LFG Learnings Report: Digital Asset Computing Is an Economically Viable Approach to Reducing Landfill Methane Emissions

Summary

On this research, we reveal that it isn’t solely possible however economically viable and environmentally useful to make use of landfill fuel (LFG) for digital asset compute (e.g., Bitcoin mining). To help this principle, Marathon partnered with Nodal Energy to harness extra capability from their mission, which is solely powered by landfill methane fuel. This partnership, leveraging Nodal’s patented know-how, efficiently utilized methane from a landfill, transformed it into electrical energy, and used it to energy the on-site information middle. This course of proved to be constantly dependable, with excessive uptime and emerged financially useful for Marathon and Nodal. The price of electrical energy was considerably decrease than the {industry} common, and the landfill generated income from a beforehand untapped useful resource that might in any other case have been wasted. Moreover, powering compute with landfill fuel effectively lowered methane emissions. In eventualities the place the landfill would have resorted to flaring the methane, digital asset compute proved to be simpler in mitigating emissions.

This pilot mission was Marathon’s first profitable check run of “vitality harvesting,” which incorporates initiatives devoted to changing waste into vitality, methane fuel recapture, stabilizing vitality grids by using stranded or extra vitality, and reusing warmth generated by information facilities for industrial and industrial functions.

Introduction

Methane is a potent greenhouse fuel with a worldwide warming potential 80 occasions larger than carbon dioxide over a 20-year interval. In line with the World Methane Evaluation, “attaining methane emissions reductions within the subsequent decade will maintain the planet considerably cooler than makes an attempt to chop carbon dioxide emissions alone.” In our Cashing in on Trash report, we cited that landfills are accountable for 11% of worldwide methane emissions, with current research suggesting that these emissions is perhaps 1.4 to 2.6 occasions greater than beforehand estimated.

Recognizing that landfills are main emitters of methane, we believed there was a chance to make landfills extra sustainable with our digital asset compute applied sciences. Giant landfills able to producing ample portions of methane have the choice to economically scale back their emissions by waste-to-energy conversion applied sciences. These websites can convert captured methane into two types of sustainable vitality: 1) electrical energy, which might be offered to the grid, and a couple of) renewable pure fuel (RNG), which might be distributed by pipelines. Sadly, conventional waste-to-energy conversion strategies are sometimes not possible or economical for smaller or extra distant landfills. In our report, we proposed a extra viable, win-win answer that we believed was possible right now for smaller landfills: seize methane from landfills, convert it into electrical energy, and energy digital asset information facilities to economically scale back methane emissions.

To check our principle, Marathon launched a pilot mission by becoming a member of Nodal’s off-grid digital asset compute facility to energy a Bitcoin information middle with 100% renewable, off-grid vitality from a landfill.

Pilot Particulars

• Location: Utah, USA
• Launch Date: September 27, 2023
• Pilot Standing: On-going
• Period: 240+ days
• Capability: 270 kW
• Computing Gear: 83 S19J Professionals
• Operational Hash Charge (computing energy): 8.3 PH/s

Determine 1: Marathon’s and Nodal’s Challenge

The outcomes from this pilot supported our preliminary principle. Marathon and Nodal utilized methane from the landfill and transformed it into electrical energy to energy a digital asset information middle. The landfill efficiently lowered its methane emissions whereas producing a income stream it in any other case couldn’t have earned. Marathon and Nodal realized an vitality price considerably beneath the {industry} common and maintained an above-average operational uptime. Moreover, this was Marathon’s first profitable trial of “vitality harvesting,” marking a big milestone in our improvement of sustainable and inclusive vitality tasks. These tasks embrace changing waste into vitality, methane fuel recapture, stabilizing the vitality grid by using stranded or extra vitality, and reusing warmth generated by mining programs for industrial and industrial processes.

Definitions and Calculations of Key Metrics

Throughout our pilot mission, we tracked numerous metrics to judge the effectiveness and impression of our operations. The next are the important thing metrics used on this report, every outlined with its definition and calculation methodology.

Common Operational Hash Charge

The typical hash charge or computing energy that was generated throughout a selected time interval from all operational digital asset computing units, measured in petahashes per second (PH/s).

Pool reported hash charge per day / Whole days

Operational Uptime

The proportion of time that the computing units have been practical and actively working.

Operational uptime = Minutes with pool reported hash charge / Whole minutes

Methane Utilized

The amount of methane fuel (CH4) that was harnessed for era, measured in Customary Cubic Toes (SCF).

CH4 utilized (SCF) = Common petahash (PH/s) × Methane utilization charge (SCF/PH/s/Day) × Days

Carbon Dioxide Equal Emissions (C02e)

CO2e quantifies the worldwide warming impression of assorted greenhouse gases, like methane, by evaluating their impact to that of an equal quantity of carbon dioxide. This comparability relies on every fuel’s World Warming Potential (GWP), an element that represents the comparative warming impact of a unit of the fuel relative to the identical unit of CO2 over a selected timeframe. We used a GWP timeline of 20 years (issue: 84) and 100 years (issue: 28).

C02e = CH4 kilos utilized * GWP issue

Observe: We assumed one SCF of CH4 equals 0.045 kilos at one environment and 80 levels Fahrenheit.

Common Gas Value per Kilowatt-hour (kWh)

The typical price of electrical energy per kWh consists of operational and upkeep bills.

Common Gas Value per kWh =

(SCF × 0.001002 dekatherms per SCF × methane content material proportion × charge per dekatherm / kwh) + (operations and upkeep price / kWh)

Outcomes

The outcomes offered on this part mirror the primary 240 days of the pilot mission, spanning from September 27, 2023, to Could 24, 2024. It is very important observe that these findings don’t embody the complete period of the mission however focus particularly on this era.

Methane Utilized

Over the course of 240 days, we utilized roughly 16.1 million SCF of methane. This determine was estimated from the every day utilization charge, which was roughly 8,400 SCF of methane for every petahash operational.

Had we not harnessed this methane, the landfill would have flared it. Whereas flaring does scale back the worldwide warming potential of methane by changing it into carbon dioxide, it’s only about 92% environment friendly. On common, 8% of flared methane nonetheless escapes into the environment. By redirecting the methane to energy a reciprocating engine to provide electrical energy for Nodal’s information middle, we achieved a close to 100% mitigation effectivity. This strategy resulted in us mitigating a further 672 SCF of methane every day per petahash, which might in any other case not have been mitigated by flaring. Within the span of 240 days, we prevented the discharge of roughly 1.3 million SCF of methane into the environment.

Determine 2: Methane Utilized by Marathon’s and Nodal’s LFG Pilot Challenge (240 Day Period)

Carbon Dioxide Equal Affect

To contextualize the environmental impression of our pilot mission, we calculated its methane utilization in its carbon dioxide equal utilizing a GWP timeline of 20 years and 100 years.

Of the overall 16.1 million SCF of methane we utilized, our findings point out that we helped forestall the discharge of roughly 60.9 million kilos of C02e utilizing a 20-year GWP timeline and 20.3 million kilos of CO2e utilizing the 100-year GWP timeline.

In line with the Environmental Safety Company (EPA), a mean gas-powered passenger automobile emits about 9,200 kilos of C02 yearly. Thus, over the course of 240 days, our mission mitigated the equal of 6,627 gas-powered passenger vehicles utilizing the 20-year GWP timeline and a couple of,209 gas-powered passenger vehicles utilizing the 100-year GWP timeline.

If we solely think about the extra 1.2 million SCF of methane mitigated along with flaring, we prevented the discharge of roughly 4.8 million kilos of C02e utilizing a 20-year GWP timeline and roughly 1.6 million kilos of CO2e utilizing the 100-year GWP timeline. Thus, over the course of 240 days, our mission mitigated the equal of the yearly emissions from 530 gas-powered passenger vehicles utilizing the 20-year GWP timeline and 177 gas-powered passenger vehicles utilizing the 100-year GWP timeline.

Determine 3: Carbon Dioxide Equal Methane Utilized by Marathon’s and Nodal’s LFG Pilot Challenge (240 Day Period)

Operational Effectivity and Uptime

We used a reciprocating engine on-site to transform the methane into electrical energy. This engine produced as much as 10,000 BTU per kWh, equating to a conversion effectivity of roughly 34%. In comparison with the common coal and present nuclear energy vegetation, which function at an effectivity of round 32% and 33%, respectively, Nodal’s generator operated at a barely greater effectivity.

Determine 4: Effectivity of the Common Pure Gasoline Energy Vegetation, Current Nuclear Energy Vegetation, and Coal Energy Vegetation Versus Nodal’s On-Web site Reciprocating Generator

Determine 5: On-Web site Reciprocating Generator and Knowledge Heart

Furthermore, to successfully harness the methane for generator use, it underwent therapy by a fuel compression and conditioning skid. This important step refined and pressurized the methane to satisfy crucial requirements. The extent of therapy depends upon the fuel high quality, immediately influenced by the landfill’s natural matter composition. On this explicit case, the landfill fuel contained roughly 50% methane, leading to a relatively decrease stage of therapy requirement.

Determine 6: Gasoline Compression and Conditioning Skid

A key side of the mission’s success was the landfill’s means to generate a constant stream of methane as a consequence of its favorable waste composition and quantity. Going into the mission, we anticipated an operational uptime of 85%, which is roughly on par with the {industry} common. Nonetheless, our pilot exceeded expectations, attaining an uptime of 92%. Downtimes have been primarily as a consequence of upkeep functions and weren’t as a consequence of a scarcity of fuel availability.

Determine 7: Common Operational Uptime of Marathon’s and Nodal’s Pilot Challenge

*The typical uptime of digital asset compute suppliers relies on the common Bitcoin hash charge realization charge. These suppliers embrace Iris Vitality, Bitdeer Applied sciences Group, Hive Digital Applied sciences, Bit Digital, CleanSpark, TeraWulf, Core Scientific, Cipher Mining Applied sciences, Riot Platforms, Marathon Digital Holdings, Argo Blockchain, Hut 8, and Digihost Expertise. The information was accessed on Could 28, 2024, and will have modified since then.

Monetary Advantages for Marathon, Nodal, and the Landfill

Nodal’s Energy Plant generates electrical energy at a charge of $0.03 per kWh, which incorporates operational and upkeep prices. This charge is lower than half the common $0.08 per kWh paid by the economic sector.

Determine 8: Common Gas Prices Together with Electrical energy, Operational, and Upkeep Prices of Marathon’s and Nodal’s LFG Pilot Challenge

Our pilot mission was not eligible for carbon credit or renewable vitality credit (RECs), advantages that many comparable websites usually obtain. If we had certified for these incentives, our computing bills would have been considerably decrease.

Over the 240 days, Marathon and Nodal utilized roughly 1.4 million kWh of electrical energy, which the landfill was capable of generate income from. With out Marathon’s and Nodal’s pilot mission, the landfill would have flared the surplus methane, yielding no extra monetary profit. Confronted with restricted choices, the landfill may both flare the methane with none monetary acquire or harness it to energy an on-site information middle. The latter possibility, as evidenced by the pilot mission, not solely prevented waste but additionally turned a beforehand unprofitable byproduct right into a income.

Conclusion

The outcomes from our pilot mission efficiently validated our preliminary principle. Digital asset compute shouldn’t be solely attainable but additionally an economically viable possibility to scale back methane emissions from landfills. Marathon and Nodal efficiently captured methane from a landfill, transformed it into electrical energy, and used it to energy Nodal’s information middle. For information middle operators like Marathon and Nodal, the mission was financially advantageous, as we realized a lower-than-industry common price for computing with reliably excessive uptime. For the landfill, which beforehand didn’t have an incentive to place the methane fuel into productive use, digital asset compute offered a catalyst to scale back emissions extra successfully by creating a brand new earnings stream that in any other case couldn’t have been generated. This mission was, certainly, a win-win for all events concerned.

Moreover, we imagine the strategies and insights gained from this mission open the door to new alternatives at landfill websites and different industries the place we are able to leverage our vitality harvesting applied sciences to faucet underutilized or wasted vitality sources and switch them into productive, extra sustainable belongings.

Disclaimer: This report is offered for common informational functions solely. The opinions expressed within the report might differ from these expressed by Marathon Digital Holdings (“MDH”), its officers, staff, administrators or advisors or their associates. The data on this report doesn’t represent funding, authorized, accounting or different recommendation or data by MDH or its officers, staff, administrators or advisors or their associates. Data has been obtained from sources believed to be dependable, however MDH or its associates don’t warrant its completeness or accuracy. Outlooks and previous efficiency are usually not ensures of future outcomes. The data within the report could also be modified with out discover and isn’t assured to be full, appropriate or up-to-date, and will not mirror probably the most present developments.