Capitalising on Opportunities and Overcoming Constraints - A Round Table on Clean Energy Technology in Industry
August 3, 2001

• Coal
• Petroleum
• Hydel
• Nuclear
• Geothermal

• Solar
• Wind
• Bio-mass
• Sea tides

A viable non-conventional energy source 

• Generated from Industrial, Municipal and Domestic Wastes
• Many viable projects are in operation in India and across the world

• Distilleries
• Breweries
• Dairies
• Starch
• Paper
• Food Processing
• Fish, Chicken, Meet processing
• Slaughter House etc.

Typical analysis of distillery waste 

• COD           : 120000 - 140000 mg/I
• BOD           :  38000 -  45000  mg/I 
• pH             : 4.8 - 5.5
• TDS           : 70000 mg/I
• TSS           : 18000 mg/I
• Potassium   : 5000 mg/I
• Magnesium  : 1000 mg/I

• Effluent is treated by Anaerobic Digestion to produce biogas:
• Reactor designs applied:

(i)   Single Phase 
(ii)   Bi-phasic 

(B) Attached Growth Type 

(i) Packed with structured media 
(ii) Packed with random media 

Biogas plant at VOCL

(Largest in the country for treating 4000 m³/d spent wash) 

Acidogenic Phase   Methanogenic Phase 

BCCRs	3 Nos
MURs	9 Nos
PPS	6 Nos

Performance of Biogas Plant

• COD reduction                   : 65-70%
• Methane Content in Biogas  : 53-58%
• Calorific Value of Biogas      : 4500-4600 Kcal/Nm³
• Biogas produced per           : 0.53 - 0.56 NM³
• kg of COD destroyed

• Total alcohol production per year     :  89100 KL
• Effluent generation per year            : 1.15 million m³/yr
• Biogas produced per year                : 5.2.1 million Nm³
• Equivalent coal in terms of energy    : 63000 MT
• Value of energy (considering coal price of Rs 1750 /t):Rs 110 million/yr 
• Total Investment                          : Rs 120 million
• Operation Cost                             : Rs  30 million

• Biogas for distillery spent wash contains 2.5-3% H₂S
• To reduce SO₂ emissions from biogas burning, desulphurisation in preferable.
• VOCI has set up a pilot plant with NEERI & MNES, using a chemical cum biological process at pilot scale for desulphurisation
• The Process:

  Fe₂ (SO₄)₃ -------> 2FeSO4+H₂SO₄+S (Chemical Reaction) 
  2 FeSO₄+H₂SO₄ + 1/2O₂ -----------> Fe2 (SO₄)₃+H₂O (Biological Reaction) 
   

• 99% Sulphur removal achieved
• VOCL going for larger plant now
• Potential for sulphur recovery 1390 MT/year at VOCL
• Potential value of sulphur: Rs 2 million/ yr

1. Gas Absorber 
2. Sulphur Settlers 
3. Ferrous Sulphate 
4. Bioreactor 
5. Ferric Sulphate Tank 
6. Recovered Sulphur 

Distillery Sector (Potential for Biogas generation in India)

Total alcohol production	1.6 million m3/yr
Effluent generation	21 million m3/yr
Potential for Biogas generation	735 million Nm3/yr
Energy in coal equivalent	0.88 million tonnes ~ Rs 1760 million/yr

Other Benefits 

• Saving of finite resource such coal & oil
• Avoiding generation of 0.33 million tonnes of fly ash