Posted on December 20, 2021 at 8:13 AM by Joey Lamie
Work completed this last week included completion of the connections of the new gas wells to the gas extraction system as well as the installation of 14 pumps in wells that contained water. The entire system was tested, including the final pressure test on recently installed lines, and the pumps in the wells. The contractor also performed cleanup work, and a final walk-through with the Engineer was conducted to evaluate if the construction was in conformance with the specifications. The contractor was issued a Substantial Completion and any minor issues identified were addressed before the contractor demobilized.
Now that all the gas wells are connected and tested, the well field needs to be calibrated, well by well and as a complete system. It will take several weeks to balance the entire well field, and even then, the system will require constant tuning to make sure the system is operating efficiently. The initial readings with the new wells online, but only slightly open to the vacuum, show an increase in the gas flow. In anticipation of an increase in gas flow, a second flare with sufficient capacity was brought to the site as a temporary measure until the energy company can obtain a larger blower. The second flare was installed and connected into the system such that the gas can be handled at one or both of the flares. Additionally, bringing the second flare online has allowed an upgrade to the existing flare to be done, which is ongoing. Another upgrade being made to the system is the installation of a valve to allow the energy company to utilize the gas and direct unused gas to the flare while running the engines – this was not possible on the prior setup. All of these upgrades will improve the entire landfill gas extraction and beneficial reuse system.