Air Products’ PRISM® Membrane technology is enabling vehicles to run on methane at quasar energy group’s biomethane refueling facility in Columbus, Ohio. PRISM® PB Membrane modules are the key component of quasar’s biofueling plant, which uses anaerobic digestion to convert biogas generated from waste products into purified biomethane. The purified methane produced by quasar is currently fueling 25-50 municipal trucks, fleet vehicles, and non-commercial CNG vehicles every day.
“It is exciting to provide our PRISM Membrane technology to a company like quasar and see it play a key role in a process that basically takes waste—some of which would have traditionally been hauled to a solid waste landfill—and converts it to energy,” said Mark Kappes, business manager of membranes at Air Products. “This project illustrates Air Products’ commitment to biofuels and renewable energy, and is another example of how our technology solutions are helping customers minimize their impact on the environment.”
“quasar is committed to producing fuel from organic waste at our anaerobic digestion systems,” said Melvin R. Kurtz, president of quasar. “We are proud to collaborate with Air Products to demonstrate the viability of their PRISM Membrane technology in biogas applications.”
Air Products’ PRISM PB Membrane modules are the cost-effective way to manufacture a continuous stream of biomethane on-site. These robust modules contain hollow fiber membranes that use selective permeation to remove unwanted components from the biogas stream, producing methane that is greater than 97% pure. The resulting stream of high-quality methane is suitable for fueling vehicles, feeding into the gas grid, or any other outlet that uses natural gas.