Influence of feedstock composition and combined heat and power plant engine size on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of biogas production
- Publikations-Art
- Kongressbeitrag
- Autoren
- Lansche J, Müller J
- Erscheinungsjahr
- 2010
- Veröffentlicht in
- Tagungsband der 68. Internationalen Tagung Landtechnik 2010
- Verlag
- VDI Verlag GmbH , Düsseldorf (Germany)
- Seite (von - bis)
- 345-350
- Tagungsname
- 68. Internationalen Tagung Landtechnik 2010
- Tagungsort
- Braunschweig (Germany)
- Tagungsdatum
- 27.-28. Oktober 2010
The utilization of agricultural biomass for anaerobic digestion is increasingly appreciated in Germany since the first version of the Renewable Energies Act (Gesetz zum Vorrang erneuerbarer Energien, EEG) in the year 2000. Main products of this conversion process are biogas and digestate, whereby the biogas is mainly used for the generation of heat and electricity in combined heat and power plants (CHP). This study has investigated the environmental impact potential of this process with the method of Life Cycle Assessment. The focus was put on liquid manure and various energy crops as feedstock on the one hand and different CHP engine sizes on the other hand. The results show that greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced with anaerobic digestion of liquid manure as well as energy crops, particularly when digestate storage tanks are gas-proof. The CHP engine size influences the electrical efficiency and thereby has a direct influence on the result but to a minimal extent when compared with the energy crops used or the share of liquid manure which commonly decreases with an increasing size of the biogas plant. When energy crops are fermented together with liquid manure, the biggest credit for the avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions was given for the generation of electricity.