Bio Digester Technology, A Sustainable Sanitation And Hygiene

Before we start shedding light on the bio digester technology wouldn’t it be interesting to dig into past? Anecdotes unfold that Assyrians used biogas in tenth century BC. It was known to Persians also during sixteenth century. Practical science took on its course when Jan Baptita Van Helmonst first determined that flammable gases could evolve from decaying organic matter.

Scientists confirmed that it is the anaerobic bacterial species which reduces organic matters into those gases. An amazing discovery. So, these microbial champions could work without asking for oxygen. How about launching them on the human wastes which would otherwise produce not only toxic and odorous gases on rotting but also pollute soil and water. Actually, in our ecosystem construction and destruction have been taking place as per the protocols of nature. But the artificial ecosystem which fast growing population of humans on earth have created does not qualify to undergo that natural steady course. We need something fast.

Then evolved the biodigester technology to rescue the human society. The first such plant started in 1859 in Bombay (Mumbai), India. From then it has gone through drastic changes.

The system consists of three basic units, inlet, tank and outlet. Inlet is there to make way for the human waste to tank. Tank is the core of the system. Biodegradation of human excreta takes place here only. It is the actual machine which convert human waste into methane, carbon dioxide with discharge of reusable water.

Key Advantages :

• Biodigester does not need energy to run.
• It is clean technology.
• It does not cause pollution.
• It is inexpensive.

Let us have a look on how it works:

Biodigester is a multi-chambered tank. Primary tank received human excreta directly from toilet commodes. It is seeded by microbial inoculum. Microbial inoculum is just mixture of anaerobic bacterial strains. These are ecofriendly bacteria which is nonpathogenic in nature. But they are so fast and dominant that they break pollutants quite before any possible present pathogen can think. So, pathogens die naturally of starvation. Or we can say that the dominant activity of anaerobes inactivates them. Anaerobes does not let ammonia forming and hydrogen sulphide producing bacteria have a single bite. And they die of hunger. The surrounding remains free of odors.

As the overflow falls in subsequent chamber pollutants are degraded more and more. And the chain moves. BOD and COD are continuously reduced chamber by chamber. When water reaches the last chamber, it contains no or minimal acceptable level of BOD and COD. The very purpose of making multiple chambers is to increase the path length of wastewater. If bacteria is given time asked for can break human wastes into its original elements. The microbial champs reduce fecal mass almost by 99.95 percent. To understand this in simple language suppose 1 kg of excreta reaches the digester. The final solid form output will be 50 grams of sludge which is devoid of pathogens but full of micronutrients best for agriculture.

Acetogenic and methanogenic types of bacteria does all the job. End product is methane and carbon dioxide. Further treated sludge is full of minerals which are the best organic fertilizer. The discharged water is free of pathogens. Tank is well shielded. So, there is no chance of contamination of soil and ground water. Methane can be collected as bio gas for another sustainable source of renewable energy. So we can see, without using a penny of energy biodigester not only produces energy but also resources in the form of fertilizer and water for irrigation purpose.

But the most significant task job to achieve hundred percent success. And for this we need to select a bioculture which is capable of finishing its task well before tank becomes full. Which does not require to make tanks too bulky as bio toilets are supposed to be in both fixed and movable forms. Our Bio Reme biotoilet is in powdered form which comes with shelf life of two years. This is in inactivated or say dormant stage. Just exposing it to moisture for 20 minutes before dosing activates its 99% bacteria for sure. No fermentation is required before dosing. Its protocol does not list requirement of any additional nutrients. It occupies less than 2 percent of space which increased holding time of sludge multiple fold even for a smaller size chamber. It works on the principle of minimum input maximum output. And more important is that this pack has got those species whose parents once survived in a similar, but the toughest possible environments engineered intentionally. That is why they never fail. Bio Reme Bio toilet has got both cold loving and heat loving species which make the digester run in a wide range of temperature from -5℃ to 55℃. Trained bacteria are adapted to eat even detergent and phenyl. If tank is not in used for a few days bacteria still can survive without food by feeding on the stored food inside the food vacuoles. This is going to solve human sanitation and hygiene issues for sure.