TuKKBio

Research area: Smart Industry

Project code: J11699

Language: Finnish, English

Project description

Finland’s Bioeconomy Strategy emphasizes the development of farm-scale biogas plants, but utilizing by-products from greenhouse cultivation in biogas production has been technologically challenging. For example, cucumber and tomato plant residues, as well as growing media made from common reed and reed canary grass, have not been well suited as feedstocks with earlier technologies.

In the previously funded JTF project “Farm-scale biomethane production plant for challenging raw materials”, a new inclined-bottom batch biogas reactor was designed. The implementation of this reactor would enable the utilization of these materials and support biogas production and nutrient recycling at the greenhouse scale.

The use of peat-substituting growing media, such as reed canary grass and common reed, responds to the needs of the Ostrobothnia region to develop regional energy solutions and supports carbon-neutral plant production. These alternatives also promote peatland restoration and create new employment opportunities in cultivation, harvesting, and logistics value chains. As the use of energy peat is expected to decline by 2030, the demand for alternative growing media will increase, since the production of horticultural peat alone is not economically viable.

In the TuKKBio project, the inclined-bottom reactor will be piloted, and the use of challenging feedstocks—such as greenhouse cultivation by-products as well as common reed and reed canary grass—for biogas production will be studied. In addition, the project will examine the use of the resulting digestate as a growing medium. Overall, these solutions aim to improve nutrient and energy cycles and support the objectives of the bioeconomy.

TuKKBio is a project co-funded by the European Union and implemented by Vaasa University of Applied Sciences (VAMK) and Novia University of Applied Sciences. The project budget is €359,186, and the funding has been granted by the Regional Council of Ostrobothnia.

Goals

The main objective of the project is to investigate the use of peat-substituting growing media as feedstock for biogas production and the processing of digestate from the biogas reactor into growing media. The project’s secondary objectives are to:

• Examine the harvesting chains, biogas potential, and nutrient content of common reed, supporting efficient biomass utilization and the prevention of eutrophication in water bodies.
• Assess the cultivation potential of reed canary grass on areas freed from peat production, supporting peatland restoration and sustainable land-use redirection.
• Investigate the suitability of various growing media, including common reed, reed canary grass, and poultry manure, as feedstocks for the newly developed inclined-bottom biogas reactor. This will be carried out using a pilot plant.
• Serve as a preliminary study and demonstration, providing a foundation for companies to advance further development and seek funding, for example from Business Finland.

Results

The main outcome of the project will be a concept description of using peat-substituting growing media as feedstock for biogas production, including associated costs and carbon balance.

The project will generate knowledge and practical experience on the suitability of various challenging biomass types as biogas reactor feedstocks, along with a practical description and techno-economic assessment of utilizing these feedstocks for energy production. Results from each work package will be presented in public reports.

The project will produce a literature review and calculations on the growing media potential of example feedstocks. A literature review will also cover the cultivation possibilities of reed canary grass on lands freed from peat production. The project will report on the digestate from the pilot plant and its analysis, and include a review of the use of reactor residues as growing media. In addition, the project will calculate a process-level carbon balance for the solutions presented.