Running a small engine on household biogas using "brickage' for gas pressure 2

[secretsquirlPooP]

On the oil issue, have you tried using a gravity feed with needle valve directly in to the carb?

or an oiler between the carb and air filter instead of feeding it from the fuel side?

[Agnikul]

Really enjoyed the demonstration. I am trying something similar but with a larger fixed dome cow dung biogas digester. Having problems with excessive water condensation in the gas pipe which might be helping remove C02 but actually gets into the engine. I hope you will post updates. Good luck and thanks for sharing!

[spanner1972]

Great video guys. Not sure if already mentioned...but to overcome you oil injection issue have you tried using a small four stroke engine. Own lube supply...no more probs??? just a thought

[arpedac]

veri nice videos ...we are Cameroonian base association, we promote sustainable and alternative energy to community to reduce poverty and improve life standards please provide us with the details drawing and how to modify a diesel generator to use gas thank you

[TheWaterman1000]

Where you able to get an in line oiler to work right. I have a 2-stroke sitting in the garage to use as a project.

[reytdhfuytf]

Hi really good to see people doing this sort of thing, hope you get the oiler sorted out. You should not try to oil the engine through the plug hole because the oil is very important to the crank and con rod bearings, and this will not reach them.Maybe a 4 styroke would be better, you could pick an old one up on ebay for not much more than you spent on your oilers.

Keep saving the planet.

[kiekkrse1]

Hey, have you researched using inner-tubes to harvest the methane, and then also pressurize the system? This gives enough pressure that you can effectively use the regulator

[madjimms]

You could connect the generator to an inverter (or just two male power ends) & reduce your power bill by quite a bit!

If I ever own a house I WILL try this out for sure!

[77LionTree]

Black paint on the tank , a mirrored floor and side circumference cage, a glass ball on a pole at the top and center of the tank to redistribute the suns light equally around the mirror cage should boost some energy by quikening the release of the gasses. Sacred geometry of the positioned mirrors to center the Suns power should help the harmonics of the light to focus the heat to upwell the gas from the solids and liquids in the tank. Just thoughts.

[MrBigbmcc]

use an 500 gal propane tank to put the bio gas in and put a glass gauge on ether the front or side of the tank so you dont over fill it plus put a hach on the end to clean it out near the bottem

[ppsjsh]

do u need a flash back arrestor with this? could it be used as a torch or stove? thanks

[Angelsigns2012]

A International Bulk Container (IBC) would be more ideal for a container.

[toppervergara]

I have worked with lpg and gas regulators at my past work as a mechanic. I think that if you partially close the choke of the carburetor you will trick the regulator to feed more gas because a vacuum is needed to operate the diaphragms of the regulator more vacuum more fuel

[doktorandom]

Great video, thanks for sharing. We are building a bio-reactor for methane here in Oregon. We will use it for a lighting flame. Just curious, how are you providing the lubrication to the 2 cycle engine? sorry you just answered me!

[doktorandom]

Great video, thanks for sharing. We are building a bio-reactor for methane here in Oregon. We will use it for a lighting flame. Just curious, how are you providing the lubrication to the 2 cycle engine?

[rocknrolldaddio]

Xcelen't stuff.Do you think you'll ever be able to make the gas portable?For instance to compress the gases into a tank for automobile use,ect.?

[1388dela]

Hi there. Look, i´m from Mexico and in my school we are working on an small biogas generator.

It is an small engine, 2Kw. The question is how can I introduce the biogas into the engine and if it´s necesary to realize some kind of proces to the biogas before geting into the engine.

Any coment will be seriously apreciated. Thank you so much

gracias

[Seamus449]

As far as food waste goes, I think that using apple scraps is a great way to go. I'm basing this assumption on my experience with fermenting cider. Apples seem to produce more methane than any other fruit I've fermented in the past, so much so that I have to attach a gas mask filter to the airlock! When fermenting cider it's important to add trace minerals in order to achieve high attenuation. Have you tried adding other kinds of food scraps of diversify the nutrients available?

[URAconstructor]

Nice job so far. I would have to recommend that you introduce a fail safe to your project. It is true that you are dealing with a small amount of gas, but you are sharing ideas. I believe you should include safety as a vital part of your design, in the event someone should use what you have learned and increase the scale.

[lunarrn]

Why didn't you use a hand cranked grinder to pulverize the apples. You cannot be truly "GREEN" with this if you use electricity to grind up your debris.

[bethehammer]

rather than using bricks, have you thought about using a small tire inflator type of air compressor to move the gas from the digester to a storage tank like a propane tank? I am wondering if this is possible, this way you could put the biogas in a tank under pressure. also you can take the tank where you need to run the generator with out being near the digester.

[URAconstructor]

@bethehammer  Great point please let me know if you have found any more answers on this.

[dnndirty74]

why do you have the regulator? its not like you have high pressure.

try with out the regulator.

[tculhane]

@dnndirty74 You are absolutely right, we don't need the regulator. In our trials in Egypt a couple of months ago we bypassed it completely. We keep it on the engine here in Germany and in Cairo in case we want to switch to an NG or propane cylinder, but don't need it at all for the biogas. Since it came with the kit from US Carburetion for trifuel use I just assumed we needed it at first, then discovered, nope, no need at all! Thanks for bringing that to the attention of those who may b watching

[Trappokolo]

I am still in love with your efforts in this channel, I see you just came back from Nigeria( quite a heck of a place to preach sustainability and environmental safety) yes I think I can say that because I am a Nigerian/German . in 5 days I will be starting similar awareness projects in Nigeria and would like to keep in touch with you. Thanks in advance

[tculhane]

@Trappokolo Thanks for the kind words! I hope you will join us in our efforts (along with H.E. Obasanjo and friends in Abeokuta) to create a "Green Economy Center for R and D and Education at the presidential library and to create a green collar job training program for Africans and Middle Eastern people in diaspora in Europe (particularly Germany!). Join us on facebook ; I'm tculhane@ucla.edu

[AlternativePowerMan]

Wow good work!! Its been commented already but I'll say it too. If you can, use a 4-stroke engine. Its self lubricating, and more efficent on fuel. I do have a question. Assuming you get this working very well, how much useable power do you expect to generate, and how much fruit 'waste' is required to 'feed' that?

[KyleCarrington]

Without any degree of true research (sorry I'm pretty busy!) - so take this as a grain of salt (pun intended) sodium bicarbonate reduces H2S. Methane can be made into Methanol? HHO will raise the explosion if combined with methane, and clean the emissions, at low input levels. Natural gas gensets are closer to being the device for the job than worrying about the hassles of a 2 stroke - which are a dirty polluter to begin with. Propane gensets also might be a consideration. Just some thoughts!

[akashh1121]

Hi, nice work. what about the H2S. its very lethal to the engines. 

[tculhane]

@akashh1121 Yes, we are trying to catch the H2S by putting steel wool as a filter in the pipeline before it gets to the engine. What we are unsure of is how much steel wool to put in (we also don't want to restrict gas flow).

[hamza98888]

I think the best waste to generate from it is cow waste it produces lot of gas greater than other waste

[iliacht5]

From sites where it has ben used for cooking I could see some suggestions that water vapor can be removed by running it from bottom to top through a sealed tank half full of water. So you it woul buble and eventually the vapor would condensate within the water and then you catch it after bubling (or it might catch more vapor). It is also said that this removes some CO2 . Also they mentione that some steel whool put in the pipe would catch whatever components cause citchen pots to get burned.

[iliacht5]

Very nobel effort tculhane. I however would not think of using biogas as direct feed for whatever engine. At least not without some high tech chemistry purification. I am very new to the field but so far I learned that biogas is comprised by many components. To what I learned it includes 30-40% CO2, 5-10 Hydrogen, 1-2% Nitrogen, plus what was mentioned as water vapors and some Hydrogen Sulphide traces. So I am thinking for usage for heating in a greenhouse or whatever heater or for just cooking.

[highlandscoutrider]

You have done an excellent job.

I make my comment with this experience, thank you;-)

...I lived about 18 years, 2 miles off the public electric lines. We used 4 solar panels with battery storage and a gasoline generator for backup. With only 4 solar panels, as the children got older, in the long, snowy winters we used the generator a lot.

...With about 70% of all the food that our 12 species of animals ate... coming out the rear, ready to make this fuel, our gasoline bill could have been lower.

[pfun41]

tee an oil line into the main fuel feed and put a valve between the tee and a gravity feed tank. fill th etank with oil and adjust the valve for the proper amount of oil. small 2 stroke scooters use the same principle for lubrication.

[tculhane]

@pfun41 This suggestion of a simple way to get lube oil into the two-stroke engine when running on biogas is really helpful! Thanks. Would love to see a demonstration of it, if anybody has a vid on line. Cheers!

[kerimil]

uhmm ok another suggestion... compress the gas... I've been using fridge compressor for a long time and they can generate pressures of up to 35bars, are really robust and have decent flow (10L tank to 100psi in under 10 minutes)...

Just attach the inlet tube to the reactor vessel and the output to a large LPG tank or propane tank... it would be a good idea to add that sulphur dioxide filter between the reactor and the compressor to increase its longevity

[johnnybug2]

a 4cycle engine would be a better choice... no need for oil lube injection, more fuel efficient plus more eco friendly....thx for sharing this vid

[Layouts4Facebook]

retentive video

[Razor4ever]

Im thinking of using this at my uncles farm. He can use the manure as the source. He has like 100 cows or more. Does anyone know a site where they sell bio gas instalations for home usage (as source of gas for a power generator). I heard that in germany they have such ready to use product. Anyone know??

[dalsenov]

@Razor4ever ,I know that the german agro equipment producer called BigDutchman has already created a biogas marketable system.The system is a CHP(combined heat and power) system that uses poultry litter and maybe some other litter (I watched only the poultry industry).

[Maverick889898]

Hi! How can I get a design for a bio gas digester?

[TruckinMike1965]

For drying use an inline desiccant drier found in airconditioners and air compressors $10. Or build your own drier so you can change the desiccant material - both can be purchased from an A/C or industrial suppliers.

[hobo59]

Just one last thought on the oil issue, why not use a larger engine with an oil sump such as a lawn mower engine say a 5 horse power should do it. Then attach an electric motor to amp it up ?

[hobo59]

As for the oil issue, simple venturi system can be employed by placing a hose with an oil source at one end and the other at the mouth of the carburetor. As the engine fires and runs the negative pressure at the mouth of the carb should draw oil into the mouth through the hose. You may have to experiment with different sized hoses to get the right amount of flow.

[hobo59]

I don't know if anyone else has already suggested this. But you really need a moisture capture device inline as the methane is very wet it has a higher capacity to carry moisture than regular air. It can cause fouling of your spark plug not to mention internal engine wear. Also you should over pressurize your methane gas flow and then simply use a valve to limit the amount of flow !

[tculhane]

@hobo59 These are great suggestions hobo59. I've been thinking of them but haven't yet figured out exactly how to make the moisture capture device or the creation of a simple venturi system. If you have any photos or sketches I would be much obliged -- sometimes the mere need to experiment discourages further attempts when one's schedule is so busy. Thanks!

[hobo59]

@tculhane The moisture capture device is simple. Go to a home supply co. I don't know if you guys have anything like a Home Depot or a Lowes over there but anyplace that deals with air pressure devices like compressors or a medical gas cylinder place they already have such devices for air compressors, just ask ! It shouldn't cost more than a few say $10-15 I don't know what that is in pounds or quid or whatever. Sorry I'm travel challenged ! lol

[hobo59]

@tculhane I don't know how I can get a sketch to you of a venturi. If you want to send me an e-mail address I'll be happy to do so. But you can also ask about them from the Medical gas supply house they should be able to supply you with the needed info. If not just P.M. me with your e-mail and I'll dash one off to you. BTW the same principle can be used for the gas delivery system a slow flow delivered right at the mouth of the carburetor with an adjustment valve will work.

[kerimil]

@tculhane

it works exactly like water separators for compressed air... hell you might as well get one

[fejvtec]

@tculhane simple, you make a drip leg like on a natural gas line and you cool it. this will condense the water vapor and trap it. a drip leg is simply a horizontal pipe with a vertical pipe. the vertical pipe will catch liquid water.

[fejvtec]

it can be found at about 5:20 of the video "How does a biogas plant work? "

[reeseht]

Hello there - great experiment - take a look at the Tommey Reed's bubbler (you tube) it might just solve your problem on the cheap - he runs his engine using it.

Hope this helps.

Jim

[tculhane]

This is a great suggestion vtol750. If I can figure out how to rig this up I will try it. Do you have any pictures showing how we might do this without making holes that wreck things? Thanks!

[engineeringtube]

hello friends, its really awesome to produce bio-electricity for domestic use. but here i would like to put a very basic question regarding the "biogas holder". Question is "why biogas doesn't escape or leak out from the the gap between gas holder and digester" could any explain it please? thanx

[tculhane]

Hi Engineeringtube,

Good question. Some biogas does leak out from the gap but it is such a small quantity that we can't even ignite it with a lighter moving around the perimeter. It appears that the methanogens cluster under the gas collection tank where true anaerobic conditions prevail, and it may be that other facultative aerobes in the area where the gap is are metabolising feedstock into CO2. Also, because the feedstock enters the center of the tank the sides may be depleted.

[deiseldes1]

excelent stuff i love what you are trying there , is there any engin that you dont have to add oil through the bio gas ?would the bio gas work with a small car engin ?and could a compressor be used to compress the gas into cylinders ?ie connect the air intake of the compressor to the gas and the compressor outlet to a ?cylinder eg a gas cylinder ? would that work please let me know cheers, ps your the main man .

[tculhane]

Hi deiseldes1, we have successfully adapted and run a 4 stroke 6.5 HP engine/generator in Cairo using a 190 dollar kit from US Carburetion (in West Virginia) that took 15 minutes to install. 4 stroke engines, as you know, are self lubricating. However the water vapor in the biogas did make starting difficult as these engines are more finicky than 2 strokes. And we eventually broke the spring on the pull start trying to start it so many times. But 4 strokes are the way to go.

[littlebuddha4]

love what yr doing it great how about getting 5 family in Africa together and buy a Inverter Series generator the runing time be up to 20 min on the same gas giving them 1kva of power , i think it time that 3 world country jumped to were we are and not still getting old tec ,with a little help from us .

[DDRCableguy]

I think yamaha,piaggio and suzuki still sell 2 stroke scooters. They inject the oil into the carburrator, I think maybe you can adapt that kinda technology (maybe get a pum and jet as sparepart...

[tculhane]

That is a great idea! Thanks, I'll look into that. If you have any further info about the adaptation please do share with us!

[masterix6]

I love what you did. It gives motivation to those trying to make projects work. I am humorous and I can't resist though... Its nice to see that kitty was your captive audience. Very cute!! I was praying things wouldn't explode on kitty. EXCELLLENT PROJECT. Here is a suggestion though. Try putting a tank of water on top of the gas cover to give a more even distribution of weight to replace the bricks. It also would allow you to continue adding on more pressure by allowing water to flow in!

[tculhane]

Thanks so much masterix6! I just ran some trials using the tank of water so I can vary the pressure and it works great so long as the height of the telescoping gas container doesn't rise too high (at which point it bumps into the support cage; and if I remove that it will topple over).

[tculhane]

So what I've done is implemented your suggestion and then run a tube to let the gas go to a water displacement tank for storage so that the telescoping bell doesn't have to rise any higher. Will be posting a vid of it soon. Thanks again!

[Beardy241]

"English Engineer"!? LOL! ROFL!

Man, you're funny!!!

-

Anyhoo, well done with all of this. Excellent progress. I'm not able to put stuff together on this scale for now so it's really encouraging to see you're progress.

-

I'm still intrigued by the cold loving 'chilly-phillic' bacteria - and to know how they'll perform in our colder climate. Where can we get these things? Mail-order!? Or can your friend-with-no-eyebrows bring a few over in a jar?

[tculhane]

Marcel, I'll get you some Psychrophiles when I come back from Alaska in January. I'll bring them to Germany in a bag of mud, then you gotta figure out how to get them across the Channel (I find British cutoms to be hell -- they interrogated me for half an hour for bringing a small guitar in to the country asking "are you going to try to illegally busk with this?" What?! :)

[jdmforyou]

big up

[yanyoulen]

this is GREAT all these years i have raking fruit in to piles tell more about yourbio convertet ???

[tculhane]

I posted an animation showing how easy it is to build one of these things yanyoulen. Just check my youtube channel for recent posts and you will see it! Cheers!

[insAneTunA]

Awesome d3, I was hoping for guys like you to be interested in what Mr. Culhane is trying to do here.

And to Mr. Culhane, I have very much respect for what you are doing, and in a modest way I try to get some attention for your work so here and there. You might not feel like a hero, but people like you are a hero to me. You are a true source off inspiration to keep faith in the goodness of mankind.

Greets from the Netherlands, iT

[tculhane]

Thanks insAneTunA, you keep us going with your kind words! Thanks for the vote of confidence. Your experiments are an inspiration to me to! My next step is to see if the flashback arrestor is going to compromise engine performance by acting as a pressure restrictor, and how many more bricks it will take to compensate.

[insAneTunA]

Thank you Mr Culhane,.

An experienced person on this field is d3adp001,to me he is an expert. d3 has done many experiments with engines and HHO with the use of several different Flashback arrestors. Some of that experiments can be seen on the channel of Smartscarecrow. I am pretty sure, but that is my personal guess, that they will help You out with information if You have any questions on that field. Also checkout InstallGuys, a great tutorial for a DIY arrestor with almost no restriction

[tculhane]

Thanks d3adp001! We do have the trifuel conversion kit for the 4 stroke engine from propanedashgeneratorsdotcom and we will use it in Cairo next month -- it is, as you know, a lot easier to do the conversion (no carb drilling necessary) and of course the lubrication problem isn't there. But the 4 stroke costs 230 Euro while the two stroke cost 80 Euro and most third world engines are two stroke so we thought we'd give it a try! We want to figure a way to help the trash recyclers in Egypt.

[d3adp001]

good job, running an engine on trash.

[d3adp001]

4 stroke engine, and adjust your pressure regulator.