Biogas Desulphurisation: Smurfit-Kappa UK

Smurfit Kappa is one of the world’s leading suppliers of paper-based packaging. All raw materials are produced in their own paper factories. A waste stream is generated during production.

Smurfit Kappa Townsend Hook, is one of a total of 34 paper mills whose waste stream is treated. In Snodland (Kent, UK), Smurfit Kappa has chosen to rebuild the entire factory and provide it with optimisations that enable the factory to meet the requirements and wishes of today and be financially viable. One of the optimisations is the installation of a BIDOX® installation to desulphurize the biogas so that the biogas can be used as a natural gas substitute on the boilers. In addition, the discharged water from the BIDOX® is used as anti-scaling in the effluent of water treatment, which is recycled at the factory

The BIDOX® installation is fully constructed in the Netherlands / Belgium, pre-assembled, tested and then transported to the project location. The installation was set up and implemented there in 4 days. When the factory started up, a Colsen process engineer started up the installation on the spot and provided the necessary training to the local staff. This way of working enables Colsen to deploy its people efficiently and yet serve customers at a greater distance from Hulst (NL).

Due to the continuing contact with the operators and technologists of Smurfit Kappa, they have chosen to award Colsen the contract in 2019 to perform an upgrade on the installation. The upgrade involved the provision of the sprinkler system with nozzles that Colsen developed several years after start-up for other BIDOX® installations. By also applying this upgrade in this desulfurization installation, the installation is even more reliable and operational costs are further reduced.