EnviTec - Biomethane Technology
From Biomethane
Biomethane upgrading opens up a promising future market for the biogas industry. With feed-in into the public natural gas grid, the green all-rounder is perfect for the decentralised supply of energy, offering a long-term replacement for fossil natural gas and driving the energy transition forward. What’s more, the biomethane manufactured in the gas upgrading plant has the exact same properties as natural gas, being just as flexible in its usage and easier to store than other energy sources. Plus, it’s renewable.
Products Details
Anaerobic digestion of organic materials creates a gas composed of methane and carbon dioxide. To upgrade the biogas to natural gas-quality biomethane, the crude gas is first purified and compressed. The membrane technology we use then exploits the different sizes and permeation speeds of the two kinds of gas molecules involved: since carbon dioxide molecules are smaller than methane molecules, they can migrate through the membrane much more quickly. As a result, the methane remains on the high-pressure side, while the CO2 molecules in the biogas pass through. As a result, the gas upgrading needs neither chemicals nor water nor any other resources.
The starting point for producing biomethane doesn’t have to be biogas, however. After a preliminary purification stage, gas from landfill and wastewater treatment plants can also be used to produce biomethane.
The biomethane so produced is the all-rounder among renewable energy sources, and can replace fossil fuel-based natural gas anywhere it is used. On the following pages, you can find out about the many uses for this valuable and renewable natural gas, and how it can play a part in an environmentally-friendly energy supply system.
Looking for a dependable partner in the biomethane industry? From the initial raw gas purification stage to efficient gas upgrading (including after-sales service) and the subsequent marketing of the gas produced, we can offer you tailor-made solutions from start to finish along the value chain. Find out more here about our high-efficiency EnviThan technology and our internal case studies.
Advantages
The advantages of biomethane at a glance:
FLEXIBILITY OF USE
Whether in the home, as a carbon-neutral fuel (CNG) for the transport sector or converted on-demand into electricity and heat, biomethane is a true all-rounder that can also be used in a decentralised system.
INDEPENDENT
Biomethane frees us from our dependence both on fossil natural gas and natural gas importers, thereby helping to support predictable long-term pricing trends in domestic energy market.
EXCELLENT PUBLIC ACCEPTANCE
Biomethane is renewable. This means heating consumers benefit from an improved CO2 footprint and potential savings resulting from the more efficient use of energy. As a highly efficient fuel, biomethane is also a star performer in the fuel market and can help to reduce emissions many times over.
STRONG MARKET POTENTIAL
Since crude gas sources and gas grid infrastructure are both available, neither time nor capital investment is necessary to establish them. On the contrary: the use of biomethane can unburden the electricity network and contribute to a temporary easing of cost-intensive upgrading work.
REGIONAL VALUE CHAINS
Biomethane promotes economic growth both in the feed-in region – which is in the immediate vicinity of the gas generating plant – and in the consuming region, which is independent of the feed-in location.
AN ADDITIONAL PILLAR FOR YOUR BUSINESS
Since our gas upgrading systems are exceptionally efficient and cost-effective, they can offer biogas plant operators another attractive source of revenue from biomethane production.
Fields-of-Application
The all-round talent
From a macroeconomic and climate perspective, biomethane is now the most cost-effective, climate-friendly fuel for achieving progress towards climate targets and sustainable transport in Germany and the EU. The all-round talent is virtually carbon-neutral and can be stored, which means it is continuously available, making it attractive not only for the transport sector!
In addition, the all-rounder can be used wherever fossil natural gas had been used: this includes CHP applications, demand-based power and heat generation and use as a material in the chemical industry.
Biomethane is therefore an important building block of the energy transition.
Possibilities of Utilizing Biomethane:
Progressive fuel
The advantages of bio-LNG (liquefied natural gas) as a carbon-neutral fuel are obvious: in the transport sector alone, the use of biomethane allows a CO2 reduction of up to 97 percent compared to fossil fuels.
For this reason, we are tapping into a new field of the future as a plant manufacturer by constructing Germany's first integrated bio-LNG plant, which will both make heavy goods transport greener and also allow biogas plant operators to profit. This is because the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions required of the German fuel mix by the Renewable Energy Directive RED II means that green fuel production is being implemented ambitiously for the first time. As a result, those placing fuels on the market must now cut their GHG emissions by 25 percent by 2030 compared with 1990 levels.
Following the expiry of state subsidies for biogas plants, our all-round concept for gas treatment offers a sustainable solution for the profitable continued operation of existing plants through the sale of your biomethane or potentially its contract liquefaction into bio-LNG.
Click here for further background information about biomethane as fuel: Download free white paper <<
Heat
To boost the share of heat from renewable sources to 14 percent by 2020, using biomethane in combined heat and power (cogeneration) plant is one of the most sustainable technologies currently available. Especially in cases where other kinds of renewable energy technologies or measures to reduce energy requirements are not deployable to the extent needed for structural reasons, the use of biomethane in heating-only applications is a useful alternative.
There are several usage models for biomethane-based heating. Typical consumers are the plant operator’s own property or business premises, housing complexes or public facilities fed via heating grids, as well as horticultural, commercial and manufacturing companies. All of this makes biomethane an inexpensive and efficient renewable energy option on the heating market.
Electricity
A reliable electricity supply requires a balance between electricity production and demand at all times. Accordingly, the load at any point in time must be met by a guaranteed level of (power generation) performance. As power generation from fossil fuels and nuclear power plants starts to be wound down, alternative solutions to provide this level of performance are required. Flexible power generation plants are a viable option here: these can respond quickly to changes in electricity generation from the fluctuating feed-in of renewable energy sources and handle the tasks required to secure the energy supply. The use of biomethane enables the provisioning of the relevant system services on the basis of renewable energy sources and so reduces the need for fossil-based power plants.
CO2 recovery
The CO2 generated during biomethane production can be reused and liquefied. Ultrapure carbon dioxide offers an interesting additional source of revenue for plant operators, and can be utilised in a wide variety of industries (such as the food industry, in horticulture, for firefighting or in refrigeration plants).
Made to measure with EnviTecWhichever sustainable solution you opt for, we offer you a complete package of know-how and expertise in raw gas generation and purification, planning, the tailor-made construction of gas upgrading plant and the many uses for the biomethane produced. We also offer our customers 24/7 after sales support, provided by a dedicated, local service team. This gives you a single point of contact for all your needs, available around the clock.
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