BioCrack: Upgrading the plant efficiency and stability

Case Study -Fava Marcello biogas plant, Italy

The Fava Marcello 1 MW biogas plant consists of two primary digesters; a secondary digester and a covered post-digester. Variable quantities of substrates including cattle manure, sorghum silage, semolina, green rye silage and triticale are feed to the plant and converted into biogas during a retention time of about 60 days.
The pumping chamber manages all slurry movement where a BioCut 10000 is also installed. The system has worked well, the CHP produce an average of 991 kWh for a total of more than 8,700 hours per year. Despite this, the operator and owner want see potential to improve the profitability.

The customer installs a BioCrack system with four modules, positioned after the BioCut in the pump chamber. Beneficial results were revealed shortly after a few months of operating the BioCrack. ”The system works about five non-consecutive hours for each primary digester in the recirculation,” explains Mr. Angelo Fava, Plant Manager. "I was able to evaluate, by making production estimates for each material introduced, a greater fluidity of the biosuspension and an increase in gas production.”

The results showed a 6–7% higher gas yield and 10% reduced amount of solid matter supplied.

“The plant works without problems and autonomously. Our conclusions are only positive: the BioCrack increases the gas yield, works automatically and requires no further action. Indeed, the lower quantities of incoming material have reduced our expenditure of energy and the cost of raw materials”, sums up Mr. Fava.