Revolutionizing Anaerobic Digestion: Harnessing Advanced Sensor Technology to Predict Feedstock Toxicity and Optimize Operations

Anaero Technology, a UK-based research company, is dedicated to advancing anaerobic digestion (AD) on a global scale. AD is a sustainable treatment route that involves breaking down degradable materials such as food waste, agricultural by-products, energy crops, wastewater sludge, and food processing waste to recover energy and fertilizers.

The increasing demands for treatment and environmental sustainability require modern AD plants to adhere to high operational and safety standards, produce high energy output, generate good quality digestate, and ultimately be profitable. To effectively manage these demands, tools are needed to assess the biogas potential of feedstock in a timely manner to determine pricing, yield, and potential impact from inhibitory feeds.

However, while AD operators have various process control tools at their disposal such as monitoring pH Lab volatile fatty acids (VFA), CH4/CO2 content, VFA to alkalinity ratio (FOSTAC), these tools only provide confirmation once the feedstock has entered the AD plant. Anaero Technology emphasizes that these tools do not provide confirmation of the treatability or toxic behavior of feedstock entering AD plants. This highlights the need for more comprehensive assessment methods.

Anaero Technology offers solutions that enable operators to assess feedstock biogas potential before entering the plant. These solutions include advanced sensor technology and machine learning algorithms that provide real-time data on biogas production and can predict potential issues with inhibitory feeds before they enter the plant. By using these tools operators can reduce downtime and optimize their operations for maximum profitability while ensuring safety standards are met.