Advances in biowaste feedstock preparation technology for biogas production

Mark Vanderbeke, chairman of Drycake TWISTER and Steve Last, IPPTS principal and organic processing consultant, explain the challenges facing organic waste processing equipment suppliers — and propose a solution.
The technology used to prepare feedstock for the anaerobic digestion (AD) of organic waste will depend on the type of biowaste (organic waste) being processed. However, common requirements for feedstock preparation technologies for this process include the removal of contaminants and the optimisation of moisture content. The source is predominantly food waste, ranging from out-of-specification packaged and wrapped food industry warehouse stock at one end of the organic purity to the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW), with the latter being the dirtiest.
You may not have heard the term "Feedstock Preparation Technology" because the manufacturers variously describe their equipment as depackaging equipment, biowaste separators and even just sorting machines. The reason for the disparity is that this is a rapidly developing,...