Due to environmental considerations, the renewable energy fever is on the rise. Biogas is one of the renewable sources that play a main role in providing the required energy in most developing nations. Considering its popularity and availability, we at Linquip have gathered a comprehensive article on the advantages and disadvantages of biogas. If a better understanding of the definition, uses, and potential advantages and disadvantages of biogas are what you are looking for, this is the article for you.
What is Biogas?
The biofuel produced by the decomposition of organic matter is called biogas. The list of the organic material used to generate this fuel includes municipal, industrial, and agricultural waste, domestic sewage, animal manure, and leftover foods.
How is Biogas Produced?
The fermentation of the organic material, needed to produce biogas, happens in the absence of oxygen through a process called anaerobic digestion.
In the first step of this process, the material known as bio-waste is broken into smaller pieces and put into an enormous tank called a digester. Then a liquid is added to the tank and it is heated to around 37°C for the anaerobic bacteria present in the matter to start working. In three weeks, these bacteria digest the waste and turn it into a mix of gasses, mainly carbon dioxide, and methane. In the final stage of the process, the carbon dioxide and other impurities are removed from the resulting gas.
The released energy can be used in cooking, heating, generating electricity, lighting up the streets and households, and producing a less pollutant fuel to power vehicles.
After this short introduction to biogas and its uses, now is the time to take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of biogas.
The Advantages of Biogas
Biogas is a popular source of renewable energy worldwide, especially in countries like India, China, and Nepal. The following is a list of advantages that encourage the world to satisfy its endless hunger for energy by investing in the production of this cheap and clean biofuel.
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Being Clean and Environment-Friendly
As no combustion is involved in the anaerobic digestion of bio-wastes, the process of biogas production is emission-free. Therefore, using this biofuel as a major source of energy can, to some extent, contain the threat of global heating.
Although carbon dioxide is a component of biogas, the amount of such pollutants released during biogas production and burning is comparably less than the amount produced by fossil fuels. The amount of carbon dioxide the biogas releases, in fact, replaces the amount the plant wastes used as an input needed to grow.
Biogas is a clean and renewable source of energy that can reduce the world’s reliance on fossil fuels, the non-renewable sources of energy that exasperate air pollution and kill 4.5 million people each year.
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Reducing Water Pollution
According to statistics, more than 3.5 million tons of garbage are produced every day in the world. Storing such an enormous mass of trash in overflowing dumping grounds results in both an unpleasant smell and contamination of underground water reservoirs. Therefore, collecting the waste from landfills and converting it to energy can protect water sources from pollution.
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Generating an Organic Fertilizer
The enriched organic matter called “digestate” is a by-product of anaerobic digestion. Unlike chemical fertilizers that cause harm in different ways like waterway pollution and chemical burn to crops, this natural fertilizer speeds up the plant’s growth and prevents potential diseases.
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Creating job opportunities
From plant operators to landfill gas technicians, biogas production projects and plants have created a large number of green jobs for local workers.
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Low Investment Required
From technology to inputs, producing biogas is a business that can be started with a small amount of money. Anaerobic digestion plants can be developed at home and the material they use to generate energy are all freely accessible. Therefore, by investing in a small capital you can convert useless waste into a valuable source of energy.
In the present list of advantages and disadvantages of biogas, now is the time to go through the most important cons regarding the production and use of this renewable energy.
The Disadvantages of Biogas
Nothing is perfect and a source of energy that takes root in the trash is no exception!
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Lack of Technological Development
The lack of technological development in biogas plants is one of the major drawbacks of using this source of energy. The use of obsolete technologies is a major obstacle in the path of efficient and large-scale production. Therefore, although many people use the same old conventional biogas systems in their homes to generate energy, the technique is not favored by governments and large companies.
There is a need to develop highly effective systems based on new technologies to facilitate and increase the capacity of biogas production, and at the same time, keep the costs under control.
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Temperature sensitivity
Temperature sensitivity is the main disadvantage of biogas plants. For the anaerobic bacteria used in biogas production, the temperature is an important factor; they can only perform fermentation properly at the optimal temperature of 37oC. So, in cold weather when the temperature plummets below that standard, external heat should be applied to the digester to continue production.
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Flammability
50 to 75% of biogas is methane, an extremely flammable gas. Therefore, due to the high content of methane, biogas is unstable and may cause explosions in a mixture of air.
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Impurity
In the final stage of digestion, the resulting mixture of gases is refined and compressed. Yet, it still contains some impurities afterward. These impurities make biogas an inappropriate option for powering vehicles because they can ruin certain parts of the engine. Therefore, this biofuel is mainly a suitable source of energy for stoves and lamps.
Conclusion
Biogas is a clean and renewable source that uses organic waste to create energy. In this article, we discussed the advantages and disadvantages of biogas. To put it in a nutshell, while biogas is an eco-friendly and cheap source of energy that creates employment for local workers and reduces the water and soil pollution caused by the decomposition of the trash, it comes with its disadvantages; this biofuel is unstable in nature and temperature-sensitive in production.
If you have any information and personal experiences regarding the production and usage of biogas, please share it with us. And you are welcome to ask any questions regarding the advantages and disadvantages of biogas. Our experts in Linquip are always there to help you. All you need to do is to sign up.
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