Knowledge institutions/Universities in Denmark with competencies within biogas.
Aarhus University (AU) is now the largest university in Denmark with about 42500 students and 11500 employees. The University set out its future research strategy in 2017 with the establishment of strategic research centres such as Watec – Centre for water research and CBIO – Centre for circular bioeconomy. The Department of Engineering has a strong portfolio in bio-resource technology working towards a bio-based society and a circular bio-economy. AU has continuously invested in excellent experimental facilities in the water research, biogas and biorefining sectors ranging from laboratory analytical equipment to pilot and commercial scale reactors. For instance, as relevant for this proposal, The University operates a complete full-scale biogas plant including gas transmission line and gas engine. It also operates a biogas test plant with 4 small biogas digesters. Size of digestion tank: Full-scale plant 1,200 m3, test plant 2 x 30 m³ and 2 x 10 m³. There is several ongoing experiments with production of high value digestate products.
Biogas is expected to play an important role in reaching the future energy policy targets of the European Union (EU). The sustainability of biogas substrates has however been recently critically discussed due to the increasing shares of agricultural land used for energy crop production. The aim of this study was to project and map the biomass and biogas energy potential from a selection of potentially sustainable agricultural residues, which have been documented to improve in biogas yields when co-digested in biogas production, for the EU28 in year 2030. The investigated types of residual biomasses were animal manure, straw by-products from cereal production, and excess grass from rotational and permanent grasslands and meadows. The biogas energy potential from the investigated biomass was projected to range from 1.2·103 to 2.3·103 PJ y-1 in year 2030 in the EU28, depending on the biomass availability. Alone the biogas energy potential projected in the scenario representing low substrate availability corresponds to a doubling of the European biogas production in 2015. The results shows that sustainable alternatives to the use of maize are present in all the member states of the EU28 to an extent that is sufficient to ensure a continuous progressive development of the European biogas sector.
SDU has a wide range of activities within research into biogas production, including in particular the use of different types of biomass, gas potential and process optimization. Most recently a data sampling has been made to ensure trustworthy results for in total nine biogas upgrading systems. Through a simple design process, the model simulates an individual designed biogas upgrading system. The excel model will than provide knowledge about system economics, energy cost and energy flows. The model includes four traditional upgrading systems- amine scrubber, PSA, membrane and water scrubber, and three hydrogen assisted biogas upgrading (HABU) methods– the chemical catalyst, the in situ biological biogas upgrading and the ex situ biological biogas upgrading. Furthermore, a combined solution has been included, using a biotrickling filter and an amine scrubber.
Biogas is a renewable energy source that is produced locally by local residual products. On a large scale, biogas is produced by livestock manure and other residues digesting in large closed tanks. In addition to the biogas, this process also produces an attractive fertilizer product for agriculture.
RUC are researching biogas because there is still a significant potential for expanding biogas production in Denmark and abroad. In addition, biogas is more than renewable energy, it also helps to create multi-page benefits for the climate, the environment and the local community:
DTU will be contributing to the development of a more profitable way of producing biogas, opening up for the production of biofuels for trucks and planes.
The Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Programme (EUDP) has just granted several million DKK to the eFuel project, which aims at developing a new and robust technology for transforming CO2 emitted from biogas plants into methane, which may become the green raw material of tomorrow in the manufacture of e.g. fossil-free aviation fuel and plastics.
The process involves retrieving CO2 from biogas plants producing up to 40 per cent CO2 —today released into the atmosphere. This makes production of biogas fossil-free, and the collection of CO2 also makes it more profitable.
The other raw material in the process is hydrogen, which is produced from water and electricity. With an increasing amount of wind power in the power grid, this technology is also one of the highly demanded ways of storing wind power.
The eFuel technology will increase the yield from biomass by more than 60 per cent, thus making it more profitable to process the biogas into advanced biofuels for heavy goods transport and aviation.
The Danish Technological Institute has more than 15 years of experience in chemical and biotechnological aspects in biogas production and biomass application. We help Danish and international companies with development, testing and verification of concepts, prototypes and commercial solutions. Utilization of nutrients from biogas plants.
In the transition to the bio-based society, the biogas plants play a central role. At the same time as organic waste and residual biomass from agriculture are utilized for green energy, the biogas plants allow recycling of nutrients and carbon back to the agricultural soil. The Danish Technological Institute has more than 10 years of experience in developing and documenting solutions for optimal utilization of the degassed biomass. We can carry out field trials to determine the fertilizer value of the degassed manure or sub-products from this.
DTI offer advice on:
The association for the biogas industry is working to ensure the transition to a fossil-independent society through the conversion of livestock manure, residual products from industry and households, and other organic residues and biomass for climate-friendly renewable energy and fertilizer to ensure the future energy and food supply.
c/o Food & Bio Cluster Denmark
Niels Pedersens Allé 2
DK-8830 Tjele
Michael Støckler
M: +45 4010 7128
E: mcs@foodbiocluster.dk
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