Room: Yangtze 1
Date: Friday, 22 May 2026
Time: 11:30 - 12:45 CEST
Session code 5DO.6
Biogas and hydrogen conversion to fuels
Optimization of Biological Methanation in Trickle Bed Reactors Through Hydrodynamic Tests
Short Introductive summary
Within the framework of Power-to-Gas (PtG) systems, in which surplus renewable electricity is converted into biomethane for medium and long-term energy storage, this study examines the ex-situ biological methanation (BM) process in trickle bed reactors (TBR). Two laboratory-scale TBR units, one operating at atmospheric pressure and the other at 6 bar, were investigated to assess the influence of key operating variables, including temperature and transient (dynamic) conditions, on BM performance. Elevated temperature conditions enhanced the enzymatic activity of hydrogenotrophic methanogens but concurrently reduced gas solubility, thereby limiting mass transfer efficiency and ultimately lowering overall process performance. Under dynamic operation, both reactors exhibited rapid recovery following standby phases, demonstrating their suitability for integration with variable renewable energy inputs. In parallel, a systematic hydrodynamic characterization was performed to optimize TBR packing materials with the objective of maximizing methane production rates and gas purity through improved hydrogen transfer. Five types of packing (Hel-X, polystyrene, ceramic carriers, granular activat
Presenter
Maria NORDIO
Ricerca sul Sistema Energetico - RSE, ITALY
Presenter's biography
Researcher at Ricerca sul Sistema Energetico (RSE S.p.A), working on biological methanation in semi-pilot trickle bed reactors. I hold a MSc in Energy Engineering from Politecnico di Milano and a PhD in Chemical Engineering from Eindhoven University of Technology
Biographies and Short introductive summaries are supplied directly by presenters and are published here unedited
Co-authors:
M. Mastroleo, Ricerca Sul sistema Energetico, Milan, ITALY
Session reference: 5DO.6.5