State of the Science on Cogeneration of Heat and Power from Anaerobic Digestion of Municipal Biosolids

Information/data provided in this paper was partially collected by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in inventorying anaerobic digestion facilities that utilized biogas. Additional information was gathered with the help of the Water Environment Federation (WEF) and Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF), by searching the literature, and by speaking with consultants and practitioners. It discusses: 1) the energy needs of wastewater treatment and ways to reduce them with emphasis on solids management, 2) different sources of feed available for anaerobic digestion and ways to enhance their digestibility, 3) methods to optimize digester operation (heat transfer and mixing), 4) ways to maximize combined heat and power (CHP) recovery including needs for gas clean up and how best to accomplish it, and 5) case studies that exemplify the production and utilization of digester gas.