Digester Biogas dari Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME)

PT SMART

SINARMAS AGRO

Central Kalimantan

June 2015 – 2016

PT Organics Bali completed the design, installation, and commissioning of a Closed Lagoon Bioreactor (CLBR) system on the settling lagoon of a palm oil mill owned by the Sinar Mas Group, one of Indonesia’s largest palm oil producers.

The primary objective of this project was to treat the high levels of Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) found in the Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) and ensure that the powerful greenhouse gas, methane, produced during the anaerobic digestion process was captured instead of being released into the atmosphere. The system collects this biogas and directs it for use in the mill’s boiler.

The Methane Capture and Biogas Utilization project is designed to effectively process the effluent from a high-capacity palm oil mill. The system utilizes a specialized closed lagoon bioreactor covering the existing settling lagoon to treat the POME.

This process enables the conversion of organic waste into biogas, ensuring high methane capture efficiency. The captured biogas is then used as a renewable energy source to power the mill’s boiler, supporting sustainable and efficient operational energy requirements.

• Mill capacity: 80 TPH (Tonnes per Hour) Fresh Fruit Bunch

• POME flowrate: 1,152 m³/day

• Lagoon Capacity: 60,000 m³ of wastewater

• Biogas production potential: Up to 3,000 Nm³/hour (equivalent to ~72,000 Nm³/day)

• Electrical potential: 4 MWe (Equivalent)

• Biogas application: Powering the mill boiler (cofiring)

• Technology: Closed Lagoon Bioreactor (CLBR) for Anaerobic Digestion

• Captures and prevents the release of methane (a high-GWP GHG) into the atmosphere, with an estimated capture of ~39,600 Nm³ of methane per day.

• Converts methane capture into climate mitigation, resulting in an estimated emission reduction of up to ~795 tonnes of CO₂e per day (tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent).

• Converts POME waste into clean bioenergy, generating up to 4 MWe equivalent of energy potential, which is used to power the mill’s boiler.

• Successfully processes and treats a POME wastewater. The system removes approximately 64.5 tonnes of COD daily from minimum 80% efficiency.

• Overall, reduces odor, controls emissions from open lagoons, and improves the mill’s overall sustainability footprint.

*Note (assumptions):

• POME Concentration: Initial Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) load is estimated based on an industry standard POME concentration of 70 kg/m3 to derive the daily tonnes of COD removed.

• Methane Fraction: Methane content in the biogas is assumed to be approx 55%, based on typical POME Anaerobic Digestion performance.

• GHG Reduction: Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction is calculated using the GWP100 for methane 28 tCO2e per tonne of CH4