# US 2014/0154794 A1 · Biogas generating plant with tunnel fermentation chmaber and installations to produce and utilise biogas

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- Number: US 2014/0154794 A1
- Document ID: US20140154794A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 13/692,481
- Filed: 2012-12-03
- Published: 2014-06-05
- Earliest claimed: 2012-12-03
- Inventors: Ryszard Aleksander FOTYGA
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140154794A1

## CPC

- C12M 21/04: {for producing gas, e.g. biogas (digesters for manure with production of biogas A01C3/028, biological treatment of water, waste water or sewage C02F3/00, C02F11/02, preparation of natural gas or syngas C10L3/06, C10L3/10)}
- C12M 23/00: {Constructional details, e.g. recesses, hinges (flow directing inserts in C12M27/18-C12M27/24; apparatus for chemical or physical processes in general B01J, chemical or physical laboratory apparatus in general B01L)}
- C12M 23/36: {Means for collection or storage of gas; Gas holders}
- C12M 29/02: {Percolation}
- C12M 29/06: {Nozzles; Sprayers; Spargers; Diffusers (per se B01F23/231, B01J19/26)}
- C12M 41/12: {of temperature (controlling the temperature of chemical or physical processes B01J19/0013, heating or cooling apparatus for laboratory use B01L7/00)}
- C12M 41/24: {inside the vessel}
- C12M 41/34: {of gas}
- Y02E 50/30: Fuel from waste, e.g. synthetic alcohol or diesel
- C12M: APPARATUS FOR ENZYMOLOGY OR MICROBIOLOGY; {APPARATUS FOR CULTURING MICROORGANISMS FOR PRODUCING BIOMASS, FOR GROWING CELLS OR FOR OBTAINING FERMENTATION OR METABOLIC PRODUCTS, i.e. BIOREACTORS OR FERMENTERS}
- Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION

## Abstract

The object of the invention is a biogas generator with tunnel fermentation chamber, equipped with biomass container with thermally insulated base and essentially vertical foundation walls, installations for moisturising biomass with a process liquid, installations for recirculation of seepage water, arch roof covering spread over arch load-bearing construction and supported on essentially vertical foundation walls, gas-tight gable walls, and biogas store created by double layer of roof covering foil with inlet to biogas store situated in upper part of fermentation chamber. The invention also includes installation to be used in the aforesaid biogas generator.

## Claims

### Claim 1

Biogas generating plant with tunnel fermentation chamber, equipped with biomass container with thermally insulated base and essentially vertical foundation walls, installations for moisturising biomass with a process liquid, installations for recirculation of seepage water, arch roof covering spread over arch load-bearing construction and supported on essentially vertical biomass container walls, gas-tight gable walls and biogas store formed by double layer of roof covering foil with inlet to biogas store situated in upper part of fermentation chamber, characterised in that two layers of foil, upper (3a) and lower (3b), forming the biogas store (3c), are secured on opposite sides of the rigid arch roof covering load-bearing construction, the lower foil (3b) has gas slots (29) at approx. ¼ of the height of the arch load-bearing construction, and a duct fan (8) forcing circulation of biogas to biogas store (3c) is connected into the inlet channel, wherein lower edges (5) of roof covering are supported on upper part of essentially vertical foundation walls (1) of the biomass container, while the installations for moisturising biomass with process liquid have moisturising nozzles (7a), placed in the biomass loading zone and variable heights, depending on the height of the biomass loading zone, preferably in intermediate zone (1b), and furthermore in the biomass loading zone there is a channel (2) for pulp, preferably created by a perforated barrier (4) supported on the base of biomass container or constituting a perforated pipe, suspended, supported or resting freely in a biomass layer.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 1, characterised in that the lower edges (5) of the roof covering are slideably mounted and form a gas tight connection on the appropriately shaped upper part of the vertical foundation walls (1), specifically with the aid of slides or guide rails comprising channel irons, or the lower edges (5) of the roof covering are slideably mounted in troughs executed in the upper part of vertical foundation walls (1), which troughs form gas tight connections of the lower edges (5), especially siphon connections.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 1, characterised in that the moisturising nozzles (7a) are located in the biomass loading zone on one level or at various levels between the biomass container and the upper part of the fermentation chamber.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 1, characterised in that in the upper part of the channel (2) for pulp there is placed an internal pipeline (6) conveying pulp, and in the lower part of the channel (2) for pulp there is installed an auger conveyor (12) to convey compacted pulp to the exterior.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 1, characterised in that the biomass container is equipped with aeration installations with perforated nozzles (11a) mounted in side zones at the biomass container base, supplied by aeration pipeline (11).

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 1, characterised in that it is equipped with a coil (32) placed in the biomass layer, to remove surplus heat from the fermentation chamber or to heat mass.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 1, characterised in that the rigid arch load-bearing construction (3) of the roof covering is placed in a gas-tight foil sleeve, insulating the construction (3) from the gaseous atmosphere in the biogas store.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 7, characterised in that said foil sleeve has inspection openings for inlet of appropriate gases protecting the construction against deterioration and for controlling moisture of the atmosphere inside the sleeve.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

Biogas generating plant according to claim 1, characterised in that the essentially vertical foundation walls (1) are made of a thermoinsulating material, preferably using brickwork or made of thermoinsulating panels (40), placed between pillars.

### Claim 10

Installation to produce and utilise biogas, comprising a tunnel fermentation chamber, constituting a space inside a biogas generator with a convex roof covering spread over an arch load-bearing structure, a gas store formed by two layers of roof covering foil with an inlet to the gas store situated in the upper part of the fermentation chamber, installations for moisturising biomass with a process liquid, installations for recirculation of seepage water, a cogeneration system powered by biogas supplied through a gas pipeline from the biogas store and an automated system for controlling the process of production and utilisation of biogas, characterised in that two layers of foil, upper (3a) and lower (3b), forming the biogas store (3c), are secured on opposite sides of the rigid arch roof covering load-bearing construction, the lower foil (3b) has gas slots (29) at approx. ¼ of the height of the arch load-bearing construction, and a duct fan (8) forcing circulation of biogas to biogas store (3c) is connected into the inlet channel, wherein lower edges (5) of roof covering are supported on upper part of essentially vertical foundation walls (1) of the biomass container, while the installations for moisturising biomass with process liquid have moisturising nozzles (7a), placed in the biomass loading zone and variable heights, depending on the height of the biomass loading zone, preferably in intermediate zone (1b), and furthermore in the biomass loading zone there is a channel (2) for pulp, preferably created by a perforated barrier (4) supported on the base of biomass container or constituting a perforated pipe, suspended, supported or resting freely in a biomass layer, supplied with pulp through an internal pipeline (6) situated in the channel (2) for pulp, wherein the installations for recirculation of seepage water include a non-membrane heat and mass exchanger connected through a seepage water pipeline (20) with the biomass container and a return pipeline (22) with installations for moisturising biomass with a process liquid, and wherein the non-diaphragm heat and mass exchanger has a permanent mass (15) of a high heat capacity, through which seepage water is passed in the opposite direction to exhaust gases supplied to the permanent mass by an exhaust conduit (19) from the cogeneration system.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

Installation according to claim 10, characterised in that the seepage water pipeline (20) is connected with a perforated pipeline (10) in the biomass container and with a seepage water pump (24) connected on compression side with a moisturising appliance (20a) placed above the permanent mass (15) of a non-diaphragm heat and mass exchanger, while under the permanent mass (15) there is placed a basin (17) to receive water released from the biomass, wherein the water from basin (17) is pushed to the return pipeline (22) by a return pump (18).

### Claim 12 (depends on 10)

Installation according to claim 10, characterised in that the moisturising nozzles (7a) are situated in the biomass loading zone at one level or at various levels between the biomass container and the upper part of the fermentation chamber.

### Claim 13 (depends on 10)

Installation according to claim 10, characterised in that in the upper part of the channel (2) for pulp there is placed an internal pipeline (6) conveying pulp, and in the lower part of the channel (2) for pulp there is installed an auger conveyor (12) to convey compacted pulp to the exterior.

### Claim 14 (depends on 10)

Installation according to claim 10, characterised in that the biomass container is equipped with aeration installations with perforated nozzles (11a) mounted in side zones at the biomass container base, supplied by aeration pipeline (11).

### Claim 15 (depends on 10)

Installation according to claim 10, characterised in that an external gas container (31) for carbon dioxide is connected by an equalising conduit to the lower part of the biogas store (3c), wherein preferably a reverse ventilator (13) for forcing gas through-flow is connected to the equalising conduit.