[Digestion] Fwd: providing oxygen to methanogens

[Dr Stephen P Etheridge]

Dear List

Many years ago we found some unexplained stimulation of biogas production
when oxygen had accidentally been introduced into an anaerobic system. This
was as air, and not oxygen in chemical form. While this should have
traditionally been inhibitory to the methanogens, for some reason, in the
specific circumstances prevailing at the time it was not. At the time we
explored this in the literature and found a paper by Pirt and Lee which
indicated recorded stimulation due to oxygen introduction. If I can track it
down I will forward it.

Regards

Stephen Etheridge
CEO Biotrix Asia

-----Original Message-----
From: Digestion [mailto:digestion-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On
Behalf Of Anand Karve
Sent: 24 September 2014 17:12
To: digestion at lists.bioenergylists.org
Cc: Priyadarshini Karve
Subject: [Digestion] Fwd: providing oxygen to methanogens

Dear List,

Although the microbes responsible for making biogas work under anaerobic
conditions, they do use oxygen, which they extract from the feedstock. Thus,
when you feed them with a carbohydrate, they give back to you methane, a
hydrocarbon, using the oxygen from the carbohydrate for driving their own
metabolism. The rate of biogas production is much higher when you use a
cabohydrate rich substrate rather than dung. In fact the biogas producing
organisms even convert carbon dioxide into methane. This gave me the idea of
providing a biogas plant with a chemical rich in oxygen and to see if the
biogas production is accelerated. Some of the substances classically used as
oxygen donors in various chemical reactions are potassium permanganate,
potassium dichromate, potassium chlorate or many of the peroxides, nitrates
and sulphates. Does anyone have ideas or comments on this theme?
Yours
A.D.Karve

--
***
Dr. A.D. Karve
Trustee & Founder President, Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI)



-- 
***
Dr. A.D. Karve
Trustee & Founder President, Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI)

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