Trials for technology that could cut costs from landfill gas power
Tuesday 05 May 2009
 |
| Aquafuel targets the landfill gas contaminant hydrogen sulphide, which breaks down lubricating oil in landfill gas generator engines |
Technology developers Aquafuel Research have come up with a new way to improve the economics of generating electricity from landfill gas, biogas and sewage gas.
The company based in Sittingbourne, Kent, has field tested a cheaper way to protect electricity-generating combustion engines from corrosive contaminants in the methane-rich gas arising from landfilled waste.
It says it can double the life of lubricating oil in engines running on landfill gas, resulting in less downtime and "substantial reductions in operational costs".
Existing scrubbing technology can remove hydrogen sulphide - the contaminant that attacks engine lubricating oil - from landfill gas, but Aquafuel's system cleans only the 5% of gas that enters the crankcase part of the engine.
This means shaving off potentially 30% of the running costs for operators compared to conventional scrubbing technology, the company claims.
Aquafuel is now running second-phase trials on the technology, but said it will be commercially available in the third quarter of 2009.
Paul Day, chief executive and founder of Aquafuel Research, said: "Landfill gas is an important energy source worldwide. Unlike natural gas, its electricity is renewable, and it prevents emissions of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.
"Our cost-effective technology makes electricity from landfill gas, bio gas and sewage gas more competitive by dramatically lowering operational costs," Mr Day added.
Monitoring
Aquafuel said its technology can sense and remotely monitor the hydrogen sulphide levels in incoming gas, automatically adapting its cleaning system to match. This also acts to keep costs down by reducing wastage, it explained.
Our cost-effective technology makes electricity from landfill gas, bio gas and sewage gas more competitive.
Aquafuel Research
The system can be linked to the web for landfill gas operators to monitor it remotely.
Trials have been undertaken at a European site that has "very high levels" of the contaminant, with 1,000 hours of operation in which lubricant oil consumption was cut by 57%.
Aquafuel said the engine involved had been completely stripped and independently examined, "verifying no adverse effects from the technology".
The engine's downtime was reduced by about 50%, the company added, because of the longer gaps between oil changes.
The second-phase trials will see the automatic dosing system undergoing further tests and validation by the company's independent consultant.
Print
