ABSTRACT
Anthropic methane emissions can largely be prevented
or minimized using technologies that are already available. One such technology
is anaerobic digestion (AD), which is used commercially around the world,
especially in Europe and the United States, where some challenging targets have
been set to diversify the energy mix with more renewable energy. This foresight
study was designed to identify which technological solutions out of the many
options available for biogas production are attracting most interest, for which
purpose patent documents and scientific publications were analyzed. The aim
is to identify which raw materials are most attractive for AD and biogas
production. It was found that the raw materials that have attracted most research and
patenting activity are sludge, sewage, and wastewater, livestock waste, and
agriculture waste, which together account for 62% of all the patents filed and
74% of all the scientific publications. The countries most engaged in producing
biogas from AD plants are China, Germany, and the United States. We also
identified a rising trend in the use of biogas around the world, and a steady
increase in the number of patents filed on the subject, especially in Japan and
South Korea. This growth is driven, amongst other things, by strategic
governmental actions, global environmental pacts, and the realization on the
part of industry that anaerobic digestion can be used as an efficient method
for treating waste and effluents.