Methods for Improving Methane Yield from Rye Straw

The aim of this work is to verify the economic advantage of the upgraded steam explosion technology linked to the biogas station at a commercial scale for straw methanogenesis. New engineering (the pelletizer and mixer were replaced by an underwater grinding apparatus, a material heater was inserted before the continuous high-pressure reactor, and the heat from hot exhaust gases from the cogeneration unit was used to run the technology) and process optimization (addition of used rapeseed oil, which was subsequently emulsified, and increasing the temperature of the anaerobic fermentation process) developed over 472 trials led to the choice of a setup that doubled the net present value of the investment.