Effective Waste Treatment for Developing Countries

Anaerobic Technologies, LLC

Imagine one simple device that could …

• Eliminate sewage and filth

• Provide fuel – For clean cooking, – Bringing electricity to remote areas – Preserving forests

• And most importantly, help eliminate disease

Two of the most urgent problems of the developing world

• Widespread Disease – due to poor disposal of human and animal

waste

• Extensive Deforestation – due to lack of available and affordable energy

Disease due to improper waste disposal

• Pit toilets allow sewage to collect and percolate into the ground, contaminating the soil and underlying aquifers. 

• Rivers used as toilets contaminate waterways with human waste containing disease. The river water is further contaminated by bathing and washing clothing.

DOWNSTREAM PROBLEMS 

• Not only does each village along the river contaminate the water, they all use it for drinking and cooking, thus ingesting pollutants from the upstream villages.

• Food & drink contaminated by feces will inevitably cause disease.

• A case of E. coli or salmonella in the United States is a big news story. In the developing world, it is commonplace.

Deforestation

• Trees are felled for heating and cooking.• Many times, home fires are the only

source of lighting.• People in the home suffer from smoke

inhalation.• As trees near the villages are cleared,

people have to walk further to find wood.• Deforestation leads to erosion, flooding,

and loss of topsoil.

A Simple Solution

• What if there was something that …– Could properly process human waste– Requires no electricity to operate– Generates methane that could be used to

replace wood for light, heating, and cooking

• Anaerobic Technologies has that solution:– Our Anaerobic Reactor

The Reactor

• Custom designed tank, impervious to light and air

• Can be installed above or under ground

• Is filled with water that flows freely through the system

• Once filled, the reactor is inoculated with a special mix of 55 anaerobic, non-disease causing bacteria.

Reactor Operation

• Once inoculated, food (waste) must be furnished to the reactor

• With food, the bacteria begin to eat and reproduce• As the bacteria population increases, it can process

more waste and at a faster rate.• Within a few weeks, the process will reach homeostasis:

– The bacteria population is at the carrying capacity of the reactor– The reactor is capable of working at its maximum capacity

Reactor Operation (cont.)

• Reactor fuel comes from a reservoir built at the input. In it, people dispose of human, animal, & food waste, or any other organic substance.

• The reactor requires a constant slow flow of fluid to keep it healthy. A simple hand grinder pump cranked twice a day can take care of this.

• In addition the grinder turns everything in the reservoir into a fine slurry that aids digestion

• Each type of bacteria in the mix targets a different organic substance: proteins, sugars, fats, amino acids, etc.

By-products

• Within a few hours, the bacteria will have completed digestion and three by-products will remain:

– Gray Water– Methane – Trace amounts of Carbon Dioxide

Gray Water

• Water that flows out of the reactor is considered gray water (disease-free but not suitable for human consumption)

• Contains trace amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus, making it excellent source for watering crops

• Since anaerobic bacteria cannot live in the presence of oxygen or light, any that escape in the gray water die instantly

Methane

• Gas similar to butane or natural gas

• Bubbles to the top of reactor during digestion

• Trapped methane can be used in one of two ways:– Piped to individual homes for cooking or light– Firing a generator to create electricity for the

village

One Village, One ReactorWhat could be accomplished?

• Improved growth of fruits and vegetables in the garden.

• Improved removal of harmful organic waste.• Improved health and sanitation.• Improved living conditions.• Fuel for cooking and light in the living unit.• Possibly, electricity for all.• Decreased disease.• Decreased deforestation.

Thank you.