Tecnologia alternativa para purificação do metano contido no biogás proveniente da digestão anaeróbica de dejetos de suínos

Abstract

In recent years, the use of anaerobic bio-digestion systems for the treatment of wastes from agro-industrial activities has been intensified. The main products of bio-digestion are biogas and bio-fertilizer. Biogas is composed mainly of methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and ammonia (NH3), which in most cases is used as fuel for powering stationary engines. In these cases, the presence of CO2, H2S and NH3, undermines the viability of its use as fuel because it reduces the calorific potential and lifetime of engines. In this context, the study aimed to develop and evaluate an alternative technology for purification of the methane contained in biogas from anaerobic digestion of swine manure. Therefore, the methodology contemplated the technological foresight inherent in matter (removal / purification of biogas), identifying advantages / disadvantages, design / construction of alternative technology (prototype) and its installation on a rural property for the purpose of operational testing. The results demonstrate the technical and economical viability for implementation in a real situation. For the corrosive components the reduction of 96% for H2S and of 83,1% for NH3 was achieved, beyond 6% CO2 reduction. The result was the increasing of methane concentration which reached 75% enabling the use of the biogas as a fuel.