Andriani 2020 IOP Conf. Ser. Earth Environ. Sci. 483 012034
Andriani 2020 IOP Conf. Ser. Earth Environ. Sci. 483 012034
Environmental Science
*E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract. Biogas has been recognized as a clean and renewable form of energy that is
produced from biodegradable organic materials via an anaerobic digestion. In fact, biogas has
been well expected to substitute current conventional sources of energy. The main composition
of biogas includes methane (CH 4 ) and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), which is accompanied by
different contaminants in varied quantities such as ammonia (NH 3 ), water vapour (H 2 O),
hydrogen sulphide (H 2 S), methyl siloxanes, nitrogen (N 2 ), oxygen (O 2 ), halogenated volatile
organic compounds (VOCs), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbons. Biogas has been
widely utilized as either engine fuel or starting material for chemicals, hydrogen and/or
synthesis gas productions. For certain applications, a certain purity degree of biogas is
required. Technically, the presence of trace components in biogas has been known to
negatively affect engine performance. Therefore, a removal of contaminants, particularly H 2 S
and CO 2 , is expected to significantly improve biogas quality, thus enhancing its performance
in various applications. Besides, the removal is performed to meet standardized gas
specifications for its usage as vehicle fuel or being injected into a natural gas grid. In practices,
different methods for biogas cleaning and upgrading have been recognized, in which differ in
terms of functions, efficiency, and required quality of input gas. This study, therefore, aims at
reviewing various H 2 S removal-based biogas cleaning techniques during and after digestion
process.
Keywords: anaerobic digestion; biogas purification; H 2 S removal; upgrading; cleaning; biogas
quality
1. Introduction
The production of biogas from various biological wastes through an anaerobic digestion or landfilling
has been growing worldwide. Besides, it has been considered as a solution for numerous energy
deficiency scenarios. In general, biogas has been recognized to offer economical and environment
friendly characteristics, by which it is known as the most efficient energy production technology
compared to other biological or thermo-chemical routes of energy conversion processes [1,2]. Through
three major biological processes, biogas being produced consists of mainly methane (CH 4 , 40 to 75 %)
and carbon dioxide (CO 2 , 15 to 60 %). Besides, trace amounts of other components such as water
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Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd 1
The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
Table 1. Parameter and composition of biogas produced through anaerobic digestion (AD) and
landfilling [6,7,9,37]
Parameters Unit Biogas Landfill Impact on Biogas Utilization
from AD Gas
Lower heating MJ/Nm3 23 16
value KWh/Nm3 6.5 4.4
MJ/kg 20 12.3
3
Density Kg/Nm 1.1 1.3
Methane >135 >130
number
Methane Vol (%) 60 to 70 35 to 65
Heavy Vol (%) 0 0
hydrocarbon
Water vapour Vol (%) 1 to 5 1 to 5 Corrosion in compressors, gas storage
tanks and engines due to reaction with
H2S, NH3, CO2 to form acids
Hydrogen Vol (%) 0 0
Carbon dioxide Vol (%) 30 to 40 15 to 40 Decreasing calorific value, anti-knock
properties of engines and corrosion
Oxygen Vol (%) 0 1 Corrosion, fooling in cavern storage, the
risk of explosion
Hydrogen ppm 0 to 4000 0 to 100 Corrosion, catalytic converter poison,
sulphide emission and health hazards. SO2, SO3 is
formed
Ammonia ppm 100 5 Emission, anti-knock properties of
engines and corrosion when dissolved
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The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
upgrading methods. Meanwhile, techniques for biogas cleaning are distinguished into wet
desulphurization (e.g. physical and chemical absorption, wet oxidation) and dry desulphurization (e.g.
membrane separation, molecular sieve, pressure swing adsorption (PSA), fixed-bed adsorption
method, Claus oxidation process) [11].
Recently, biogas cleaning and upgrading have been facing significant challenges due to the site-
specific and case sensitive characteristics of the selected technology. In general, the selected
technology relies on numerous factors, including specific biogas utilization requirements and local
circumstances. The technology should also be efficient in terms of energy consumption and operating
costs [6]. According to [12], investment cost is a critical issue, by which a cheapest technology that
meets required conditions for biogas utilization will be preferred. This study focuses on biogas
cleaning by the removal of H 2 S to optimize biogas production for certain usages.
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The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
The recommended level of H 2 S in biogas being produced is between 0.02-0.05 % (w/w) (200-500
ppm), while H 2 S-free biogas is more desirable [13,20]. The H 2 S requirement varies based on
application, equipment and vendor. Table 2 outlines the typical tolerance of H 2 S levels for different
biogas utilization equipment [14].
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The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
Where Fe is iron ions (g/d), H 2 Saq is total dissolved hydrogen sulphide (g/m3), f H2S is portion of the
total sulphur dissolved as H 2 Saq, ∆H 2 S g is amount of H 2 S removed from biogas (ppmv), V substrate is
flow of substrate (m3/d), V biogas is biogas flow (m3/d), Ρ H2S is H 2 S density (g/l), M Fe is iron molecular
mass (g/mol), M s is sulphur molecular mass (g/mol), and β is factor of over dosing which is 1.7–2.3
[22] or 3–5 [23].
5.1. Adsorption
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The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
oxides are the most commonly employed coatings. In general, impregnated product is expected to
enhance the capacity for H 2 S removals from a normal value at 10–20 kg H 2 S/m3 carbon for untreated
carbon to 120–140 kg H 2 S/m3 for impregnated carbon [14].
5.2. Absorption/Scrubbing
During an absorption process, H 2 S is removed in water or other organic solvents such as methanol and
ethers of polyethylene glycol (physical absorption), while in a chemical absorption the water solubility
of H 2 S is enhanced by utilizing alkaline water or an oxidation to more water-soluble compounds [14].
The absorption process has been acknowledged to deliver a high removal efficiency (up to 99 %),
small footprints and an ability to handle a wide concentration range of pollutants. Technically,
absorption processes are suitable for approximately 100–10,000 m³/h flow rate and 8–30 g/m³
concentration of pollutants [14].
However, these processes require considerably high investment costs and high consumptions of
water and/or chemicals. In general, absorption-based processes are not feasible for low-flow and low-
pressure applications in small biogas plants due to expectedly increasing costs of operation at high
pressure, higher energy required for recirculation pumps and regeneration vessels, and higher media
costs. Nevertheless, some of them, e.g. iron-chelated process, are feasible for small biogas systems
[14,25]. For large-scale biogas plants, on the contrary, these methods are economically more feasible.
Furthermore, the most widely applied absorption process is water scrubbing that consists of two
types of processes, i.e. single pass absorption (Figure 1) and regenerative absorption (Figure 2)
[1,3,26]. In single pass absorption, an approximately 150 l/Nm3 of water consumption are required,
which is considerably high. Due to the high consumption of water and a considerably large power
consumption associated with pumping and circulating flows, however, the water scrubbing does not
offer competitive advantages to other methods.
Next, adding chemicals into absorption column has been acknowledged to improve absorption
process, resulting in lower water and energy consumptions due to a reduced pumping [3]. Besides,
physical absorption by applying organic solvents instead of water has been stated as being comparable
to water scrubber technique. Figure 3 exhibits a basic scheme of the chemical/physical absorption. In
general, commonly applied liquids for chemical absorption include NaOH solution and several
chelated iron salt solutions, e.g. FeCl 2 , and Fe(OH) 3 . Technically speaking, the oxidation of hydrogen
sulphide into elemental sulphur is attained by the reduction of soluble ferric chelated iron [Fe3+] into
ferrous chelated iron [Fe2+] according to the following reaction:
Absorption: H 2 S + 2Fe3+ S + 2Fe2+ + 2H+ (8)
Regeneration: 2Fe + 0.5O 2 + 2H 2Fe + H 2 O
2+ + 3+
(9)
Despite the high efficiency of chemical absorption at up to 99.9 %, challenges in using the system
may include foaming and plugging problems [14].
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The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
The primary difference between biofilters and biotrickling filters is their carrier material, i.e.
organics in biofilters and inert in biotrickling filters. The most commonly used bed materials in
biofilters are peat, compost and wood bark., while inorganic inert carriers such as ceramic, pozzolan,
marble are also used, which may present some advantages compared to organic carriers [27]. On the
other hand, the packed bed in biotrickling filters is usually made up of an inert material, e.g. a
randomly dumped plastic packing, structured plastic packing, open-pore synthetic foam, lava rock,
glass or rock wool, Tire derived rubber particles (TDRP), glass beads or ceramics.
Furthermore, the use of biofilms generated by single bacterial cultures in biofilters or biotrickling
filters has been suggested to improve filtration efficiency and removal capacities. It also leads to the
shortening or a complete elimination of bacterial lag phase, as well as to increase efficiency in the
removals of H 2 S and other organosulphur compounds. In general, various types of
chemoheterotrophic microorganisms, e.g. Pseudomonas acidovorans DMR-11 and Pseudomonas
putida, have been recognized to deliver degrading activities on H 2 S and organic sulphur compounds.
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The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
5.3.2. Bioscrubber.
Then, bioscrubber is technically stated as a three-phase, fluidized-bed bioreactor consisting of two
sub-systems, i.e. an absorption tower where pollutants are absorbed into a liquid phase, and a
bioreactor, which is a kind of activated sludge unit [27][34]. In a bioscrubber, gas contaminations are
removed by both physical and biochemical processes. Heterotrophic or autotrophic microorganisms
living in a bioreactor are responsible for the significant conversion of odorous compounds contained in
the aqueous phase [35], while microorganisms growing in suspended flocks in the water degrade the
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The 4th International Symposium on Green Technology for Value Chains 2019 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 483 (2020) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/483/1/012034
pollutants. Then, effluents produced in the unit are re-circulated over the absorption tower. Nutrient
additions, oxygen and pH are continually monitored and controlled to maintain active microbial
growths and high biological activity. Excess biomass and by-products are continually purged from the
system. An advantage offered by this technique compared to biofilters includes no injection of oxygen
or nitrogen into biogas stream. Meanwhile, its disadvantage includes a higher specific cost. In general,
H 2 S content in biogas is reduced to about 10-100 ppmv, while in some cases low ppmv levels may
also be achieved. Then, gas flows normally range from 200 to 2,500 m3/h [36].
6. Conclusion
Cleaning and upgrading biogas quality is important in order to meet the requirement of biogas as an
alternative energy source substituting the conventional fossil fuels. These processes are needed so that
biogas can be used such as to produce heat and stream, electricity, vehicle fuel, and feedstock for the
production of bio-based chemicals and substrate in fuel cells. The enhancement in technology for
cleaning and upgrading biogas in the future is expected. Although the production of biogas is a mature
technology that is established worldwide, the commercial utilization is still limited as the gas need to
be purified before on-site use. Although various cleaning and upgrading technologies have been
developed, technology can be chosen according to the highest achievable methane content and the
type of technique that is implemented depends on desire product, economical and possibly ecological
issues. The presence or the absence of supplier for the technology in a particular country could also
determine the possibility of chosen technique.
Acknowledgement
This paper is written as part of INSINAS research activity funded by the Ministry of Research
Technology and Higher Education (RISTEK-DIKTI). The author would also like to Research Centre
for Electrical Power and Mechatronics for all facilities provided to support this project.
Author Contribution
D. Andriani is contributed as the main contributor of this work. All authors read and approved the
final paper.
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