RT info:eu-repo/semantics/article
T1 A comparative analysis of biogas upgrading technologies: Photosynthetic vs physical/chemical processes
A1 Toledo Cervantes, Alma
A1 Estrada, José María
A1 Lebrero Fernández, Raquel
A1 Muñoz Torre, Raúl
K1 Biogás
AB Two biogas upgrading technologies, viz. an innovative algal-bacterial photobioreactor and a conventional activated carbon filter coupled with a water scrubber, were comparatively evaluated in terms of environmental, economic and social performance by using the IChemE Sustainability Metrics. The upgrading of 300 Nm3/h of biogas generated from the anaerobic digestion of mixed sludge in a wastewater treatment plant was used as a model scenario for the comparative analysis. Despite the algal-bacterial photobioreactor entailed 1860 times higher land requirements, the two-stage physical/chemical technology exhibited × 3.8 higher energy consumptions and larger environmental impacts in terms of material and water consumption and greenhouse gas emissions (the latter by a factor of ~ 45). The investment cost for the algal-bacterial photobioreactor was 1.6 times higher than that of its physical/chemical counterpart due to the biomass drying unit required to produce an algae-based fertilizer. However, the operating cost of the physical/chemical technology was ~ 7 times higher due to the frequent replacement of the activated carbon. A further analysis of the net present value (NPV 20) revealed that photosynthetic upgrading would yield revenues from year 5 of operation mainly due to the sale of the algal bio-fertilizer produced, even without tax incentives for bio-methane.
PB Elsevier
SN 2211-9264
YR 2017
FD 2017
LK http://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/23525
UL http://uvadoc.uva.es/handle/10324/23525
LA eng
NO Algal Research, 2017,  Volume 25,, Pages 237–243
NO Producción Científica
DS UVaDOC
RD 24-nov-2024