Also wastes from landfills or sewer treatment facilities) can
be used as input materials to produce biogas from.

Low-carbon and renewable: the materials used to produce

biogas are natural and organic waste streams or residues that
are often locally or regionally sourced. Associated
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are low compared to other
fuels such as natural gas (see more in the section
environmental impacts). Biogas is a renewable fuel.

Additional benefits:

The biogas process offers the production of an effective

organic fertiliser (and by this the substitution of mineral
fertiliser).
The methane emissions of stored manure are captured and
avoided, which would otherwise end up in the atmosphere.
Methane is a very potent greenhouse gas.
Some seeds (from weed) are deactivated thus less weed
control is needed.

How does it work? Biogas is commonly produced through a process called

anaerobic digestion with micro-organisms (bacteria and
archaea) of organic materials such as manure, landfill and
sewage waste, municipal waste, agricultural waste (from for
example crops) and plant waste.

Organic materials are fed into an air thigh reactor (also called
digester). In this digester, anaerobic bacteria and archaea are
 producing the biogas. Typically this digester is stirred and
heated to provide optimal living conditions for the
microorganisms, thereby optimising the digestion process.
After these processes, the biogas is stored and becomes a
flexible fuel. For some applications, biogas is further refined
or blended with natural gas or LPG to increase its caloric
value.

Upgrading biogas to natural gas quality is also increasingly

done. Once upgraded the biogas becomes so-called bio
methane. Once compressed, bio methane can be used as
transportation fuel and is already used in cars, trains and
ships as is (compressed) natural gas.

The effluent of biogas plants (called digestates) is typically

spread as fertilizer on arable land. It could be separated into
concentrated fertiliser, humus and water.

Biogas it is a particularly suitable fuel for rural areas that are

not connected to the mains gas grid. In these areas it may
provide people and businesses with an environmentally
friendly alternative compated to LPG, and especially
compared to the use of coal, heating oil or diesel. In
combination with energy efficient conversion technologies
such as condensing boilers and micro-CHP systems, further
carbon and energy savings can be established.
Suitability/applicability
A biogas' plant operation is much influenced by the used
input material and its local availability. Common commercial
biogas plants usually need several thousand tonnes of input
material per year. This means that a certain scale (farms,
industrial sites) is required to make the production of biogas
profitable. Also, sufficient space is required to store and
process the biomass.

DETAILED INFO

Costs, Savings, Usually the production costs of biogas are higher than those
Earnings for natural gas which has similar applications. Therefore
biogas installations usually need support which is available in
many European countries.

In rural areas, however, animal and organic waste is usually

available plentiful and often considered as having little value.
The production of biogas can make such residue streams of
 value and may provide economic opportunities for the
agricultural and forestry sector in rural areas. In those
situations, biogas plants may be profitable without support.

The economics of biogas installations depend not only the

availability, but also on the type of biomass that is used to
produce the biogas.

Additional earnings can be obtained from waste treatment,

emission reduction credits or fertiliser production.

Environmental Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated to biogas are

Impacts low. Biogas can potentially be carbon-neutral as the amount
of carbon that is emitted during combustion of the biofuels is
equal to the amount of carbon that was absorbed from the
atmosphere during plant growth, hence creating a closed
cycle. However, some greenhouse gas emissions also occur
during the production, conversion and distribution of the
biogas, which have to be allocated to the biogas in order to
evaluate its benefits over the entire life-cycle (including the
entire supply chain). Biogas is often produced from local or

regionally available residues that have lower associated GHG

emissions and do not compete with other land-uses such as
food production.

If manure is treated in a biogas plant there is a higher positive

environmental effect due to manure treatment and methane
emission reduction. Waste treatment or residue utilisation has
in most cases positive environmental effects recycling of
materials (like minerals) and renewable energy production).
If energy crops are grown there are certain sustainability
issues (e.g. food vs. fuel production, influence on
biodiversity and water quality).

The environmental impact is further reduced when the

following requirements are met:

Manure treatment: In cattle bearing there are high methane

emissions by manure storage. Manure has an about 23 times
higher greenhouse gas potency compared to CO2. If manure
is treated in biogas plants these emissions are avoided. Due
to avoided methane emissions manure treatment biogas
plants offer energy production by negative CO2 emissions
(reduced GHG effect).
 Digestate substitutes mineral fertilizer.
The by-product heat is used usefully and efficiently.
Low leakage rates (methane losses)
Input material choice: Waste and residue processing offers
biogas production with low emissions. If energy crops are
grown the material has potential negative impact on
sustainability (like all agricultural production).

Efficiency As biogas is a fuel, its efficiency depends on the efficiency of

the technology that converts the fuel into end-uses such as
heating or power.

Commercial Maturity Biogas production through digestion is considered a mature

and reliable technology. There are over 10.000 biogas plants
currently in operation in Europe with several decades of
experience. Biogas is currently often more expensive to
produce than fossil alternatives and therefore financial
support is needed to make it commercially viable. This
support is available in many European countries.

Level of Maintenance Not applicable.

Technical Details Biogas mainly consists of methane (50 75%), carbon

dioxide (30 45%), water vapour and some other gas
components (in traces). Purified biogas (bio methane) has
similar properties as natural gas.

Typical capacities for commercial biogas plants range

between 50 kWel and some MWel. Typical biogas
installations at farms have digester volumes of 500 to 5000
cubic metres and require several tonnes of biomass input per
year. Such installations usually produce more biogas than a
single farm requires for meeting its energy needs. Domestic
biogas installations are not very common in Europe,
particularly because of the labour intensive nature of such
installations, (particularly feeding and emptying the digester).

There are several biogas technologies available on the

marked, which are adapted to the available biomass and
specific application.

Regional variations Biogas plants can be realised in all countries and regions in
Europe. Local climate conditions have an influence on the
 specification of an installation (e.g. on the required
production of heat to heat the biomass in a digester) and the
type of (regionally) available biomass has an influence on a
plants operation. Regional conditions therefore need to be
taken into account when designing systems.

Trade associations European Biomass Association

www.aebiom.org

European Biogas Association

www.european-biogas.eu
http://www.rural-energy.eu/solutions/1/366/Biogas#.Wci24cgjGM8

What is Anaerobic Digestion?

Anaerobic digestion is a series of biological processes in which microorganisms break down biodegradable
material in the absence of oxygen. One of the end products is biogas, which is combusted to generate
electricity and heat, or can be processed into renewable natural gas and transportation fuels. A range of
anaerobic digestion technologies are converting livestock manure, municipal wastewater solids, food waste,
high strength industrial wastewater and residuals, fats, oils and grease (FOG), and various other organic
waste streams into biogas, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Separated digested solids can be composted,
utilized for dairy bedding, directly applied to cropland or converted into other products. Nutrients in the
liquid stream are used in agriculture as fertilizer.

The Biological Process

The digestion process begins with bacterial hydrolysis of the input
materials in order to break down insoluble organic polymers such as
carbohydrates and make them available for other bacteria. Acidogenic
bacteria then convert the sugars and amino acids into carbon dioxide,
hydrogen, ammonia, and organic acids. Acetogenic bacteria then
convert these resulting organic acids into acetic acid, along with
additional ammonia, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide. Finally,
methanogens convert these products to methane and carbon dioxide.

Digester Technologies
Many different anaerobic digester systems are commercially available.
The following is an overview based on organic waste stream type
(manure, municipal wastewater treatment, industrial wastewater
treatment and municipal solid waste): Manure: Anaerobic digestion systems for livestock manure operate to
reduce methane emissions, odors, pathogens and weed seeds and produce biogas. They fall into four
general categories:

1. Covered anaerobic lagoon digester: Sealed with flexible cover, with methane recovered and piped to
the combustion device. Some systems use a single cell for combined digestion and storage.

2. Plug flow digester: Long, narrow concrete tank with a rigid or flexible cover. The tank is built
partially or fully below grade to limit the demand for supplemental heat. Plug flow digesters are
used at dairy operations that collect manure by scraping.
 3. Complete mix digester: Enclosed, heated tank with a mechanical, hydraulic, or gas mixing system.
Complete mix digesters work best when there is some dilution of the excreted manure with water
(e.g., milking center wastewater).

4. Dry Digestion: Upright, silo-style digesters made of concrete and steel with rigid cover. Dry
digesters operate at 20 to 42 percent total solids, which allows them to combine high dry matter
manure and crop residuals with very dilute liquid manures or co-substrates.

Source: http://www.epa.gov/agstar/anaerobic/ad101/anaerobic-digesters.html (diagrams available)

Municipal Wastewater
Wastewater treatment plants employ anaerobic digesters to break down sewage sludge and eliminate
pathogens in wastewater. Technologies available for municipal wastewater fall into tthree general categories
mesophilic, thermophilic, and temperature-phased systems.

Industrial Wastewater
Food and beverage manufacturing facilities typically generate high strength waste streams as a by-product
of their manufacturing operations. These waste streams are characterized by high Chemical Oxygen Demand
(COD) and solids loading, making them well-suited for treatment using anaerobic processes.

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)

Anaerobic digestion of the organic fraction of MSW provides an engineered and highly controlled process of
capturing methane, especially when compared to landfill gas capture of methane generated by putrescible
waste. Typically, digestion of mixed solid waste is done as part of compliance with directives to stabilize the
organic fraction of the waste stream prior to disposal. The current trend is toward anaerobic digestion of
source separated organic waste streams, including food waste, yard trimmings and soiled paper. Presorting
is necessary to prevent clogging of the pumps and to reduce the amount of reactor volume occupied by inert
material. Even source-separated waste inevitably contains metal and plastic contaminants and must be
presorted. Anaerobic digestion systems for MSW include:

Single-stage wet digesters: Typically simpler to design, build, and operate and generally less
expensive, the organic loading rate (OLR) of single-stage digesters is limited by the ability of
methanogenic organisms to tolerate the sudden decline in pH that results from rapid acid production
during hydrolysis.

Dry fermentation: Type of single-stage digester, but distinctive from other AD categories because
feedstocks are in a solid state that can be handled with a front-end loader and normally no
additional water is added. Digestion takes place at 20-45% total solids, and can be done in either a
batch or continuous mode. In batch mode, materials are loaded into chambers then inoculated and
maintained until the end of the retention time. In continuous mode, fresh feedstock is continuously
fed to the digester and digestate is continuously removed.

Two-stage digesters: System separates the initial hydrolysis and acid-producing fermentation from
methanogenesis, which allows for higher loading rates for high nitrogen containing materials but
requires additional reactors and handling systems. Another important design parameter is the total
solids (TS) concentration in the reactor, expressed as a fraction of the wet mass of the prepared
feedstock. The remainder of the wet mass is water by definition. Feedstock is typically diluted with
process water to achieve the desirable solids content during the preparation stages.
Source: http://ww.calrecycle.ca.gov/publications/Organics/2008011.pdf

How Biogas is Upgraded to Biomethane/Renewable Natural

Gas
Captured biogas is transported via pipe from the digester, either directly to a gas
use device or to a gas treatment system (e.g. for moisture or hydrogen sulfide
removal). If the feedstocks contains high concentrations of sulfur and no steps
are taken to prevent formation of hydrogen sulfide in the digester, then
hydrogen sulfide is removed from the biogas to prevent corrosion of the
combustion device or other downstream equipment.

Captured biogas can also be further upgraded by removing carbon dioxide,

nitrogen and oxygen in order to meet the high purity and BTU requirements for
pipeline injection or compressed biomethane vehicle fuel.

https://www.americanbiogascouncil.org/biogas_what.asp

Table of biofuel crop yields

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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The following table shows the vegetable oil yields of common energy crops associated
with biodiesel production. This is unrelated to ethanol production, which relies
on starch, sugar and cellulose content instead of oil yields.

Crop kg oil/ha/yr litres oil/ha lbs oil/acre US gal/acre

maize (corn) 145 172 129 18

cashew nut 148 176 132 19

oats 183 217 163 23

lupin (lupine) 195 232 175 25

kenaf 230 273 205 29

 Crop kg oil/ha/yr litres oil/ha lbs oil/acre US gal/acre

calendula 256 305 229 33

cotton 273 325 244 35

hemp 305 363 272 39

soybean 375 446 335 48

coffee 386 459 345 49

flax (linseed) 402 478 359 51

hazelnuts 405 482 362 51

euphorbia 440 524 393 56

pumpkin seed 449 534 401 57

coriander 450 536 402 57

mustard seed 481 572 430 61

camelina 490 583 438 62

sesame 585 696 522 74

safflower 655 779 585 83

 Crop kg oil/ha/yr litres oil/ha lbs oil/acre US gal/acre

rice 696 828 622 88

tung tree 790 940 705 100

sunflowers 800 952 714 102

cacao (cocoa) 863 1026 771 110

peanut 890 1059 795 113

opium poppy 978 1163 873 124

rapeseed 1000 1190 893 127

olives 1019 1212 910 129

castor beans 1188 1413 1061 151

pecan nuts 1505 1791 1344 191

jojoba 1528 1818 1365 194

jatropha 1590 1892 1420 202

macadamia nuts 1887 2246 1685 240

brazil nuts 2010 2392 1795 255

 Crop kg oil/ha/yr litres oil/ha lbs oil/acre US gal/acre

avocado 2217 2638 1980 282

coconut 2260 2689 2018 287

chinese tallow 3950 4700 3500 500

oil palm 5000 5950 4465 635

Copaifera langsdorffii [1] 12000 1283

Millettia pinnata[2] 9000

10000
algae (open pond) [3] 80000 95000 70000

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_of_biofuel_crop_yieldsBiomass can be used to produce

renewable electricity, thermal energy, or transportation fuels (biofuels). Biomass is
defined as living or recently dead organisms and any byproducts of those organisms,
plant or animal. The term is generally understood to exclude coal, oil, and other
fossilized remnants of organisms, as well as soils. In this strict sense, biomass
encompasses all living things. In the context of biomass energy, however, the term
refers to those crops, residues, and other biological materials that can be used as a
substitute for fossil fuels in the production of energy and other products. Living biomass
takes in carbon as it grows and releases this carbon when used for energy, resulting in
a carbon-neutral cycle that does not increase the atmospheric concentration of
greenhouse gases.

Biomass Energy
The energy stored in biomass can be released to produce renewable electricity or heat.
Biopower can be generated through combustion or gasification of dry biomass or biogas
(methane) captured through controlled anaerobic digestion. Cofiring of biomass and
fossil fuels (usually coal) is a low-cost means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions,
improving cost-effectiveness, and reducing air pollutants in existing power plants.
Thermal energy (heating and cooling) is often produced at the scale of the individual
building, through direct combustion of wood pellets, wood chips, and other sources of
dry biomass.
Combined heat and power (CHP) operations often represent the most efficient use of
biomass (utilizing around 80 percent of potential energy). These facilities capture the
waste heat and/or steam from biopower production and pipe it to nearby buildings to
provide heat or to chillers for cooling.

Biofuels

A number of transportation fuels can be produced from biomass, helping to alleviate

demand for petroleum products and improve the greenhouse gas emissions profile of
the transportation sector. Ethanol from corn and sugarcane, and biodiesel from soy,
rapeseed, and oil palm dominate the current market for biofuels, but a number of
companies are moving forward aggressively to develop and market a number of
advanced second-generation biofuels made from non-food feedstocks, such as
municipal waste, algae, perennial grasses, and wood chips. These fuels include
cellulosic ethanol, bio-butanol, methanol and a number of synthetic gasoline/diesel
equivalents. Until we are able to produce a significant amount of electric vehicles that
run on renewably-produced electricity, biofuels remain the only widely available source
of clean, renewable transportation energy.

Biobased Products

Just as biomass can substitute for fossil fuels in the production of energy, it can also
provide a renewable substitute for the many industrial products and materials made
from petroleum or natural gas biobased foams, plastics, fertilizers, lubricants, and
industrial chemicals are a few of the possibilities.

Biomass Feedstocks

Every region has its own locally generated biomass feedstocks from agriculture, forest,
and urban sources.
A wide variety of biomass feedstocks are available and biomass can be produced
anywhere that plants or animals can live. Furthermore, most feedstocks can be made
into liquid fuels, heat, electric power, and/or biobased products. This makes biomass a
flexible and widespread resource that can be adapted locally to meet local needs and
objectives.
Some of the most common (and/or most promising) biomass feedstocks are:

Grains and starch crops sugar cane, corn, wheat, sugar beets, industrial sweet
potatoes, etc.
Agricultural residues Corn stover, wheat straw, rice straw, orchard prunings, etc.
Food waste waste produce, food processing waste, etc.
Forestry materials Logging residues, forest thinnings, etc.
Animal byproducts Tallow, fish oil, manure, etc.
Energy crops Switchgrass, miscanthus, hybrid poplar, willow, algae, etc.
Urban and suburban wastes municipal solid wastes (MSW), lawn wastes,
wastewater treatment sludge, urban wood wastes, disaster debris, trap grease, yellow
grease, waste cooking oil, etc.

Biomass and Land Use

Like wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources, biomass can make a positive
impact on our atmosphere by lessening our dependence on climate change-inducing
fossil fuels. Biomass energy differs from other renewables, however, in the extent to
which its use is directly tied to the farms, forests, and other ecosystems from which
biomass feedstocks are obtained. Because of this close association, the use of biomass
has the potential to result in a wide range of environmental and social impacts, both
positive and negative, above and beyond its use as a substitute for fossil fuels. Impacts
on soils, water resources, biodiversity, ecosystem function, and local communities will
differ depending on what choices are made regarding what types of biomass are used,
as well as where and how they are produced. This is why biomass needs to be
produced and harvested as sustainably as possible. In this sense, sustainability refers
to choosing management practices that minimize adverse impacts and complement
local land-management objectives, such as farm preservation, forest stewardship, food
production, and wildlife management.
One land use issue that often arises is the perceived conflict between food production
and bioenergy (the so-called food-vs.-fuel debate). Many traditional food crops, such
as corn, sugar and vegetable oils, are also some of the most commonly used energy
feedstocks. Furthermore, agricultural land may be shifted from producing food to the
production of dedicated energy crops. The use of agricultural crops and lands has
undoubtedly contributed in part to increased prices for many of these commodities.
Many other factors, however, have contributed much more substantially to this increase,
including inflation of the dollar and especially the rapid rise in price of fossil fuels. Oil
and natural gas, in the form of fuel and synthetic fertilizers, are two of the biggest
economic inputs in food production and distribution. There are many opportunities to
further reduce the conflict between food and fuel production, including an increased use
of agricultural wastes, logging residues, food scraps, municipal solid waste, and
marginal lands.
Another issue heavily associated with biomass production is greenhouse gas emissions
from land management and land use change. These refer to emissions of greenhouse
gases (especially CO2, CH4, and N2O) resulting from agricultural inputs, management
practices, and land use changes associated with production of biomass. These
emissions can be divided into direct and indirect sources. Direct emissions refer to
those resulting from land clearing, agricultural inputs (such as fertilizers), or
management practices undertaken in the process of growing or harvesting a biomass
crop. Indirect emissions are associated with market-driven land use change. These are
the emissions that occur when forests, grasslands, or other ecosystems are cleared to
produce crops or other commodities to compensate for land that has been diverted to
energy production. The effects are difficult to quantify or attribute, making indirect
emissions from land use change (ILUC) a very controversial subject.
Finally, it is important to remember that biomass markets will add value to biomass
products, residues, and productive lands. This value will help improve the economic
viability of working lands and act as a positive incentive to help preserve farms and
forests from the accelerating threat of urban and suburban sprawl the greatest land
use impact.
http://www.eesi.org/topics/bioenergy-biofuels-biomass/description