GasMix at Cory’s First AD Plant

Cory Environmental, who with over 40 sites are one of the UK's leading recycling, waste management and energy recovery companies, has unveiled its first anaerobic digestion facility, with Landia’s (UK) acclaimed GasMix system at the heart of the process.

Generating up to 500kw of energy per hour for on-site use and export to the National Grid, Cory’s inaugural digester at Weston-super-Mare has the capacity to handle 12,000 tonnes of food waste pa. Around 7,500 tonnes of this is part of a seven year waste treatment contract with North Somerset Council.

Alistair Holl, Cory’s Director of Resource Management, said: “We are very proud of our first AD facility, for which our team were main contractors, as well as plant and site designers, achieving energy production just 18 months after planning consent was gained. This includes us recognising the importance of a highly effective and ultra-reliable mixing system, which is why we’ve chosen Landia’s GasMix. It mixes the digester throughout at a consistent temperature, which will optimise our gas generation”.

He added: “GasMix is mounted externally on the digester so routine maintenance can be carried out with no interruptions, and from our past experience with Landia, we also have peace of mind in the back up service that they provide”.

For over a decade, Landia’s Chopper Pumps have been installed at other Cory sites – and at Weston-super-Mare, they are also in use in eight other process and storage tanks, where they perform a combination of process mixing and transfer functions. 

Paul Davies, Landia’s UK & Eire Sales Manager commented: “Our relationship with Cory has grown steadily over the years as we’ve worked together to adapt the best possible pumping and aeration solutions for their wastewater needs. We are very pleased to see the faith placed in us and our equipment, with our GasMix system set to play a long-term role in the success of this impressive new facility”.

Alistair Holl continued: “Initially, we’ll be producing enough energy to power around 1,000 homes, and will soon be working towards the second phase of the development, which will see an upgrade of the plant to a minimum of 1MW. This will double the volume of our green energy generation at Weston-super-Mare”.

Comprising three 18.5kW chopper pumps and a self-aspirating system that reduces solids to produce more methane in a much shorter time period, Landia’s GasMix (designed specifically for AD/biogas) has no mechanical equipment inside the digester. Simple to regulate, GasMix also offers significant energy savings because it only has to run for a maximum of 30 per cent of the installed capacity.