Manufacturing fuels from waste.

Biotechnology is already benefiting developing countries by providing a cheap, clean and renewable alternative to fossil fuels, but the cost of biomass fuels such as ethanol are still high relative to fossil fuel equivalents. Biomass fuels are greenhouse gas neutral (i.e. carbon dioxide consumed at photosynthesis is equal to the amount given off when the fuel is burned to produce energy)

Millions of tonnes of fruit and vegetable processing wastes are fed to animals or dumped and burnt every year throughout the world and some countries now have pilot plants which show these to be excellent sources of methane.

To achieve this vegetable matter, animal and human wastes are fed into a digester in which Anaerobic bacteria ferment the waste to produce two products;

1. Methane Gas - used in a similar manner to natural gas in industrial or domestic situations.
2. Plant Fertiliser

In addition to this some Australian local governments are running trails to tap methane from naturally decaying garbage at municipal dumping sites.


The role of bacteriaI The biological cycleI
Maintaining water quality in an aquatic enviromentI
Enviromental management of water bodies?I Biotechnology in waste managementI
Cleaning up chemical wasteI Treating petroleum sludge and oilspillsI
Manufacturing fuels from waste