Colorado Pork, LLC: Pollution Control and Energy Production
| Location |
Lamar, Colorado |
| Project Type |
Farm scale |
| Animal Type |
Swine |
| Population |
6,300 sows |
| Baseline System |
Anaerobic lagoon |
| Digester Type |
Complete mix |
| Biogas Use |
Electricity |
| Generating Capacity |
115 kW (85 kW Caterpillar 3306 and 30 kW Capstone microturbine) |
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| Photo: Intermountain CHP Application Center |
Colorado Pork had a desire to construct a digester at their facility to meet odor and water quality regulations and save on energy costs. This was the first anaerobic digester installed in Colorado and the first microturbine in the world to run on biogas at a hog farm. While the project is no longer operating due to a change in ownership (not digester system failure), it is a good example of what can be done at a hog farm.
The combined heat and power (CHP) system consisted of a microturbine and an engine, which was a natural gas design modified to run on biogas. Since the biogas going to the engine was not conditioned (i.e., no moisture or sulfur removal), the engine lubrication oil was changed every 10 days. The microturbine system included a CompAir HydroVane gas compressor to boost the pressure of the gas. Heat recovered from the microturbine was used to maintain the digester temperature at 102° F.
Benefits of the Colorado Pork, LLC digester project included the following:
- Reduced odor
- Reduced methane emissions
- Reduced electricity costs by two-thirds
- Reduced manure volume, resulting in fewer costly clean-out procedures
The farm did not generate enough biogas to run both systems at full capacity. Thus, the microturbine ran continuously, while the engine typically ran at 60 kW. At night, the engine switched to run on natural gas to avoid reducing biogas pressure and collapsing the digester cover. The remainder of the electricity needed on the farm was provided by Southeast Colorado Power Association. The CHP equipment at the facility was sized to allow for future increases in biogas production rates and greater electricity production.
The digester system at Colorado Pork is currently shutdown.
The CHP system at Colorado Pork, LLC has provided both economic and environmental benefits to the farm.
—Ed Lewis, Colorado Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation
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