CA1225173A - Method and apparatus for degrading of organic products, by-products and scraps in an anaerobic medium - Google Patents
Method and apparatus for degrading of organic products, by-products and scraps in an anaerobic mediumInfo
- Publication number
- CA1225173A CA1225173A CA000435894A CA435894A CA1225173A CA 1225173 A CA1225173 A CA 1225173A CA 000435894 A CA000435894 A CA 000435894A CA 435894 A CA435894 A CA 435894A CA 1225173 A CA1225173 A CA 1225173A
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- Prior art keywords
- products
- vessel
- fermentation vessel
- biogas
- substrate
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02E50/00—Technologies for the production of fuel of non-fossil origin
- Y02E50/30—Fuel from waste, e.g. synthetic alcohol or diesel
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- Processing Of Solid Wastes (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A method and apparatus for carrying out a degrad-ation in an anaerobic medium, such as a methanogensis, of organic products, by-products or waste from human, animal and/or plant origin, consisting in feeding said products to be degraded into a closed fermentation vessel, forcing said products to flow in a direction of circulation within said vessel and recovering the gas produced called biogas evolved above said body of degraded products, wherein the improvement is characterized in that the feeding and/or discharge of the products is performed pneumatically, preferably through pneumatic thrust and, according to a preferred embodiment, by injection of gas, preferably biogas. A further improvement comprises using the biogas produced for homogenizing said body of products contained within said vessel the pressure of injection being in relation to the actual density of the products in the injection related section.
A method and apparatus for carrying out a degrad-ation in an anaerobic medium, such as a methanogensis, of organic products, by-products or waste from human, animal and/or plant origin, consisting in feeding said products to be degraded into a closed fermentation vessel, forcing said products to flow in a direction of circulation within said vessel and recovering the gas produced called biogas evolved above said body of degraded products, wherein the improvement is characterized in that the feeding and/or discharge of the products is performed pneumatically, preferably through pneumatic thrust and, according to a preferred embodiment, by injection of gas, preferably biogas. A further improvement comprises using the biogas produced for homogenizing said body of products contained within said vessel the pressure of injection being in relation to the actual density of the products in the injection related section.
Description
~25~3 'METHOD OF AN APPARATUS FOR DEGRADING OF ORGANIC PRODUCTS
BY-PRODUCTS AND SCRAPS IN AN ANAEROBIC MEDIUM"
The present invention relates to a loathed end an apparatus or lunate for carrying out the degradation of organic products, by-products an scrips or waste from human, animal and/or vegetable origin.
ore specifically the sub~eGt tatter of tune invention is a process and a device for performing a continuous ~et`rianizing of solid and/or liquid organic compounds.
Organic materials prom various such a human, animal or vegetable origin may lead through successive or simulate-10 awns microbiological degradations in an anaerobic medium to gaseous compounds the most important of which are methane and carbon dioxide.
The nature and composition of these organic products are very variable and they consist ox more or less polyp merited and imbricate elements. These organic products would mostly form a solid substrate whether fibrous or not with a high content ox dry matter. This is in particular the case of town and agricultural refuse 9 garbage or litter or instance. Such products may however also be 20 liquid with small contents ox dry matter such or instance as the sludges from purification plants or stations, liquid manures, milk serum.
~25~73 The major part of such substrates consists of ternary compounds such as sugars, starches, hemicelluloses 9 cellulose and lignins but quartenary substances such as provides and peptizes may also be associated therewith, The agents participating in such degradations are generally coming from animal, plant and -tell uric habitats.
Numerous species or kinds have been found out. They are evolving within mediums with very variable pi and reduce-ion-oxidation potential with ranges differing with the psychrophilous misfiles or ther~ophilous kinds In a simplified manner the degradation of an organic matter and in particular of an insoluble organic matter in an anaerobic medium would proceed according to three steps:
- a hydrolysis step during which the enzymes would convert the insoluble compounds into soluble substances;
- an acidogenous step during which dissolved organic matters are converted into compounds such as fatty acid alcohol or others. wring that acidogenous step there is an acetogenous step during which is generated acetic acid which is one ox the cGmpo~d~ which are essential for the formation ox methane during the following last step:
- a methanogenous step during which methane hod carbon dioxide are produced.
Fermentation processes are already known which consist in using digestion tanks, vats or like vessels operating continuously or discontinuously (botch product-ion). The batch-wise or discontinuously operating tanks are used especially with organic products or solid and heterogeneous substrates and are neither convenient nor industrially profitable. True continuously operating digestion tanks are almost essentially used with liquid effluents with a small content of dry matter. In such devices indeed the treatment of a solid substrate whether heterogeneous or not involves many di~ficulties,in particular in correction with the circulation and home-genization ox the substrate within the tank thereby - resulting in bad operating conditions and strongly disturb-in or interfering with the process of degradation ox I
organic matter The efficiencies or yields ox such plants are relatively low. To provide for a mechanizing under suitable conditions, it was therefore necessary to use a liquid substrate or a substrate greatly diluted through addition of water This amount of water associated with the substrate to be processed would result in the occur-fence of polluting liquid refuse and the use of bulky tanks.
From the French patent specification publication No
BY-PRODUCTS AND SCRAPS IN AN ANAEROBIC MEDIUM"
The present invention relates to a loathed end an apparatus or lunate for carrying out the degradation of organic products, by-products an scrips or waste from human, animal and/or vegetable origin.
ore specifically the sub~eGt tatter of tune invention is a process and a device for performing a continuous ~et`rianizing of solid and/or liquid organic compounds.
Organic materials prom various such a human, animal or vegetable origin may lead through successive or simulate-10 awns microbiological degradations in an anaerobic medium to gaseous compounds the most important of which are methane and carbon dioxide.
The nature and composition of these organic products are very variable and they consist ox more or less polyp merited and imbricate elements. These organic products would mostly form a solid substrate whether fibrous or not with a high content ox dry matter. This is in particular the case of town and agricultural refuse 9 garbage or litter or instance. Such products may however also be 20 liquid with small contents ox dry matter such or instance as the sludges from purification plants or stations, liquid manures, milk serum.
~25~73 The major part of such substrates consists of ternary compounds such as sugars, starches, hemicelluloses 9 cellulose and lignins but quartenary substances such as provides and peptizes may also be associated therewith, The agents participating in such degradations are generally coming from animal, plant and -tell uric habitats.
Numerous species or kinds have been found out. They are evolving within mediums with very variable pi and reduce-ion-oxidation potential with ranges differing with the psychrophilous misfiles or ther~ophilous kinds In a simplified manner the degradation of an organic matter and in particular of an insoluble organic matter in an anaerobic medium would proceed according to three steps:
- a hydrolysis step during which the enzymes would convert the insoluble compounds into soluble substances;
- an acidogenous step during which dissolved organic matters are converted into compounds such as fatty acid alcohol or others. wring that acidogenous step there is an acetogenous step during which is generated acetic acid which is one ox the cGmpo~d~ which are essential for the formation ox methane during the following last step:
- a methanogenous step during which methane hod carbon dioxide are produced.
Fermentation processes are already known which consist in using digestion tanks, vats or like vessels operating continuously or discontinuously (botch product-ion). The batch-wise or discontinuously operating tanks are used especially with organic products or solid and heterogeneous substrates and are neither convenient nor industrially profitable. True continuously operating digestion tanks are almost essentially used with liquid effluents with a small content of dry matter. In such devices indeed the treatment of a solid substrate whether heterogeneous or not involves many di~ficulties,in particular in correction with the circulation and home-genization ox the substrate within the tank thereby - resulting in bad operating conditions and strongly disturb-in or interfering with the process of degradation ox I
organic matter The efficiencies or yields ox such plants are relatively low. To provide for a mechanizing under suitable conditions, it was therefore necessary to use a liquid substrate or a substrate greatly diluted through addition of water This amount of water associated with the substrate to be processed would result in the occur-fence of polluting liquid refuse and the use of bulky tanks.
From the French patent specification publication No
2,3~5~113 is for instance known an apparatus for the 10 digestion ox organic matters wherein the material to be processed after having been damped or moistened is fed into a cylindrical compartment wherein it undergoes an aerobic fermentation under pressure and is then driven or pushed by a ramming piston through a bent siphon into a small anaerobic fermentation compartment and thereafter into a large compartment. Within the bend or elbow of the siphon forks would prevent the material from flowing back.
According to said patent specification, there is also provided an extraction shaft or well wherein -the fe~nen-20 ted matter is curried along by a claw.
I The object of the present invention is to remove such difficulties by providing a method of and an apparatus for performing the aerobic fermentation of organic products, by-products or waste or refuse of hygiene, animal or plant origin in particular with a high content of dry matters whether heterogeneous or not while effecting a good homogenization of the products within the digestion tax to thereby promote on the one hand the process of degradation of the organic material and on the other hand the circulation of the products within, the tank through an effect of fluidization of the mass of products.
or that purpose, the invention provides a method of carrying out a degradation in an anaerobic medium or instance a methanogenesis of organic products, by-products or waste from human 7 animal and/or vegetable origin consisting in feeding said products to be degraded into a closed vessel after having possibly sowed or seeded said products with a suitable substrate, forcing said products 1~5~73 to follow a direction of circulation within said vessel, recovering or collecting the gas called buggies evolved above said mass of products and discharging the degraded products 3 said method being characterized by the step of carrying out the feeding and discharge of the products to be degraded pneumatically for instance through a pneumatic thrust. This pneumatic thrust can be caused through injection of gas, preferably buggies.
With such a pneumatic feeding and discharge of the products the processing is unexpectedly improved notably by the fact that the problems of blocking or clogging and corrosion in connection with mechanical devices for supplying or extracting the substrate are removed. Also J
the construction of the apparatus is simplified and it is further possible to treat products or substrates having a very high content in Wry matters whether heterogeneous or not.
According to one embodiment of the invention method, said method comprises causing the pressure of buggies 20 contained within said closed vessel to suddenly and sharply drop intermittently thereby inducing a flux and reflex or back and forth motion of the mass of products Tithing said vessel.
According to another characterizing feature of the ; invention method! it is performed an injection ox produced buggies into the mass of products contained within said vessel, preferably through emission of short jets or blasts by intermittence under pressure According to a preferred embodiment of the invention 30 method, said method further comprises sub-dividing said closed vessel into a plurality ox sections; and injecting intermittently buggies, preferably produced biogas,into each one of said sections under a pressure and during a period of time predetermined, set in relation to the density of the products within the involved section.
Accordingly, according to the invention method, the pressure of the injection ox buggies and the duration of injection is adapted in relation to the actual density of the solid products or of the substrate in the injected section It ., I
can therefore be easily understood that it is obtained with the invention an essentially perfect fluidization of the products during their slow throughout the fermentation vessel.
Further, according to a still preferred embodiment of the invention process, buggies is introduced into each section successively, i.e. displaced or shifted in the time, so as to obtain in practice a rotation of the buggies injection within the vessel, from a section to another one.
10 This rotation ox buggies injection can be regular or irregular, i.e. said injection can begin prom a given section and be followed by injection in another section not adjacent to the just previously injected section, said first injected section, being selected in view of its actual density and fluidization effect to be reached.
Also, according to the invention method, the buggies injection can be prewarmed. Such a programmation can be performed with the aid of any Milwaukee known to one skilled in the art and in particular through use of a 20 microprocessor or a computer The invention is also directed to an apparatus or plant for carrying out the method described hereinabove and which is of the kind comprising a reactor or digester with an anaerobic fermentation vessel, tar or provided with substrate feeding means and substrate discharging means, respectively, a gas or buggies outlet connected to a gasometer or like gas holding vessel, wherein the improve-mint is characterized in that the fermentation vessel comprises a partition wall dividing said vessel into 2 first part and a second part, said partition wall having a height smaller than that of the vessel, said first part being collected to said substrate weeding means and said second part being connected to said substrate discharging means, at least one of said substrate feeding means and said substrate discharging means comprising means for introducing gas under pressure so as to yield a pneumatic thrust of the products to be degraded into said vessel. This gas is preferably buggies.
~25:~73 According to a particular embodiment of the invention apparatus, each of said substrate eddying means and substrate discharging means comprises a substantially vertical shaft which can be closed and at the top of which is connected said buggies introduction means so as to yield said pneumatic thrust in said shaft.
According to another characterizing feature of the invention apparatus, said buggies outlet is connected to said gasometer through a gate or valve and in particular I a hydraulic valve.
According to a still further characterizing feature of the invention apparatus, said fermentation vessel is provided with a plurality of buggies injection ducts, laterally spaced one with respect to the other and located at least in the major portion of said vessel, said buggies injection ducts being fed individually or by groups with buggies through independent gates or valves, thereby sub-dividing the fermentation vessel in-to buggies independently fed sections.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the inanition apparatus, the Boyce injection circuitry comprises a buggies storage container in which buggies is gathered and stored until o~tention of 2 pressure at least equal to the highest prosier required in one of said vessel sections according to the invention, each gate or valve is foreseen and designed so as to provide a pressure in relation to the density of the products within the associated or related section.
according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, said apparatus further comprises programed control device for each gate or valve of Mach section.
According to a still further preferred embodiment of the invention apparatus, said apparatus urethra comprises a buggies injection conduit at the top of the fermentation vessel provided with an appropriate gate or valve, thereby allowing possibility of performing a pneumatic thrust in the fermentation vessel which is preferably SLY
performed simultaneously to the extraction or discharge of the fermented products from the fermentation vessel or instance in direction to the substrate discharging means.
Furthermore, said partition wall splitting the fermentation vessel into a first and a second part is preferably formed with a passageway for communication between said first and second parts at least at the bottom of the vessel.
According to still another characterizing feature of 10 the invention, the apparatus comprises a compressor the inlet of which is at least connected to said gasometer and the outlet of which is connected notably to said plurality of ducts or pipelines opening into the bottom of the vessel, said ducts being advantageously fitted with a check or non-retuln valve or gate. These ducts or pipe-lines opening into the bottom of the vessel may possibly be provided with 2 valve for blowing buggies in successive short jets.
Moreover, said compressor outlet is also preferably 20 corrected to ducts or pipelines opening into the bottom of slid feeding arc discharge shafts and/or to ducts open-in at the tops of said feed and discharge shafts each duct being fitted with at least one shutoff valve. It is -thus possible to recycle the Boyce to all the part of the apparatus.
In addition, the apparatus can also comprise an air compressor, the outlet of which is collected to said feed shaft and/or discharge shaft for thereby inducing or continuing if desired a degradation in an anaerobic medium 30 within the feed shaft and accelerating the process of convention of the substrate within the discharge shaft with a vie to being used as compost.
The apparatus also comprises means for recycling into said reactor and/or into the feed shalt or the discharge shaft the liquid separated from the fermented solid products recovered at the outlet of said discharge shaft this liquid being a leaven or an inoculum.
According to still another feature of the invention, the feed shaft is provided with two series of slots or , slits spaced by some distance from each other and located at some distance from the cover or lid and the bottom end of the shaft, respectively.
Moreover, said valve controlling the discharge of buggies produced within the vessel can be located either outside of the Al or within the shaft whereas the gasometer is either outside of the TV or above the latter In the latter case, the gas would escape through a pipe which extends through the vessel and leads to a condensing siphon adapted to collect or gather the water present within the buggies originating from the fermentation.
Preferably these gases are then carried to a purifier like scrubber, cleaner or filter.
Furthermore, according to a first embodiment of the fermentation vessel or reactor of the invention, said feed and discharge shafts are located near each other, said partition wall being arranged vertically between both end openings I said shafts leading into the vessel and such partition wall having 2 width smaller than the wit of said vowel and a height smaller than the height of -the v~s~l,whereas the bottom of the latter exhibits a double slope and is advantageously of elliptic shape.
according to another embodiment of the fermentation vessel of the apparatus, said fee and discharge shafts are arrange in substantially diametrally opposed relationship on the periphery of said fermerltation vessel, said partition wall being arranged vertically and directed substantially along a diameter of the vessel and having 2 height smaller than that ox the vessel. The bottom of this vessel preferably has a single slope or pitch whereas said partition wall is formed with a passageway at its lower portion Lastly, the apparatus comprises heat exchangers for corralling out various heat exchanges between the fluids flowing within the apparatus and in particular for heating up the leaven or inoculum before its being fed into the fermentation vessel or reactor or digester.
The invention will be fully and completely understood ~5~73 and further characterizing features, details and advantages thereof will appear clearly as the following explanatory description proceeds, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings given by way of non-limiting examples only, illustrating various embodiments of the invention and wherein-Figure 1 is a vertical section through an embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention;
- Figure 2 is a view in cross-section taken upon the line II-II of Figure 1;
- Figure 3 is a view in vertical section showing another embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention;
- Figure 4 is a vie in cross-section taken upon the line IV-IV of Figure 3;
- Figure 5 is a view in vertical section of another embodiment of the apparatlls according to the invention, with parts broken away;
- Figure 6 is a vie in cross-section -taken upon the line VI-VI of figure 5;
- Figures arid 8 are conspectus or bloc; diagrams of the apparatus of the invention with all the buggies circuitry;
- Figure 9 is a conspectus or block diagram of another embodiment of the invention apparatus and buggies circuitry;
- Figures aye 10b, aye, 11b are schematic views of the fermentation vessel of the invention apparatus to show the results of the method according to the invention on the state of the substrate within the fermentation vessel;
- Figure I is a schematic view showing an apparatus for treating the fermented substrate at the output of the fermentation vessel; and - Figure 13 shows a modification of the invention apparatus subject matter of Figures 5 and 6 and is a view in cross-section of the bottom of the fermentation Bessel, seen from the top thereof and shows all the buggies circuitry for introduction of buggies in the bottom of the
According to said patent specification, there is also provided an extraction shaft or well wherein -the fe~nen-20 ted matter is curried along by a claw.
I The object of the present invention is to remove such difficulties by providing a method of and an apparatus for performing the aerobic fermentation of organic products, by-products or waste or refuse of hygiene, animal or plant origin in particular with a high content of dry matters whether heterogeneous or not while effecting a good homogenization of the products within the digestion tax to thereby promote on the one hand the process of degradation of the organic material and on the other hand the circulation of the products within, the tank through an effect of fluidization of the mass of products.
or that purpose, the invention provides a method of carrying out a degradation in an anaerobic medium or instance a methanogenesis of organic products, by-products or waste from human 7 animal and/or vegetable origin consisting in feeding said products to be degraded into a closed vessel after having possibly sowed or seeded said products with a suitable substrate, forcing said products 1~5~73 to follow a direction of circulation within said vessel, recovering or collecting the gas called buggies evolved above said mass of products and discharging the degraded products 3 said method being characterized by the step of carrying out the feeding and discharge of the products to be degraded pneumatically for instance through a pneumatic thrust. This pneumatic thrust can be caused through injection of gas, preferably buggies.
With such a pneumatic feeding and discharge of the products the processing is unexpectedly improved notably by the fact that the problems of blocking or clogging and corrosion in connection with mechanical devices for supplying or extracting the substrate are removed. Also J
the construction of the apparatus is simplified and it is further possible to treat products or substrates having a very high content in Wry matters whether heterogeneous or not.
According to one embodiment of the invention method, said method comprises causing the pressure of buggies 20 contained within said closed vessel to suddenly and sharply drop intermittently thereby inducing a flux and reflex or back and forth motion of the mass of products Tithing said vessel.
According to another characterizing feature of the ; invention method! it is performed an injection ox produced buggies into the mass of products contained within said vessel, preferably through emission of short jets or blasts by intermittence under pressure According to a preferred embodiment of the invention 30 method, said method further comprises sub-dividing said closed vessel into a plurality ox sections; and injecting intermittently buggies, preferably produced biogas,into each one of said sections under a pressure and during a period of time predetermined, set in relation to the density of the products within the involved section.
Accordingly, according to the invention method, the pressure of the injection ox buggies and the duration of injection is adapted in relation to the actual density of the solid products or of the substrate in the injected section It ., I
can therefore be easily understood that it is obtained with the invention an essentially perfect fluidization of the products during their slow throughout the fermentation vessel.
Further, according to a still preferred embodiment of the invention process, buggies is introduced into each section successively, i.e. displaced or shifted in the time, so as to obtain in practice a rotation of the buggies injection within the vessel, from a section to another one.
10 This rotation ox buggies injection can be regular or irregular, i.e. said injection can begin prom a given section and be followed by injection in another section not adjacent to the just previously injected section, said first injected section, being selected in view of its actual density and fluidization effect to be reached.
Also, according to the invention method, the buggies injection can be prewarmed. Such a programmation can be performed with the aid of any Milwaukee known to one skilled in the art and in particular through use of a 20 microprocessor or a computer The invention is also directed to an apparatus or plant for carrying out the method described hereinabove and which is of the kind comprising a reactor or digester with an anaerobic fermentation vessel, tar or provided with substrate feeding means and substrate discharging means, respectively, a gas or buggies outlet connected to a gasometer or like gas holding vessel, wherein the improve-mint is characterized in that the fermentation vessel comprises a partition wall dividing said vessel into 2 first part and a second part, said partition wall having a height smaller than that of the vessel, said first part being collected to said substrate weeding means and said second part being connected to said substrate discharging means, at least one of said substrate feeding means and said substrate discharging means comprising means for introducing gas under pressure so as to yield a pneumatic thrust of the products to be degraded into said vessel. This gas is preferably buggies.
~25:~73 According to a particular embodiment of the invention apparatus, each of said substrate eddying means and substrate discharging means comprises a substantially vertical shaft which can be closed and at the top of which is connected said buggies introduction means so as to yield said pneumatic thrust in said shaft.
According to another characterizing feature of the invention apparatus, said buggies outlet is connected to said gasometer through a gate or valve and in particular I a hydraulic valve.
According to a still further characterizing feature of the invention apparatus, said fermentation vessel is provided with a plurality of buggies injection ducts, laterally spaced one with respect to the other and located at least in the major portion of said vessel, said buggies injection ducts being fed individually or by groups with buggies through independent gates or valves, thereby sub-dividing the fermentation vessel in-to buggies independently fed sections.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the inanition apparatus, the Boyce injection circuitry comprises a buggies storage container in which buggies is gathered and stored until o~tention of 2 pressure at least equal to the highest prosier required in one of said vessel sections according to the invention, each gate or valve is foreseen and designed so as to provide a pressure in relation to the density of the products within the associated or related section.
according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, said apparatus further comprises programed control device for each gate or valve of Mach section.
According to a still further preferred embodiment of the invention apparatus, said apparatus urethra comprises a buggies injection conduit at the top of the fermentation vessel provided with an appropriate gate or valve, thereby allowing possibility of performing a pneumatic thrust in the fermentation vessel which is preferably SLY
performed simultaneously to the extraction or discharge of the fermented products from the fermentation vessel or instance in direction to the substrate discharging means.
Furthermore, said partition wall splitting the fermentation vessel into a first and a second part is preferably formed with a passageway for communication between said first and second parts at least at the bottom of the vessel.
According to still another characterizing feature of 10 the invention, the apparatus comprises a compressor the inlet of which is at least connected to said gasometer and the outlet of which is connected notably to said plurality of ducts or pipelines opening into the bottom of the vessel, said ducts being advantageously fitted with a check or non-retuln valve or gate. These ducts or pipe-lines opening into the bottom of the vessel may possibly be provided with 2 valve for blowing buggies in successive short jets.
Moreover, said compressor outlet is also preferably 20 corrected to ducts or pipelines opening into the bottom of slid feeding arc discharge shafts and/or to ducts open-in at the tops of said feed and discharge shafts each duct being fitted with at least one shutoff valve. It is -thus possible to recycle the Boyce to all the part of the apparatus.
In addition, the apparatus can also comprise an air compressor, the outlet of which is collected to said feed shaft and/or discharge shaft for thereby inducing or continuing if desired a degradation in an anaerobic medium 30 within the feed shaft and accelerating the process of convention of the substrate within the discharge shaft with a vie to being used as compost.
The apparatus also comprises means for recycling into said reactor and/or into the feed shalt or the discharge shaft the liquid separated from the fermented solid products recovered at the outlet of said discharge shaft this liquid being a leaven or an inoculum.
According to still another feature of the invention, the feed shaft is provided with two series of slots or , slits spaced by some distance from each other and located at some distance from the cover or lid and the bottom end of the shaft, respectively.
Moreover, said valve controlling the discharge of buggies produced within the vessel can be located either outside of the Al or within the shaft whereas the gasometer is either outside of the TV or above the latter In the latter case, the gas would escape through a pipe which extends through the vessel and leads to a condensing siphon adapted to collect or gather the water present within the buggies originating from the fermentation.
Preferably these gases are then carried to a purifier like scrubber, cleaner or filter.
Furthermore, according to a first embodiment of the fermentation vessel or reactor of the invention, said feed and discharge shafts are located near each other, said partition wall being arranged vertically between both end openings I said shafts leading into the vessel and such partition wall having 2 width smaller than the wit of said vowel and a height smaller than the height of -the v~s~l,whereas the bottom of the latter exhibits a double slope and is advantageously of elliptic shape.
according to another embodiment of the fermentation vessel of the apparatus, said fee and discharge shafts are arrange in substantially diametrally opposed relationship on the periphery of said fermerltation vessel, said partition wall being arranged vertically and directed substantially along a diameter of the vessel and having 2 height smaller than that ox the vessel. The bottom of this vessel preferably has a single slope or pitch whereas said partition wall is formed with a passageway at its lower portion Lastly, the apparatus comprises heat exchangers for corralling out various heat exchanges between the fluids flowing within the apparatus and in particular for heating up the leaven or inoculum before its being fed into the fermentation vessel or reactor or digester.
The invention will be fully and completely understood ~5~73 and further characterizing features, details and advantages thereof will appear clearly as the following explanatory description proceeds, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings given by way of non-limiting examples only, illustrating various embodiments of the invention and wherein-Figure 1 is a vertical section through an embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention;
- Figure 2 is a view in cross-section taken upon the line II-II of Figure 1;
- Figure 3 is a view in vertical section showing another embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention;
- Figure 4 is a vie in cross-section taken upon the line IV-IV of Figure 3;
- Figure 5 is a view in vertical section of another embodiment of the apparatlls according to the invention, with parts broken away;
- Figure 6 is a vie in cross-section -taken upon the line VI-VI of figure 5;
- Figures arid 8 are conspectus or bloc; diagrams of the apparatus of the invention with all the buggies circuitry;
- Figure 9 is a conspectus or block diagram of another embodiment of the invention apparatus and buggies circuitry;
- Figures aye 10b, aye, 11b are schematic views of the fermentation vessel of the invention apparatus to show the results of the method according to the invention on the state of the substrate within the fermentation vessel;
- Figure I is a schematic view showing an apparatus for treating the fermented substrate at the output of the fermentation vessel; and - Figure 13 shows a modification of the invention apparatus subject matter of Figures 5 and 6 and is a view in cross-section of the bottom of the fermentation Bessel, seen from the top thereof and shows all the buggies circuitry for introduction of buggies in the bottom of the
3. I
fermentation vessel, Referring to Figures 1 and 2, a first embodiment of the invention apparatus or plant and in particular a first embodiment of the fermentation vessel or reactor thereof will be described The fermentation portion or reactor 1 of the invention apparatus comprises a substrate feeding or supply means 3 here constituted by a substantially vertical shaft, closable in fully sealing or ~luid-tight relationship by a cover or 10 lid pa, a fermentation vessel 2 with a dome-shaped cover pa and a substrate discharging means 4, here constituted by a substantially vertical shaft, closable by a cover or lid aye The fermentation vessel 2 is separated by a partition wall 7 into a first part and a second art The first part is corrected to feeding means 3 and the second part is connected to discharge means 4. The partition wall 7 is here shown positioned substantially along a diameter of the vessel 2 and having a height smaller thin that of the vessel 2. moreover, -this partition wall 7 preferably 20 leaves a passageway I at ifs lower portion, i.e. in the vicinity of thy bottom of thy vessel 2.
In the embodiment shown on Figure 1 and as clearly seen on Figure I, the feed and discharge shafts 3 and 4 are arranged in dipteral opposite relationship on the periphery of the vessel 2 and are connected to the first and second parts, respectively, ox the vessel 2 through siphons 5, I The siphon 5 may possibly be fitted with a means such as chain 35 flexible in one direction only and breaking or preventing any ~ackflow or return of the substrate during the anaerobic fermentation towards the feed shaft 30 The vessel 2 comprises a gas outlet duct or pipeline pitted with a shut-off valve boa and opening in the shown embodiment into a hydraulic valve 11, the gas or buggies then evolving through the duct or pipeline 12 to flow to a gasometer 15 not shown on Figure 1.
The feed shalt also comprises two series of slots or slits 8 spaced from each other on the feed shaft 3 and 5:~73 circu~ferentially located thereon The vessel 2 can also comprise chains 9 suspended from the dome-like portion pa of the vessel I the function of which will be described later.
In the embodiment shown on Figure 1, the discharge shaft 4 is provided at its top with a cover pa pitted with a gas duct or pipeline 115, an outlet siphon 127 and on outfall or like overflow chute or spool 128 with an adjustable opening or outlet port 129 furthermore, the apparatus 1 comprises several ducts either or draining away the gases from the discharge or feed shaft or for feeding air into this discharge or feed shaft or for feeding leaven or inoculum into the vest 2. These various ducts will be described more in detail together with the description of the ducts of the apparatus The second embodiment of the apparatus 1 according to the invention, shown on Figures 3 and 4 differs prom the first embodiment if, that -the hydraulic valve 11' is 20 arranged within the reactor vessel 2, the latter being topped by a ~asomcter 15'. True valve 11' is fitted on a duct 10' one end ox which extends as the pipe I on Figure 1 from the top pa of the vessel rowers its other end opens into the gasometer 15'~ Into the latter opens a pipe 145 which leads on the one hand lo h condensing siphon 146 adapted to collect or recover the water present within the hot gases or biogases evolving from the fermentation and which is condensing within the pipe 145 and on the other hand to a duct for conveying the buggies 30 roadside for instance into a purifier, clearer, scrubber or like filter eons 2 shut-off valve 147 being provided on the duct 1450 In Roth ox the embodiments described, the fermentation vessel bottom 2b has one single slope or pitch and the inlet siphon 5 is located at a higher level than that ox the siphon 6.
The embodiment of the invention apparatus shown on Figures 5 and 6 differs from both previous embodiments in that the shafts 3 and 4 are arranged near each other on 5~'73 the periphery of the Bessel I The partition wall 7 is then located between the inlets of both siphons, 6 within the fermentation vessel 2, its width being smaller than the width ox the vessel so that the substrate may flow in the direction of the arrow F. Moreover, as in both embodiments, the height of the partition wall 7 is smaller than that of the vessel I In this embodiment, the siphon 5 associated with the feed shaft 3 is also positioned at a higher level than that of the siphon 6 associated with the discharge shaft 4. The bottom 2b of the fermentation vessel 2 exhibits a double slope or pitch and is advantageously of elliptic shape.
Furthermore, the chains 9 fastened to the dome-shaped top pa of the vessel 2 advantageously carry weighty or heavy elements pa such as metal discs, these discs being fastened to the chains 9 preferably at the lower portions thereof. Thus the chains 9 are suspended from the dome-shaped top pa of -the vessel so as to hug freely down into the vessel or being embedded at least partially into the substrate to be processed as clearly shown on Figures aye, 10b, aye, 11b. It is of course possible to arrange these chains 9 together with the weighty or heavy elements pa within the vessel shown on Figures 1 to 4.
moreover, according to another alternative embodiment of the invention, the outlet siphon 127, the outfall or like overflow-shoot or spool 'i28 provided on the discharge shaft 4 may be substituted for by a drain or egress duct fitted with a shutoff valve (not shown).
Referring to figures 7 to 9, the apparatus according to the invention and in particular the various fluid-carrying ducts thereof will now be described.
For the sake of a better understanding of these drawings those ducts wherein the buggies is flowing are shown in heavy solid lines whereas those ducts which carry the levee or inoculum are shown in thin solid lines and those ducts wherein air is flowing are shown in broken or dotted lines In the whole apparatus or plant as shown on Figure 9, , I, i2~5~ 73 the fermentation vessel 2 is connected to the hydraulic valve 11 through a gas outlet duct 10 fitted advantageously with a shutoff valve aye. The hydraulic valve 11 is in turn corrected to the gas holding vessel or gasometer 15 through a duct or pipeline 12 in which are mounted for instance a gasometer 14 and a container 13 forming a buffer gasometer It must be noted that a gate or valve actuated for instance pneumatically, electrically, hydraulically, 10 electromechanical and so on be substituted for the hydraulic valve 11 or the same purpose, The gasometer 15 is fitted with an outlet duct 16 provided with a shut off valve aye and which is connected on the one old to a duct 17 for carrying the gas for instance to a purifier, a storage station or a burner, and, on -the other hand, to the inlet of a was compressor or booster 18 to provide for the circulation of the buggies within the whole apparatus or plant. The outlet 19 of this gas compressor or booster 18 is collected -through a 20 duct 21 and branch ducts 22 and 23 through valves aye to the top portions of the feed and discharge shafts 3,4, respectively with the purpose of providing the pneumatic thrust of the substrate as previously emphasized.
The outlet I ox the booster I is also connected through a duct 20 fitted with a valve aye to the bottom portions ox the feed and discharge shafts 3,4 through the ducts 24,25; and to -the bottom portion of the vessel 2 through a plurality of ducts 26, with, in the latter case, the purpose of injecting buggies at the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2. A preferred embodiment of said ducts will be described with reference to Figure 13.
On the other hand, the top portion of the fermentation vessel 2 is connected to the inlet of the compressor 18 through a duct 27 fitted with a valve aye.
According to a preferred alternative of this embody-mint, the top portion ox the fermentation vessel 2 can be connected to the outlet ox the compressor 18 through a derivation duct I to duct 23 fitted with an associated 7~3 I
valve aye with the purpose of performing a pneumatic thrust within the orientation vessel 2 through injection of buggies through valve aye at the top of the fermentation vessel 2 simultaneously to the cutting of of the pneumatic thrust within discharge shaft 4.
Preferably, the ducts 26 opening into the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2 and the ducts 24 7 25 are fitted with check or non-return valves (not shown for preventing materials contained within the vessel from falling into said ducts. Moreover, the ducts 26 may possibly be provided with valve means (not shown) adapted to emit short and successive jets under pressure.
The gas circuit shown on Figure 9 described herein-below is riven by way of illustrative example only It is of course possible to provide other ducts or devices valves, gates or the like for carrying out any possible circuits for the flow of gas within the vessel and for instance to provide heat exchanges with other fluids within the apparatus or plant as shown on Figures 7 and 8.
In these Figures, the circuit for recycling the buggies within the apparatus is not shown.
One inaction of the buggies recovered within the gas-meter 15 is directly fed into the purifier 111 whereas another fraction is put in heat exchanging relationship with the air possibly supplied into the feed shaft 3, within the heat exchanger 110 and then through the ducts 108,113 and valves 109,~12, it also undergoes a heat exchange within the heat exchanger 114 with the levee recycled into the apparatus 1. This buggies fraction is then fed into the purifier ~11 through the pipeline 115.
Advantageously the buggies present at the upper portions of the feed and discharge shafts is fed into the purifier 111 .
The flow circuits of the leaven or inoculum and of the air will be described at the same time as the operation of the plant.
Finally, with reference to Figure 13, the best mode of the invention apparatus comprises fermentation vessel 2 ~5~3 of the type shown in Figures 5 and 6 but modified as follows with respect to introduction of buggies into the fermentation Bessel 2 and fed from the gasometer of the type for instance of a gasometer 15 of Figure 9.
Duct 16 receiving buggies at the outlet of gasometer 15 is shown at the right of Figure 13~ The compressor 18 is provided on this duct 16 as shown in Figure 9 and the duct 19 connected with the outlet of the compressor 18 is sub-divided into ducts 20 and 21 exactly as in the case of Figure 9.
However, according to the present modified embodiment, duct 20 does not deliver the buggies immediately to the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2 but is connected to a buggies storage container 300 able to support a high pressure and in which buggies is gathered and stored until obtention of a predetermined high pressure which will be defined later, A duct 302 is collected to the outlet of said buggies storage reservoir 300, said duct 302 being sub-divided into a plurality of sub-ducts 304,306,30~,310,312,314,316, 318, each being provided with an individual Nate or valve, respectively 320-322-324-326-32~-330-332-334.
The sub-ducts 304 to 318 are feeding buggies to a plurality of buggies injection ducts 340,342,344,346~348, 350,352,354,356,358,360,362, ~64,366,368,370 which are located in the location of the bottom of fermentation vessel 2 and which are constituted by hollow tubes of appropriate section longitudinally provided with a plurality ox injection openings such as 37Z.
According to the present invention, said plurality ox buggies injection ducts 340 to 370 is fed with buggies India-ideally or in groups J for instance two by two as shown on Figure 13, via the independent valves 320 to 3}4 so as to sub-divide the fermentation Bessel 2 in sections in depend-entry fed with buggies The limits of the sections have been symbolically materialized on Figure 13 by the presence of the dotted lines 374,376,378,380,382,384,3~6. In the embodiment shown on Figure 13, it thus appears that eight ~5~73 sections have been defined. It will be noted that the buggies injection ducts are laterally spaced between -them and located at least in the major portion ox the ferment station vessel 2$ preferably regularly as shown Further the specific construction of the buggies injection ducts ~40 to 370 is a part of the invention Further, according to the present invention, each valve 320 to 334 is foreseen designed or constructed so as to provide a pressure in relation to the density of the 10 products in the associated section. besides each valve is controlled preferably according to the invention through a programmed control device (not shown), so as to inject intermittently buggies into each of the sections of the fermentation Bessel 2 under pressure and during a period of time predetermined, set in relation to the density of the products in the associated section.
By the terms "pressure of injection in relation to the looniest ox the products in & given section'' - it is intended to emphasize that the injection pressure is sufficient to yield a ~luidiza~ion of the mass of the products or substrate to be fermented or in fermentation having the said density.
It will thus be understood that the injection pressure is actually commensurate or adapted to the actual density of the mass of products or substrate in the section where is injected buggies.
Thus, with the invention apparatus, the previously set forth method is performed, namely the obtention of a sub-dividing of the fermentation vessel 2, into a plurality of sections. Further, with a view of performing a substantially perfect or homogeneous fluidization of the solid products or substrate within the fermentation vessel 2, the invention method comprises injecting intermittently buggies into each one of the sections under pressure and during a period of time predetermined, set in function of the density of the products within the associated section.
Further, according to a further characterizing feature of the invention method, buggies is injected into ~5~73 each section successively while being shifted in the time so as to obtain a so-called buggies injection rotation within the fermentation vessel 2 prom a section to the other. This injection can be regular or irregular and therefore a given section can be injected with buggies whereas one or several of the adjacent sections are not injected with buggies should in said sections the fluid-ization of the products be satisfactory, ire. the density of the products. Besides, and with the aid of the JO programmed control device, it can be obtained a programmed injection. This progra~mation can be automatically servo-controlled by means detecting a lack of fluidity within one of the sections of the fermentation vessel 2 so as to immediately order an injection in the concerned section by acting on the corresponding valve.
It should also be noted that according to the present invention, the presence of the buggies storage reservoir 300 provides unexpectedly for Gone skilled in the art the use of a compressor 18 of low capacity, namely with a low compression ratio.
Further, with the presence of duct 23', Figure o'er injection of buggies at the top of the fermentation vessel 2, it can be performed a pneumatic thrust from the top of the fermentation vessel 2 so as to easier discharge the solid products flowing on the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2 towards the discharge shaft 4. Preferably, according to a further characterizing feature of the invention method, the pneumatic thrust in the fermentation vessel 2 is performed simultaneously with the pneumatic thrust in the discharge shaft 4. Further, according to the invention method, the previously said pneumatic thrust in the substrate feeding shaft 4 is performed simultaneously to the setting to opening of buggies evacuating valve such as valve boa of Figures 1 to 9, thereby improving the forced feeding of the products or substrate to be fermented It is therefore clear for one skilled in the art that according to the invention, it is obtained a practically perfect fluidization of the products or substrate even 1~3 with a high content in solid materials such as human waste products and litter together with a simplified technology of the m~lufacture of the fermentation vessel, in particular with the sub-dividing I the fermentation vessel into a plurality of independent sections as in the case of the embodiment of Figure 13 by lowering the slope of the bottom of the fermentation vessel, thereby yielding a lowering of the Bessel costs.
Further, it is of course also obtained according to 10 the invention, unexpectedly an improved yield in buggies The working of the invention apparatus will now be described.
Organic products, by-products or waste from human, animal or vegetable origin are possibly subjected to a mechanical, physical, chemical or microbiological prelim-nary treatment, for instance to a heat processing, a pounding, crushing or milling or a chopping through a chopper-projector, a quick depressuriz~tion or pressure drop, an anorak pre-fermentation to for instance 20 promote the hydrolysis of the matter, the defiberization, shredding or delignification in particular in the case of cellulosic and ligno-cellulosic compounds. After the opening of the cover pa the materials are then supplied into the feed shaft 3. The cover is then closed again in sealing or f-uid-tight relationship. Thereafter a gas is supplied into the top portion of the feed shalt to build up a gas pressure, for instance through injection of compressed air produced by the compressor 28 and conveyed through the pipeline 29 to the Lowry portion of the feed shaft 3 or by feeding buggies through the pipeline 23 upon opening the shut-off valve aye. The gas pressure prevail-in at the bottom portion of the feed shaft 3 would drive or push the products or substrates through the siphon 5 for feeding same into the first portion of the ~ermentat-ion vessel I
The injection of air into the feed shaft 3 is carried out it it is desirable to oxygenate the substrate supplied or to induce, proceed with or continue a thermogenous ~25~73 aerobic fermentation of the substrate in accordance with the nature of the substrate to be treated.
The substrate is thus fed into the first portion of the fermentation vessel 2 and through an upward potion would be poured into the second portion ox the ~ermentat-ion vessel 2 through overflow over the partition wall 7 and then aster a downward motion would pass through the siphon 6 to rise within the discharge shaft 4 where one part will be periodically discharged by the siphon or spout 127 through opening of the cover pa. It is also advantageous to inject the air into -the discharge shaft 4 through the pipeline 36 or accelerating the process of conversion of the fermented substrate with a view of using same as a compost As known per so and advantageously the substrate recovered at the outlet ox the discharge shaft 4 is fed through a spill-way or overflow shoot 130 into a press 138 which would separate the fermented solid part from -the liquid or leaven and which may possibly be subjected to an injection of air. A conveyor belt 139 removes the solid matter whereas -the liquid is recovered or collected in a vat 30, This leaven or inoculum thus recovered may be used in various manners and may be recycled under the action of a pump 31 to the various portions of the reactor 1 aster having possibly been reheated in the heat exchanger 114.
It may thus be :
- recycled into the upper portion of the weed shaft 3 through the duct 32, in particular it a preliminary thermo~enous aerobic treatment is carried out in the weed shaft I or - injected into the bottom portion of the ferment at-ion vessel 2 through the ducts 33 or - conveyed into the bottom portion of the discharge shaft 4 through the duct 34, These various ducts are advantageously provided with valves aye, aye and aye, respectively, The nature of the substrate processed within such a plant may be very variable, ~5:~73 Moreover the plant and the process according to the invention make it possible to conduct an anaerobic fermentation of organic products and in particular a methanogenesis with a substrate having a small content of dry matters or with a substrate having a high content of dry matter, of about 30~ for instance or more and whether very heterogeneous or not.
Referring to Figure boa indeed without any stirring and homogenization of the substrate in the reactor, a first layer A loaded with gas and a lower liquid layer B will be obtained very quickly, heavy materials C having been separated or allowed to settle onto the bottom of the reactor Within the layer A will then be built up a crust or cover which would obstruct or clog the reactor thereby preventing any circulation of the substrate and thus blocking or discontinuing the continuous operation of the digester and causing the fermentation to stop According to the invention, to promote the anaerobic degradation process within the reactor a homogenization and a fluidization of the substrate are carried out by using the buggies produced. Such a homogenization and fluidizat-ion are in the embodiment of the invention carried out through the combination steal effects connected with the no cycling ox the buggies within the substrate, with the flux and reflex motion of the substrate between the fel~entation tank and the weed shaft 3 and/or discharge shaft 4 and at last with the movements of the chains 9 and discs pa which latter can be absent.
On Figure job has teen diagrammatically illustrated the state of the substrate when a recirculation or bubbling of the buggies within said substrate is merely performed This injection of buggies into the substrate is carried out by means ox a compressor I either through the ducts 22, 23 or through the ducts 24, 25 or through the ducts 26 or through one or several of these ducts by the opening or closing of the valves aye, aye, aye, aye, aye Such a recirculation of buggies however if it is carried out alone is especially effective for the treat-mint of a substrate with a small content of dry matters providing for a scattering of the heavy products C and a better distribution of the heat supplied to the reactor 1 On Figures aye, 11b has been shown the condition of the substrate in the case where the three combined effects of gas recirculation, the flux and reflex motions of the substrate and the movements of the chains 9 are applied The flux and reflex or back and worth motion of the 10 body of substrate between the vessel 2 and the feed and discharge shafts I, 4 is achieved by means ox the hydraulic valve 11 through which the pressure ox the buggies contained above the substrate within the fermentation vessel Z may be raised During that time period the substrate is driven or forced into the discharge shaft 4 and/or the feed shaft 3 (Figure aye). WnJen the pressure threshold is reached the hydraulic valve 11 enables the iotas to evolve towards the buffer gasometer I and the pressure prevail-in within -the fermenta-ti on vowel 2 suddenly drops and 20 causes the substrate to flow back into said fermentation tank to reach its initial level again (Figure byway Moreover, the back and forth or flux and rollicks mow owns of the substrate would induce the movements of the chains 9 kept stiff by the weighty or heavy elements pa, thereby breaking the top surface or cover crust of the substrate which would build up during the mechanization.
The moistening or damping ox this broken cover crust is effected forthwith thereby avoiding the formation of a crust through dehydration which may clog choke or 30 obstruct the reactor with time. Moreover the chains 9 and discs pa form preferential paths of travel for the evolution of the buggies within the substrate Truss under the combined effect of the recirculation of buggies, of tune hydraulic valve and of the chains and discs a substantial stirring of the substrate is achieved thereby enabling same to be fluidized when the latter has a high content of dry matters. Furthermore due to the ~;~Z5~17;3 buggies recirculation, the accumulation or gathering of heavy materials settled down on-to the bottom of the reactor may be avoided. It is thus possible to extract through the discharge shaft 4 a substrate in the form of a thick paste heavily loaded with dry matters The method and the plant according to the invention will thus make it possible to treat ~mder conditions very favorable for achieving a good anaerobic degradation a substrate with a small content of din matters as well as a substrate with a high content of dry matters. It is thus possible on the one hand it substantially decrease the bulk or capacity of the fermentation tanks and on the other hand to provide for better conditions ox development of the various steps of the process of anaerobic digestion. A
substrate heavily loaded with dry matters indeed is a very good physical support for the microbiological pupil-anions required or -the anaerobic digestion and its buffer capacity is improved during the fermentation. Moreover, due to the high concentration of organic materials within the reactor the gas production is improved and owing to a better fixation ox the Bahamas, the methods of digestion are made reliable and effective.
It should be understood that according to the nature of the substrate, it is possible to merely use the effect of the hydraulic valve combined with the chains 9 or merely the buggies recirculation Moreover, the pneumatic drive or forcing of the products within the fermentation vessel 2 through a siphon and -their discharge also through a siphon make it possible to periodically feed the substrate to be treated into the feed shaft 3 and to periodically remove or extract the fermented substrate prom the discharge shaft 4 while always keeping a body of substrate within the ~ermentat-ion vessel 2 so as to avoid blocking the continuous operation of the digester thereby causing the ~ermentat-ion to stop.
Furthermore, the reactor 1 is advantageously pitted 5~l~3 with a heating system which will keep the tank at the desired temperature to promote the anaerobic degradation process and such a heating system may for instance be integrated into the double bottom of the tank shown on Figure 5. Moreover the reactor 1 and the various pipelines are fully insulated thermally for limiting the energy losses. For that purpose various heat exchangers are provided between the fluids within the plants as shown on Figures 7 and 8 or for instance the leaven or inoculum is 10 reheated through passing same into a digester located upstream of the reactor 1 wherein is carried out a preliminary treatment ox the substrate through thermos genus aerobic degradation in order to thus optimize the power efficiency of the plant.
Moreover, the apparatus comprises, in a known manner, devices for measuring necessary physio-chemical values such as gas flow, temperature, phi rho and the oxygen concentration
fermentation vessel, Referring to Figures 1 and 2, a first embodiment of the invention apparatus or plant and in particular a first embodiment of the fermentation vessel or reactor thereof will be described The fermentation portion or reactor 1 of the invention apparatus comprises a substrate feeding or supply means 3 here constituted by a substantially vertical shaft, closable in fully sealing or ~luid-tight relationship by a cover or 10 lid pa, a fermentation vessel 2 with a dome-shaped cover pa and a substrate discharging means 4, here constituted by a substantially vertical shaft, closable by a cover or lid aye The fermentation vessel 2 is separated by a partition wall 7 into a first part and a second art The first part is corrected to feeding means 3 and the second part is connected to discharge means 4. The partition wall 7 is here shown positioned substantially along a diameter of the vessel 2 and having a height smaller thin that of the vessel 2. moreover, -this partition wall 7 preferably 20 leaves a passageway I at ifs lower portion, i.e. in the vicinity of thy bottom of thy vessel 2.
In the embodiment shown on Figure 1 and as clearly seen on Figure I, the feed and discharge shafts 3 and 4 are arranged in dipteral opposite relationship on the periphery of the vessel 2 and are connected to the first and second parts, respectively, ox the vessel 2 through siphons 5, I The siphon 5 may possibly be fitted with a means such as chain 35 flexible in one direction only and breaking or preventing any ~ackflow or return of the substrate during the anaerobic fermentation towards the feed shaft 30 The vessel 2 comprises a gas outlet duct or pipeline pitted with a shut-off valve boa and opening in the shown embodiment into a hydraulic valve 11, the gas or buggies then evolving through the duct or pipeline 12 to flow to a gasometer 15 not shown on Figure 1.
The feed shalt also comprises two series of slots or slits 8 spaced from each other on the feed shaft 3 and 5:~73 circu~ferentially located thereon The vessel 2 can also comprise chains 9 suspended from the dome-like portion pa of the vessel I the function of which will be described later.
In the embodiment shown on Figure 1, the discharge shaft 4 is provided at its top with a cover pa pitted with a gas duct or pipeline 115, an outlet siphon 127 and on outfall or like overflow chute or spool 128 with an adjustable opening or outlet port 129 furthermore, the apparatus 1 comprises several ducts either or draining away the gases from the discharge or feed shaft or for feeding air into this discharge or feed shaft or for feeding leaven or inoculum into the vest 2. These various ducts will be described more in detail together with the description of the ducts of the apparatus The second embodiment of the apparatus 1 according to the invention, shown on Figures 3 and 4 differs prom the first embodiment if, that -the hydraulic valve 11' is 20 arranged within the reactor vessel 2, the latter being topped by a ~asomcter 15'. True valve 11' is fitted on a duct 10' one end ox which extends as the pipe I on Figure 1 from the top pa of the vessel rowers its other end opens into the gasometer 15'~ Into the latter opens a pipe 145 which leads on the one hand lo h condensing siphon 146 adapted to collect or recover the water present within the hot gases or biogases evolving from the fermentation and which is condensing within the pipe 145 and on the other hand to a duct for conveying the buggies 30 roadside for instance into a purifier, clearer, scrubber or like filter eons 2 shut-off valve 147 being provided on the duct 1450 In Roth ox the embodiments described, the fermentation vessel bottom 2b has one single slope or pitch and the inlet siphon 5 is located at a higher level than that ox the siphon 6.
The embodiment of the invention apparatus shown on Figures 5 and 6 differs from both previous embodiments in that the shafts 3 and 4 are arranged near each other on 5~'73 the periphery of the Bessel I The partition wall 7 is then located between the inlets of both siphons, 6 within the fermentation vessel 2, its width being smaller than the width ox the vessel so that the substrate may flow in the direction of the arrow F. Moreover, as in both embodiments, the height of the partition wall 7 is smaller than that of the vessel I In this embodiment, the siphon 5 associated with the feed shaft 3 is also positioned at a higher level than that of the siphon 6 associated with the discharge shaft 4. The bottom 2b of the fermentation vessel 2 exhibits a double slope or pitch and is advantageously of elliptic shape.
Furthermore, the chains 9 fastened to the dome-shaped top pa of the vessel 2 advantageously carry weighty or heavy elements pa such as metal discs, these discs being fastened to the chains 9 preferably at the lower portions thereof. Thus the chains 9 are suspended from the dome-shaped top pa of -the vessel so as to hug freely down into the vessel or being embedded at least partially into the substrate to be processed as clearly shown on Figures aye, 10b, aye, 11b. It is of course possible to arrange these chains 9 together with the weighty or heavy elements pa within the vessel shown on Figures 1 to 4.
moreover, according to another alternative embodiment of the invention, the outlet siphon 127, the outfall or like overflow-shoot or spool 'i28 provided on the discharge shaft 4 may be substituted for by a drain or egress duct fitted with a shutoff valve (not shown).
Referring to figures 7 to 9, the apparatus according to the invention and in particular the various fluid-carrying ducts thereof will now be described.
For the sake of a better understanding of these drawings those ducts wherein the buggies is flowing are shown in heavy solid lines whereas those ducts which carry the levee or inoculum are shown in thin solid lines and those ducts wherein air is flowing are shown in broken or dotted lines In the whole apparatus or plant as shown on Figure 9, , I, i2~5~ 73 the fermentation vessel 2 is connected to the hydraulic valve 11 through a gas outlet duct 10 fitted advantageously with a shutoff valve aye. The hydraulic valve 11 is in turn corrected to the gas holding vessel or gasometer 15 through a duct or pipeline 12 in which are mounted for instance a gasometer 14 and a container 13 forming a buffer gasometer It must be noted that a gate or valve actuated for instance pneumatically, electrically, hydraulically, 10 electromechanical and so on be substituted for the hydraulic valve 11 or the same purpose, The gasometer 15 is fitted with an outlet duct 16 provided with a shut off valve aye and which is connected on the one old to a duct 17 for carrying the gas for instance to a purifier, a storage station or a burner, and, on -the other hand, to the inlet of a was compressor or booster 18 to provide for the circulation of the buggies within the whole apparatus or plant. The outlet 19 of this gas compressor or booster 18 is collected -through a 20 duct 21 and branch ducts 22 and 23 through valves aye to the top portions of the feed and discharge shafts 3,4, respectively with the purpose of providing the pneumatic thrust of the substrate as previously emphasized.
The outlet I ox the booster I is also connected through a duct 20 fitted with a valve aye to the bottom portions ox the feed and discharge shafts 3,4 through the ducts 24,25; and to -the bottom portion of the vessel 2 through a plurality of ducts 26, with, in the latter case, the purpose of injecting buggies at the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2. A preferred embodiment of said ducts will be described with reference to Figure 13.
On the other hand, the top portion of the fermentation vessel 2 is connected to the inlet of the compressor 18 through a duct 27 fitted with a valve aye.
According to a preferred alternative of this embody-mint, the top portion ox the fermentation vessel 2 can be connected to the outlet ox the compressor 18 through a derivation duct I to duct 23 fitted with an associated 7~3 I
valve aye with the purpose of performing a pneumatic thrust within the orientation vessel 2 through injection of buggies through valve aye at the top of the fermentation vessel 2 simultaneously to the cutting of of the pneumatic thrust within discharge shaft 4.
Preferably, the ducts 26 opening into the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2 and the ducts 24 7 25 are fitted with check or non-return valves (not shown for preventing materials contained within the vessel from falling into said ducts. Moreover, the ducts 26 may possibly be provided with valve means (not shown) adapted to emit short and successive jets under pressure.
The gas circuit shown on Figure 9 described herein-below is riven by way of illustrative example only It is of course possible to provide other ducts or devices valves, gates or the like for carrying out any possible circuits for the flow of gas within the vessel and for instance to provide heat exchanges with other fluids within the apparatus or plant as shown on Figures 7 and 8.
In these Figures, the circuit for recycling the buggies within the apparatus is not shown.
One inaction of the buggies recovered within the gas-meter 15 is directly fed into the purifier 111 whereas another fraction is put in heat exchanging relationship with the air possibly supplied into the feed shaft 3, within the heat exchanger 110 and then through the ducts 108,113 and valves 109,~12, it also undergoes a heat exchange within the heat exchanger 114 with the levee recycled into the apparatus 1. This buggies fraction is then fed into the purifier ~11 through the pipeline 115.
Advantageously the buggies present at the upper portions of the feed and discharge shafts is fed into the purifier 111 .
The flow circuits of the leaven or inoculum and of the air will be described at the same time as the operation of the plant.
Finally, with reference to Figure 13, the best mode of the invention apparatus comprises fermentation vessel 2 ~5~3 of the type shown in Figures 5 and 6 but modified as follows with respect to introduction of buggies into the fermentation Bessel 2 and fed from the gasometer of the type for instance of a gasometer 15 of Figure 9.
Duct 16 receiving buggies at the outlet of gasometer 15 is shown at the right of Figure 13~ The compressor 18 is provided on this duct 16 as shown in Figure 9 and the duct 19 connected with the outlet of the compressor 18 is sub-divided into ducts 20 and 21 exactly as in the case of Figure 9.
However, according to the present modified embodiment, duct 20 does not deliver the buggies immediately to the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2 but is connected to a buggies storage container 300 able to support a high pressure and in which buggies is gathered and stored until obtention of a predetermined high pressure which will be defined later, A duct 302 is collected to the outlet of said buggies storage reservoir 300, said duct 302 being sub-divided into a plurality of sub-ducts 304,306,30~,310,312,314,316, 318, each being provided with an individual Nate or valve, respectively 320-322-324-326-32~-330-332-334.
The sub-ducts 304 to 318 are feeding buggies to a plurality of buggies injection ducts 340,342,344,346~348, 350,352,354,356,358,360,362, ~64,366,368,370 which are located in the location of the bottom of fermentation vessel 2 and which are constituted by hollow tubes of appropriate section longitudinally provided with a plurality ox injection openings such as 37Z.
According to the present invention, said plurality ox buggies injection ducts 340 to 370 is fed with buggies India-ideally or in groups J for instance two by two as shown on Figure 13, via the independent valves 320 to 3}4 so as to sub-divide the fermentation Bessel 2 in sections in depend-entry fed with buggies The limits of the sections have been symbolically materialized on Figure 13 by the presence of the dotted lines 374,376,378,380,382,384,3~6. In the embodiment shown on Figure 13, it thus appears that eight ~5~73 sections have been defined. It will be noted that the buggies injection ducts are laterally spaced between -them and located at least in the major portion ox the ferment station vessel 2$ preferably regularly as shown Further the specific construction of the buggies injection ducts ~40 to 370 is a part of the invention Further, according to the present invention, each valve 320 to 334 is foreseen designed or constructed so as to provide a pressure in relation to the density of the 10 products in the associated section. besides each valve is controlled preferably according to the invention through a programmed control device (not shown), so as to inject intermittently buggies into each of the sections of the fermentation Bessel 2 under pressure and during a period of time predetermined, set in relation to the density of the products in the associated section.
By the terms "pressure of injection in relation to the looniest ox the products in & given section'' - it is intended to emphasize that the injection pressure is sufficient to yield a ~luidiza~ion of the mass of the products or substrate to be fermented or in fermentation having the said density.
It will thus be understood that the injection pressure is actually commensurate or adapted to the actual density of the mass of products or substrate in the section where is injected buggies.
Thus, with the invention apparatus, the previously set forth method is performed, namely the obtention of a sub-dividing of the fermentation vessel 2, into a plurality of sections. Further, with a view of performing a substantially perfect or homogeneous fluidization of the solid products or substrate within the fermentation vessel 2, the invention method comprises injecting intermittently buggies into each one of the sections under pressure and during a period of time predetermined, set in function of the density of the products within the associated section.
Further, according to a further characterizing feature of the invention method, buggies is injected into ~5~73 each section successively while being shifted in the time so as to obtain a so-called buggies injection rotation within the fermentation vessel 2 prom a section to the other. This injection can be regular or irregular and therefore a given section can be injected with buggies whereas one or several of the adjacent sections are not injected with buggies should in said sections the fluid-ization of the products be satisfactory, ire. the density of the products. Besides, and with the aid of the JO programmed control device, it can be obtained a programmed injection. This progra~mation can be automatically servo-controlled by means detecting a lack of fluidity within one of the sections of the fermentation vessel 2 so as to immediately order an injection in the concerned section by acting on the corresponding valve.
It should also be noted that according to the present invention, the presence of the buggies storage reservoir 300 provides unexpectedly for Gone skilled in the art the use of a compressor 18 of low capacity, namely with a low compression ratio.
Further, with the presence of duct 23', Figure o'er injection of buggies at the top of the fermentation vessel 2, it can be performed a pneumatic thrust from the top of the fermentation vessel 2 so as to easier discharge the solid products flowing on the bottom of the fermentation vessel 2 towards the discharge shaft 4. Preferably, according to a further characterizing feature of the invention method, the pneumatic thrust in the fermentation vessel 2 is performed simultaneously with the pneumatic thrust in the discharge shaft 4. Further, according to the invention method, the previously said pneumatic thrust in the substrate feeding shaft 4 is performed simultaneously to the setting to opening of buggies evacuating valve such as valve boa of Figures 1 to 9, thereby improving the forced feeding of the products or substrate to be fermented It is therefore clear for one skilled in the art that according to the invention, it is obtained a practically perfect fluidization of the products or substrate even 1~3 with a high content in solid materials such as human waste products and litter together with a simplified technology of the m~lufacture of the fermentation vessel, in particular with the sub-dividing I the fermentation vessel into a plurality of independent sections as in the case of the embodiment of Figure 13 by lowering the slope of the bottom of the fermentation vessel, thereby yielding a lowering of the Bessel costs.
Further, it is of course also obtained according to 10 the invention, unexpectedly an improved yield in buggies The working of the invention apparatus will now be described.
Organic products, by-products or waste from human, animal or vegetable origin are possibly subjected to a mechanical, physical, chemical or microbiological prelim-nary treatment, for instance to a heat processing, a pounding, crushing or milling or a chopping through a chopper-projector, a quick depressuriz~tion or pressure drop, an anorak pre-fermentation to for instance 20 promote the hydrolysis of the matter, the defiberization, shredding or delignification in particular in the case of cellulosic and ligno-cellulosic compounds. After the opening of the cover pa the materials are then supplied into the feed shaft 3. The cover is then closed again in sealing or f-uid-tight relationship. Thereafter a gas is supplied into the top portion of the feed shalt to build up a gas pressure, for instance through injection of compressed air produced by the compressor 28 and conveyed through the pipeline 29 to the Lowry portion of the feed shaft 3 or by feeding buggies through the pipeline 23 upon opening the shut-off valve aye. The gas pressure prevail-in at the bottom portion of the feed shaft 3 would drive or push the products or substrates through the siphon 5 for feeding same into the first portion of the ~ermentat-ion vessel I
The injection of air into the feed shaft 3 is carried out it it is desirable to oxygenate the substrate supplied or to induce, proceed with or continue a thermogenous ~25~73 aerobic fermentation of the substrate in accordance with the nature of the substrate to be treated.
The substrate is thus fed into the first portion of the fermentation vessel 2 and through an upward potion would be poured into the second portion ox the ~ermentat-ion vessel 2 through overflow over the partition wall 7 and then aster a downward motion would pass through the siphon 6 to rise within the discharge shaft 4 where one part will be periodically discharged by the siphon or spout 127 through opening of the cover pa. It is also advantageous to inject the air into -the discharge shaft 4 through the pipeline 36 or accelerating the process of conversion of the fermented substrate with a view of using same as a compost As known per so and advantageously the substrate recovered at the outlet ox the discharge shaft 4 is fed through a spill-way or overflow shoot 130 into a press 138 which would separate the fermented solid part from -the liquid or leaven and which may possibly be subjected to an injection of air. A conveyor belt 139 removes the solid matter whereas -the liquid is recovered or collected in a vat 30, This leaven or inoculum thus recovered may be used in various manners and may be recycled under the action of a pump 31 to the various portions of the reactor 1 aster having possibly been reheated in the heat exchanger 114.
It may thus be :
- recycled into the upper portion of the weed shaft 3 through the duct 32, in particular it a preliminary thermo~enous aerobic treatment is carried out in the weed shaft I or - injected into the bottom portion of the ferment at-ion vessel 2 through the ducts 33 or - conveyed into the bottom portion of the discharge shaft 4 through the duct 34, These various ducts are advantageously provided with valves aye, aye and aye, respectively, The nature of the substrate processed within such a plant may be very variable, ~5:~73 Moreover the plant and the process according to the invention make it possible to conduct an anaerobic fermentation of organic products and in particular a methanogenesis with a substrate having a small content of dry matters or with a substrate having a high content of dry matter, of about 30~ for instance or more and whether very heterogeneous or not.
Referring to Figure boa indeed without any stirring and homogenization of the substrate in the reactor, a first layer A loaded with gas and a lower liquid layer B will be obtained very quickly, heavy materials C having been separated or allowed to settle onto the bottom of the reactor Within the layer A will then be built up a crust or cover which would obstruct or clog the reactor thereby preventing any circulation of the substrate and thus blocking or discontinuing the continuous operation of the digester and causing the fermentation to stop According to the invention, to promote the anaerobic degradation process within the reactor a homogenization and a fluidization of the substrate are carried out by using the buggies produced. Such a homogenization and fluidizat-ion are in the embodiment of the invention carried out through the combination steal effects connected with the no cycling ox the buggies within the substrate, with the flux and reflex motion of the substrate between the fel~entation tank and the weed shaft 3 and/or discharge shaft 4 and at last with the movements of the chains 9 and discs pa which latter can be absent.
On Figure job has teen diagrammatically illustrated the state of the substrate when a recirculation or bubbling of the buggies within said substrate is merely performed This injection of buggies into the substrate is carried out by means ox a compressor I either through the ducts 22, 23 or through the ducts 24, 25 or through the ducts 26 or through one or several of these ducts by the opening or closing of the valves aye, aye, aye, aye, aye Such a recirculation of buggies however if it is carried out alone is especially effective for the treat-mint of a substrate with a small content of dry matters providing for a scattering of the heavy products C and a better distribution of the heat supplied to the reactor 1 On Figures aye, 11b has been shown the condition of the substrate in the case where the three combined effects of gas recirculation, the flux and reflex motions of the substrate and the movements of the chains 9 are applied The flux and reflex or back and worth motion of the 10 body of substrate between the vessel 2 and the feed and discharge shafts I, 4 is achieved by means ox the hydraulic valve 11 through which the pressure ox the buggies contained above the substrate within the fermentation vessel Z may be raised During that time period the substrate is driven or forced into the discharge shaft 4 and/or the feed shaft 3 (Figure aye). WnJen the pressure threshold is reached the hydraulic valve 11 enables the iotas to evolve towards the buffer gasometer I and the pressure prevail-in within -the fermenta-ti on vowel 2 suddenly drops and 20 causes the substrate to flow back into said fermentation tank to reach its initial level again (Figure byway Moreover, the back and forth or flux and rollicks mow owns of the substrate would induce the movements of the chains 9 kept stiff by the weighty or heavy elements pa, thereby breaking the top surface or cover crust of the substrate which would build up during the mechanization.
The moistening or damping ox this broken cover crust is effected forthwith thereby avoiding the formation of a crust through dehydration which may clog choke or 30 obstruct the reactor with time. Moreover the chains 9 and discs pa form preferential paths of travel for the evolution of the buggies within the substrate Truss under the combined effect of the recirculation of buggies, of tune hydraulic valve and of the chains and discs a substantial stirring of the substrate is achieved thereby enabling same to be fluidized when the latter has a high content of dry matters. Furthermore due to the ~;~Z5~17;3 buggies recirculation, the accumulation or gathering of heavy materials settled down on-to the bottom of the reactor may be avoided. It is thus possible to extract through the discharge shaft 4 a substrate in the form of a thick paste heavily loaded with dry matters The method and the plant according to the invention will thus make it possible to treat ~mder conditions very favorable for achieving a good anaerobic degradation a substrate with a small content of din matters as well as a substrate with a high content of dry matters. It is thus possible on the one hand it substantially decrease the bulk or capacity of the fermentation tanks and on the other hand to provide for better conditions ox development of the various steps of the process of anaerobic digestion. A
substrate heavily loaded with dry matters indeed is a very good physical support for the microbiological pupil-anions required or -the anaerobic digestion and its buffer capacity is improved during the fermentation. Moreover, due to the high concentration of organic materials within the reactor the gas production is improved and owing to a better fixation ox the Bahamas, the methods of digestion are made reliable and effective.
It should be understood that according to the nature of the substrate, it is possible to merely use the effect of the hydraulic valve combined with the chains 9 or merely the buggies recirculation Moreover, the pneumatic drive or forcing of the products within the fermentation vessel 2 through a siphon and -their discharge also through a siphon make it possible to periodically feed the substrate to be treated into the feed shaft 3 and to periodically remove or extract the fermented substrate prom the discharge shaft 4 while always keeping a body of substrate within the ~ermentat-ion vessel 2 so as to avoid blocking the continuous operation of the digester thereby causing the ~ermentat-ion to stop.
Furthermore, the reactor 1 is advantageously pitted 5~l~3 with a heating system which will keep the tank at the desired temperature to promote the anaerobic degradation process and such a heating system may for instance be integrated into the double bottom of the tank shown on Figure 5. Moreover the reactor 1 and the various pipelines are fully insulated thermally for limiting the energy losses. For that purpose various heat exchangers are provided between the fluids within the plants as shown on Figures 7 and 8 or for instance the leaven or inoculum is 10 reheated through passing same into a digester located upstream of the reactor 1 wherein is carried out a preliminary treatment ox the substrate through thermos genus aerobic degradation in order to thus optimize the power efficiency of the plant.
Moreover, the apparatus comprises, in a known manner, devices for measuring necessary physio-chemical values such as gas flow, temperature, phi rho and the oxygen concentration
Claims (25)
1. A method of carrying out a degradation in an anaerobic medium, for instance a methanogenesis of organic products, by-products or waste from human, animal and/or vegetable origin consisting in feeding said products to be degraded into a closed vessel after having possibly sowed or se eded said products with a suitable substrate, forcing said products to follow a direction of circulation within said vessel, recovering or collecting gas called biogas evolved above said body of products and discharging the degraded products, wherein the improvement is characterized in that it further comprises feeding a flux under pressure of said biogas into the body of said products to carry out the homogenization and fluidization of said body.
2. The process of claim 1, characterized in that it comprises causing the pressure of the gas contained within said closed vessel to undergo sudden variations.
3. The process of claim 1, characterized in that the feeding and/or discharge of the products is performed pneuma-tically, for instance through a pneumatic thrust, thereby achieving a forced directed flow of the substrate through the fermentation vessel.
4. A method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it further comprises providing within said vessel heavy elements adapted to oscillate freely and at least one portion of which is embedded into the body of said products.
5. The process of claim 3, characterized in that said pneumatic thrust is achieved through injection of gas under pressure, for instance biogas or compressed air.
6. The process of claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises sub-dividing the fermentation vessel into a plurality of sections, and injecting intermittently biogas into each of said sections under a pressure and during a period of time predetermined, set in relation to the density of the products in the associated section.
7. The process of claim 6, characterized in that said biogas is injected in each section successively, while being shifted in the time so as to yield a so-called biogas injection rotation within the vessel from one section to the other.
8. The process of claim 1 or 6, characterized in that it comprises the provision of a biogas storage reservoir under high pressure upstream with respect to the fermentation vessel, said pressure being at least equal to the injection pressure into the section of the highest density.
9. The process of claim 6 or 7, characterized in that said injection is programmed, preferably by being automatically servo-controlled by a detection of a lack of fluidity.
10. The process of claim 1, characterized in that the pneumatic thrust at the feeding of the fermentation vessel is performed simultaneously to the order of opening of the evacuation valve of biogas produced within said vessel whereas the pneumatic thrust at the discharge of the fermentation vessel is cut off simultaneously to the injection of biogas at the top of said fermentation vessel.
11. An apparatus for carrying out degradation in an anaerobic medium, such as methanogenesis, of organic products, by-products or waste of human, animal and/or plant origin, comprising a digestor reactor with an anaerobic fermentation vessel provided with substrate feeding means and substrate discharging means, respecti-vely, a gas or biogas outlet connected to a gasometer or like gas holding vessel, wherein the improvement is characterized in that the fermentation vessel comprises a partition wall dividing said vessel into a first part and a second part, said partition wall having a height smaller than that of the vessel, said first part being connected to said substrate feeding means and said second part being connected to said substrate discharging means, at least one of said substrate feeding means and substrate discharging means comprising means for feeding gas under pressure thereby performing a pneumatic thrust of the products achieving a forced directed flow of the products through the fermentation vessel.
12. The apparatus of claim 11, characterized in that each of said substrate feeding means and substrate discharging means comprises a substantially vertical shaft respectively called feed shaft and discharge shaft;
and preferably further comprises a compressor the inlet of which is at least connected to said gasometer and the outlet of which is connected to a plurality of ducts opening into the bottom of said fermentation vessel
and preferably further comprises a compressor the inlet of which is at least connected to said gasometer and the outlet of which is connected to a plurality of ducts opening into the bottom of said fermentation vessel
13. The apparatus of claim 12, characterized in that said plurality of ducts opening into the bottom of said fermentation vessel are laterally spaced between them and located at least in the major portion of the fermentation vessel, said ducts being fed with biogas individually or in groups through independent valves so as to sub-divide the fermentation vessel in independently biogas fed sections.
14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein it further comprises a biogas storage reservoir for storing biogas under pressure in which the biogas is gathered or store until obtention of a pressure at least equal to the highest pressure required in one of the sections of the fermentation vessel.
15. The apparatus of claim 12, characterized in that each valve is foreseen or designed so as to provide 2 pressure in relation to the density of the products within the associated section.
16. The apparatus of claim 15, characterized in that it further comprises a programmed control device of each valve of each section for injection of biogas into each section successively while shifted in the time.
17. The apparatus of claim 11, characterized in that the biogas injection circuitry comprises a biogas injection duct at the top of the fermentation vessel, comprising an own valve for performing a pneumatic thrust within the fermentation vessel.
18. The apparatus of claim 12 or 13, characterized in that said outlet of the compressor is connected to ducts opening into the bottom of said feed shaft or said dis-charge shaft and/or to ducts opening into the top of said feed shaft or of said discharge shaft.
19. The apparatus of claim 12 or 13, characterized in that said feed shaft is provided with two series of slots spaced from each other and located at some distance from the cover and from the bottom end of said shaft, respectively, the gas from said compressor flowing upwards to the top of said feed shaft through a lower series of slots and then. through an upper series of slots.
20. The apparatus of claim 11 or 12, characterized in that said partition wall separating the fermentation vessel into first and second portions exhibits a passageway for providing communication between said first and second portions, at least at the level of the vessel bottom.
21. The plant of claim 12, characterized in that said feed and discharge shafts are positioned near each other on the periphery of said fermentation vessel, said partit-ion wall being arranged vertically between said feed and discharge shafts, and having a width smaller than that of the fermentation vessel and a height smaller than that of the fermentation vessel.
22. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the bottom of the fermentation vessel exhibits a double slope and is in particular of elliptic shape.
23. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said feed and discharge shafts are arranged in substantially diametric-ally opposite relationship on the periphery of the fermentation vessel, the partition wall being arranged vertically and along substantially one diameter of the fermentation vessel and has a height smaller than that of the fermentation vessel.
24. The apparatus of claim 11, characterized in that the bottom of the fermentation vessel has a single slope.
25. The apparatus of claim 11, characterized in that the anaerobic fermentation vessel comprises a valve adapted to cause the body of the products in the process of fermentation to oscillate and carries a gasometer from which the gas may escape through a pipe extending through said fermentation vessel and leading on the one hand to a condensing syphon adapted to recover the water present in the biogas evolving from the fermentation and on the other hand to a purifier.
Priority Applications (3)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000435894A CA1225173A (en) | 1983-09-01 | 1983-09-01 | Method and apparatus for degrading of organic products, by-products and scraps in an anaerobic medium |
| FR8319154A FR2551457B2 (en) | 1982-07-22 | 1983-11-30 | PROCESS AND INSTALLATION FOR REALIZING DEGRADATION IN ANAEROBIC MEDIA OF ORGANIC PRODUCTS, BY-PRODUCTS AND WASTE |
| US06/590,958 US4780415A (en) | 1981-07-29 | 1984-03-19 | Method of degrading organic products, by-products and scraps in an anaerobic medium |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000435894A CA1225173A (en) | 1983-09-01 | 1983-09-01 | Method and apparatus for degrading of organic products, by-products and scraps in an anaerobic medium |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1225173A true CA1225173A (en) | 1987-08-04 |
Family
ID=4125995
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000435894A Expired CA1225173A (en) | 1981-07-29 | 1983-09-01 | Method and apparatus for degrading of organic products, by-products and scraps in an anaerobic medium |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1225173A (en) |
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN110249969A (en) * | 2019-07-04 | 2019-09-20 | 湖北禾惠生态科技有限公司 | It is a kind of native based on the planting technique that large-sized biogas engineering by-product biogas residue is raw material |
-
1983
- 1983-09-01 CA CA000435894A patent/CA1225173A/en not_active Expired
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN110249969A (en) * | 2019-07-04 | 2019-09-20 | 湖北禾惠生态科技有限公司 | It is a kind of native based on the planting technique that large-sized biogas engineering by-product biogas residue is raw material |
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