Application of LHC Gas Recuperation Systems for Methane Emission Control in Livestock Housing

Abstract

The CH4rLiE (CH4 Livestock Emission) project investigates the technical feasibility of adapting gas recovery systems from high-energy physics to mitigate methane (CH4) emissions in livestock housing. This work presents a proof-of-principle based on the adaptation of CERN's gas recuperation systems for the capture of CH4 at low concentrations. A laboratory-scale prototype was developed to evaluate the performance of various adsorbent materials under realistic conditions, including multi-stage humidity removal and pressurized gas flows. Experimental results obtained with the prototype led to the selection of commercial Z5 zeolite as the primary adsorbent due to its high adsorption capacity and stable regeneration performance through Vacuum Swing Adsorption cycles. The study demonstrates the feasibility of CH4 capture at concentrations down to 0.1%. Furthermore, it was observed that increasing the CH4 partial pressure enhances the adsorption capacity, with tests conducted up to approximately 5 bar. To bridge the gap between laboratory conditions and the representative 10-100 ppm levels found in dairy barn environments, a negative exponential extrapolation was applied to the experimental data. This allowed for the modeling of the adsorption behavior in the ultra-low concentration regime. These results validate the operational principle and provide the necessary parameters for the design of a full-scale system for field installation.