In September 2016, the engineers at the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility (IAWWTF) asked the ESW Biofuels team to examine the feasibility of converting biogas into compressed bio-natural gas (bio-CNG) for vehicle fueling. The IAWWTF currently produces biogas from anaerobically digesting waste streams and uses this biogas for cogeneration at their facility. Our team analyzed the possibility of using future capacity of the IAWWTF to fuel TCAT buses once the facility had met its own electricity demand through cogeneration.

To solve this open-ended problem, we began by researching the biogas to bio-CNG conversion process and contacting companies that manufactured bio-CNG production and fueling units. We also communicated with the Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit Company (TCAT), the area's local bussing company, about their fleet's annual diesel demand and possibility of utilizing bio-CNG in their vehicles.

After collecting data from these sources, our team worked to create a model that compared the greenhouse gas emissions and economic costs of bio-CNG production versus status quo operations of cogeneration in the scenario that the IAWWTF meets their own electricity demand. The team wrote an extensive feasibility report for the IAWWTF that compared these two options, and ultimately concluded that status quo operations may be the most economically favorable and technically feasible option for the facility at this time.