Renewable Energy

Biogas 1 (Biology and Workings)

Definition of what we are talking
about.
• Biogas is a mixture of different gases like
methane, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide,
nitrogen etc. which is part of the decay
process. Only the methane portion is valued
as a fuel. The other gases are not flammable
or exist in such small quantities as to make
them of no consequence.
Who, What, Why, When, Where,
How????
• Why am I building it.
• What are the digestible materials avail.?
• What kind of digester is appropriate?
• How big, what capacity?
• Who will operate it?
• What will the fuel be used for?
• Where will it be located?
 Digester

Sludge Biogas
Gas
Nutrient
Cycle
Cycle

Crops Fish pond Algae pond Water Burners Algae pond

Boiler,
Heat
Food Engine
Heat, Animal Feed
Closed Nutrient System of a Light
Complete Digester Operation
 Types of Decay
• 1- Aerobic
– with oxygen
• 2- Anaerobic
– without oxygen
• All OM can be decomposed either way but
the end product and process is different.
 2
CO
Artificial

&

3
Compost Piles
H
N
us
AEROBIC

um
H
Natural

Dead plants, 2
animals, manure CO
& 3
H
N

e
u dg
Artificial

Sl
Air-tight digester
ANAEROBIC

as
og
Bi

e
ur
an
M
Guts of Animals

Natural

at
Pe
Decay under water
 History
• Anaerobic decay started …… “In the
beginning” One of the Earth’s oldest
processes.
• Louis Pasteur once discussed possibility of
methane production from manure.
• China, India, and Africa have used for a
long time
 History cont.
• During WW II, fuel shortages in Germany
lead to methane production plants in rural
areas. Gas used as tractor fuel
• Previous digester projects in the U.S. for
animal waste control were not very
successful.
– Can’t ignore the system, need skills and time
– Incompatible systems applied to situation
 History cont.
• “Cookie cutter” designs don’t work. Of 30
plug flow digesters built, 19 by one
designer, 90% failed to function.
• Incorrect sizing of equipment or
noncorrosion resistant pipes and fittings
• Inadequate training
• Insufficient financial returns on investment
 Biology of Anaerobic Digestion
• Biological process
• Oxygen destroys bacterial activity
• Initially, oxygen in fresh batch is used up by
aerobic bacteria which produce CO2.
• Only after all oxygen is used up can digestion
begin.
• Different kinds of bacteria are prevalent at
different stages of digestion.
 Biology cont.
• Bacteria feed off by-products of previous
group.
• Stage 1- Acid producing bacteria break fats,
proteins and most starches into simpler
compounds. They rapidly reproduce, are
tolerant of environmental changes, excrete
enzymes that work on volatile acids.
 Importance of Volatile Acids
• Low molecular weight organic acids.
Important example is acetic acid (vinegar),
which is a by-product of all fat, starch, and
protein digestion. About 70% of methane
produced during fermentation comes from
acetic acid.
 Methane Producing Bacteria
• Next step in digestion
• Convert volatile acids into methane gas.
• Reproduce slowly
• Sensitive to environmental changes
 Digesters
• Vessels or ponds that hasten anaerobic
digestion process.
• Three main types
– 1. Covered Lagoons
– 2. Complete Mix Digester (Batch Load)
– 3. Plug Flow (Continuous Load)
 Covered Lagoons
• Treats liquid manure with less than 2%
solids.
• Large volume, preferable >12 ft deep
• Covered
 Complete Mix (Batch Load)
• Heated tanks above or below ground
• 3-10% solids
• Tank is filled and left alone until gas
production stops
 Plug Flow (Continuous Load)
• Daily load added on one end which displaces
previous material.
• 11-13% solids
• Not suitable process for swine manure due to lack
of fiber
• Digestion occurs as progresses through vessel
with bubbles of gas formed along way.
• Near end, little gas produced.
• Residues begin to stratify.
 Phase Useable Resource
GAS Biogas COMBUSTABLE GAS

FERTILIZER,
Scum INSULATOR
LIQUID
BIOLOGICALLY
Supernatant ACTIVE

Digested Sludge FERTILIZER

(spent slurry)
SOLID

Inorganic Solids
TRASH, DISCARD
 What do you feed a digester?
• Slurry!
– A mixture of water, manure, plant material, or
vegetative matter
• Sludge- spent solids, volume reduced to
about 40% of raw volume
• Supernatant- spent liquids of original slurry.
Great fertilizer value.
• Scum- coarse, fibrous material, released from
raw manure, gas, and liquid. Removal is big
problem because it can inactivate digester in
large amounts.
 pH and buffering
• Important for maintaining balance between
acid forming and methane forming bacteria.
• pH range for digesters is 7.5-8.5
• At start of digestion, pH may drop below 6
for a couple of weeks then rise over next
couple of months while volatile acids and
nitrogen compounds are digested. Ammonia
formed during this stage.
• Methane production starts at about pH 7.
• Mixture is well buffered at 7.5-8.5
• Small amounts of fresh slurry can be added
after pH 7.5
• Batch load (plug flow) digesters require
continuous feeding or else enzymes will build
up, organic solids become exhausted and
methane production ceases.
• pH 8-8.5 is sign of stable digestion
• Check pH with
– meter (most accurate)
– pH dip strips
– litmus paper (least accurate)
• blue paper--> red in acid 1-7
• red paper--> blue in base 7-14
Condition Reason Solution

Too acid 1) adding raw materials too fast reduce feeding

(pH <6) rate
2) wide temperature fluctuations stabilize temp.

3) toxic substances

4) build-up of scum remove scum

Too alkaline 1) Initial raw material too alkaline be patient

(pH >9) never add acid
 More solutions to pH problems
• Fresh effluent added back into inlet of
continuous load digester will raise pH. A
little addition of ammonia may also help.
• If the solution becomes too alkaline, a lot of
CO2 will be produced which will self-correct
because CO2 promotes acidity.
• Adding acid will create hydrogen sulfide.
Don’t Do It!
 Temperature
• Ideal is 95 deg F (36 deg C)
• Suitable ranges 85-105 and 120-140 deg F
– At higher range, thermophillic species operate
– Difficult to maintain high temp, produce poor
sludge quality, bacteria sensitive to changes,
most materials will digest well at lower
temperatures anyway.
 Raw Organic Wastes

Inorganic Portion Organic portion

Indigestible Digestible

Acid producing Simple comp.

Bacteria Volatile solids

Methane Producing
Bacteria

Mineral Fiber, Methane CO2 Water & Gas

Compounds Lignin
• This material is based upon work supported
by the National Science Foundation under
award DUE-0434405
 Renewable Energy

Biogas 2 (C:N and Feed Quality)

 Factors Affecting Digestibility
• Moisture- measured by drying at 220 deg F
• Total Solids (dry weight)- Weight of dry
material remaining after drying. Note: sun
dried materials will still contain about 30%
moisture
• Volatile Solids- weight of organic solids
burned off when dry material is ignited. This
is what the bacteria actually can use.
 Factors cont.
• Fixed solids (ash content)- weight of
material remaining after ignition. Bugs
can’t utilize it.
 How much manure resource is
available?
• Tables showing output are very general for
three main reasons.
• 1- Size (age) of livestock
– ratio manure to live animal changes with time
– see next slide
• 2- Degree of confinement
• 3- Kind of manure collected
 Total manure
Hog weight lbs/day Feces Urine Ratio manure: hog wt.

40-80 5.6 2.7 2.9 1:11

80-120 11.5 5.4 6.1 1:9
120-160 14.6 6.5 8.1 1:10
160-200 17.6 8.5 9.1 1:10
 Degree of Confinement
• Confined easier to collect from than “free
range”
• Quantity collectable will vary too
 Kind of manure collected
• Feces + urine
• All excrement + bedding
• Wet feces only
• Dry feces only
 Volatile solids/day Equivalent
nimal (80% of TS, 85% for swine) Animal units

000 lb cow 8.0 1

50 lb horse 5.5 1.5
60 lb swine 1.3 6.2
7 lb sheep 0.4 20
50 lb human .25 32
roiler chicken .06 133

Only feces is figured in total for cow, horse, swine, sheep because of
difficulty in collecting urine too.
 Carbon:Nitrogen (C:N) Ratio
• Bacteria utilize carbon in the form of
carbohydrates for energy and nitrogen in
the forms of ammonia, protein, nitrates, etc.
for cell structure. This is their food. Only
the form is different depending on slurry
(raw ingredients).
• C is used about 30 times faster than N
• Both C and N required for digestion.
• If the ratio was 15 times more carbon than
nitrogen, it would be written 15:1, 15/1, or
15.
• If the ratio is unbalanced, the process is
hindered.
• Tables showing C:N ratios vary because
– 1. Lab data is not the same as real-life. Some of
the C digested in lab can’t be digested by bugs.
– 2. Wide variation in plant development stages,
animal diet, confinement etc, so fluctuations in
C/N are common.
 Nitrogen
• Forms in slurry
– TKN, NO3, NH3, protein
• Varies by age of plant or manure “ the lot or batch
is variable”
• Body excretes excess N in urine. Is urine included
in your sample?
• Fowl excrete urine and feces together
• Ruminant’s bacteria use much of the N in
digestion so fecal N is lowest of animals.
• Bacteria can use most forms of N so best
way to test and report is as Total N (% of
dry weight)
 Carbon
• Exists in many forms but not all are
bacteria-usable.
• Lignin is unusable
• Best to test and report as non-lignin carbon
content
 Approx. % and form of N found
in different kinds of manure
Organic

Organic Ammonia
NH3 Ammonia

Ammonia Organic
C:N Handout
 Example C/N Ratio Calculation
• You want to compost 50 lbs horse manure and 50
lbs dry wheat straw. Will the C/N ratio be ok?
• First- from table find the C/N ratios for each and
the percent N by dry weight.
– Manure C:N is 25:1 and N% is 0.023
– Straw C:N is 150:1 and N% is 0.005
• Second- Multiply % N by weight of product
– 0.023 x 50 lbs = 1.15 lbs actual N in manure
– 0.005 x 50 lbs = 0.25 lbs actual N in straw
• Third- Multiply carbon value by lbs N in
problem
– 25 x 1.15 lbs = 28.75 for manure
– 150 x .25 lbs = 37.5 for straw
• Fourth- Add the carbon contribution from
the straw and manure into total pounds.
Repeat for the nitrogen. (see next page)
 Manure Straw Total
Carbon 28.75 37.5 66.25 lbs
Nitrogen 1.2 .25 1.45 lbs

Last- Calculate the overall carbon:nitrogen ratio for the mix

66.25/1.45 = 45.69
Ratio is a little high but probably ok. Around 30 is better.
 You try this C/N problem
• Calculate the C/N ratio of 8 pounds grass
clippings (ratio = 12) mixed with 2 lbs chicken
manure (ratio = 15).
• Answer:
– Grass C:N is 12:1 and N% is 0.04
– Chicken manure C:N is 15:1 and N% is 0.063
– 0.04 x 8 lbs = .32 lbs actual N in grass clippings
– 0.63 x 2 lbs = 0.13 lbs actual N in chicken manure
• Multiply carbon value by lbs N in problem
– 15 x .13 lbs N = 1.9 lbs for manure
– 12 x .32 lbs N = 3.8 lbs for grass
• Last step- Add the carbon contribution from
the grass and manure into total pounds.
Repeat for the nitrogen. (see next page)
 Manure Grass Total
Carbon 3.8 1.9 5.7 lbs
Nitrogen .32 .13 .45 lbs

Finally- Calculate the overall carbon:nitrogen ratio for the

mix
5.7/.45 = 12.6
This ratio is low. Add more manure to increase carbon level.
• This material is based upon work supported
by the National Science Foundation under
award DUE-0434405
 Renewable Energy

Biogas 3 (Fuel value and properties)

 Properties
• Sometimes called marsh gas, sewage gas,
dungas, or biogas
• Biogas is approx. 70% methane (CH4), 29%
carbon dioxide (CO2), traces of oxygen and
sulfurated hydrogen (H2S). Hydrogen
sulfide gives the rotten egg smell.
• Carbon + water = methane + carbon dioxide
– (2C + 2H20 = CH4 + CO2)
• Specific gravity of methane = .55 in relation
to air. It will rise.
• Associations with carbon dioxide make it
more dense. CO2 is heavier than air. Still
will rise but more slowly.
• Biogas is the impure mixture of all gases of
decomposition. Methane is the flammable
portion.
 Composition of farm-produced
biogas
• Methane 54-70%
• Carbon dioxide 27-45
• Nitrogen .5-3
• Hydrogen 1-10
• Carbon monoxide 0.1
• Oxygen 0.1
• Hydrogen sulfide trace
 Fuel value
• Higher methane values = higher fuel value since
most other gases are not combustible
• General Rule: Methane has value of 1000 BTU per
cubic foot
• 1 BTU is amount of heat required to raise one pound
(one pint) of water 1 degree F.
• 5 cubic feet or 5000 BTU will boil ½ gallon water
for 20 minutes
• If you have 60% methane, it will have a fuel value of
about 600 BTU/ft3
Various comparative fuel values
Type Value in BTU / ft3
Biogas 540-700
Methane 896-1069
Natural gas 1050-2200
Propane 2200-2600
Butane 2900-3400
How much digestion is possible?
• Under proper temperature and suitable raw
materials, 50-70% conversion to biogas is
possible.
 Gas production based on C/N of
Raw Wastes
Material CH4 CO2 H N
Low C/N blood/urine low high low high
(high N)

High C/N sawdust, straw, low high high low

(low N) sugar, starches such as potatoes, corn, sugar beet waste

Balanced C/N manure, garbage high some low low

(near 30)
Material Proportion % Ft3 gas per lb Methane % of
volatile solids collected gas
Chicken manure 100 5.0 59.8

Chicken manure 31 7.8 60

and paper pulp 69
Chicken manure 50 4.1 66.1
and newspaper 50
Chicken manure 50 5.9 68.1
and grass clip. 50
Beef manure 100 1.4 65.2

Beef manure and 50 4.3 51.1

grass clippings 50

*Based on laboratory data

Gas produced by total solids
(raw manure not just volatiles)
Manure Type Ft3 gas produced
per lb of dry matter
Pig 6.0 – 8.0

Cow 3.1 – 4.7

Chicken 6.0 – 13.2

Conventional 6.0 – 9.0

sewage
 Example
• 100 free-range chickens foraging during day
and cooped at night
• About ½ of manure retrievable or 0.1 lbs per
day x 100 = 10 lbs wet or 3.5 lbs dry
• 3.5 lbs dry x (between 6.0 and 13.2) = 20 –
40 ft3 of biogas assuming 60% methane.
Equivalent to 12-24 ft3 methane gas per day.
• This material is based upon work supported
by the National Science Foundation under
award DUE-0434405
Renewable Energy

Biogas 4 (Digesters)
 Design
• Two basic types
– 1. Continuous feed
• A) vertical mixing
• B) displacement
– 2. Batch feed – slug of material is left in until
no more gas is produced then more is added
 Batch
• Good where raw material availability is
sporadic or limited to coarse plant materials
that don’t completely digest (high lignin).
This undigested material can be removed
when next batch is started.
• Require minimal daily attention.
• Much time and labor for loading and
unloading
 Batch continued
• Gas production sporadic. If multiple units
hooked to common gas collector, lags can
be minimized.
 Continuous Load general
characteristics
• “Feed” every day or so.
• Gas and sludge production continuous
• Best when raw material is uniform and
easily digestible. Feed examples include
algae, manure, seaweed, etc.
Continuous feed / vertical mixing
• Feed placed into vertical chambers and
slurry rises to top and overflows in the
single chamber design or can be shunted to
a second chamber for further digestion in
the double chamber design.
 Outlet

Inlet
Inlet

Single chamber Second chamber added for

double digestion
 Displacement Digester
• An overall better design
• Works like intestines with material passing
through entire area of vessel
• Easily maintained and cleaned.
• If batch sours, reverse flow direction using
buffered, nearly finished sludge to correct
the mixture. Force out the bad stuff through
inlet and start again.
 Displacement continued
• Can digest to any degree by leaving
material in longer. Eventually point of
diminishing returns is reached.
• Scum forms on surface of liquid. Greater
the surface area, the less time between
cleaning. Vertical types have large area.
 Feed material selection
• Plants
• Animal Manure
• Human Waste
 Plants
• Disadvantages • Advantages or
• solutions
High lignin
• High availability
• Bulky
• Press out plant fluids
• Digester requires for use and compost
frequent cleaning lignin
• Could first feed • Culture algae
animals • Use plants without
lignin like seaweed
 Animal Manures
• Disadvantages • Advantages
• Odor • Easily acquired if
• Collection if holding holding design is good
corral design is poor • Finely divided
• Variable in content particles
based on feed • Sludge makes good
fertilizer, especially
poultry waste
 Human Waste
• Disadvantages • Advantages
• Disease transmission • Used successfully in
• Collection Orient
• Sanitation • With good design,
• could reduce
Is there a good design
in existence for use? environmental
contamination
problems
How big should the digester be?
• Main considerations
• 1. LOADING RATE
• 2. DETENTION TIME
Loading rate for continuous feed
digester
• Amount of material (usually pounds of
volatile solids) fed into the digester per day
per ft3 of digester space.
• The Twin Falls Wastewater Treatment plant
generates 16 ft3 of gas per pound of solids
destruction.
• Rule of thumb is up to .4 lbs VS per ft3 per
day is capacity of well run continuous load
 Example
• You have 10 lbs fresh chicken manure from
about 38 hens produced every day: 10
pounds manure = 1.9 pounds VS.
• If loading rate is .2 lbs VS/day/ft3, a
digester’s volume would need to be 9.5 ft3
=1.9/.2
 You try this problem
• How big must a digester be to handle the
waste from a 1000 cow dairy using a
loading rate of .3 lbs VS/day/ft3?
• 8.5 lbs VS per head per day x 1000 cows =
8500 pounds VS
• 8500/.3 = 28,333 ft3
• *values from Manure Characteristics
 Detention Time
• The number of days that a given mass of
raw material remains in a digester.
• Dry manure usually must have water added
to make a slurry the consistency of dairy
cream. The more dilute, the shorter the
detention time.
 Heating Digesters
• Maintenance of temperatures around 95
degrees F is optimal.
• Methods
– Compost piles
– Light bulbs
– Water jackets
– Reuse of methane heated water circulated
through pipes within the digester (best?)
 Heating continued
• Gas reuse for heating caution: Set
thermostat higher than desired for slurry
because of caking on heating pipes
insulating effect reducing efficiency of heat
transfer.
• Rule of thumb: For heat exchanger, use 1 ft 2
coil area per 100 ft3 of digester volume
• This material is based upon work supported
by the National Science Foundation under
award DUE-0434405
Renewable Energy

Biogas 4 (Digesters)
 Design
• Two basic types
– 1. Continuous feed
• A) vertical mixing
• B) displacement
– 2. Batch feed – slug of material is left in until
no more gas is produced then more is added
 Batch
• Good where raw material availability is
sporadic or limited to coarse plant materials
that don’t completely digest (high lignin).
This undigested material can be removed
when next batch is started.
• Require minimal daily attention.
• Much time and labor for loading and
unloading
 Batch continued
• Gas production sporadic. If multiple units
hooked to common gas collector, lags can
be minimized.
 Continuous Load general
characteristics
• “Feed” every day or so.
• Gas and sludge production continuous
• Best when raw material is uniform and
easily digestible. Feed examples include
algae, manure, seaweed, etc.
Continuous feed / vertical mixing
• Feed placed into vertical chambers and
slurry rises to top and overflows in the
single chamber design or can be shunted to
a second chamber for further digestion in
the double chamber design.
 Outlet

Inlet
Inlet

Single chamber Second chamber added for

double digestion
 Displacement Digester
• An overall better design
• Works like intestines with material passing
through entire area of vessel
• Easily maintained and cleaned.
• If batch sours, reverse flow direction using
buffered, nearly finished sludge to correct
the mixture. Force out the bad stuff through
inlet and start again.
 Displacement continued
• Can digest to any degree by leaving
material in longer. Eventually point of
diminishing returns is reached.
• Scum forms on surface of liquid. Greater
the surface area, the less time between
cleaning. Vertical types have large area.
 Feed material selection
• Plants
• Animal Manure
• Human Waste
 Plants
• Disadvantages • Advantages or
• solutions
High lignin
• High availability
• Bulky
• Press out plant fluids
• Digester requires for use and compost
frequent cleaning lignin
• Could first feed • Culture algae
animals • Use plants without
lignin like seaweed
 Animal Manures
• Disadvantages • Advantages
• Odor • Easily acquired if
• Collection if holding holding design is good
corral design is poor • Finely divided
• Variable in content particles
based on feed • Sludge makes good
fertilizer, especially
poultry waste
 Human Waste
• Disadvantages • Advantages
• Disease transmission • Used successfully in
• Collection Orient
• Sanitation • With good design,
• could reduce
Is there a good design
in existence for use? environmental
contamination
problems
How big should the digester be?
• Main considerations
• 1. LOADING RATE
• 2. DETENTION TIME
Loading rate for continuous feed
digester
• Amount of material (usually pounds of
volatile solids) fed into the digester per day
per ft3 of digester space.
• The Twin Falls Wastewater Treatment plant
generates 16 ft3 of gas per pound of solids
destruction.
• Rule of thumb is up to .4 lbs VS per ft3 per
day is capacity of well run continuous load
 Example
• You have 10 lbs fresh chicken manure from
about 38 hens produced every day: 10
pounds manure = 1.9 pounds VS.
• If loading rate is .2 lbs VS/day/ft3, a
digester’s volume would need to be 9.5 ft3
=1.9/.2
 You try this problem
• How big must a digester be to handle the
waste from a 1000 cow dairy using a
loading rate of .3 lbs VS/day/ft3?
• 8.5 lbs VS per head per day x 1000 cows =
8500 pounds VS
• 8500/.3 = 28,333 ft3
• *values from Manure Characteristics
 Detention Time
• The number of days that a given mass of
raw material remains in a digester.
• Dry manure usually must have water added
to make a slurry the consistency of dairy
cream. The more dilute, the shorter the
detention time.
 Heating Digesters
• Maintenance of temperatures around 95
degrees F is optimal.
• Methods
– Compost piles
– Light bulbs
– Water jackets
– Reuse of methane heated water circulated
through pipes within the digester (best?)
 Heating continued
• Gas reuse for heating caution: Set
thermostat higher than desired for slurry
because of caking on heating pipes
insulating effect reducing efficiency of heat
transfer.
• Rule of thumb: For heat exchanger, use 1 ft 2
coil area per 100 ft3 of digester volume
• This material is based upon work supported
by the National Science Foundation under
award DUE-0434405
 Renewable Energy

Biogas 5 (Using Gas and Sludge)

 Properties of Methane
Specific Gravity .55 air = 1.0
Dry Weight, lb/ft3 .04 (gas)
Liquid Weight, lb/gal 3.5 (liquid)
Fuel Value, BTU/ft3 950-1050
Air for Combustion, ft3/ft3 9.5
Flammability in Air 5-14
(% Methane)
 Uses of Methane
• Can be used in anything that uses natural
gas.
• Average requirements per person per day in
U.S. is 60 ft3. Equivalent to 10 lbs chicken
or pig manure (7 pigs and 100 chickens) or
20 lbs horse manure (2 horses).
 Requirements
Use Ft3 Rate
Lighting 2.5 per mantle per hour
Cooking 8-16 per hour per 2-4” burner/person/day
Gas fridge 1.2 ft3 per hour per ft3 refrigerator
 Problems with Methane
• Low efficiency and requires high
compression to liquefy– methane 5000 psi,
propane 250 psi
• 87.7 ft3 methane gas = 1 gallon of liquid
methane or 1 ft3 methane gas = 9
tablespoons liquid methane.
• Lots of storage is required! Much energy
value lost to heat.
 Problems cont.
• “Dirty” methane may require scrubbing to
remove Hydrogen Sulfide (pass through
iron filings) and maybe carbon dioxide
(pass gas through lime water).
 Storage and use
• Historically used in tractors and cars with gas
stored in bottles. Bottle dimensions about 5 ft long
and 9 inch diameter = 1.9 ft3 evacuated. Can hold
420 ft3 compressed methane (about 3.5 gallons of
gasoline equivalent).
• Best use made in stationary engines located near
production site. If storage is not necessary,
uncompressed gas can power diesel engines with
waste heat recirculated into digester.
 Efficiency of Digestion
• Raw material to methane using anaerobic
processes is about 60-70%
• After considering heating and maintenance
losses, the overall conversion efficiency is
about 50%.
 Sludge
• What’s left over after methane production.
• High in ammonium (NH4)
• May acidify soil with continued use
• May choose to develop an algae pond
culture with fish
 Starter “SEED”
• These are the bacteria that work on
digestion of the material.
• Get seed from sewage treatment plant or the
runoff from the low point on the land of any
intensive stock farm. Maybe intestinal
digesta from gut pile would work.
• Fill a 1-5 gal container ¼ full of dung and
continue adding material at weekly intervals
until it reaches near the top. Agitate when
adding new material but don’t screw the cap
on tight! Don’t agitate between additions.
 Caution
• Discard the gas initially produced. It is
tainted with carbon dioxide and oxygen.
Oxygen will cause a highly explosive
condition. Pure methane is much less
dangerous.
• This material is based upon work supported
by the National Science Foundation under
award DUE-0434405
Renewable Energy

Producer Gas
History
 Producer gas, also called wood gas, has
been available ever since production of
steel.
 1884 suction gas engines started being
seen and were common by 1890
around England and Germany.
Principle of operation
 Hot, combustible gasses from iron
smelting could be scrubbed of soot and
impurities then fed into engines for
additional work.
 Germans (Nazi party) used producer
gas and other alternative fuels during
their quest for world dominance.
A drive in the Alps
 1935 Nazi’s promoted a “national test
drive” to demonstrate practicality of
producer gas.
 38 trucks weighing 5 and 13 tons were
equipped with P-gas from charcoal,
coal, lignite, wood and peat were tested
14,000 km
Alps drive results
 Wood and charcoal worked well but not
so with coal.
 The war machine was geared up to use
wood gas and ethanol for trucks so
scarce petroleum could be used for
aircraft and military vehicles.
 Japanese used these fuels too.
Danish experiments
 Tested wood gas and other fuels in
1940’s.
 Measured success in tons of wood
consumed to drive a one ton truck for
one km (tons/km) instead of mpg.
 Winner used 48 grams per ton/km Avg
100 g/ton/km
 In other words, you could get 3 ton
miles per pound of wood. A 3 ton truck
could travel a mile on a pound of wood
(a six inch piece of 2x4)
Problems with wood gas
 Carbon monoxide poisoning from leaks is not
healthy and seemed to be problem in Danish
experiments.
 Somewhat quirky in operation with clogging
problems, safety regulations and handling
practices.
 However, it was proven that a renewable
resource could replace fossil fuel!!!
Nuts and Bolts of P-gas
Operation
 All engines run on gasses. Diesel and
gasoline are atomized prior to
combustion.
 Solid wood must be partially combusted
without full oxygen present for
incineration. The resultant gas is carbon
monoxide C + ½O2 = CO
 Temperatures for CO production are
about 400 deg. F for initiation of
process called dissociation. At 600
degrees 25% dissociation occurs with
complete dissociation of carbon dioxide
to carbon monoxide at 1000 degrees.
 Success of process depends on feed’s
ability to react quickly, hearth
temperature for gassification, and
moisture content of feed.
 This material is based upon work
supported by the National Science
Foundation under award DUE-0434405