Re: DIG-L: community biogas in North America/Europe

[Paul Harris <paul.harris@adelaide.edu.au>]

G'day Marty,

You are talking about silage, which is lactic acid bacteria making CO2
and an acid condition, so very little methane should be released (to my
engineers undersanding of the process!). I had a discussion with Duncan
Martin about this, as this acidification is possibly why some landfills
preserve material rather than producing biogas. Methanogens typically
use acetic acid, I don't know about lactic acid.

HOOROO

Marty Climenhaga wrote:
> 
> Thanks very much for your replies Stuart and Paul. The question of dry
> digestion reminds me of something I heard about a farm practice of sealing
> up hay in plastic, where it digests over the winter, and then the bag is
> cut open and the contents used for sileage (methane released to
> atmosphere). Does anyone know about that or have I got the facts wrong?
> 
> >G'day Marty,
> 
> >For solid waste I think you should look at dry digestion, which should
> >raise a few comments from others in the list more knowlegable than I in
> >that area. That avoids the chopping/slurry but you may need to develop
> >an inocculum.
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From:   Marty Climenhaga [SMTP:mclimenhaga@macviro.com]
> Sent:   Tuesday, March 19, 2002 8:47 AM
> To:     digestion@crest.org
> Subject:        DIG-L: community biogas in North America/Europe
> 
> Hello all
> I'm working with a community group that has some funding to explore options
> for a very small-scale, low-tech biogas plant. They would like to see
> whether it is possible and how expensive it is to digest about a tonne a
> week of foodscraps and garden waste, with the biogas being used for
> supplemental greenhouse heating.  I know there are lots of examples of this
> kind of scale digestion with manure in developing countries, I have helped
> out with one in El Salvador, but I don't know whether it's possible to do
> it here in Canada, especially with a feedstock that would have to be
> chopped up and slurried. I'm wondering whether anyone knows of any examples
> in North America or Europe or has any ideas to help me (my first reaction
> is that regulatory issues and economics would make it very expensive /
> close to impossible here, but I can't necessarily prove that it wouldn't
> work).
> Thanks for any thoughts at all.
> Marty
> 
> Marty Climenhaga, M.S. (Eng)
> MacViro Consultants Inc.
> 600-90 Allstate Parkway
> Markham ON L3R 6H3
> tel: 905-475-7270 ext. 289
> fax: 905-475-5994
> 
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> http://www.crest.org/articles/static/1/1010424940_7.html
> 
> Beginners Tour of Biogas
> http://WWW.roseworthy.adelaide.edu.au/~pharris/biogas/beginners

-- 
Paul Harris
Agronomy & Farming Systems
Faculty of Sciences
Adelaide University, Roseworthy Campus, AUSTRALIA 5371
Ph    : +61 8 8303 7880
Fax   : +61 8 8303 7979
mailto:paul.harris@adelaide.edu.au
http://www.roseworthy.adelaide.edu.au/~pharris

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Other Digestion Events and Information:
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http://www.crest.org/articles/static/1/1010424940_7.html

Beginners Tour of Biogas
http://WWW.roseworthy.adelaide.edu.au/~pharris/biogas/beginners