The present invention relates to an anaerobic process for biogas upgrading and hydrogen utilization comprising the use of acidic waste as co-substrate. In this process, H.sub.2 and CO.sub.2 will be converted to CH.sub.4, which will result in lower CO.sub.2 content in the biogas. The invention relates to both in situ and ex situ methods of biogas upgrading. The invention further relates to a bioreactor comprising hollow fibre membranes.

A system for high-value utilization of organic solid waste includes an anaerobic digestion unit, a biogas measurement and collection unit and a methane purification and liquefaction unit. The anaerobic digestion unit includes an organic solid waste pretreatment system and an anaerobic digestion device. The biogas measurement and collection unit includes a gas flow meter and a high-pressure biogas collection device. The methane purification and liquefaction unit includes a high-pressure separation tank, a liquefaction pretreatment system, a heavy hydrocarbon and benzene removal device, a two-stage rectification system, a low-temperature pressure liquid storage tank device and a buffer storage tank. The organic solid waste undergoes an anaerobic digestion treatment to produce methane followed by collection, purification and liquefaction.

A continuous process for the synthesis of biodiesel from microalgae oil by transesterification with supercritical methanol, where the synthesis of biodiesel is carried out in a single transesterification step in a reactor that operates continuously, said process being ideal to be carried out at industrial scale since it can provide a continuous flow of biodiesel.

A container for fermenting bio-degradable substances, the container comprising: a base and a wall, wherein an interior of the container is enclosed by the base and the wall; a rotatable agitator that protrudes into the interior and is supported in an upper bearing and a lower bearing in an installed position of the rotatable agitator in the container, wherein the rotatable agitator includes a shaft that is drivable by a drive, wherein at least one stirring paddle is arranged at the shaft and configured to co-rotate with the shaft so that substances arranged in the container are stirrable, wherein the lower bearing is arranged at the at least one base of the container and a bearing device located at a lower end of the shaft is supported in the lower bearing in the installed position of the rotatable agitator.

The subject invention provides methods and systems for producing microbe-based compositions that can be used in the oil and gas industry, environmental cleanup, agriculture, and many other applications. More specifically, the subject invention provides methods and systems for producing microorganisms and/or growth by-products thereof using a hybrid solid state-submerged fermentation method, wherein a matrix comprised of a solid material covered in an alginate coating is formed inside a liquid fermentation vessel. In some embodiments, the solid material is a plurality of natural loofa sponges.

The description describes the integration of a gas fermentation process with a gasification process whereby effluent from the gas fermentation process is recycled to the gasification process. The one or more effluents which can be recycled include a stream comprising microbial biomass, a product stream comprising at least a portion of the at least one fermentation product, a by-product stream comprising fusel oil, and a waste water stream comprising microbial biomass. The stream comprising biomass can be dried before it is passed to the gasification zone. At least a portion of the waste water stream can be passed to the gasification process where one use is to replace at least a portion of the process water. The waste water stream can be further processed to produce a clarified water stream and a biogas stream comprising methane either or both of which can be passed to the gasification process.

A system for biological methane production and removing carbon dioxide from the methane comprises (a) a primary anaerobic digester adapted and arranged to generate a gaseous mixture comprising methane and carbon dioxide from organic materials; (b) an electrochemical reactor comprising at least one reactor cell including an anode spaced from a cathode by a porous ion exchange resin wafer with a cation exchange membrane between the anode and the resin wafer and a bipolar ion exchange membrane between the cathode and the resin wafer; the electrochemical reactor being adapted and arranged to capture gaseous carbon dioxide within the resin wafer as aqueous bicarbonate, and to electrochemically generate hydrogen gas at the cathode; and (c) a hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis bioreactor adapted and arranged to convert the bicarbonate and hydrogen from the electrochemical reactor to methane. An electrochemical reactor and a method for producing methane with reduced carbon dioxide content also are described.

The present invention relates to a process for producing methane and to the device for producing methane, making it possible to increase the methane content of the outgoing gas and preferably simultaneously to increase the methane content of the outgoing gas and the productivity of the reactor.

Methods, systems and apparatuses herein provide a unique and novel process to process poultry litter. In one embodiment, the poultry litter is anaerobically digested to produce a biogas and one or more nutrients. In one embodiment, the poultry litter is wettened with recycled digestate prior to anaerobic digestion.

A biogas plant includes a fermenter, a biogas processing unit and a thermal engine. The biogas processing unit includes a gas separation unit and a compression unit for the separation of raw biogas from the fermenter into two gas streams, whereby the first gas stream includes a product gas that is enriched in biomethane with respect to the composition of the raw biogas and the second gas stream includes a residual gas that is enriched with carbon dioxide with respect to the composition of the raw biogas and has a biomethane concentration of less than 20%. The thermal engine produces energy that is used for operation of the compression unit.