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Cow Manure --> Electricity

Posted by michael on from the cow-power dept.

jmtpi writes "ABCNews has a story about a dairy farm in Minnesota that uses its cow manure to generate enough electricity to power the farm plus 80 homes and create fertilizer. There's also a more detailed story."

6 of 513 comments (clear)

  1. Methane wasted at many facilities by n76lima · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Ever drive by a HUMAN sewage plant? See that orange flame at the top of a tall pipe? That is the same "bio-gas" which is surplus being wasted. See the large spheres nearby? Those are "bio-gas" storage tanks. Many facilities use it to heat the digester tanks to promote microbe growth.

    Imagine if human waste treatment were to start generating electricity. Your local water and sewage board could start PAYING you for the privilege of of disposing of your sewage.

  2. Nothing new by ackthpt · · Score: 5, Interesting
    A friend was contracted to design a city landfill which would produce natural gas. It won't hit peak production of natural gas for another 50 years and already produces enough electricty for the city (pop. ~10K) plus excess which is sold. Countless landfills in the US could be doing the same thing, further, the gas that isn't used just escapes into the atmosphere.

    If this is such a good idea, and so cost effective, why isn't it being done more places?

    "In the USA we don't just waste our natural resources, we waste our waste, too!"

    --

    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    1. Re:Nothing new by bear_phillips · · Score: 4, Interesting
      If this is such a good idea, and so cost effective, why isn't it being done more places?

      There are a number of reasons why. As urban areas grow there is less space to spread the shit around. You have to put the manure somewhere. If you don't have alot of land readily available then you have to haul it off. So lack of open land is driving up the cost of manure disposal, making electrity generation a more cost effective option.

      Between the cost of fuel going up and the cost of complying with EPA regulations drive the price of electricity up.

      Wait about 10 years probably most dairys and landfills will be doing this.

      --
      http://www.windmeadow.com/
  3. How about hydrogen-generating microbes + garbage? by otis+wildflower · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I still think that converting the Fresh Kills landfill to a facility that captures methane emissions, generates hydrogen from garbage compost, and burns the rest in a euro-style plasma furnace could really help SI, as well as NYC (and probably the country at large)..

    SI would get cleaner air and jobs in a good local high-tech industry (we'd be HAPPY to import garbage ;); NYC would get more tax revenue from the sale of power, hydrogen and methane to power generators and municipal vehicles/facilities and taxes from jobs and industry, as well as additional independence from out-of-city power generation and some relief from peak periods of use. NYC would also reduce its payments for handling trash, thus reducing its budget problems. Talk about a win-win-win-win-win!

    Just keep Tony Soprano's hands off it ;)

  4. Re:Biogas power generation around for decades. by forged · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Search Google News for landfill methane electricity will procude a bunch of interesting links, such as this or again this one.

    The method has been around for decades indeed, but it isn't economical to doing it on a large scale. But things are slowly changing, it seems, in the right direction.

  5. Cows per home by Latent+Heat · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Lets see. I run my home on 3000 kWHr/year. For lights, electric stove, fridge, this computer, dehumidifier and central air in summer, for the furnace blower of a gas-fired furnace in winter, for everything. That is 347 watts 24/7. Divide 347 into the 150 kilowatts 24/7 gives over 400 homes. That is 2 cows per home.