Optimising Waste Water Treatment for Energy Production

Geotech (UK) has extensive experience in supplying gas monitoring equipment that aids water companies in the treatment and management of waste water sludge through anaerobic digestion for the past forty years.

Geotech’s key products in the water treatment sector include the GA3000 PLUS and BIOGAS 300 fixed gas analysers, the BIOGAS 5000 and GA5000 portable gas analysers and product software support.

Geotech’s BIOGAS 5000 is used by Southern Water in anaerobic digesters on 18 sites across Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Sussex and Kent. As a company that treats and recycles 1,400 million litres of wastewater from nearly two million households, Southern Water has a huge responsibility to ensure that its sewage sludge digesters are secured and working at optimum levels.

Central to achieving this is Southern Water’s ability to effectively monitor and analyse the biogas produced by its sludge digesters. By using Geotech’s equipment as their field instrument, Southern Water was able to measure the concentration levels for CH4, CO2, O2 and H2S. Geotech’s innovation also enables Southern Water to monitor the temperature of these gases. Through this, the water company enjoys the consistent collection of data for improved analysis and accurate reporting.

Due to better data, Southern Water is able to produce the optimal amount of biogas to power its CHP engines; generating its power needs internally. As a result of reducing its energy dependency on the grid, Southern Water has managed to reduce its operational costs and increased revenue. Moving forward Southern Water aims to enhance its power generating capacity through AD, in order to become fully self-sustainable in the near future.