„Duurzame Brandstofketen“ complete success!
Sustainable fuel chain has a positive impact.
A two-year-long pilot, named the Sustainable Fuel Chain, has conclusively demonstrated that sustainable fuel chains can bring about substantial reductions in emissions of CO2, nitrogen compounds and particulates, and that excess biogas from water treatment plants can be converted into clean fuel for local construction sites.
Positive environmental impact
The Sustainable Fuel Chain pilot was a success for all parties concerned: at the water treatment plant, it is no longer necessary to flare-off biogas, and at the construction site, more than 80,000 l of diesel were saved over the course of the project. “In today’s insecure energy market, with its high energy prices, it’s essential to put every last ‘crumb’ of self-generated energy to good use,” explains Pieter Mans, founder of Powercrumbs. “And this pilot indeed owes its success to the teamwork and ambition of everyone involved, working together towards a liveable and sustainable future.”
The environmental impact analysis carried out indicates that CO2 emissions over the entire chain were reduced by up to 96%, as compared to a situation with fossil fuel. The highest CO2 impact came from the requisite transport of biogas and methane emissions. In addition, measurements taken at the construction site indicated that CO2 emissions were a minimum of 97% below the norm set out in ‘Stage V’ legislation. Emissions of particulates and soot particles were negligible and emissions from unburnt fuel and nitrogen oxides were more than 70% below the strictest norm.
More filling stations, more construction sites
The filling station at the Renkum water treatment plant will remain in use in the coming years. The next step will be a further scale-up of the concept. In 2023, Powercrumbs will install a minimum of three more filling stations at other water treatment plants, to obviate the need to flare-off biogas. The BUSE Group is building 100 new biogas storage containers, and the generators of Royal Van Twist are to be deployed at dozens of construction sites all over the Netherlands.
About the Sustainable Fuel Chain
The Sustainable Fuel Chain pilot is a joint effort on the part of six organisations in the Dutch province of Gelderland, who are working to realise local fuel chains for biogas at local construction sites. The result is a reduction in emissions of CO₂ (carbon dioxide), nitrogen compounds and particulates. The first of the fuel chains was initiated at the Renkum sewage treatment plant on 18 May 2021 and is due to end on 1 November 2022. As a participant in the pilot, Powercrumbs, together with the district water board, realised a filling station for the supply of biogas for construction firm GMB’s regional projects. BUSE Gas B.V. developed biogas storage containers and Royal Van Twist supplied the gas engine for a hybrid aggregate run on locally produced biogas. Arnhem and Nijmegen College (Hogeschool van Arnhem en Nijmegen/HAN) studied the fuel chain’s environmental impact.
This project was made possible by a grant from the European Union Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
