New Biogas Generator Helps Farmers

PHILIPPINES - The government is urging pig and poultry farmers to adapt gas-fed generators to run on biogas, and simple technology is already available for the conversion.
calendar icon 27 April 2009
clock icon 3 minute read

To contribute to a cleaner environment and help cushion the adverse effects of global warming, owners of piggery and poultry farms are being urged by the Department of Science and Technology to make use of a technology that easily converts gas-fed generators into biogas generators, according to Manila Bulletin.

In an interview with the publication, Industrial Technology Development Institute (ITDI) environment division chief, Dr Christopher Silverio, said they have developed a small gadget dubbed the new energy adaptor (NEA) that could convert a gas-fed generator into a methane or biogas generator.

He said the institute targets piggery and poultry farms in rural areas as the primary users of the technology, adding that an owner of a piggery farm in Mindoro has already expressed interest in the technology.

"[Mindoro} will be the first one to adopt the technology," he said, adding that it is expected to adopt the technology within the year.

Dr Silverio said the NEA gadget that could convert a 13 horsepower generator only costs 300 pesos (PHP) since the raw materials used to produce the technology are locally available.

"It is customized depending on the capacity of the generator," he said, adding that the technology has already been filed for patent before the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of the Philippines.

In addition to the adapter, Dr Silverio's team also developed the energy facilitated adopter (EFA), which can convert a gas-fed generator into a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) generator.

Both the EFA and NEA are fabricated from PVC materials, which could facilitate the intake of methane or LPG into air-intake combustion port of the generator.

"These simple gadgets would run a generator without the use of gasoline," he said, adding that such generators can power electrical appliances like exhaust fans, light and refrigerators, among others.

"With these simple conversion kits, electric operators would run their generating units with either biogas or LPG instead of gasoline. In effect, operation would be more cost effective," Dr Silverio told Manila Bulletin.

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