Studi for biomethane utilization from Palm Oil Mill Effluent

1. Desktop Study for Biomethane Utilization From
POME
Windri Aji Brata

2. Biomethane
Definition
Page 2
biomethane, “is a biogas which has been
upgraded to a quality similar to fossil natural
gas and having a methane concentration of 90%
or greater”.
Also known as Bio CNG, CBG (Compressed
Biogas), Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), and
Sustainable Natural Gas (SNG)

3. Biogas to
Biomethane
Anaerobic
Digester
Biogas
Conditioning
Biogas
Upgrading
Direct
Utilization
Compression
& Storage
Raw biogas
production
Removal of H2S
and moisture
Removal of CO2
Bio CNG
Biomethane
injection to the gas
grid
Page 3

4. Gas Composition Biogas Biomethane Natural Gas
Methane (CH4) 50-75% 94-99.9% 93-98%
Carbon Dioxide
(CO2)
25-45% 0.1-4% 1%
Nitrogen (N) <2% <3% 1%
Oxygen (O2) <2% <1% -
Hydrogen (H2) <1% Traces -
Hydrogen Sulphide
(H2S)
20-20,000 ppm <10 ppm -
Calorific Value 30 MJ/kg
52 MJ/kg
(97% methane)
52 MJ/kg
Biomethane
Parameter
Page 4

5. Biomethane
to Reduce
Energy
Subsidy
Page 5
Potential from POME:
• 4,5 million m3 of biogas
• 1290 MW of electricity
• 2,7 billion m3 of biomethane
60.8
43.7 47
97
100.68
Fuel Subsidy
(Rp trillion)
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Fuel subsidy 2019:
• Diesel 14,5 billion ltr
• Kerosene 610 million ltr
• LPG 6,9 billion kg
Equivalent with:
• 2,4 billion liters of diesel
• 1,8 billion kg of LPG
• Potential government saving 5,6
trillion rupiah

6. Biomethane
Emission
Page 6
IRENA. (2018). Biogas for road vehicles: Technology brief. Abu Dhabi: International
Renewable Energy Agency.

7. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 7

8. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 8
33%
27%
19%
15%
4% 2%
Water Scrubber
Membrane Separation
Chemical Scrubber
Pressure Swing Adsorption
Organic Physical Scrubber
Cryogenic upgrading
Upgrading Plant list. (2017), IEA Bioenergy

9. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 9
Membrane Separation
Membrane separation methods are based on the principle that gases
diffuse through the membranes at different speeds. Permeability of
CO2 is about twenty times higher than CH4.

10. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 10
Membrane Separation
• Operating pressure: 7-15 bar
• Modular design
• Few moving parts of the system
• Have project reference in South East Asia
Membrane polymer Membrane upgrading system

11. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 11
Water Scrubbing
Scrubbing, also referred to as absorption, is based on the effect whereby
gas components are soluble in different fluids to varying degrees. The
water scrubbing method use water as a solvent to absorb CO2 that have
much higher solubility than methane in water.

12. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 12
Water Scrubbing
• Operating pressure: 4-10 bar
• Simple technology
• Water is less selective than other solvents and not
suitable for dry area
• No project reference in South East Asia

13. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 13
Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA)
Adsorptive methods are based on the principle that different gas
components are attracted differently to specific surfaces (adsorbed) or
penetrate to varying degrees into the pores of the material.

14. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 14
• Operating pressure: 2-7 bar
• Need consumables as adsorbents like activated carbon,
zeolites, silica gel etc.
• Mechanical stress to the equipment is relatively high
• Have project reference in South East Asia
Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA)

15. Biogas
Upgrading
Technology
Page 15
Comparison
Parameter Unit Water scrubbing PSA Membrane
Typical methane content
in biomethane
% 95.9-99.0 95.9-99.0 95.9-99.0
Methane recovery % 98,0 98,0 80-99.5
Typical delivery pressure bar 4-10 4-7 7-15
Electrical energy demand
kWhel/m³
biomethane
0,46 0,46 0.25-0.43
Consumable demand
antifouling agent,
drying agent
activated carbon
Typical investment cost
100 mᶟ/h biomethane
USD/(mᶟ/h)
biomethane
11.110 11.440 8.030
250 mᶟ/h biomethane
USD/(mᶟ/h)
biomethane
6.050 5.940 5.170
500 mᶟ/h biomethane
USD/(mᶟ/h)
biomethane
3.850 4.070 3.850
Typical operational cost
100 mᶟ/h biomethane
cent/mᶟ
biomethane
15,4 14,08 11,88
250 mᶟ/h biomethane
cent/mᶟ
biomethane
11,33 11,11 8,47
500 mᶟ/h biomethane
cent/mᶟ
biomethane
10,01 10,12 7,15

16. Economic
Aspect
Page 16
Biomethane Production
Parameter Value Unit
Palm Oil Mill Capacity 60 ton/hr
Raw Biogas Flow 1.000 Nm³/hr
-Biogas for Parasitic Load 250 Nm³/hr
-Biogas for Upgrading 750 Nm³/hr
CH4-content 60 %
Methane yield 90 %
Operation Time 20 hr/day
300 day/year
6.000 hr/year
Biomethane Production 405 m3/hr
8.100 m3/day
2.430.000 m3/year

17. Economic
Aspect
Page 17
Investment Cost
(for 500m3 biomethane plant)
No Item Cost (IDR)
Cost (USD)
1 USD = IDR 14.000
1 Biogas Plant System
- Biogas facility 25.200.000.000 1.800.000
- Gas Engine 600 kW for parasitic Load 6.300.000.000 450.000
2
Biogas Upgrading and Compression
System
- Upgrading facility inc. compression 23.800.000.000 1.700.000
- Storage Buffer & Mechanical Piping
Work
2.800.000.000 200.000
3
Logistic, Engineering, Project
Management
2.100.000.000 50.000
Total Cost 60.200.000.000 4.300.000

18. Economic
Aspect
Page 18
Operation Cost
(for 500m3 biomethane plant)
No Item
Labor Cost
(USD)
Maintenance
Cost (USD)
Overhead
Cost (USD)
Total Cost
(USD)
1 Biogas Plant 82.583 85.304 14.324 182.210
2 Biogas Upgrading 33.248 32.283 14.324 79.854
3 Compression 46.118 26.586 14.324 87.027
Total Operational
Cost
161.948 144.173 42.971 349.092

19. Economic
Aspect
Page 19
Selling Price
(for 500m3 biomethane plant)
Biomethane
Compressed Biomethane
(Bio CNG)
IDR/m3 USD/MMBTU IDR/m3 USD/MMBTU
Operation Cost 1.510 3,52 2.011 4,69
Min Profit
Margin
2.167 5,05 2.389 5,57
Selling Price 3.676 8,57 4.400 10,26
The operation cost is excluding transportation cost to the end user and
any conversion cost. Profit margin is calculated with assumption
minimum profit required to payback loan with interest 11%

20. Economic
Aspect
Page 20
Fuel Price Comparison
Fuel Unit kcal/unit
Price/unit
IDR
Price/
MMBTU
(USD)
Biomethane (CH4 90%) Nm3 7715 3.676 8,57
Biomethane compressed
(CH4 90%)
Nm3 7715 4.400 10,26
Natural gas Nm3 8892 3.500 7,08
CNG at fuel station Nm3 8892 4.500 9,11
CNG for industry Nm3 9100 5.500 10,87
LPG (non subsidized) kg 11058 11.860 19,30
Gasoline (Pertamax) Ltr 9168 9.850 19,33
Diesel (dexlite) Ltr 9505 10.200 19,31
Diesel (industrial) Ltr 8617 12.000 25,06

21. Economic
Aspect
Page 21
Fuel Price Comparison
8.6
10.3
7.1
9.1
10.9
19.3 19.3 19.3
25.1
Price/ MMBTU
(USD)
Biomethane (CH4 90%)
Biomethane compressed (CH4
90%)
Natural gas
CNG at fuel station
CNG for industry
LPG (non subsidized)
Gasoline (Pertamax)
Diesel (dexlite)
Diesel (industrial)

22. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 22
City Gas Network
Transmission pipe
40 bar
Distribution pipe
1-5 bar
Biomethane
plant
Biomethane is injected directly to the existing natural gas grid without
compressed through transmission pipe then to distribution pipe directly
to industry, commercial or residential use.

23. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 23
City Gas Network
PT PGN Natural gas pipe network, majority in Sumatera and Java. Government
set maximum gas price for strategic industry is 6 USD/MMBTU but the actual
price is 7-10 USD/MMBTU

24. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 24
City Gas Network
PT PGN Natural gas pipe network, majority in Sumatera and Java. Government
set maximum gas price for strategic industry is 6 USD/MMBTU but the actual
price is 7-10 USD/MMBTU

25. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 25
City Gas Network
Advantage Challenge
- can utilize existing gas network
- high demand for gas and include
in the government planning
- no high-pressure compression
needed
- small profit margin because need
to follow city gas price set by
government
- procedure to tap into existing gas
network is unclear
- limited location in proximity of gas
network

26. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 26
Vehicle Fuel
Biomethane
plant
Compressed to
200 bar
Filling Station Bio CNG vehicle
Biomethane is compressed to 200bar and filled to the vehicle that
already converted to use bio CNG as fuel.

27. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 27
Vehicle Fuel Conversion
Mono or Dedicated
Conversion System
(Mono)
Dual Fuel System (DDF)
Bi-Fuel System
(Switch)
Runs 100% on
biomethane
Runs with both diesel and
biomethane (50/50 in
average, depend on
engine RPM)
Can switch between
gasoline or biomethane
Only for diesel engine Only for diesel engine Only for gasoline engine
Depend on biomethane
availability
Not depend on
biomethane so less risk
on operation
Not depend on
biomethane so less risk
on operation

28. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 28
Vehicle Fuel
Advantage Challenge
• most truck in the plantation area
using diesel that costly and
unsubsidized
• diesel vehicle conversion to natural
gas vehicle already common
implemented for NGV
• high investment cost to convert
diesel fuel vehicle
• engine efficiency for dual fuel
depend on the road condition that
affect engine RPM
• forfeited warranty for the engine if
converted

29. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 29
Diesel Genset
Biomethane
plant
Compressed to
200 bar
Filling Station Bio CNG vehicle
Pressure Reducing
System
Genset

30. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 30
Diesel Genset
Advantage Challenge
- plantation still using diesel genset for
the mill and housing
- more efficient for dual fuel application
because more consistent load (60-70%
biomethane mix)
- additional investment for gas
distribution and PRS
- economic feasibility strictly depend
on engine running hour

31. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 31
LPG Replacement
Biomethane
plant
Compressed to
200 bar
Filling Station Bio CNG vehicle
Pressure Reducing
System
LPG in commercial/
industry

32. Biomethane
Utilization
Page 32
LPG Replacement

33. Biomethane
Utilization
LPG Replacement
Advantage Challenge
- high consumption for LPG for
commercial and industry
- high price for LPG compare to
biomethane
- locally available and not depend on
import
- need technical modification to
accommodate bio CNG
- additional investment for gas
distribution and PRS
- industry availability near the
biomethane plant that mostly in remote
area

34. Recommen
dation
• Biomethane utilization for palm oil mill plantation captive
energy such as fuel for trucks or diesel genset have more
potential for implementation and offer interesting financial
return because replacing costly diesel fuel. Can start with
mills that already have biogas plant but not yet fully
utilized.
• Need to do additional market study such as mapping for
palm oil mill that locate near the industrial area or other
potential off taker for biomethane.
• Need to promote the biomethane utilization potential to
more stakeholder such as government, private sector and
public to support the biomethane development in
Indonesia.