Category:Mechanical engineering
Category:Miniature engines
Category:Industrial designWASHINGTON, June 14, 2010 - The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has partnered with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to develop a next-generation biogas plant to produce heat and electricity.
The plant would produce renewable electricity and heat for homes, businesses and transportation by converting organic materials, such as manure, municipal waste and plant matter, into biogas.
"This will be the first biogas plant to power an entire neighborhood and harness the energy of organic waste to power the generation of electricity and heat," said NREL Director Tony Keck. "The results of the project are expected to inspire more people to develop innovations that turn organic waste into useful energy sources."
The project is one of the first in the National Bioenergy Center's (NBC) Biomass Conversion Demonstration Initiative. The $15.2 million project will be located at the ARS National Animal Disease Center (NADC) in Ames, Iowa, and will be led by Iowa State University's Iowa State University Research Park. NREL will share the research.
"We are confident this project will catalyze innovative ideas to economically and responsibly generate renewable energy from organic waste," said ARS Chief of Research and Education Paul Fogel.
The project will demonstrate technologies for producing biogas from animal manure, municipal solid waste, and agricultural by-products, and will develop and validate methodologies for the economic assessment of these technologies.
The biogas plants will be converted from the current biodigester system with 60 percent methane gas and 40 percent carbon dioxide gas production to the newest, most advanced technology. Biogas plants produce biogas for heat, electricity and chemical uses.
Biogas is a fossil fuel with energy content that is similar to that of natural gas, but it is made from renewable organic materials, such as manure, municipal solid waste, and agricultural residues. It is cleaner than either coal or natural gas.
"This work is a great example of how NREL and USDA's partnership is having an impact in the area of energy, agriculture and technology," said NREL scientist Michael Campbell, who is leading the project. "It's helping to promote the conversion of organic waste to energy."
The NREL/ARS partnership is a natural fit for advanced energy and bi ac619d1d87
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