In the UK, composting and waste-management specialist, Biowise Ltd, has been awarded funding from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) as part of Phase 1 of the Hydrogen BECCS (Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage) Innovation Programme.
The Hydrogen BECCS Innovation Programme supports technologies that can produce hydrogen from biogenic feedstocks and be combined with carbon capture.
It forms part of the BEIS GBP 1 billion (≈ EUR 1.2 billion) Net Zero Innovation Portfolio, which aims to accelerate the commercialization of innovative clean energy technologies and processes through the 2020s and 2030s.
The programme will run in 2 phases. Phase 1 has a total budget of GBP 5 million (≈ EUR 5.9 million), will support multiple projects to scope and develop a feasible prototype demonstration project to be run in Phase 2.
Hull-based Biowise is one of 22 organizations selected from across the UK to participate in the new programme, each receiving up to GBP 250 000 (≈ EUR 295 701) of the Phase 1 funding.
Biowise will scope and develop the feasibility of processing waste compost oversize into a biogenic feedstock source for hydrogen gasifiers.
Operating in the municipal waste composting sector, Biowise processes some 200 000 tonnes per annum of garden and food wastes through three composting facilities.
All Biowise compost-based products are certified to BSI PAS 100 and Compost Quality Protocol standards for use in horticulture, agriculture, landscaping, and land restoration.
Develop a market for compost over-size
Following a successful period of growth, Biowise continues to seek opportunities to broaden its waste-processing infrastructure, which includes materials recycling, biomass, and alternative fuel production facilities.
Outputs include a range of quality compost grades, and an ‘over-size’ fraction of which comprises biomass materials (such as twigs, sticks, and branches) that do not decompose within the composting process.
We are honoured to take part in this project. The present absence of established and stable high-value fuel markets creates little incentive for compost site operators to invest in innovative processes to produce a higher quality fuel, explained Bob Wilkes Managing Director of Biowise.
Accessing stable high-value outlets for the compost over-size (COS) fraction is a challenge for the composting sector.
Compared to other sources of waste wood, the material is generally unsuitable for direct combustion in energy from waste applications with the outcome being that the material is supplied into low-value markets or sent for disposal.
With Hydrogen BECCs Innovation Programme funding, we aim to develop a project that can process COS to produce a biogenic feedstock source for hydrogen gasifiers, addressing the current challenges associated with COS, and providing a fully biogenic feedstock for hydrogen BECCs supply chains, Bob Wilkes said.
