Spectro Biogas – Online Measurement of Process Parametres for Improved Process Understanding, Management and Performance of Danish Biogas plants.

Spectro Biogas has developed a unique micro-chip inlet system, which enables the coupling of a mass-spectrometer directly to the substrate inside an anaerobic digester. With this equipment, continuous measurements can be accomplished in order to give a real time picture of levels of diluted gasses in the fluid. The measurement of these gasses gives a plant operator a real time picture of the actual status of the biogas process, and thereby the methane production. The data enables him to optimize production and control the organic load in order to prevent process imbalances and breakdowns. This project will verify the reliability of the measurements, its robustness in continuous operation and develop algorithms that in graphic form enables plant management to take action, and thereby control and optimize the biogas process. As a part of the project, a full-scale demonstration will be carried out at a biogas facility as well as a range of technoeconomic calculations in order to demonstrate the economic potential for biogas plants who wish to implement the system, for different plant sizes and substrate composition.