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2 Biogasholder
In principle, biogasholders cannot be too large. The larger the gasholder volume, the better the variation in the biogas production can be balanced, and the less biogas has to be burnt in the flare, i.e. the smaller is the energy loss. But biogasholders are very expensive and have their limits. Therefore, in agricultural biogas plants, the biogasholders are in general small. Often recommended are biogasholders which can take the daily biogas rate of the plant in order to prevent trouble in unexpected situations. In sewage treatment plants, the size of the sewage gasholder varies normally between 0.75 and 1.5 times the daily produced biogas rate. The smaller value is applied to larger plants. But the actual size depends on the utilization of the sewage gas. If the biogas is used only for the heating of the bioreactor and other tanks of the plant, a biogasholder is not a real essential. When the gas is used in a CHP and the produced current is fed into the power network, the biogasholder should be designed to take half of the average daily gas production rate. When the power consumption of the biogas plant itself is mainly covered by the produced current, the biogasholder should take up three quarters of the daily accumulated biogas. Only when the biogas power station is used to cover peak loads must the biogasholder be able to store the daily biogas output. Biogasholders (pressure <0.1 bar) in general have to be installed,2' maintained, and operated so that the safety of the operators and other personnel is assured (see Part IV). 2.1 Biogasholder types The following classes of biogasholders can be distinguished (Table 2.1). 2.1.1 Low - pressure biogasholder Most (i.e. 80%) of the installed biogasholders are of the low-pressure type. Many consist of a biogas bag of plastic foil. Others are constructed of steel.
2) Cp. LAW 16
Biogas from Waste and Renewable Resources. An Introduction. Dieter Deublein and Angelika Steinhauser Copyright 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim ISBN: 978-3-527-31841-4

328 2 Biogasholder Table 2.1 Categories of gasholders. Pressure Low pressure Medium pressure High pressure 10-50mbar 0.05-5 mbar 5-20 bar 200-300 bar Usual sizes Design [m3] 5-2 Water cup gasometer 10-2000 Bioreactor cover or biogas bag of foil 1 - 100 0.1-0.5 Steel pressure tank Steel flasks

The plastic foils used are manufactured from plastics resistant to UV, weather, fungus, microbes, and biogas, e.g., tearproof, high-strength, on both sides PVC-coated polyester tissues. They have high break stability and are extremely durable. Sometimes the bags are just laid on a baseplate beside the bioreactor. Simple canopies prevent damage to the plastic foils and assure long-lasting weather protection. Preferably, the bags are protected on all sides in a special steel tank, a wooden housing, or equivalent. Often plastic covers on top of the bioreactors are used as gasholders. Plastic bags have the disadvantage that they can easily be perforated and have often to be repaired. Some biogasholders consist of special constructions which give the gasholders their permanent form. Double-membrane biogasholders Double-membrane biogasholdes for low-pressure storage consist of three highstrength, fabric-strengthened membranes. They are fastened to a reinforced concrete foundation with a hot-dip-galvanized steel ring. The bottom membrane seals the gasholder to the foundation. The interior membrane takes up the biogas, being more or less strained depending on the amount of biogas. The exterior membrane protects the interior membrane and is held under constant tension by air, which is blown into the space between interior and exterior membranes by an explosion-proof ventilator. Thus, a strong, rigid outer skin is formed, which resists the weather and stabilizes the construction. An over-pressure safety valve protects the biogasholder against positive pressure. If the double membrane biogasholder is installed as a cover on top of a bioreac-tor, a timber construction or a wire net is necessary above the bioreactor, so that the interior membrane cannot fall into the reactor and cannot be damaged by the agitators or other equipment. Biogas bags The plastic biogas bag is sometimes installed in a frame with guide bars, so that the gas bag can be loaded by weights in order to enable smooth filling and
3) Cp. WEB 22 330 2 Biogasholder

emptying. Such gas bag installations, called gas cushions, can be provided with up to 5 cushions, one above the other, of 25 m3 volume each. Biogas bags benefit if the interior gas rate and thus the gas pressure does not vary too much. In the hanging biogasholder, with a volume of 30-2000m3, the bag is hung in a special device to the top of a steel tank and is stretched by a carrying ring, so that it can be blown up and collapsed smoothly under all operational conditions.

Other low-pressure biogasholders A simple biogasholder consists of two open cylindrical steel tanks, one fitting into the other. The tanks are connected by a gastight membrane, so that the volume of the tank can vary. The upper half can sink into the lower half when the tank is emptied. The floating-dome biogasholder is formed by inverting an open plastic or steel drum above another tank filled with water, so that the edge dips into the water. When the biogasholder is empty, the edge dips deep into the water, otherwise only a little. If the biogasholder is integrated in the bioreactor, the substrate functions as sealing liquid. 2.1.2 Medium- and high-pressure biogasholders Biogasholder of medium pressure are smaller in size but require increased operating expenditure for the compression and expansion of the biogas. Pressurized biogasholders are made of steel and are subject to special safety requirements, because of the explosion risk. Small pressurized tanks are cylindrical and suitable also for high pressures. Pressurized ball gas tanks of steel are to be found in sewage sludge fermentation plants.

2.2 Gas flares A biogas flare (Figure 2.2) prevents the escape ofunburnt biogas into the atmosphere and therefore is essential for environmental protection and is even prescribed by law in many countries. Of course, the biogas flare should be used as seldom as possible, since otherwise usable energy is lost. It is preferable, for example, to switch the biogas flow over to another consumer. The gas pipe connecting the flare to the biogas plant must contain the following devices: an isolation device operated manually, an emergency shutdown device which interrupts the biogas feed automatically, a flame trap as a safety device, and at the flare an automatically operating ignition mechanism, flame control equipment, and lightning protection.
2.2

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Gas

flares

Figure 2.2 Gas flare for high temperature (1050C) with hidden flame.

The flare must be installed at a height such that its opening is at least 4 m above ground and at least 5 m away from buildings, traffic ways, and storage for inflammable materials, and is outside defined zones for explosion protection. Either after or before the biogas is stored in a biogasholder it has to be prepared in many cases.