Anaerobic digestion projects

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a proven, well-tried and tested process that uses organic matter to produce biogas (renewable energy) and digestate (biofertiliser). AD provides a source of renewable energy, a method for recycling organic matter and a means of lowering greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. There is currently major worldwide interest in AD.

Within agriculture, AD can be carried out on-farm, or in larger centralised AD plants.

In order to provide much needed information to the industry on the performance and economics of on-farm AD in Northern Ireland, the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute installed an on-farm anaerobic digester on their Hillsborough site during 2008. The main research objectives of the AFBI programme are to:

Determine the baseline performance of on-farm digestion utilising, in the first instance, dairy cow slurry.
Research methods for enhancing digester performance.
Research post digestion treatments of digestate.
Research methods for efficient use of energy produced.
Determine the contribution of AD to plant nutrient management.
Determine lifecycle benefits of AD.