Jenbacher Engines For New Biogas Facility

GE said that global engineering and construction company M+W group has selected Jenbacher biogas engines for a new biogas-to-energy facility in Shepperton, Surrey, England.

The Eco Park Waste treatment and power facility will also incorporate GE’s Monsal advanced anaerobic digestion system. The project is being built by SUEZ Recycling and Recovery U.K.

Two Jenbacher J416 biogas engines are being provided by Clarke Energy, GE’s authorized distributor of Jenbacher gas engines. GE made the announcement at the IFAT trade fair taking place in Munich, Germany.

The Eco Park’s anaerobic digestion facility will process 40 000 tonnes of food waste annually from households in Surrey. Supported by a waste infrastructure grant from the U.K.

government, it will be located adjacent to an existing community recycling center, about 8 km from London Heathrow Airport. With GE’s Monsal anaerobic digestion system, the new facility will convert the food waste into biogas that can generate renewable electricity and heat. The biogas produced will be used to fuel two of GE’s Jenbacher J416 biogas engines, which are configured to generate up to 50% of the common limit for NO_x and will provide a total of 2.4 MW of electrical power. After powering itself, the Eco Park will supply energy to the national grid. The J416 is available in both 50 and 60 Hz configurations. The 16-cylinder engine has a total displacement of 48.9 L and a bore and stroke of 145 X 185 mm.

The Eco Park is being built on behalf of Surrey County Council and will supply baseload renewable power to the local distribution network while at the same time providing an alternative to landfill in the form of anaerobic digestion. In addition to the anaerobic digestion and the combined heat and power (CHP) plant, the Eco Park also includes a 55 000-tonnes-per-year gasification facility with pre-treatment, a recyclables bulking facility and a new visitors’ center. The gasification system will be installed separately and will process municipal waste into a partially renewable combustible gas (known as syngas) for additional power production, the company said.

“GE is committed to helping municipal solid waste operators move towards energy neutrality, reduce their environmental footprint and meet regulations as more European countries introduce landfill bans on food waste,” said Heiner Markhoff, president and CEO—water and distributed power for GE Power. “This project is a true testament to the strength of the GE Store, demonstrating how our ability to combine proven technologies across GE businesses allows us to provide one of the best possible solution for our customers.”

For the new project, GE’s scope of work will include the core Monsal process technology, training and plant commissioning. Clarke Energy will provide the two Jenbacher gas engines, which will be built in GE’s facility in Jenbach, Austria, and containerized at the company’s Veresegyház, Hungary, site. GE’s Monsal solution includes GE’s Re:Sep separation technology, the hydrolysis pasteurization digestion for full biological treatment of the waste, high chemical oxygen demand/volatile solids conversion to biogas and AmmCycle for the treatment of high-strength ammonia liquor.