Dutch clean energy technology provider Bright Renewables has announced that it has won the technical tender from Swedish municipal multi-utility company Tekniska verken i Linköping AB (Tekniska verken) for the supply of carbon dioxide liquefaction technology. The system will be installed at Tekniska verken's biogas plant Svensk Biogas i Linköping AB (Svensk Biogas) to purify and liquefy carbon dioxide from the biogas production.
The facility will produce 20,000 tonnes of food-grade quality biogenic carbon dioxide bioCO2 and is expected to be completed before next summer in 2025.
Carbon dioxide liquefaction and utilization
This project marks Sweden’s first carbon capture and utilization (CCU) facility using biogas, enhancing resource efficiency by utilizing biologically sourced CO2 from the existing process.
Carbon dioxide liquefaction technology provides environmental and operational advantages. Recovering CO2 from biogas upgrading, prevents atmospheric release, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This technology also produces high-quality, food-grade bioCO2, a valuable resource for industries like food and beverages, said Niraj Kunkulol, Sales Engineer and Scandinavian market representative at Bright Renewables.
Project scope
The CO2 liquefaction system, with a capacity of 2,500 kg/hr of bioCO2, includes technology to recover CO2 from the biogas upgrading process to purify and liquefy CO2 using natural refrigerant CO2 (R744).
The system features four 70 m3 storage tanks for the liquid bioCO2 and a liquid CO2 analyzer for certifying the food-grade quality.
This setup complements existing clean technology plants and further reduces the Carbon Intensity (CI) score, enhancing the plant’s sustainability profile.
Incorporating a CO2 liquefier into clean energy systems optimizes carbon intensity scores and boosts efficiency. Using CO2 as a natural refrigerant in our system, an environmentally friendlier alternative to freon and ammonia enhances sustainability. In biogas applications, it maximizes methane use and minimizes methane slip. We are pleased to see these enhancements increase resource efficiency for Tekniska verken, Niraj Kunkulol said.
Biogas production optimization
In 2023 Tekniska verken made an investment decision to build a facility to handle the biogenic carbon dioxide formed during the anaerobic digestion of food waste, slaughterhouse waste, and more, which is then removed during biogas production.
We are working diligently to make the most of all by-products and residues from our production to increase resource efficiency. With Bright’s innovative solution at the facility, we contribute to a circular economy, while also reducing our methane emissions by recycling the methane that previously accompanied the carbon dioxide back into the process said Anna Lövsén, Business Area Manager Biogas at the Tekniska verken Group.
Recovery of CO2 from the biogas process
Although CO2 emissions from biogas production are already biogenic today, meaning they do not contribute to any net emissions, recovering this carbon dioxide will have a positive climate effect.
This is because the carbon dioxide from biogas plants can now replace fossil carbon dioxide on the market.
The goal is to certify the new facility according to ISO 22000/FSSC 22000, as this is a requirement for food-grade quality carbon dioxide. Today, carbon dioxide is used, among other things, for dosing in greenhouses, to cool food, in fire extinguishers, as a process chemical in industry, and to make carbonated beverages, Anna Lövsén said.
The new facility is being partially financed with the help of the “Climate Step” (Klimatklivet) program, which focuses on local investments for maximum climate benefit.
The support is administered by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency in collaboration with other central authorities and county administrative boards.
