Anaerobic Digestion

Components of anaerobic digestion systems

The design of an anaerobic digestion system varies depending on the substrate to be digested. Basically, an anaerobic digestion system is composed of the following components:

• Pretreatment facility: preparation of the organic fraction of the substrate for anaerobic digestion. This may include receiving, sorting, separating and compressing of wastes.
• Digester: It is the bio-reactor where organic matter is decomposed to produce biogas. It is an oxygen-free container that provides an anaerobic environment for the activities of methanogenic bacteria. Besides, temperature in the digester is maintained to optimize biogas production.
• Biogas storage: Biogas generated can be stored in the digester or in a gas storage unit. The biogas is then piped to the power generation facility.