Energy 27 (2002) 25–34

www.elsevier.com/locate/energy

A mathematical model for fixed dome type biogas plant

*
H. Raheman
Agricultural and Food Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur 721302, India
Received 12 December 1999

Abstract

This paper describes the development of a mathematical model for determining the dimensions of a
fixed dome type Deenbandhu model biogas plant, the most popular model constructed in India. The
developed model could estimate the different dimensions within an absolute variation of 6%. This will
help the designers to determine the dimensions of various capacities of a Deenbandhu model biogas plant
for different hydraulic retention times to suit the local climatic conditions.  2001 Elsevier Science Ltd.
All rights reserved.

1. Introduction

Development of biogas technology in India began more than half a century ago. Currently, 2.7
million domestic biogas plants have been constructed in the whole country [1]. Basically these
plants are fed with cow dung which is easily available in rural areas. Despite the increasing
popularity and acceptance of this promising renewable energy technology, the two basic designs,
the Khadi and Village Industry Commission (KVIC) model (floating dome plant with a cylindrical
digester) and Janata model (fixed dome plant with a brick reinforced moulded dome) digesters
remain, by and large, beyond the reach of most rural households. So, a cheaper model of the
same hydraulic retention time (HRT) which is 30 and 45% less expensive than the Janata and
KVIC models, respectively, was developed in 1982, making use of structural engineering prin-
ciples as well as of an organisation, Action for Food Production (AFPRO), which has extensive
experience in working with fixed dome type biogas plant [2]. Basically, it is a fixed dome model
biogas plant which has been named the Deenbandhu model biogas plant. It is currently gaining
wide popularity in India. Dimensions of the Deenbandhu biogas plant for various capacities using
cow dung as the feeding material are available only for 40 and 55 HRT, regardless of the climatic

* Tel.: +91-03222-83160; fax: +91-03222-82244.

E-mail address: hifjur@agfe.iitkgp.ernet.in (H. Raheman).

0360-5442/02/$ - see front matter  2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 3 6 0 - 5 4 4 2 ( 0 1 ) 0 0 0 5 4 - 8
26 H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34

conditions. However, with the change in global atmosphere, i.e. the rise in atmospheric tempera-
ture, the retention period of biogas plants has to be changed to suit the local climatic conditions.
Unfortunately, dimensions other than 40 and 55 HRT are not available. So, this study was under-
taken to help determine the dimensions of domestic type Deenbandhu biogas plants with 1 to 6
cubic meter capacities for 30 to 55 HRT.

Fig. 1. Components of a Deenbandu model biogas plant.

 H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34 27

Table 1
Actual dimensions of Deenbandhu model biogas plant

Sl Components Capacity of biogas plant, m3/day

No.
1 2 3 4 6
40 HRT 55 HRT 40 HRT 55 HRT 40 HRT 55 HRT 40 HRT 55 HRT 40 HRT 55 HRT

1. Height of initial 550 595 720 790 850 940 960 1030 1160 1275
slurry level from
the centre line
(A), mm
2. Height of lower 420 450 510 560 580 636 636 700 720 790
concave from the
centre line (B),
mm
3. Height of slurry 370 395 545 640 650 760 720 800 870 1025
level from the
centre line after
maximum gas
storage (C), mm
4. Lower concave 2100 2250 2550 2800 2900 3180 3180 3500 3600 3950
aperture diameter
(D), mm
5. Upper dome 1050 1125 1275 1400 1450 1590 1590 1750 1800 1975
radius (R1), mm
6. Lower concave 1695 1795 2015 2210 2280 2490 2420 2660 2870 3170
radius (R2), mm
7. Height of lower 475 520 645 715 775 865 885 995 1060 1275
outlet tank (E),
mm
8. Height of upper 350 350 400 450 430 480 460 550 460 550
outlet tank (F),
mm
9. Width of upper 940 940 1650 1465 2325 2080 2890 2420 3620 3436
outlet tank (G),
mm

2. Literature review

The production of biogas is affected by many factors such as feed material, atmospheric tem-
perature, C/N ratio, pH of the slurry, HRT, loading rate, etc. [3–5]. For a particular feed material
and loading rate, the temperature and HRT factors are crucial while other factors remain more
or less constant. Studies conducted by various researchers [3–5] indicate that higher atmospheric
temperature results in higher gas production. Based on the atmospheric temperature and the type
of feeding material available, the hydraulic retention time of a biogas plant is decided for a
particular area. In India, cow dung is primarily used as the feeding material for biogas production,
so atmospheric temperature is the sole criteria for determining the hydraulic retention time of
biogas plants. At present, however, due to nonavailability of design dimensions, either 40 or 55
28 H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34

Fig. 2. (a) Lower concave radius for different capacities of Deenbandhu model biogas plant. (b) Upper dome radius
for different capacities of Deenbandhu model biogas plant.

HRT biogas plants are constructed in India regardless of atmospheric temperatures and this
decreases their efficiency. So, design dimensions from 30 to 55 HRT are necessary to match the
increasing global temperature throughout the whole country.

3. Materials and methods

The components of a Deenbandhu model biogas plant are shown in Fig. 1 and the basic design
of the plant is as follows [2]:

Fig. 3. (a) Height of slurry level after maximum gas storage for different capacities of Deenbandhu model biogas
plant. (b) Height of upper outlet tank for different capacities of Deenbandhu model biogas plant.
 H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34 29

1. The diameter of the base is almost the same as the diameter of the Janata model biogas plant
(another fixed dome model biogas plant).
2. The gas holding capacity of the Deenbandhu biogas plant is 33% of its daily gas production
capacity.
3. The effluent discharge opening in the outlet displacement chamber is at least 150 mm lower
than the bottom of the gas outlet pipe, which is flush with the ceiling. This has been done to
prevent the slurry from entering the gas pipeline.
4. The ratio of base diameter to rise of arch has been kept as 5:1 for the lower concave portion
of the plant.
5. The gas yield per kg of fresh cow dung is equal to 0.04 m3.

4. Development of mathematical model

The dimensions available for Deenbandhu model biogas plants of 1 to 6 m3 capacities were
collected for 40 and 55 HRT periods as given in Table 1. The dimensions of various components
Table 2
Values of constants log a and b for different components of a Deenbandhu model biogas plant

Sl Components 40 HRT 55 HRT

No.
Log a b R2 SYY Log a b R2 SYY

1. Height of initial 2.724 0.438 0.99 0.004 2.766 0.428 0.99 0.009
slurry level from
the centre line
(A)
2. Height of lower 2.610 0.314 0.99 0.0008 2.654 0.315 0.99 0.001
concave from the
centre line (B)
3. Height of slurry 2.580 0.471 0.99 0.0129 2.619 0.511 0.99 0.032
level from the
centre line after
maximum gas
storage (C)
4. Lower concave 3.312 0.314 0.99 0.0008 3.353 0.315 0.99 0.002
aperture diameter
(D)
5. Upper dome 3.011 0.314 0.99 0.0008 3.052 0.315 0.99 0.002
radius (R1)
6. Lower concave 3.229 0.287 0.99 0.0107 3.251 0.308 0.99 0.009
radius (R2)
7. Height of lower 2.676 0.449 0.99 0.0011 2.709 0.485 0.99 0.017
outlet tank (E)
8. Height of upper 2.551 0.163 0.95 0.0127 2.558 0.264 0.94 0.023
outlet tank (F)
9. Width of upper 2.984 0.767 0.99 0.193 2.959 0.745 0.99 0.023
outlet tank (G)
30 H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34

of a Deenbandhu plant such as radius of curvature for the lower concave and upper dome, height
of slurry level after maximum gas storage and height of upper outlet tank are plotted against the
capacities of the plant as shown in Fig. 2 (a) and (b) and Fig. 3 (a) and (b), respectively. It was
found that these data fit into an equation of parabolic form:
Y⫽aXb⇒log Y⫽log a⫹b log X (1)
where Y=variable (components of the Deenbandhu model biogas plant), X=capacity of the plant
and log a and b=constants which vary with HRT for any component of the biogas plant. The
constants log a and b for different components of the plant were calculated for 40 and 55 HRT
and are given in Table 2. These values of log a and b were found to have a linear relationship
with HRT as follows:
log a⫽m(HRT)⫹c (2)
and
log b⫽m⬘(HRT)⫹c⬘ (3)
where, m, m⬘, c and c⬘ vary for different components of the Deenbandhu model biogas plant.
Their values were calculated and are given in Table 3.
In order to determine the dimensions of any component of the Deenbandhu model biogas plant,
first the HRT must be decided. Then, with the help of Table 3 and Eq. (2) and Eq. (3), the values
of log a and b are to be determined. Knowing the values of log a and b and using Eq. (1), the
dimensions of the different components of the plant can be determined. To facilitate the compu-
tation work, a computer programme was written in C language.

Table 3
Values of constants m, c and m⬘, c⬘ for different components of a Deenbandhu model biogas plant

Sl. Components m c m⬘ c⬘
No.

1. Height of initial slurry level from 2.7993×10⫺3 2.6123 ⫺6.576×10⫺4 0.4644

the centre line (A)
2. Height of lower concave from the 2.9241×10⫺3 2.4935 1.94×10⫺4 0.3065
centre line (B)
3. Height of slurry level from the 2.6533×10⫺3 2.4792 2.66×10⫺3 0.3646
centre line after maximum gas
storage (C)
4. Lower concave aperture diameter 2.6986×10⫺3 3.204 1.94×10⫺4 0.3605
(D)
5. Upper dome radius (R1) 2.7026×10⫺3 2.9023 1.94×10⫺4 03065
6. Lower concave radius (R2) 0.001874 3.1478 0.001449 0.2287
7. Height of lower outlet tank (E) 2.2301×10⫺3 2.6050 2.402×10⫺3 0.3528
8. Height of upper outlet tank (F) 4.9893×10⫺4 2.5307 6.694×10⫺3 ⫺0.1047
9. Width of upper outlet tank (G) ⫺1.6927×10⫺3 3.051 ⫺1.489×10⫺3 0.8266
Table 4
Estimated dimensions of a Deenbandhu model biogas plant (40 HRT)a

Sl Different components Capacity of biogas plant, m3/day

No.
1 2 4 6

H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34

Actual Estimated Abs. Actual Estimated Abs. Actual Estimated Abs. Actual Estimated Abs.
Variation Variation Variation Variation

1. Height of initial slurry level 550.0 530.0 3.77 720.0 718.04 0.27 960.0 972.82 1.32 1160.0 1161.92 0.16
from the centre line (A), mm
2. Height of lower concave from 420.0 407.82 2.99 510.0 507.07 0.58 636.0 630.47 0.88 720.0 716.15 0.54
the centre line (B), mm
3. Height of slurry level from the 370.0 384.89 3.87 545.0 533.57 2.14 720.0 739.69 2.66 870.0 895.43 2.84
centre line after maximum gas
storage (C), mm
4. Lower concave aperture 2100.0 2050.9 2.39 2550.0 2550.0 0.00 3180.0 3170.6 0.29 3600.0 3601.52 0.04
diameter (D), mm
5. Upper dome radius (R1), mm 1050.0 1026.4 2.30 1275.0 1276.2 0.09 1590.0 1586.7 0.21 1800.0 1802.38 0.13
6. Lower concave radius (R2), mm 1695.0 1670.2 1.48 2015.0 2037.2 1.09 2420.0 2484.9 2.61 2870.0 2791.17 2.82
7. Height of lower outlet tank (E), 475.0 494.54 3.95 645.0 675.0 4.44 885.0 921.31 3.94 1060.0 1105.18 4.08
mm
8. Height of upper outlet tank (F), 350.0 355.31 1.49 400.0 397.82 0.54 460.0 445.43 3.27 460.0 475.87 3.33
mm
9. Width of upper outlet tank (G), 940.0 962.26 2.31 1650.0 1637.5 0.76 2890.0 2786.7 3.71 3620.0 3803.23 4.82
mm

a
Abs. Variation=|(Estimated value⫺Actual value)×100/Estimated value|.

31
 32
Table 5
Estimated dimensions of a Deenbandhu model biogas plant (55 HRT)a

Sl Different components Capacity of biogas plant, m3/day

No.
1 2 4 6

H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34

Actual Estimated Abs. Actual Estimated Abs. Actual Estimated Abs. Actual Estimated Abs.
Variation Variation Variation Variation

1. Height of initial slurry level 595.0 583.80 1.91 790.0 785.55 0.57 1030.0 1057.0 2.56 1275.0 1257.45 1.39
from the centre line (A), mm
2. Height of lower concave from 450.0 451.15 0.26 560.0 562.08 0.37 700.0 700.29 0.04 790.0 796.40 0.80
the centre line (B), mm
3 Height of slurry level from the 395.0 421.82 6.36 640.0 601.21 6.45 800.0 856.89 6.64 1025.0 1054.3 2.78
centre line after maximum gas
storage (C), mm
4. Lower concave aperture 2250.0 2251.2 0.06 2800.0 2804.8 0.17 3500.0 3494.4 0.16 3950.0 3974.01 0.60
diameter (D), mm
5. Upper dome radius (R1), mm 1125.0 1126.8 0.16 1400.0 1403.8 0.27 1750.0 1749.0 0.05 1975.0 1989.07 0.71
6. Lower concave radius (R2), mm 1795.0 1781.8 0.73 2210.0 2206.4 0.16 2660.0 2732.2 2.64 3170.0 3096.06 2.39
7. Height of lower outlet tank (E), 520.0 534.14 2.65 715.0 747.48 4.35 955.08 1046.0 8.70 1275.0 1273.28 0.13
mm
8. Height of upper outlet tank (F), 350.0 361.49 3.18 450.0 433.91 3.71 550.0 520.85 5.59 550.0 579.57 5.10
mm
9. Width of upper outlet tank (G), 940.0 907.61 3.45 1465.0 1520.8 3.81 2420.0 2548.3 5.30 3636.0 3446.63 5.21
mm

a
Abs. Variation=|(Estimated value⫺Actual value)×100/Estimated value |.
 H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34 33

Table 6
Predicted dimensions of a Deenbandhu model biogas plant (30 HRT)

Sl Components Capacity of biogas plant, m3/day

No.
1 2 3 4 6

1. Height of initial slurry level 496.91 676.30 809.92 920.45 1102.30

from the centre line (A), mm
2. Height of lower concave from 381.26 473.41 537.33 587. 84 667.20
the centre line (B), mm
3. Height of slurry level from the 362.08 492.76 590.09 670.60 803.07
centre line after maximum gas
storage (C), mm
4. Lower concave aperture 1927.34 2393.18 2716.27 2971.62 3372.80
diameter (D), mm
5. Upper dome radius (R1), mm 964.5 1197.56 1359.23 1487.01 1687.76
6. Lower concave radius (R2), mm 1599.63 1931.68 2157.02 2332.67 2604.78
7. Height of lower outlet tank (E), 469.79 630.63 749.15 846.52 1005.63
mm
8. Height of upper outlet tank (F), 351.25 375.45 390.37 401.31 417.26
mm
9. Width of upper outlet tank (G), 1005.12 1728.22 2372.95 2971.53 4080.09
mm
10. D/B ratio 5:1 5:1 5:1 5:1 5:1
11. Gas holding capacity (%) 36.0 35.0 33.0 33.0 33.0

5. Results and discussions

The dimensions of different components of the Deenbandhu biogas plant computed for 40 and
55 HRT using the computer programme are presented in Table 4 and Table 5, respectively,
together with actual values and absolute variations. The computed values are found to be within
6% of the actual values, indicating the suitability of the developed model. The dimensions pre-
dicted for various capacities of the Deenbandhu plant for 30 HRT are shown in Table 6.
The basis of the design of the Deenbandhu plant implies that the ratio of base diameter to the
rise in arch (lower concave) (D/B) should be 5:1 and the gas holding capacity of the plant should
be 33% of the daily gas production capacity. Table 6 shows that the dimensions predicted for 30
HRT satisfy both these conditions with a maximum variation of 8% and thus validates the model
for general use from 30 to 55 HRT.

6. Conclusions

The dimensions of Deenbandhu model biogas plant for 1 to 6 m3 capacities within 30 to 55

HRT could be suitably estimated by the developed model. This will definitely help the designers
to determine the dimensions of different components of the Deenbandhu model biogas plant for
different HRT to suit the climatic conditions prevailing throughout the whole country.
34 H. Raheman / Energy 27 (2002) 25–34

References

[1] Anonymous. Annual report. Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Resources, Government of India, 1997.
[2] Singh JB, Myles R, Dhussa A. Manuals of Deenbandhu Biogas Plant. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Publishing
Company Limited, 1992.
[3] Bansal NK, Lemann MK, Mellis M. Renewable Energy Sources and Conversion Technology. New Delhi: Tata
McGraw Hill Publishing Company Limited, 1990.
[4] Rai GD. Non-conventional Sources of Energy. New Delhi: Khanna Publishers, 1993.
[5] Singhal OP. Non-conventional Sources of Energy. Allahabad: Saroj Prakashan, 1996.