IBBK Biogas #HANDS ON international 7-day course September 2017, Stuttgart, Germany follow up report

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1 Agenda IBBK Biogas #HANDS ON international 7-day course September 2017, Stuttgart, Germany follow up report The training took place on September It was conducted in two parts: one of lectures with presentations and practical exercises and the other of exemplary plant visits of Germany. The lectures were hold at the SIMT (Steinbeis Institute for Management and Technology) in Stuttgart, Germany. On the first evening the whole group took part in the Meet and Greet Dinner at a typical restaurant in the city center of Stuttgart. It was a nice moment for everyone to get to know each other in a relaxed environment, and experience the local cuisine. During the weekend the participants had the two days off. They had the time to visit the city of Stuttgart and the surrounding, exploring the German culture and enjoying the Oktoberfest in Munich. At the end of the whole training the participants received the attendance certificates signed by the CEO of IBBK, Michael Köttner, and the Head of the University of Hohenheim, Prof. Dr. Thomas Jungbluth. Training team The members of the training team consisted of twelve experts from both the academics and the German biogas industry. All of them have many years of experience in their field and have been giving lectures during the IBBK training multiple times. They had prepared presentations about their field of expertise and were fully available for any question from the participants. During the breaks they exchanged opinions and contacts with the class. The training The lectures All the lectures were hold at the SIMT building through power point presentations and practical exercises. Every presentation lasted approx. 45 minutes, during which the participants were encouraged to ask questions. The different backgrounds and points of view of the participants stimulated various prospective on the different topics, giving interesting contribution to the discussions. Every day had morning and afternoon sessions, consisting of two lectures each. Every lecture was followed by a break, during which the participants had the opportunity to share amongst and with the experts, who were very keen to help and clarify. The lunches took place at the SIMT cafeteria, and were extensively used to exchange experiences and views. The topics of the lectures were: Overview of the national and international biogas industry and its future development Introduction into plant technologies Planning and designing of stirring and mixing technology for digesters, and storage

2 Decision criteria for a biogas plant Process and external heat and gas engineering Biogas specific building materials Pre-treatment and pre-storage technology Building a bio-waste and food waste plant Crucial substrate parameters and their impact on plant performance Start-up phase and practical measures for monitoring the digestion process How to digest fibrous and N-rich feedstocks Biogas cleaning and desulphurization Process control and process optimization Proper usage of digestate as organic fertilizer in agriculture Safety features of biogas plants and equipment Cogeneration to heat and power Gas utilisation Measurement and data recording for optimization, stabilization and enhancement The plant visits During the training the participants had the opportunity to visit 5 biogas plants, located within a radius of 80 km from the SIMT. The 3 rd and 4 th day were organized as study tour, with two visits each. The plants visited were at the biogas plant with biomethane gas station Weitenau, with upgrading and grid injection Riedlingen, the municipal bio-waste and food waste digestion plant in Backnang and the one in Leonberg. During each visit, the plant operator gave a detailed tour tending in detail to all the questions from the participants. Each AD plant had specific feedstocks, running methods and history. The participants showed a great interest and engaged discussions, within the group and with the operators. The operators shared openly their experience, development and the future prospective of their plants. In the afternoon of the 6 th day the participants visited the agricultural biogas plant with additional food waste digestion KBK Kussmaul Biokraft. During the visit they took part in an interactive group activity, during which they had the opportunity to learn the necessary on site tests and practical interpretation of operating modes on a biogas plant. One member of the training team showed how to take a sample and measure the FAS/TOC, the ph-value and temperature of the digestate. This is a normal test that should be run every week in a biogas plant, in order to make sure it works properly. The participants showed a deep interest in the practical application of the theoretical lectures. On the last day of the training the group visited the laboratories of the University of Hohenheim. The master and PhD students showed their ongoing projects and researches run in the department and explained into detail their studies, answering the many questions of the participants. Participants The training was attended by 19 people coming from: Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, India, Ireland, Kenya, Malta, Nigeria, Romania, Switzerland, The Netherlands and UK. The participants had different backgrounds and professions, including PhD students, university professors, mechanical engineers, biogas plant operators, technical consultants and waste treatment AD plant operators.

3 Pictures from the IBBK Biogas #HANDS ON 7-day training, Stuttgart September 2017 Lecture location at the SIMT (Steinbeis Institute for Management and Technology), Stuttgart. View outside and indoors. Course instructor explains ammonia vs ammonium. Students check their data. Class networking during break.

4 Group picture in front of the biogas plant Energiehof Weitenau. Plant owner explains the process of obtaining a crystallised fertiliser from liquid digestate. Course instructor explains the processes of the municipal waste plant. Class in front of the vertical digester of the municipal food-waste plant in Leonberg. Crystallised ammonium sulphate fertiliser obtained from the digestate liquids. Plant owner explains the feeding of the digester.

5 Class with head instructor Michael Koettner (IBBK CEO) giving a lecture about sediments in digesters. Participants asking questions. Lunch break: hungry minds and hungry bellies Expert instructor Birgit Pfeifer takes a sample of the digestate for testing. Running the FOS/ TAC test.

6 The liquid manure is pumped from the lorry car into the storage tank. The new substrate is getting mixed and fed into the digester. The plant operator explains the bio-waste pretreatment process, biogas plant in Backnang- Neuschöntal. Participants share opinions and experiences.