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==What does he get out of this ?== | ==What does he get out of this ?== | ||
* [[Methane]]. The pipe from the tank drives the methane produced in anaerobic fermentation to truck air chambers to be stocked. Enough gas is produced to cook and power a (small french) car. | * [[Methane]]. The pipe from the tank drives the methane produced in anaerobic fermentation to truck air chambers to be stocked. Enough gas is produced to cook and power a (small french) car. | ||
* Hot water. An additional copper tube is coiled around the tanks and | * Hot water. An additional copper tube is coiled around the tanks ; water runs through it and gets hot with the heat that both aerobic and anaerobic fermentation provide. Enough to use for sanitation and house heating. | ||
* Compost that can be used for home farming or sold. | * Compost that can be used for home farming or sold. | ||
==External Links== | ==External Links== | ||
*Biofuels Librairy [http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_library/methane_pain.html] | *Biofuels Librairy [http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_library/methane_pain.html] | ||
Revision as of 19:46, 21 May 2008
By the way : "pain" in french means "bread" :)
Introduction
Jean Pain was a self taught Frenchman who designed a means of achieving (at least partial) energy autonomy, using inexpensive biomass fuel, with a mere mound.
The principle
Pile a mound of vegetable waste and wait : after a while, an anaerobic fermentation will take place, emitting heat and smell. The smell is methane gas. After a further wait, the mound will turn into a fertilizing compost.
Now grind the material in bits 2-3 mm thick. Build the mound; the aerobic fermentation taking place is odourless and yields more heat. Jean Pain simply placed ground material inside a steel tank fitted with a pipe; the tank was in turn placed into a ground material mound.
What does he get out of this ?
- Methane. The pipe from the tank drives the methane produced in anaerobic fermentation to truck air chambers to be stocked. Enough gas is produced to cook and power a (small french) car.
- Hot water. An additional copper tube is coiled around the tanks ; water runs through it and gets hot with the heat that both aerobic and anaerobic fermentation provide. Enough to use for sanitation and house heating.
- Compost that can be used for home farming or sold.