Estimation of the Amount of Electrical Energy Available From the Biogas Produced at the Faecal Sludge Treatment Plant in the City of Sokodé

Abstract

 The purpose of this study is to estimate the amount of energy produced from biogas at the faecal sludge treatment plant in the city of Sokodé. The methodological approach consisted in producing biogas by co-digestion of faecal sludge with the fermentable fractions of solid waste then in estimating the quantity of energy available from the produced biogas. Tests of co-digestion of faecal sludge and fermentable fractions of solid waste, showed that from 2258 tons/DM of biomass in one year, 44476 m³ of biogas, or 29177 m³ of methane could be produced. The methane content, which is 65.6 %, is a very interesting source of energy. Several techniques for producing energy from biogas exist, one of which is the production of electricity. In this study, it is a question of making the choice of an adequate electric motor which will allow to produce electric energy from the biogas on the faecal sludge treatment plant. Thus, it was necessary to estimate the quantity of energy available from the biogas produced. To do so, it was calculated the quantity of energy that can be produced by the biogas in one year, the quantity of recoverable energy produced in a year and the quantity of energy supplied by biogas in one hour. The results showed that by 2035, the co-digestion of fermentable solid waste and faecal sludge from the city of Sokodé, would produce 534,246 kWh. The recoverable part would be 507,534 kWh and the energy supplied is 58 kWh.