Anaerobic digesters

[primmiemoo]

They (the Ad units, and absolutely not animals) should be fed waste (that's not a reference to low yielding ground) ...

And that's all.

 

[Norfolk Olly]

Brewery waste seems to be very popular, being pumped into a few around here

 

[TripleSix]

The one along the road from work is about to start taking the cheese making waste from the Wensleydale creamery

 

[Al R]

The one along the road from work is about to start taking the cheese making waste from the Wensleydale creamery

Oosh, whey is like liquid gold, they’ll be paying for that! Must be pas110 or food waste registered too then to have the storage tanks in place?

 

[Pieces_of_Eight]

I remember going to 1 and i asked how it was going and they said it was going well for 3 years until a lorry load of bananas had tipped on the motorway and they said they’d take it, AD plant onstop for months while they emptied it all out and had to re import good bacteria as they killed all their old bacteria with 29t of bananas in 1 day instead of doing 2t for 15 days.. it cost them a fortune in time and loss of income!

I know of one AD plant that took an artic load of Avocados, which was fine, but they didn't think about the big stones...

 

[Al R]

I know of one AD plant that took an artic load of Avocados, which was fine, but they didn't think about the big stones...

Did they chuck them all in in 1 day though? Any change in diet needs to be little and often for the bacteria to adapt, similar to an animal never having barley in its life then being locked in a grain store... disaster strikes.

 

[Gee]

yes but how much energy has been consumed to extract it , is my point , it dosn't stack up. As said above its a government con to meet so called green energy , but green its most definitely not .

But sustainable it most definitely is.
Its also a far more pleasant neighbour than a nuclear reactor!

 

[Macsky]

I’m sure I heard that the early German AD plants where mothballed after the 20 year government subsidies expired, such was their profitability!

ScotGov are making noise about utilising AD for reducing food waste:
https://www.zerowastescotland.org.u...ish-government-reveal-plans-tackle-food-waste

Can’t be a bad thing, it’ll be interesting to see what, if any, incentives come about for smaller scale units, something farmers could maybe capitalise on.

Throwing food and garden waste in the landfill really is an absolute waste. A ready supply of locally produced digestate would be a great thing in the more remote parts of the country.

 

[Blaithin]

I don’t get why they aren’t pushing them more for manure. Why bitch our cows produce too much methane but then grow corn for digesters instead of using that cow sh!t?

Sure corn may make more energy but it’s not a byproduct....

https://www.innisfailprovince.ca/article/local-student-paving-a-green-future-20190618

 

[Mark C]

Bedfordia Farms built one of the first food waste digesters which also used muck from their pig units. They were very successful and as a result have built several food waste only digesters. I an only see this as having s low carbon footprint rather than growing tonnes of energy crops.

 

[ollie989898]

You can compost food waste no problem, AD is not the only way to handle this material.

AD sustainable? Where exactly does the free diesel pour out of a tap around the back to power the machinery that feeds it? How is burning methane to make electricity sustainable?

I've no problem with people doing it but don't try and tell me it's green. I think folk seem to associate environmental credentials with something that is profitable.

 

[Macsky]

I don’t get why they aren’t pushing them more for manure. Why bitch our cows produce too much methane but then grow corn for digesters instead of using that cow sh!t?

Sure corn may make more energy but it’s not a byproduct....

https://www.innisfailprovince.ca/article/local-student-paving-a-green-future-20190618

Are you near Innisfail?

 

[Bogweevil]

Love 'em in Germany (2015):

 

[Bemo]

I wonder how much electricity would be produced by using all the diesel burned in growing/feeding/spreading process to just run big diesel generators instead.

 

[Bogweevil]

I don’t understand the process either, but when cattle are fed soya shipped around the world and grass and maize grown in the uk is being ‘digested’ to make subsidised energy you do have to wonder...

International Energy Agency (IEA) https://www.ieabioenergy.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Update_Energy_crop_2011.pdf

 

[Boomerang]

I wonder how much electricity would be produced by using all the diesel burned in growing/feeding/spreading process to just run big diesel generators instead.

Good point . I'm thinking more than the ad .

 

[Bogweevil]

Good point . I'm thinking more than the ad .

Nearly five times as much out as in if you use spuds, but spuds snot up the digesters with sand. Only twice as much if you use rye. Global not UK data.

 

[thesilentone]

Answers to most questions here, are available on-line.

However, one conundrum, the conversion ratio of feeding grain to an AD Plant to produce energy gives the circular economy more value and return than feeding it to cows...........

Tin hat on ...............

 

[hollister]

I don’t get why they aren’t pushing them more for manure. Why bitch our cows produce too much methane but then grow corn for digesters instead of using that cow sh!t?

Sure corn may make more energy but it’s not a byproduct....

https://www.innisfailprovince.ca/article/local-student-paving-a-green-future-20190618

This. 3 uses from production from each acre grown. Meat/milk, energy/gas, digestate

 

[Boomerang]

Nearly five times as much out as in if you use spuds, but spuds snot up the digesters with sand. Only twice as much if you use rye. Global not UK data.

Doubt the global data figures take into account the huge distances some of these guys are hauling the stuff. Probably a statisticians best guesstimate.