BioRenGaz: Starting up the pilot

On 1 March 2021 the pilot plant was seeded. This consists of feeding the bioreactor with digestate from another anaerobic digestion plant in order to bring the micro-organisms into the bioreactor.

The digestate is first stored in the pre-storage tank before being sent to the bioreactor. The digestate used is that from the Gest-Eco-Terre methanisation unit, where the pilot is installed.

In March 2021, the first delivery of inputs took place: whey from the Schneider cheese factory in Cléry-le-Petit in Meuse (France).

Whey is the residual liquid from the coagulation of milk. Whey is a liquid composed of approximately 94% water, lactose, proteins and very little fat.

The pilot is supplied with concentrated whey which has a higher energy density. It is stored in a tank (picture below). It is then transferred to the pre-storage tank before being injected into the bioreactor. The material is transferred via an eccentric rotor pump.

Following the first feeding of the bioreactor, the start-up of the installation required debugging the program, setting up sensors and alarms, modifying the heat, biogas, pressure regulation and instrumentation.

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