Seems Linde refrigeration may be the way to "compress" methane. 3000 psi is not trivial.
Kirk -----Original Message----- From: robert luis rabello [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, June 23, 2003 10:55 PM To: biofuel@yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [biofuel] Biogas technologies Keith Addison wrote: <snip> > How do you compress it? Small-scale compression seems to be an > obstacle - if it could easily be overcome then we could include > methane as a mobile fuel as well as a static energy source. Here in North America, a device called "FuelMaker" is available that can safely compress methane gas to the ridiculous 3 000 psi required to give a vehicle decent range on "natural gas". A company in Langley called "Eco Fuel" will sell these to interested consumers, but even the rebuilt ones are expensive. Last summer when we were building our house, my favorite salesman quoted about $3 000 for such a compressor. If you're interested, you can contact Markus Wenzel at the following link: http://www.ecofuel.com/ This is a link to the compressor manufacturer: http://www.fuelmaker.com/Products/NaturalGasRefueling/Applications/Residenti al.htm <snip> > This is from one of the stories about Harold Bate: > > "Bate has fitted his digester tank with a safety valve set for 60 > p.s.i. "just in case". Pressures in the extractor seldom reach a > third that level, however, because Harold considers a digester > internal pressure of 20 p.s.i. to be the signal to start up a > high-pressure compressor (of the type used for filling aqualung > diving bottles) and pump the collected gas from the extractor into an > ordinary high-pressure bottle. > > "A filter between the digester and pressure bottle extracts the small > quantities of phosphoric acid and ammonia that are present and the > remaining almost-pure methane liquefies at a pressure of 1110 p.s.i. Now, this is something I don't understand. The material coming out of my "natural gas" line at home is not a liquid, even when compressed to 3 000 psi in one of those expensive refueling compressors I mentioned above. If it could liquefy, the energy density would increase tremendously and such high pressures would be unnecessary. The tanks for vehicle gas storage are made from composite fiber and are rated at even more ridiculous pressure (something like 5 000 psi) than the already unreasonable pressures of the FuelMaker appliance. I have owned an LPG powered Pontiac with a 110 liter steel tank that fit in its trunk. Propane IS a liquid under pressure, and that tank never saw the other side of 120 psi. (I was a little more comfortable with the propane in my trunk because the tank was so massive.) > > "Bate finds that it takes about one-half hour of steady pumping to > fill a 32-pound (4.5 Imperial gallon) bottle to its capacity of > liquid methane. This figures out to approximately 200 cubic feet of > dry gas... or a fuel equivalent of seven gallons of good petrol > (about eight and three-quarter gallon of high-test gasoline, to > readers in the US)..." That would be more than enough for my needs. Anybody out there understand the properties of methane better than I do? > Is this feasible locally, or something like it? Brasil is an industrialized nation with vast resources. Intelligent people live there. (Some of us intelligent people still have family there!) I can't imagine it would be too difficult to find a compressor and gas cylinders in Brasil. robert luis rabello "The Edge of Justice" Adventure for Your Mind http://www.1stbooks.com/bookview/9782 Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://archive.nnytech.net/ Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ --- Incoming mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.489 / Virus Database: 288 - Release Date: 6/10/2003 ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Get A Free Psychic Reading! Your Online Answer To Life's Important Questions. http://us.click.yahoo.com/Lj3uPC/Me7FAA/ySSFAA/FGYolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://archive.nnytech.net/ Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
