Securing your anaerobic digestion project
Since the 2010s, anaerobic digestion projects have been on the rise in France, driven by a supportive legislative and tariff framework (10% of gas from renewable sources by 2030) and a desire to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and on distant or unstable countries that supply them.
In their wake, concerns and conflicts over resource use are also on the rise, even though France has not followed Germany’s lead in including food crops such as corn in its biomass feedstock intended for anaerobic digestion.
What is anaerobic digestion?
Anaerobic digestion involves converting organic matter into biogas through a process of anaerobic fermentation, that is, in the absence of oxygen. A digester can thus be likened to a giant stomach.
Once separated from the digestate—the second byproduct of this reaction, which can be used as agricultural fertilizer—biogas, a gas mixture consisting of 60% methane, can be utilized in several ways:
- By converting it into heat and/or electricity through combustion, for local needs such as heating horticultural greenhouses
- By injecting it into a gas pipeline after purification, where the "biomethane" will be mixed with fossil natural gas
- By processing it into biomethane fuel to power captive fleet vehicles such as buses or garbage trucks
- By breaking it down into CO2 and H2 through a process known as methanation, in order to produce hydrogen.
Wood, algae, manure, agricultural byproducts or byproducts from the food industry, sewage sludge… Since anaerobically digested biomass consists of organic matter that absorbed CO₂ during its formation, the process is climate-neutral: the CO₂ released during biogas combustion is released in the same quantities and fuels the next cycle of photosynthesis and anaerobic digestion. This is why anaerobic digestion is a carbon-free renewable energy source.
Anaerobic digestion: a best-practices certification
However, an anaerobic digestion project can sometimes be met with skepticism. Odors, blockages, economic viability, technological sustainability… Projects are scrutinized closely. To help project leaders reassure their stakeholders—particularly their financial backers—AFNOR Certification offers the Qualimétha label. Developed in collaboration with ATEE , it is intended for the various stakeholders involved in the implementation of an anaerobic digestion project (engineering firms providing project management support, project managers, designers, and contractors).
The Qualimétha framework includes a comprehensive set of criteria covering financial, contractual, and insurance engineering, as well as aspects related to safety, risk management, and the robustness of technical processes. The certification is not intended to certify the biogas produced, which must meet other technical and chemical specifications.
Key takeaways
- Anaerobic digestion involves converting organic matter into biogas.
- AFNOR Certification offers the Qualimétha certification.
- The Qualimétha framework covers financial, contractual, and insurance engineering, as well as aspects related to safety, risk management, and the robustness of technical processes.
