[Digestion] Response - Biogas in humanitarian response

[Hoysall Chanakya]

Dear Mr Neale,
I see two critical non-negotiables in your hypothesis
a.converting and containing human wastes under ‘emergency’ situations
and b. secondly examining if biogas could be an option

The answer is quite a “Yes” with some constraints /or boundary conditions
1. Under non-flooded conditions, digging a pit and adopting a dry /semi
dry latrine would be the simplest and easiest.  Under flooded /high water
table conditions anaerobic digestion and biogas would be a good option. 
This will contain human wastes and meet your primary objective without
other short /long range issues

2. Under flooded conditions it would  be wise to build the toilets (or
makeshift ones) on stilts or somewhat higher ground and run down the human
wastes with steep slope drainage piping into polythene /neoprene (or
similar material) balloon type biogas plants with 50+ days of HRT. 
Usually by then the emergency situations are overcome and other long range
alternatives begin to make sense.  Nevertheless, you would get biogas and
simultaneous treatment of wastes.  Biogas produced could be used for
lighting the toilet area with mantle lamps for a finite period during the
early night and early morning.  This would be a good case and also can be
converted into a kit that can be shipped to areas of emergencies quickly.

Best wishes
Chanakya


-- 
Dr. Hoysall Chanakya
Centre for Sustainable Technologies
(Assoc. Faculty at Centre for Infrastructure, Sustainable Transport and
Urban Planning (CiSTUP) and Centre for Contemporary Studies)
Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560 012
ph 91-80-2293 3046; fax-91 80 2360 0683


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