Biogas Digestate - BROWN GOLD he properties and constituents of biogas | plants digestate is determined essentially by the materials used as the substrates for 5 digestion as well as by the digestion the biog process itsel. Treatment of animal manure and slurries within the biogas digester results in bio degradation of organic matter to inorganic com pounds and biogas. In practice, the anaerobic degradation rate of organic matter irom animal manure and slurries is about 40% - 50% for cattle surty and af 85% - 70% for other animal manures, The degradation rate depends at large on feed. stock type, HRT and process temperature, Due to degradation of organic matter, digostato is easior to pump and easier to apply as organic feriliser, with reduced need of stiring, compared to un treated slury. Digestate Characteristics: ‘As mentioned above the physio-chemical char: acteristics of digestate vary, strongly depending Con the nature and composition of the feedstock used (it may also vary when the same feedstock is used and the characteristics are checked in different plants) as well as on the operational ps rameters ofthe biogas process. Researches don: til date an digestates from biogas plan that, when compared with raw animal manures and sluries, digestat ‘generally has lower total solids (75) and total organie carbon (C) content, lower carbon to nitrogen ratio (C:N}, and lower viscosity, Onthe ether hand, the pH value and the share of ammonium (NH, +] are higher in diges tate compared to raw animal manures and slut Fies. Some characteristics relevant forthe fertiliser quality of digestate can also be studied and dis: cussed. In all most all the developing countries, the traditional substrates are agricultural lve stock by-products (manure and slurries), Biogas Magazine | Edition 12waste (food waste, municipal organic waste, etc., energy crops (ma lage), by-products from food ind agro-industries (animal by products from at atoirs, brewers! spent grains and solubles, etc) More recently, residues from the bioethanol and he biodiesel industries are used, Diflarent s influence the composition ofthe Importance of Digestate Quality and the Man: agement of Quality Digestate quality assurance means not only tha salers, food retallers, decision makers and the general public. Improved confidence in the qual state is expected to lead to iy and safety of dig manute. This should contribute snd support the further deploy -echnologies which provide impo CBG, to displace use of fossil fy 2. Displacement of mineral ferlisers, heir negative impact on the enw recycling of organi nures, breaking the chain of pa ° ed feriliser and higher nuvient ef to the de y certified pre e. Biog: hases © biogas 1a/Bio lowering6, Potential for reduced air pollution from emissions of methane and am. monia through application of "good practices" 7.Centribution to food safety ‘The production and recycling of di: estate as fertilser/organic manure requires quality management and quality control throughout the whole closed cycle of biogas system, from ‘the production ofthe biogas feedstock Lntil the final utlisation of digestate as frganic manure. Quality management implies the use of high-quality feed: stock, pre-processing of specific feed: stock types close control ofthe biogas process and of process parameters affecting digestate quality, digestate processing, declaration and optimal storage and application as organic manure. The composition and quality of the digestate is determined by the composition and quality of the feed- stock combined with the effectiveness of the biogas process. These are the ‘wo most critical factors that are im: portant for the quality of digestate as ‘organic fertiliser. Therefore, the main ‘measure in digestate quality manage- ‘ment sto ensure high feedstock qual: ity, The materials used as feedstock should not only be easily digestible, but they must not be polluted by un: wanted materials and compounds fof chemical (arganie and inorganic), physical or biological nature. Enhancement of the Digest The paragraph describes the com: bination of treatment technologies techniques that have the potential to generate a number of complementary digestate "products Slurry coming out of the digester is frst dewatered to separate the liquid and solid fractions. The dewatered f bre can then be applied directly to land or utilised for energy recovery. ‘The first stage of the liquid treatment process can be aerobic reduction of ‘chemical oxygen demand (COD) with in a membrane bioreactor (MBR). Tho process is configured such that no am. monia is oxidised Sludge generated by this MBR is re- cycled back to the digester. Effluent ‘rom the MBR is dosed with magne- sium hydroxide to increase the pH land magnesium ion concentration, en. abling struvite precipitation. Struvite is precipitated and extracted for use as an organic fertiliser. As equimolar amounts of ammonia and phosphate are used in struvite production, and digestate is relatively rich in ammonia, there remain significant quantities of ammonium within the digestate liquid. In order to recover this ammonium, the liquid is fed into an ammonia stip: per: as the pH and temperature of the digestate have already been increased the conditions are more suitable for the stripping process. In addition, the tisk of fouling within the ammonia stripping column is greatly educed as the COD has already been removed bythe MBR.he stripping process recovers the ammonia as ammonium sulphate. Sulphuric acid and heat are used within the process. (heat energy is required which can be used from the CHP/Generator or biogas boiler which is used to generate ‘maintaining the digester temperature at for Tho treated liquid from the process can be re used as process water, used for irgation or discharged to sewer once the pollution control board norms are met. Alternatively, an addition al treatment stage can be added in the form of reverse osmosis (RO) water or enable die tercourse, Combining the individual process units to produce higher quality discharge to a wa into the treatment syst grated and holstc treatment process capable of producing both solid and liquid organic fertiliser mabove provides aninte products from biogas digestate. However, this eral complex sub that require careful integration and operation and system incorporate ems of course the capital as well as the operational cost ofthe entire project willbe increas the system followed by most of the Biogas plants Present Road Blocks for the Digestate Enhance- ment Most of the large-scale biogas plants in India have solid liquid separators and they sel the so! id all as liquid ferilizers (ator recirculation of the liquid to a certain extent) The use of diges tate enhancement technologies faces a number Of blockages in the India, preventing their wide spread adoption. The most significant blockage is the present high cos of installation, as well asthe operational costs associated with the technolo ies. Tis blockage is directly linked to the cost of alternative disposal arrangements such as landfil fo energy recovery facilities. However, the rela tively low value of biogas d estate products and the associated cost of developing outlets or mar kets for these products isalso another blockage. It isimperative thatth 2 installation ofa single diges- tate enhancement system does not frustrate, oF iwww biagas-india.com ‘cess additions. However, the cost of installing @ suite of totally integrated enhancement systems, presents a significant financial challenge that the sector is unlikely to be able to fund at this stage. ‘Akey step to overcoming these types of block ages is to raise awareness of the waste sector to ‘enhancement technologies and techniques, to reduce costs and to emphasise the financial ben- ‘fits of implementing enhancement systems to secure potential income from the biogas diges tate. Ths research exercise has identified a range ‘of potential techniques and methods for treat- ing and enhancing digestates in India (thanks to Indian Biogas Association for working on this), these options will nt be adopted until the busi- ness models exist that ensure that the financial investments worthwhile, There is a need to raise awareness of potential improvements to biogas digestate and ensure that the Indian Biogas In- dustry is aware that there may be advantages in developing flexible sites where changes can be ‘adopted as new technologies become available. Final Comments: Without any doubt biogas digestate has huge potential in India, stil tlisation of digestate as ‘organic manure is limited in India due to lack of information about its qualities and fear of poten: tial risks related to its use and finally due to cost when compared with chemical fertilizers. The ‘quality management of digestate not only guar- ntees that digestate is safe for use, but also con- tributes to the perception of digestate as a safe ‘and healthy product. The aim of any entrepreneur ‘establishing the biogas plant should be to en- hance digestate and sell as organic manure. The {quality management of digestate is part of the ‘overall demand for quality products in agricultur- al field, The requirement for quality necessarily implies adoption of a unified approach herewith and of a system of quality parameters to measure ‘and guarantee quality. | request Indian Biogas As- sociation to look into the proper framework and ‘quality standards for digestate and contribute to ‘a sound and stable market for biogas digestate in India. Regulations which have been introduced by an increasing number of countries, include standards of biogas digestate quality, digestate cettification schemes, guidelines for recommend- led practices for biogas digestate utilisation and postive lists of materials suitable for use as bio- ‘ges feedstock. This type of selection and strict Biogas Magazine | Edition 1238 quality control of the materials used as feedstock {for biogas is the frst and most important step of digestate quality management ensuring maxi ‘mum ecological and economic benefits from use cof biogas digestate as organic manure, Digestate ‘processing involves the application of a range of possible technologies to biogas digestate, com: parable to the existing technologies for manure processing, sewage sludge treatment, and, in some cases, for wastewater treatment. The last decades have seen a trend of increased empha sis on improved sustainability in agriculture and preservation of natural resources like minerals phosphorus and potassium, consequently chang ing the focus of digestate processing from nut: tent removal and disposal towards integrated nu- vient recovery and recycling. Tis trend needs to bbe continued. Digestate processing, (which can bbe described in a separate article) can be partial, ‘usually targeting volume reduction and separ tion of digestate into a liquid and a solid fraction, crit can be complete, refining digestate to for ex ample pure water, solid organic manure fraction and liquid concentrates. The firststep in digestate ‘processing is to separate the solid from the lig Lid. The solid fraction, often rich in phosphorus, ‘can subsequently be directly applied as organ: je manure or biofertiizer in agriculture or it can bbe composted or died for intermediate storage and feasible long-range transpor: In conclusion, {a wide range of technologies and techniques are available to create many innovative digestate products, However, operational experience of the technologies in the India is currently limited and, in many cases, direct land application is ikely to remain the most economic option. Operational experiences should be sought from the countries where systems have been installed and biogas digestate products created to satisly outlet de. mand. Srinivas Kasulla Independent Energy Consultant