Our Free CI Score Calculator

Calculate CI Score with Simple Known Parameters

Our free evaluation is a quick and easy way to calculate your CI Score and estimate your gas production for dairy or swine operations. Empirical data has been used to estimate typical energy consumption for processes such as manure handling, heating, and post digestor processing as well as natural gas upgrading and compression.

Free CI Score Calculator Explanation

This free calculator is based on the Tier 1 Simplified CI Calculator for Biomethane from Anaerobic Digestion of Dairy and Swine Manure released by CARB on August 13, 2018. It can be found at arb.ca.gov website. This free model has been simplified, removing most of the optionality contained in our decision tree based commercial CI Scoring Tool, to allow for it to be economically programmed and included on this website.

Our commercial tool is also built upon the Tier 1 Simplified CI Calculator for Biomethane from Anaerobic Digestion of Dairy and Swine Manure, but includes additional dairy and swine categories with more robust energy calculation inputs, enhanced options to better replicate the existing farm, as well as additional parameters to optimize equipment selection.

The commercial CI Scoring Tool provides gross revenues for the commodity, RIN and LCFS credits, while estimating electric, propane, natural gas expenses and H2S treatments. Because our commercial CI Scoring Tool is decision tree based, our clients can quickly and easily perform “what if” analysis. For instance, our client can opt to install a screw press to remove biosolids from the digestate and use them for bedding. Our CI Scoring Tool will then estimate the methane emission reductions from the lagoon and offset that by the additional electricity consumed by this equipment. In addition, our commercial CI Scoring Tool can provide estimates of the total bottom-line impact from using renewable electricity, or sensitivities showing revenue impacts associated with covering the digestate lagoon and capturing or flaring that methane, etc.

Finally, to come full circle, our CI Scoring Tool has been linked to a capital costing module that will allow our clients to quickly determine the capital expenses for the various options.

Free CI Score Calculator Assumptions

• Upgrader tail gas is routed to flare
• Controlled venting (to flare) occurs 3 days per month (upgrader uptime assumed to be ~90%)
• Uncontrolled venting occurs for 2.5 days every 5 years (when digester is cleaned out)
• Average temperature based on state data from NOAA using 2000 - 2020 average temperatures