From waste to biogas: How to achieve renewable energy goals in brewing industry
Event details
| Date | 12.04.2010 |
| Hour | 16:15 |
| Speaker | Zupancic, Gregor (National Institute of Chemistry, SL) |
| Location |
GR B3 30
|
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
Brewing industry is a large consumer of natural gas, a middle size brewery of annual 100,000 m3 of brew production can consume as much as 4-5 million m3 of natural gas per year. To achieve and surpass the EU renewable energy goals of 20% by 2020, we have examined the possibilities of biogas production from brewery waste. Biogas is an excellent renewable energy resource and can easily replace natural gas. There are three main available waste groups; firstly brewery wastewater. Biogas from wastewater using well established conventional anaerobic technology can substitute up to 10% of natural gas. The second source is fermentation residues, mostly waste brewery yeast. This can contribute an additional 6 %, using adaptations to the wastewater treatment technology. Third, the largest source of waste are spent brewery grains. The biogas potential of spent brewery grains can replace an additional 40 % of natural gas. Resolving the difficulties in anaerobic digestion of spent brewery grains (e.g. slow degradability, high N:C ratio, phenolic inhibition) would easily meet and surpass the required renewable energy goals. Our ongoing research has shown that such brewery waste treatment and energy production can be environmentally sustainable and can bring economic benefits as well.
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Practical information
- General public
- Free
Contact
- jean-paul. [email protected]