Plant Profile: Lincoln Dairy RNG

Location: Auburn, New York, USA

Capacity: 274 SCFM of RNG

In-service date: Q2 2024

Input materials: 85 million gallons of manure

Special features:  

  • 100% operation with dairy manure
  • Direct feeding from the barns into two digesters
  • Everything in one location: biogas production, gas upgrading, grid feeding.

 

Key facts

 

The Lincoln Biogas facility in Auburn, New York, utilizes a standardized, simple, and effective biogas technology to convert manure from 10,000 dairy cattle into RNG 24/7. This translates to processing roughly 85 million gallons of manure annually, and 274 SCFM of RNG.

Liquid manure is pumped directly from nearby barns into the two massive 2.2-million-gallon digesters, where it's converted into biogas and eventually upgraded to RNG. EnviTec provided the entire system, including the digesters, the EnviThan gas upgrading system with smart controls, a hot water heating skid, and an oxygen container for desulfurization. A clever design feature allows any unused biomethane in the underground pipes to be recycled back into the digesters, preventing methane (CH4) emissions. Finally, the finished RNG is compressed and fed directly into the local gas grid.

The leftover digestate, a valuable fertilizer, is transported from the digesters through a recirculation shaft to a nearby lagoon (approximately 600 feet away). From the lagoon, it can be applied to agricultural fields as a high-quality nutrient source.

South Jersey Industries (SJI) of New Jersey, a trusted partner of EnviTec, owns the Lincoln Biogas facility. EnviTec has a successful track record with SJI, having completed 4 out of their 15 biogas projects across various US states.

By reducing greenhouse gas emissions across various sectors like transportation, maritime, and aviation, RNG serves as a valuable decentralized clean fuel source.

 

Impressions