Author:
Ashraf R. J.,Nixon Jonathan D.,Brusey J.
Abstract
AbstractThis paper looks at multi-objective optimisation of a wastewater AD system where the model is demonstrated for a case study plant. Anaerobic Digestion Model No. 1 (ADM1) was used to predict biogas yields from the digester. Interviews, with plant owners, and plant data were used to identify the objective functions and decision variables. The decision variables were defined to be the substrate feeding rate for each of the digesters and the ratio of biogas sent between a combined heat and power (CHP) plant and a biogas upgrading unit (BUU). The objectives set were to maximise the overall substrate feeding rate through the AD plant, maximise the overall energy output and minimise the running cost of the plant. Results from the optimisation study showed that the amount of sludge processed through the AD plant increased by 17.7% and the running cost of the plant reduced by 6.2%. These results demonstrate how performance of AD plants can be significantly improved by multi-objective optimisation techniques.
Publisher
Springer Nature Switzerland