Transcript Effective Waste Treatment for Developing Countries

Effective Waste Treatment for
Developing Countries
Anaerobic Technologies, LLC
Imagine one simple device that could …
• Eliminate sewage and filth
• Provide fuel
– For clean cooking,
– Bringing electricity to remote areas
– Preserving forests
• And most importantly, help eliminate
disease
Two of the most urgent problems
of the developing world
• Widespread Disease
– due to poor disposal of human and animal
waste
• Extensive Deforestation
– due to lack of available and affordable energy
Disease due to
improper waste disposal
• Pit toilets allow sewage to collect and percolate
into the ground, contaminating the soil and
underlying aquifers.
• Rivers used as toilets contaminate waterways
with human waste containing disease. The river
water is further contaminated by bathing and
washing clothing.
DOWNSTREAM PROBLEMS
• Not only does each village along the river
contaminate the water, they all use it for drinking
and cooking, thus ingesting pollutants from the
upstream villages.
• Food & drink contaminated by feces will
inevitably cause disease.
• A case of E. coli or salmonella in the United
States is a big news story. In the developing
world, it is commonplace.
Deforestation
• Trees are felled for heating and cooking.
• Many times, home fires are the only
source of lighting.
• People in the home suffer from smoke
inhalation.
• As trees near the villages are cleared,
people have to walk further to find wood.
• Deforestation leads to erosion, flooding,
and loss of topsoil.
A Simple Solution
• What if there was something that …
– Could properly process human waste
– Requires no electricity to operate
– Generates methane that could be used to
replace wood for light, heating, and cooking
• Anaerobic Technologies has that solution:
– Our Anaerobic Reactor
The Reactor
• Custom designed tank, impervious to light
and air
• Can be installed above or under ground
• Is filled with water that flows freely through
the system
• Once filled, the reactor is inoculated with a
special mix of 55 anaerobic, non-disease
causing bacteria.
Reactor Operation
• Once inoculated, food (waste) must be furnished to the
reactor
• With food, the bacteria begin to eat and reproduce
• As the bacteria population increases, it can process
more waste and at a faster rate.
• Within a few weeks, the process will reach homeostasis:
– The bacteria population is at the carrying capacity of the reactor
– The reactor is capable of working at its maximum capacity
Reactor Operation (cont.)
• Reactor fuel comes from a reservoir built at the input. In it, people
dispose of human, animal, & food waste, or any other organic
substance.
• The reactor requires a constant slow flow of fluid to keep it healthy.
A simple hand grinder pump cranked twice a day can take care of
this.
• In addition the grinder turns everything in the reservoir into a fine
slurry that aids digestion
• Each type of bacteria in the mix targets a different organic
substance: proteins, sugars, fats, amino acids, etc.
By-products
• Within a few hours, the bacteria will have
completed digestion and three by-products
will remain:
– Gray Water
– Methane
– Trace amounts of Carbon Dioxide
Gray Water
• Water that flows out of the reactor is
considered gray water (disease-free but
not suitable for human consumption)
• Contains trace amounts of nitrogen and
phosphorus, making it excellent source for
watering crops
• Since anaerobic bacteria cannot live in the
presence of oxygen or light, any that
escape in the gray water die instantly
Methane
• Gas similar to butane or natural gas
• Bubbles to the top of reactor during
digestion
• Trapped methane can be used in one of
two ways:
– Piped to individual homes for cooking or light
– Firing a generator to create electricity for the
village
One Village, One Reactor
What could be accomplished?
• Improved growth of fruits and vegetables in the
garden.
• Improved removal of harmful organic waste.
• Improved health and sanitation.
• Improved living conditions.
• Fuel for cooking and light in the living unit.
• Possibly, electricity for all.
• Decreased disease.
• Decreased deforestation.
Thank you.