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Facilities

Biogas Facilities

Renewable natural gas and anaerobic digestion evaluation and process improvement.

InnoTech Alberta runs an applied research and consultation program to assist clients in determining how their biogas systems will perform, and how the new process integrates with their existing processes and infrastructure.

Our facility contains automated anaerobic digestion pilot systems for material assessment and process development for various waste streams such as high solid organic wastes streams, pumpable slurries, and low solid waste waters.

Our in-depth experience with a variety of substrates including agricultural wastes, municipal organics, pulp and paper, brewery and distillery, and food production ensure that we can meet the challenges most clients will face.

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Automated Biogas Pilot Plants

Automated Biogas Pilot Plants

Pilot Plant for Process Simulation

Pilot Plant for Process Simulation

Integration Studies

Integration Studies

Specialised Pilot Plant Construction & Training

Specialised Pilot Plant Construction & Training

Automated Biogas Pilot Plants

Our biogas facility has 3 pilot scale systems with the capability of emulating full-scale operations for process and technology simulation and validation that is able to adapt to many applications.

Feedstock Evaluation

Chemical Analysis & Physical Property Characterization

Our experts can conduct chemical and nutritional evaluation of a provided sample with the appropriate processing and controls.

  • COD, BOD, and TSS
  • Total and extractable: nitrogen, carbon, potassium, phosphorus, and sulphur
  • Total ammoniacal nitrogen, total and individual organic acids, and alkalinity
  • Electrical conductivity and pH
  • Anion and cation profiles
  • Particle size characterization
  • Metal and mineral characterization
  • Colour
  • Settleability
  • Total and volatile solids

Biochemical Methane Potential Batch Culture Evaluation

Our batch-culture anaerobic digestion process provides biogas yield and methane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen sulphide content.

  • Single substrate evaluations for methane potential
  • Evaluation of co-substrate mixtures for biogas yield and toxic effects
  • Large 2L culture vessels for material homogeneity

Pilot Plant for Process Simulation

Our pilot facilities and laboratories have the capability of emulating full-scale facilities to determine the methane production potential for substrates as well as process stability and performance limitations. By-products discharged from the pilot anaerobic digesters can be retained for further processing or chemical/physical characterization. All of our pilot facilities include:

  • Precise pH and temperature control
  • Continuous pH and temperature monitoring of each digester
  • Constant gas monitoring systems with flow meters for gas production and gas chromatography for gas quality (methane, nitrogen, hydrogen sulphide, carbon dioxide and oxygen monitored)
  • Chemical and physical property characterization measured on regular samples
  • Control and data acquisition/logging system

CSTR Pilot Plant

  • Facility used for pumpable materials and mixtures.
  • Automated system with two 80L continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) digesters
  • Semi-continuous feeding controlled by a flexible schedule allowing various
  • retention times and organic loading rates
  • Schedule-based variable mixing system tailored to your process specifications
  • Standard air dosing desulphurization that mimics standard full-scale systems
  • Ability to handle a wide range of substrates (including high total solids content)
     

High Rate Digestion Pilot Plant

Facility used for waste waters with little or no particulate.

  • Automated system with two 5L down-flow, fixed film digesters
  • Continuous variable flow rate feeding allowing various retention times and organic loading rates

Dry Batch Digestion Pilot Plant

Facility used for non-flowing, dry materials.

  • Automated system with two 500L batch bunker style dry digesters and a common 160L percolate digestion tank
  • Percolate monitoring system with flow meters and sediment traps for ascertaining substrate suitability
  • Schedule-based, variable flow, percolation system tailored to your process specifications
  • Standard air dosing desulphurization that mimics standard full-scale systems
    Ability to handle a wide range of high total solids and contaminate containing substrates
  • Material characterization tests to help evaluate material structure and suitability for dry digestion
  • Compression system to simulate pressures associated with material height
     

Digestate Processing Pilot Plant

Facility used for solid liquid systems.

  • Continuous throughput, variable speed centrifuge for digestate dewatering
  • Aerobic treatment pilot system for further liquid processing
  • Ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis pilot equipment

Integration Studies

InnoTech Alberta can help you determine how converting waste to make energy fits into your existing systems and how it can be used back into your primary process. We have overseen the completion of comprehensive biogas facility engineering packages and routinely consult on:

  • Digestion system styles and configurations
  • Overall process mass and energy balances
  • Overall process integration
  • Process development and verification
  • Project economic analysis

Specialised Pilot Plant Construction & Training

  • Manuals on evaluation procedures for plant and animal waste material used in biogas plants and laboratories
  • Multi-day courses on biogas plant operation
  • Consulting on developing, implementing or operating biogas facilities
  • Training on procedures and equipment for monitoring biogas plants
  • Pilot plant design, construction and monitoring for on-site verification work

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