Biomethanation in india, biomass gasification in India, bio

gas, trends, costs of biomethanation and biomass

gassifiers, types, business challenges, opportunities
Posted by

Shweta on 02nd Sep, 2011

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Biomass Gasifiers Power a school in Salem: Mind boggling

With power crisis crippling the State, educational institutions are looking at an alternative
mode of sourcing electricity, so that the studies of the students are not affected during night
hours.Recently, a biomass gasifier was installed at Golden Gates Matriculation Higher
Secondary School here so that electricity produced from it could help in running 250 to 300
tube lights or a 15 HP motor capacity.

The gasifier runs on agri produce waste such as coconut shells, husk, fibres, groundnut shell
and castor stalks to produce electricity in an efficient manner.The gasifier, innovated and
designed by Rai Singh Dahiya of Rajasthan was installed at many institutions and agriculture
fields for running the generators.The Rs. 3 lakh generator can be run with agricultural waste
that is easily available everywhere. A demonstration was also held on the school premises
recently.

source

portable biomass gasifier..

Biomethanation involves the biodegradation of organic wastes under strict anaerobic
conditions to yield methane-rich biogas.Biomethanation of aqueous wastes involves
hydrolysis, acidogenesis, acetogenesis and methanogenesis reactions, which generates a
mixture of methane, carbon dioxide and other gases.
Biomethanation can be carried out in a single step or two steps.In the process of hydrolysis,
anaerobic bacteria breakdown complex organic molecules such as protein, cellulose, lignin
and lipids into soluble monomer molecules such as amino acids, glucose, fatty acids and
glycerol. Hydrolysis phase is relatively slow.Acidogenic bacteria convert sugar, amino acids
and fatty acids to organic acids, alcohols and ketones, acetate, Co 2 and H2. The products
formed vary with type of bacteria as well as with the temperature, PH etc.Acetogenic
bacteria convert fatty acids and alcohols into acetate, hydrogen and carbon dioxide.
Acetogenic bacteria require low hydrogen for fatty acids conversion.
Methanogenesis is the formation of methane by microbes known as methanogens.
Methanogenesis in microbes is a form of anaerobic respiration. Methanogens do not use
oxygen to respire; in fact, oxygen inhibits the growth of methanogens. The terminal electron
acceptor in methanogenesis is carbon.
The two best described pathways involve the use of carbon dioxide and acetic acid as
terminal electron acceptors:

CO2 4 H2 CH4 2H2O

CH3COOH CH4 CO2
The process of small-scale Biomethanation includes feedstock colleting, pretreatment,
fermentation, treatment and purifying, storage and transportation.
Batch fermentation and semi-continuous fermentation are usual technologies for small-scale
biomethanation. In batch fermentation technology, all the feedstock is added at the first.
The biomethane generates fast at the beginning and then decreases. In semi-continuous
fermentation technology, - feedstock was added at the first. When the biomethane
generation slows down, more feedstock is added to make the biomethane generation work
in order.

Large scale anaerobic digestion systems:

Pre-treatment process:
The biomass waste is conditioned in a pre-treatment process such as removal of foreign
matters not suitable for anaerobic digestion, pulverization, dilution by water, thickening,
and/or acid/alkali treatment. Some biomass wastes such as garbage, which is a mixture of
various organic and inorganic matters, and, thus, is not always consistent in its composition
and properties, are subjected to mechanical and/or magnetic separation in order to get rid of
indigestible materials such as metals and plastics. The separated biomass waste is
pulverized and added with dilution water to prepare waste slurry for the next unit process.
Slurry storage tank:
Prepared slurry is temporarily stored in a slurry storage tank for leveling diary fluctuations in
both quality and quantity. If the ambient temperature is suitable, microbial activities of
acidogens in the storage tank may increase. If this occurs, accumulation of organic acids in
the slurry can cause a decrease in pH to as low as around 4. The slurry storage tank must be
designed to resist corrosion due to such low pH conditions.
Methane fermenter:

Three major functional microbial groups are active in the methane fermenter. These three
functions that take place sequentially are; hydrolysis, acidogenesis and methanogenesis.
The final products of the reactions are methane and carbon dioxide. The hydrolysis reaction
is often the rate-limiting pathway of an anaerobic digestion process on not-readily
biodegradable or recalcitrant biomass such as sewage sludge and ligneous biomass,
whereas the methanogenesis is likely to be the rate-limiting pathway on readily
biodegradable biomass such as garbage and starchy waste water. In order to establish an
efficient anaerobic digestion system, it is important to consider the rate-limiting pathway
and to select the most suitable reactor design for the properties of anticipated biomass
waste.
Fermentation waste water treatment:
Fermentation waste water discharged from the anaerobic digester usually contains high
concentrations of organic matters, nitrogen compounds and phosphorous compounds. The
fermentation waste water should be treated to reduce the concentration of these pollutants
to meet the standards for final discharge to a receiving body of water or sewer system. The
most typical fermentation waste water treatment system is the activated sludge process
with tertiary treatment.
Biogas utilization:
Since most of the biomass waste contain proteins and sulfate salts, the biogas contain
certain concentrations of hydrogen sulfide and ammonia, The biogas produced from sewage
sludge, which sometimes contains a considerable amount of silicones, may contain siloxanes
as well. Since these impurities can possibly cause damage to biogas utilization facilities such
as a gas engine, gas boiler, gas turbine and fuel cell, and/or cause secondary air pollution, a
biogas utilization unit process is often equipped with a desulfurization device and/or siloxane
remover prior to the gas holding tank.

Advantages of Biomethanation:

Production of thermal and electrical energy from waste or fermentable sub-products\

Reduction in greenhouse gas emissions: Co2 and CH4

Economic solution for the treatment of organic waste

Agricultural diversification and recycling

An example of the economic viability of Bio-methanation plants:

Project Case: 2 MW Biogas to Power plant

Total Investment: Rs.260 Million (Rs.130 Million/MW)
Capital subsidy (CFA): Rs.15 Million/MW (for mixed waste)
Plant Load Factor: 80% - 82%
Present power tariff band: Rs. 4.24 4.7/kWhr
Approx feedstock Reqmt: 11 Mt/MWhr @ 45% DS Content
Average Min Feedstock price: Rs.600/MT (landed at Site)
Price for Organic Compost: Rs.600/MT (current market prices)
Carbon Credits Revenues: 10000 20000 Credits/Annum

Overview of financial viability with CER Revenue:

Financial
Indicators

Tariff at
Unit

Tariff at Rs.4.5/kWhr

Rs.5.75/kWhr

Equity

30%

30%

Debt

70%

70%

Cost of Debt (min)

11%

11%

tax)

9.0%

19.5%

Project IRR

10.7%

18.0%

Payback time

Years

9.2

5.45

Equity IRR (pre

Other Assumptions:

CFA: Rs.15 Million / MW

Sale price of Compost: Rs.1200/MT

CER Revenue: 10 /CER

Overview of financial viability with CER Revenue:

Financial
Indicators

Tariff at
Unit

Tariff at Rs.4.5/kWhr

Rs.5.75/kWhr

Equity

30%

30%

Debt

70%

70%

Cost of Debt (min)

11%

11%

tax)

3.5%

14.2%

Project IRR

5.7%

14.3%

Payback time

Years

12.3

6.8

Equity IRR (pre

Other Assumptions:
CFA: Rs.15 Million / MW
Sale price of Compost: Rs.1200/MT
CER Revenue: 10 /CER

Biomethanation plants in India:

Biomethanation for Treatment of Slaughterhouse Waste at Medak, Andhra Pradesh (2 units
of plants):
The first phase biomethanation plant for treatment of abattoir waste has been completed at
M/s Al kabeer Exports Ltd., Medak, Andhra Pradesh, having an installed capacity of
slaughtering and processing 500 - 600 buffaloes and 1500 - 2000 sheep / day. The methane
digester is based on UASB (Up-flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket) technology and results in COD

reduction of 75 to 80% and BOD reduction of 85 to 90%, besides producing about 3500 to
4500 cum/day of biogas having a methane content of about 65%. Adoption of the
biomethanation technology has resulted in a saving of Rs.30 lakhs per annum on account of
expenditure on chemicals besides an additional annual saving of Rs.30 lakhs on account of
saving of furnace oil. The successful adoption of this innovative technology has encouraged
M/s Al-kabeer to set up one more biogas plant for the treatment of solid wastes, which is
based on a state-of-the-art technology obtained from Austria. These biomethanation
installations have shown the way to solve the problem of waste treatment and disposal in
environmentally benign manner, which also appears to be financially profitable.

Biomethanation Plant for Mixed Wastes at Vijayawada:

A demonstration plant based on biomethanation of 20 tonnes per day mixed wastes (i.e. 16
tonnes of vegetable market waste and 4 tonnes of slaughterhouse waste and sewage from
the sewage treatment plant for dilution) for generation of power to Vijayawada Municipal
Corporation (VMC), Vijayawada has been commissioned in February 2004. The generation of
biogas is about 1600 cum; besides 5 tonnes of organic manure per day. The biogas so
produced is being used in a 145 kW imported biogas engine for generation of
electricity. The electricity generated is fed into the state electricity grid.

Power generation through Biomethanation of Animal Waste at Ludhiana:

Haebowal Dairy Complex in Ludhiana, spread over an area of 50 acres, has 1490 dairies with
an animal population of 1,50,000 and generate about 2475 tonnes of animal droppings. The
project utilize about 235 tonnes of waste per day to generate about 0.965 MW electrical
energy. The surplus energy after meeting the in house power requirement is fed to the state
grid. Besides, the electrical energy, the project also produced stabilized organic manure
(about 7 tonne of 70% solids and 40 tonnes of 50% solids) per day. The plant was
commissioned in June 2004, and since then it is working satisfactorily.

Biomethanation Plant for Vegetable Market Wastes at Chennai:

A demonstration biomethanation plant for treatment of 30 tonnes per day Vegetable Market
Wastes for Generation of Power at Koyembedu Market Complex (KMC), Chennai was
approved in March 2003. The expected generation of biogas is about 2500 cum., besides 910 tonnes of organic manure having moisture content of 25-30% per day. The biogas
produced is to be utilized in a 230 kW imported gas engine having in built co-generation unit
for generation of electricity and thermal energy. The total cost of the sub-project is Rs. 352
lakh plus USD 320000 with NBB/ MNRE share of Rs. 264 lakh and USD 2,40,000. The plant is
currently under commissioning.

Biomethanation technology providers/suppliers in India:

ION EXHANGE WATERLEAU LTD.

ION HOUSE,PLOT NO 2,
SECTOR 18,
VASHI
NAVI MUMBAI 400705
TEL :0091-22-39132298
0091-22-39890909
Website :www.ionexchangewaterleau.com
www. ionindia.com
Contact : Ajay Popat -CEO
EMAIL :ajay.popat@ionexchange.co.in

popatajay@rediffmail.com

M/s ENKEM Engineers Pvt. Ltd

824, Poonamalle High Road,
Kilpauk (Near KMC),
Chennai - 600010
Tel: 044-26411362/26428992
Fax: 044-26411788
Email:

enkem2000@vsnl.net

M/s Mailhem Engineers Pvt. Ltd.,

14, Vishrambag Society,
Senapati Bapat Road,
Pune - 411 016.
Tel: 020-24002285
Fax: 020-25659857
Email:

info@mailhem.com

M/s REVA Enviro Systems Pvt. Ltd.,

3, Suyog Nagar, Ring Road
Nagpur - 440 015

Tel.: 0712-2743123, 2743124

Fax: 0712-2743120

M/s Linde Process Technologies India Ltd.

38, Nutan Bharat Society, Alkapuri
Vadodara - 390 007
Tel: 0265-2336319, 2336196
Fax: 0265-2335213/2313629

M/s Hydroair Tectonoics Pvt. Ltd.,

401, Devavrata, Sector-17,
Vashi, Navi Mumbai-400 705
Tel.: 022-27892813/68/95
Fax: 022-27893892

M/s Chemtrols Engineering Ltd.,

Amar Hill, Saki Vihar Road,
Powai, Mumbai-400 072;
Tel: 022 28575089/ 28570557
Fax: 022-28571913

Email:

jaypee@chemtrols.org

M/s Degrimont India Ltd.

Water and the Environment
D-43, South Extension - II
New Delhi - 110 049
Tel.: 011-26481191, 26481192
Fax: 011-26228782

M/s Global Environmental Engg. Ltd.

1233/C, K. G. Mansion
Opp. Hotel Kohinoor Executive
Apte. Road, Pune - 411 004
Tel.: 0212-2327876, 2328007
Fax: 0212-2328441

M/s UEM India Limited,

D-19, Kalkaji,
New Delhi-110 019
Tel.: 011-26447825/ 26421634

Fax: 011-26239801
Email:

uemindia@uemgroup.com

Ion Exchange Waterleau

Ion House, Plot No.2, Sector 18 Vashi,
Navi Mumbai 400 705, India
Phone: 91-22-3989 0909
Fax: 91-22-2788 8156/2788 9839
E-mail:

iewl@ionexchange.co.in

Prospects of biomethanation technology in the Indian context: a pragmatic

approach: A book review

The Government is looking forward to Biomethanation Technology (BT) as a secondary

source of energy by utilizing industrial, agricultural and municipal wastes. A large amount of
money is being invested in this direction with various projects under implementation and
many to follow them. Hence the long-term sustainability of the technology needs to be
judged. In this paper the prevailing situation is analyzed in keeping with the prospects and
problems associated with BT in India. The paper discusses the technical feasibility,
operational stability and commercial viability of BT in India. Various potential merits of BT
like reduction in land requirement for disposal, preservation of environmental quality, etc.
are also reviewed. A comparative study of researches related to the performance of various
anaerobic digesters in different developed countries has been carried out wherein various
fractions of municipal solid waste (MSW) have been utilized. To understand the technical
feasibility in the Indian context, a comparison is made between the characteristics of Indian
waste and the wastes under study. Further problems of the operational stability and

commercial viability of BT in India have also been discussed. Against this background,
developmental plans covering issues in the formulation of national policy, improvements in
collection and transportation systems, marketing strategy, funds allocation, etc. have been
outlined to establish BT in India. With the growing energy crisis supplemented by
environmental concerns, BT can serve as a potential waste-to-energy generation alternative.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344903000375

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2 COMMENTS

Joseph - 22nd Nov, 2011

Hi,

Are these economic viability figures calculated during 2003/2004 ?.

Regards
Joseph

Like

Nitin - 22nd Nov, 2011

Yes. It appears the figures are old. May not be 03/04. But certainly not current.

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