Efficient use of waste heat from biogas plants

Meet Tim Werken from Kleve. He studied electrical engineering in his first degree and is now completing a part-time degree in strategic sustainability management in Eberswalde. Professionally, he advises companies that are active in the energy transition. Just why are we telling you this? Because it is linked to his application to Klever Birne 2024. His second degree has seen him change, he says: the way he sees the world now, the way he walks through the world today. Although he hasn’t lived in Kleve for long, he wants to get involved in his new home.

Linking technology and sustainability

During an excursion as part of his Strategic Sustainability Management degree programme, he got to know the bioenergy village of Bollewick in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. There, electricity is generated from the biomass of the local biogas plants and heat from the waste heat. When he moved to the Lower Rhine region a little more than a year ago, the numerous biogas plants caught Tim Werken’s eye. And this is where the story comes full circle: Tim Werken’s two passions are technology and sustainability, plus his interest in participating in the sustainable development of Kleve. This was the first step towards participating in the Klever Birne.

Efficiency improvement strategies for local biogas plants

What exactly does Tim Werken have in mind with his application for the Klever Birne? “In addition to generating electricity, biogas plants also produce waste heat. In many cases, this is not utilised at all or only to a limited extent. The aim of my project is to find out how the waste heat from biogas plants in the Kleve region is used and what potential for improvement there is,” he explains. “After all, waste heat from biogas plants is a very valuable and directly usable resource. Unfortunately, it is not utilised due to the high financial outlay involved. I want to make it clear to the operators that they can benefit from economic advantages if we work together on solutions for waste heat utilisation.”

The first step is an inventory of the individual plants and discussions with plant owners. The next step is to develop ideas that can be realistically implemented in Kleve. From maximising own use to municipal use with the help of a heating network, many options are feasible.

Looking for networking opportunities

Tim Werken has yet to make contact with farmers from Kleve and the surrounding area, so he would be delighted if people found out about his project and approached him. This opportunity to network with biogas plant operators and local authority representatives is more important to him than the competition prize money. He would have a use for the prize money despite the low financial outlay in the concept phase: For workshops with plant operators, perhaps an excursion to the bioenergy village of Bollewick and, if necessary, consulting services from specialised companies.