Poop gas ?

["TheToolman"]

I saw a guy last night on TV running a reed engine on a set up he called Bio gas! The old beauty was plugging along great! All I got was it was a digester that was filled with poop! any one got a plan on how to build this ? I run a Kennel! I could fix one up if I knew how!

[Elden DuRand]

Originally Posted by TheToolman

I run a Kennel! I could fix one up if I knew how!

Toolman:

If you make up the digester and convert used dog food in it, I think it would be a really funny display..............I think I would be howling with laughter!

Please don't shoot me - I'm doin' the best I can!

Take care - Elden

[Franz©]

Pretty much the same way Penn Power is doing it at the Alentown sewer plant, and on large cow farms around the country. Do a Google search, Penn Power is quite proud of their accomplishments with fecal power.

[MoRo]

I just heard something on the news the other day about that. Looks like about a million bucks can build a digester that can run a powerplant to light one hundred-thirty homes. Not sure how that translates into enough power to run an engine like a Reid, dollar-wise, but I have to believe it could get a li'l spendy.

[Andrew Mackey]

The main product of these digesters (even the live ones),is methane - a high hydrogen fuel. It behaves like Natural Gas (actually, I guess it is - from cows that is!)
Andrew

[Chuck Martin]

Try this site for starters.

http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_...ers/MDToC.html

I have built a digester, and stored the gas I inner tubes, It will run a gas light no problem.
I was feeding it stall cleanings from goats.
If you are not in the country, the neighbors won't think much of your project.
The biggest problem is making a pumping system to get the pressure up. It could run the main gas, but not the hot tube.

Good luck..

Chuck

[Andre Blanchard]

This is a real simple digester.
http://www.ias.unu.edu/proceedings/i...ll-polydig.htm

A message in an email archive that has some links to more info.
http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/h...er/002298.html

And a yahoo group, currently very slow but some info in the archive.
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/grou...yguid=44830840
_____________
Andre' B. Clear Lake, Wis.

[John G. Simpson]

i have read where a lot of englishmen ran cars and trucks on poop gas during ww2, when petrol was scarce. there may be info on their systems someplace.
john

[LundMachineWorks]

Something like this can also be used. http://www.gengas.nu/byggbes/index.shtml

["TheToolman"]

I BEEN GATHERING STUFF UP & WONDERED IF THIS METHANE WOULD run a heater with a propane orifice or nat gas?

[Colin Rush]

Toolman,

Not sure about the kennel fuel part, but if you want to run methane, then use the NG orifice. Natural gas is methane, with a special odor added to let folks know when there is a gas leak. As long as the pressure is the same, then methane will work. If you are running on atmospheric pressure, then the orifice will need to be enlarged, by how much I have no idea.

["TheToolman"]

thats what I thought. I am trying to create a 55 gallon drum ( in series ) To make things simple. and to use 5 for digestion & 5 for storage & a water colom for pressurecontroll. any help / suggestions welcome I am gathering stuff up now.

[Andrew Mackey]

Take a look at the MAD MAX movies, from the '70s with Mel Gibson. They use vehicles that ran on methane from pig poop. All kidding aside, these autos actually existed, in fact the movie crew found about 10 or 12 in Australia. They were built in the '40s when gasoline was in short supply, and 4 or 5 were still in daily use there, when the movie was first being cast. Some were 'modernized' for the movie, but some were used as-is. Methane is a high Hydrogen fuel - it is explosive if not handled properly (ever hear of coal mine explosions - same gas! ). There are many sources of methane - old garbage dumps are proven sources, now being tapped here in the US of A, Coal gassification plants produced it here in the '20s and 30's until natural gas was piped long distance. (coal gassification; coal was put in an air tight container, heated, and all volitile gasses were recovered. the remaining material, (Coke, [and not the drug either]) was a high grade heat source for steam generaters, and black smiths. Wood also produces methane in the same manner, with charcoal the left over after de-gassing. I believe the wood source was the Australian source) Fermenting plant matter also gives off the gas, the major output found in dumps. There are quite a few books on methane production.

PS, although plentiful, and clean burning, you get even less power from the gas per volume than propane, which is 75% of that of gasoline. (55 to 60% of that of gasoline I think)
Andrew

[red_metallic]

Originally Posted by Elden DuRand

used dog food

OT -

Oh man, I've never heard that one before. That really tickles me. My son has cat sand patrol at home. I can't wait to ask him if he's dealt with the used cat food.

[ListerDiesel]

Originally Posted by TheToolman

I saw a guy last night on TV running a reed engine on a set up he called Bio gas! The old beauty was plugging along great! All I got was it was a digester that was filled with poop! any one got a plan on how to build this ? I run a Kennel! I could fix one up if I knew how!

Joking aside, a lot of natural product waste decomposes and gives off Methane gas in the process.

In WW2 there were a lot of gas conversions for cars and buses in the UK where they had Methane from a small producing plant to run the vehicles.

We have a big civic tip near to us that runs four large generators on the gas produced over the whole site, it runs to a lot of power and the feed back into the grid at night, they have enough to flare off most days.

Chicken manure and Cow manure are the best as they use mainly vegetable diets, meat eating animal waste does not produce anything like as much gas if my memory serves me correctly.

Peter

["TheToolman"]

I am using the 55 gal plastic drums. EASY to hook together , Easy TO work with period.. I think the digestion tanks Must be in full sun so as to ferment the Dog "POOP".. then the storage barrels- MAYBE just maybe should be burried,That might make the GAS cool & have a greater VOLUME?
I am getting the ball rolling .. so ya'll throw all ideas my way PLEASE
Thanks
Dan

[Jim Rankin]

http://listserv.repp.org/mailman/lis...tserv.repp.org

the problem with biogas is usually collection and utilization of the gas, not the making of it. You need some kind of gas holder that can be pressurized by the activity of the fermentation going on inside so the gas will flow through pipes to where you want to use it. Also a good idea to have a water column "pop off" that will allow overpressure to vent, but not allow air to get in and a flame arrester (gravel filter usually) to prevent flashbacks in the event an air leak created an explosive mixture inside the digester. Air in a digester is what makes the gas explosive. Once all the air is purged by the flow of gas, the atmosphere inside is not explosive until it leaks out and mixes with air.

Though it may not be explosive inside without air, it is certainly toxic. Probably always will have dangerous amounts of hydrogen sulfide as well as no oxygen in the digester itself. I doubt you are considering anything large enough to be called a confined space, but there have been some deaths over they years from people entering pits etc where anaerobic digestion has been taking place and being overcome by the atmosphere.

The tube digesters are perhaps the simplest, you just need the tube and a trench in the ground to put it into. the top of the tube doubles as a gas holder. Something like a plank is usually laid on top of it to provide some pressure on the gas as the volume of the trapped gas falls while it's being used.

Besides the kennel manure, almost any other organic material can be used and would probably only help the canine manure. Grass clippings, food waste, etc. the good thing is anaerobic digestion will help destroy some of the organic material in the waste and the stink will be contained by the digester until it is burned along with the biogas.

[KidDynamo]

In the early 70's, Mother Earth News magazine was started and several of their early issues featured methane prouction and use. A certain Englishman, Harold Bate, was featured in an early issue wherein production, storage, and use was decribed in some detail.

Mr Bate also sold the "Bate Converter" which I believe was mostly a demand regulator, a selector valve, and some plumbing fittings to hook things up. He ran several cars and a truck on the stuff.

I bought, and still have, a number of those back-issues since I was so intrigued but being a city dweller, I never followed up. I did do more research and found that methane was produced and used in many parts of the world at many times.

I guess it works real well and is pretty easy to make if you have access to livestock manure, used straw, and some rudimentary equipment. Photos of Mr. Bates' stuff reveal that he used mostly old cast-off stuff and a bit of baling wire and this enabled him to drive all over the place (or run a tractor).

I'm a big fan of "gobar gas", as it was known in India and have no doubt that some of you ingenious tractor and engine men with access to space and the "raw materials" could make it work!

[Digger]

Kid can you make any copies of those articles that you said were in mother earth news and maybe email them to me. If you could I would appreciate it. Thanks Digger

[Bud Tierney]

Digger, don't know if it's any help, but several of the builders of large industrial engines build (built?) engines to run on "sewer gas", which is almost certainly the same thing. They're used in sewer pumping systems, etc, where the "fuel" is available.
Had A Wauk folder one time showing comparative power outputs on NG and sewer gas. I don't know if any of the equipment used on those would be small enough to use for a home or farm installation.