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Two contract modifications (one to study the effect of reactor design on bioconversion efficiency and the other to study the effects of variable speed mixing) are reported. All equipment has now been obtained, but installation is not complete. (JSR).
During the past quarter all experimental systems have become operational. The earlier problems with equipment acquisition have delayed the progress somewhat. However, most of these problems have been overcome such that the experimental programs have been initiated. This report will concentrate on the manure fermentation portion of this project. The study relating to the effect of reactor design is underway, but the results are too preliminary to evaluate. Therefore, no data from this activity will be reported.
During the past quarter, work has continued on the use of beef feed lot manure for the production of methane. Additional data were collected on the operation of the fermentors at thermophilic temperatures. Data were also collected at the mesophilic temperature. A considerable effort has been expended on characterizing the reactor effluent and evaluating the dewatering characteristics of the reactor slurry. Evaluation of the type of reactor on methane yields have continued. Data were collected on these systems operating at a total retention time of 10 days. Response of the system and reaction rates were determined.
A large scale laboratory system was constructed to evaluate the methane yields from various organic materials. The initial substrate for these studies was beef feed lot manure. Methane yields ranged from 0.11 to 0.259 m3 per kg volatile solids fed with a fermentation temperature of 58°C. The gas yield for a given manure was a function of retention time. However, fresh manure produced substantially more gas than manure that had been on the lots for several months. Retention times of 3.7 days and loadings of 8.76 kg per m3 per day resulted in stable operation. The results of a separate study of the effect of reactor type on methane production showed that if a balanced population of organisms can be maintained in the initial stage, a multi-stage fermentation is more efficient than a complete-mix system. However, when the system is stressed, failure of the multi-stage system is more rapid. If the objective is to maximize the conversion of solids to methane, a staged system will produce more methane per unit volume of reactor. If the objective is to maximize methane production per unit volume of reactor, a single stage complete-mix reactor operating at near the critical retention time is required.