Biogas analyzers help meet big goals

Not so long ago, terms such as climate change, carbon neutral or energy transition were vague concepts. Since then, minds have slowly begun to mature, especially in industry, among CEOs and entrepreneurs. Citizens are largely convinced that we should all try to avoid further global warming. Politicians have understood the signal and have set ambitious goals. For example, Europe wants to reduce CO₂-emissions by 55% and be climate neutral by 2050. Biogas and biomethane play a key role in this.

Waste to Energy, WtE

Today we use waste as a source of energy. The production of biogas, through fermentation of organic waste, is the best example. Biogas is converted into heat and electricity in a CHP plant. The production of biogas can already be done on a small scale, such as bakeries or restaurants that (partially) meet their energy needs this way. On a larger scale, residential areas, sports centers or prisons are heated.

The next step is to purify biogas into biomethane. Biomethane is chemically identical to natural gas. Thus, it can be injected directly into the existing natural gas grid, providing energy to industrial production processes.

Multi Gas Probes can be used anywhere

In the biogas and biomethanation process, an analyzer is very useful in several places. For example, immediately after fermentation, you can measure the ratio of CH₄/CO₂ determine, which gives you an insight into the bacterial ratio in the fermentation process and, if necessary, you can intervene. Further into the process, moisture measurement is especially important to monitor the efficiency of the heat exchanger and carbon filter. Protecting the CHP or gas engine against corrosion is not a luxury.

The membranes that provide separation between CH4 and CO when upgrading from biogas to biomethane.₂ are under high pressure, increasing the risk of condensation. Moisture measurement helps you increase membrane life and efficiency. Finally, there is monitoring methane slip. Based on that inline measurement, you can direct the methane-rich gas back to the plant entrance for re-separation.

CO₂ catch

The best way not to emit greenhouse gases is not to produce them. That's obvious. If that's not possible - combustion processes will continue to exist for some time now - you have to avoid emitting CO₂ and CH₄ (methane) are released into the atmosphere. This capture of primarily CO₂ is known by the term Carbon Capture. There are numerous techniques and processes that can capture CO₂ from a gas stream. Some methods even yield very pure CO₂ on that is used in e.g. the food industry. In universities, researchers are working hard on better and especially cheaper techniques.

The captured CO₂ must be stored (CCS, Carbon Capture and Storage) in order to be used later as feedstock (CCU, Carbon Capture and Utilization) for the production of chemicals produced in less sustainable ways today.

Conclusion

To measure is to know! Read the full blog post and find out why metering devices are necessary in biogas and biomethane production, but also in CCU and CCS. Achieve better efficiency and lower costs by optimizing your process.