Unit-5: Bio-mass and geothermal energy

Bio-Mass: Principles of Bio-Conversion, Anaerobic/aerobic digestion, types of Bio-gas digesters, gas yield, combustion
characteristics of bio-gas and economic aspects.
Geothermal Energy: Geothermal field, Resources, types of wells, methods of harnessing the energy, potential in India.
Fuel cell : Principle of working- various types -construction and applications.

FUEL CELL
Fuel Cell: A fuel cell is an electrochemical device that generates electrical energy from fuel by
electrochemical reaction. These cells require a continuous input of fuel and an oxidizing agent (oxygen) in
order to sustain the reactions to generate the electricity. Therefore, these cells can constantly generate
electricity until the supply of fuel and oxygen is cut off.

Construction and working of Fuel Cell:

Construction:
A fuel cell consists of two electrodes (cathode, anode) and an electrolyte. Here the fuel and oxidant are
supplied to the two electrodes of the cell continuously and
separately.

Electrodes: The electrodes i.e both anode and cathode are

made with materials like platinum, porous PVC, Nickel boride,
Teflon coated with silver.
Electrolyte: It is a media where the electrically charged
particles moves from one electrode to other. Generaly,
Phosphoric acid, mixture of Potassium hydroxide (KOH) and
water etc are used as electrolytes.
Fuels: The hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO) are used
as fuels.
Oxidants: Oxygen (O2), air, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) are used as oxidants in fuel clls.
Working:
A fuel cell consists of two electrodes (anode and cathode) and an electrolyte membrane. A typical
fuel cell works by passing hydrogen through the anode and
oxygen through the cathode. At the anode side, a catalyst
splits the hydrogen molecules into electrons and hydrogen
ions. The hydrogen ions pass through the electrolyte, the
electrons pass through a circuit (load) and generating an
electric current. At the cathode, the protons, electrons, and
oxygen combine to produce water molecules. The following
reactions shows the basic process:
Anode side: 2H2  4H+ + 4e-
Cathode side: O2 + 4H+ + 4e-  2H2O
Net reaction: 2H2 + O2  2H2O
When pure hydrogen is used as a fuel then only water and
electricity is produced. This makes fuel cells as an environmental friendly power generation process. As
there are no moving parts, fuel cells operate silently and with extremely high reliability.
Types/Classification of Fuel cells: The fuel cell are classified on the basis of the materials used for
the electrolyte, and also the basis of operating temperature.
Based on the operating temperature, the fuel cell are classified as
(i) Low temperature cell : < 100ºC
(ii) Medium temperature cell : 100ºC to 250ºC
(iii) High temperature cell : 500ºC
Based on the materials used for the electrolyte, the fuel cell are classified as
(i) Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs)
(ii) Phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFCs)
(iii) Alkaline fuel cells (AFCs)
(iv) Molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs)
(v) Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs).

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEM Fuel Cell): The Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cells
operate at around 80°C and a practical efficiency of 60%. They use hydrogen and oxygen as a fuel and the
power output is in the range of 5 to 200 KW. These fuel cells are suitable for transportation and portable
power generaton. The main advantages of these fuel cell are high response, small size.
Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell(PAFC): This cell use
phosphoric acid as the electrolyte, and platinum as
electrodes.
Working: It has two electrodes (anode and cathode) and an
electrolyte. This fuel cell works by passing hydrogen
through the anode and oxygen through the cathode. At the
anode side, a catalyst splits the hydrogen molecules into
electrons and hydrogen ions. The hydrogen ions pass
through the electrolyte, the electrons pass through a circuit
(load) and generating an electric current. At the cathode, the
hydrogen ions, electrons, and oxygen combine to produce
water molecules and heat.
The efficiency of this cell is from 40 to 80%, operating temperature is between 150 to 200ºC. The
output generation is 200KW. This fuel cell tolerate a carbon monoxide concentration of about 1.5%.
These cells are used in large vehicles such as buses.
Alkaline fuel cells (AFC): Alkaline fuel cells operate on compressed hydrogen and oxygen. It uses a
solution of potassium hydroxide (KOH) in water as
electrolyte, and platinum as electrodes.
Working: It has two electrodes (anode and cathode) and an
electrolyte. This fuel cell works by passing hydrogen through
the anode and oxygen through the cathode. At the anode side,
a catalyst splits the hydrogen molecules into electrons and
hydrogen ions. The hydrogen ions pass through the
electrolyte, the electrons pass through a circuit (load) and
generating an electric current. At cathode side, the hydrogen
ions and oxygen forms hydroxyl ions. This hydroxyl ions produce water molecules and heat at anode side.
The efficiency of this cell is about 70%, and operating temperature is 150 to 200ºC. The output of
this cell is ranges from 300 W to 5 kW. Alkali cells were used in spacecraft to provide both electricity and
drinking water. This fuel cell requires pure hydrogen fuel, and their platinum electrode catalysts are
expensive. These were used in spacecraft to provide both electricity and drinking water.
Molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs): These fuel cells use high temperature salt compounds (like
sodium or magnesium) and carbonates (CO3) as electrolyte.
Working: It has two electrodes (anode and cathode) and an
electrolyte. This fuel cell works by passing hydrogen
through the anode, Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide through
the cathode. At the anode side, a catalyst splits the
hydrogen molecules into electrons and hydrogen ions. The
hydrogen ions pass through the electrolyte, the electrons
pass through a circuit (load) and generating an electric
current. The hydrogen ions, Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide
forms Carbon trioxide ions. This Carbon trioxide ions
produce water molecules and heat at anode side.
The efficiency of this cell is about 60 to 80%,
operating temperature is about 650ºC, and the power generation is 2MW. The high temperature limits
damage from carbon monoxide poisoning of the cell and waste heat can be recycled to make additional
electricity. This type of cell are limited to large, stationary power plants.
Solid oxide fuel cells: These fuel cells uses a hard ceramic metal compound (like calcium or zirconium)
and oxides (O2) as electrolyte.
Working: It has two electrodes (anode and cathode) and an
electrolyte. This fuel cell works by passing hydrogen
through the anode, Oxygen through the cathode. At the
anode side, a catalyst splits the hydrogen molecules into
electrons and hydrogen ions. The oxygen ions and
hydrogen ions combines and produce water molecules and
heat at anode side.
This cell has an efficiency about 60%, and operates
at 1000ºC. It generates an electrical power upto 100KW.
The main advantage of this fuel cell is that the waste hear
can be recycled to make additional electricity. The solid
electrolytes cannot leak but crack. These are well well suited to stationary power generation for homes,
businesses.

Advantages of Fuel cells:

The main advantages of Fuel cells are
i) High Efficiency: When utilizing co-generation, fuel cells can attain over 80% energy efficiency.
ii) Good reliability: Quality of power provided does not degrade over time.
iii) Noise: Since the fuel cell are not have any rotating parts, they are silent during energy production.
iv) Environmental friendly: Greatly reduces CO2 and harmful pollutant emissions.
v) Size reduction: Fuel cells are significantly lighter and more compact.
Disadvantages of Fuel cells:
The main disadvantages of Fuel cells are
i) Hydrogen is expensive to produce and not widely available.
ii) Lack of infrastructure to support the distribution of hydrogen.
iii) More cost or Expensive to manufacture due the high cost of catalysts (platinum).
Applications/Uses of fuel cells:
 Backup power: They are used as a backup power source when the primary power supply is
interrupted. Some backup applications include computer systems, manufacturing facilities and
homes.
 These are also used to power fuel cell vehicles, automobiles, buses, motor-cycles, boats, and
submarines.

Bio-Mass
Bioconversion: Bioconversion is the conversion of organic materials, such as plant or animal waste, into
usable products or energy sources by biological processes. It is also as biotransformation.

Biodigestion or Anaerobic Digestion: It is a biological process that occurs when organic matter is
decomposed by bacteria in the absence of oxygen. As the bacteria decompose the organic matter, biogas is
released and captured. Biogas consists of approximately 60% methane and 40% carbon dioxide. The
remaining byproduct is called Digestate. It contains valuable plant nutrients like nitrogen and potassium.
Digestate can be used as a fertilizer and soil conditioner. Anaerobic digestion systems also known as
“anaerobic digesters”, “biodigesters”.
Anaerobic digestion process consists of following steps:
Pre-Treatment: In pre-treatment, wastes may be processed, separated, or mixed to ensure that they will
decompose in the digester.
Digestion: During digestion, waste products are broken down by bacteria and biogas is produced and
collected.
Biogas Processing: Biogas produced is either combusted or upgraded and then used to displace fossil fuels.
During upgrading, scrubbers, membranes or other means are used to remove impurities and carbon dioxide
(CO2) from biogas.
Reuse or disposal of solid digested waste: Digested waste has a high nutrient content and can be used as
fertilizer so long as it is free of pathogens or toxins, or it can be composted to further enhance nutrient
content.

Advantages of Anaerobic digestion: Anaerobic treatment processes have many advantages over aerobic
treatment processes. Those are
(i) The biogas produced during an anaerobic treatment process can be used as a source of renewable
energy (natural gas/methane).
(ii) It is less expensive.
(iii) Simpler, and more flexible in construction compared to aerobic treatment processes.
Aerobic Digestion:
Aerobic digestion is a microbialogical process which occurs in the presence of oxygen. Organic
material is oxidized under aerobic conditions, and products like nitrate, phosphate, and carbon dioxide are
produced as a result. In an aerobic system the majority of input material is converted as heat and then
converted into carbon dioxide and water by oxidisation.
Aerobic digestion process consists of following steps:
Pre-Treatment: In pre-treatment, wastes may be processed, separated, or mixed to ensure that they will
decompose in the digester.
Digestion: During digestion, waste products are broken down by bacteria and biogas is produced and
collected.
Biogas Processing: Biogas produced is either combusted or upgraded and then used to displace fossil fuels.
During upgrading, scrubbers, membranes or other means are used to remove impurities and carbon dioxide
(CO2) from biogas.
Reuse or disposal of solid digested waste: Digested waste has a high nutrient content and can be used as
fertilizer so long as it is free of pathogens or toxins, or it can be composted to further enhance nutrient
content.

Working principle of Bio-gas plant:

Bio-gas is produced by the decomposition of organic materials, such as plant or animal waste by
biological process. Biogas consists of approximately 60% Methane (CH4) and 40% Carbon Dioxide (CO2).
When it burns, it leaves negligible smoke and no residues.

Working: The basic structure of bio-gas plant is as shown in figure. At mixing tank, the farm waste and
water are mixed to form a slurry. This slurry is fed into the digester. The digester is an air-tight chamber
and oxygen is not present in it. Anaerobic bacteria in digester will decompose the slurry and produce the
bio-gas. The bio-gas is sent-out through an outlet. The digested waste is used as fertilizer, because the
digested waste has a high nutrient content, or it can be composted to further enhance nutrient content.
Types of Bio gas digesters and plants:
The classification of biogas plants depends upon the plants design and mode of working. Those are
1) Small scale biogas digester: These are again classified as
i) FixedDome Biogas Plant, ii) Floating Drum plant, iii) Ballon biogas plant
2) Industrial digesters: These are classified as (i) Continuous type plant, (ii) Batch type Plants
(iii) Semi-Batch type plant
Fixed Dome Biogas Plant:
The basic structure of bio-gas plant is as shown in figure. At mixing tank, the farm waste and water
are mixed to form a slurry. This slurry is fed into the digester. The digester is an air-tight chamber and
oxygen is not present in it. Anaerobic bacteria in digester will decompose the slurry and produce the bio-
gas. The bio-gas is sent-out through an outlet. The digested waste is used as fertilizer, because the
digested waste has a high nutrient content, or it can be composted to further enhance nutrient content.

Advantages are the relatively low construction costs, the absence of moving parts and rusting steel
parts. If well constructed, fixed dome plants have a long life span. The underground construction saves
space and protects the digester from temperature changes.

Flating Drum Type Plants:

This also known as moving dome type biogas plants. The conventional movable drum type consists
of an under-ground digester with an inlet on one side for feeding slurry and an outlet on the other side for
removing digested slurry. The gas collects in a steel gas-holder (made with steel). The gas-holder floats
either directly on the slurry or in a water jacket of its own. The gas is collected in the gas drum, which rises
or moves down, according to the amount of gas stored. When biogas is produced, the drum moves up and
when it is consumed, the drum goes down.
Advantages:
(i) Constant gas pressure.
(ii) No problem of gas leakage
(iii) Higher gas production
(iv) Scum problem is less
Disadvantages: The main drawback of this is that metal cost is large and maintenance cost is also high.

Batch Type Biogas Plant:

Batch type biogas plants are used where daily supplies of raw waste materials are difficult to be
obtained. A batch of digesters are loaded to capacity, sealed and given sufficient time in the digester for
decomposation. After completion of the digestion, the residue is emptied and filled again. Gas production
is uneven in this type of plant. This problem can also minimize by connecting batch loaded digester in
series and fed at different times so that adequate biogas is available for daily use.
The salient features of batch-fed type biogas plants are:
(i) Gas production in batch type is uneven.
(ii) Batch type plants may have several digesters for continuous supply of gas.
(iii) Several digesters occupy more space.
(iv) This type of plants require large volume of digester, therefore, initial cost becomes high.

Continuous Type Biogas Plant:

In continuous type biogas plant, the supply of the gas is continuous and the digester is fed with
biomass regularly. Continuous biogas plants may be single stage, double stage or multiple stage. Digestion
of waste materials in a single chamber or digester is called single stage process, in two chambers or
digester is called multi stage process.
In single stage process, the conversion of organic matter into bio-gas will takes place in one
chamber only. This chamber is regularly feed with raw material while the spent residue keeps moving out.
These plants are economic, simple and easy to operate. These plants are generally for small and medium
size biogas plants.
 In double stage process, acidogenic and methanogenic stage are physically separated into two
chambers. In the first stage process, acid production is carried out in a separate chamber and only diluted
acids are fed into the second chamber where biomethanation takes place and the bio-gas is collected from
the second stage. The two stage biogas plants are costlier, difficult in operation and maintenance but they
produce more gas. These plants are preferred for larger biogas plant system.
The important features of continous type biogas plants are:
(i) Gas production is continuous.
(ii) Retention period is less.
(iii) Less problems as compared to batch type.
(iv) Small digestion chambers are required.

Combustion characteristics of Bio-gas:

Bio gas is derived form the land fields, agriculature and forest waste and other sources of bio-mass.
It is an environmentally friendly and a form of renewable energy source. The bio gas mainly consists of
methane (CH4), Corban di-oxide (CO2) with small mixture of hydrozen sulfide and moisture. The molar
friction of CO2 is high which ranges form 40 to 60%, so bio gas is a low calorific value fuel. Due to high
content of diluted gas CO2, the combustion characteristics of bio gas are inferior to natural gas.
The bio gas is widely used as fuel for heating, power generation and vehicles. But bio gas
possesses lower heating value than the convetional fuel. The electrical effiency of the bio gas decreases
with decreasing CH4 content.
Several experiements and numerical studies have been done to discuss the combustion
characteristics of bio gas. In such studies hydrozen (H2) is mixture with bio gas to improve the
comburstion characteristics. Also, with the addition of H2, the stability and the toal heat release of bio gas
flame are improved,
To utilize the bio gas in IC engines, the unburnt component of CO2 should be removed from bio
gas. To upgrade the row bio gas and to increase CH4 content in the bio gas, mechanical biological process
is used. But this process is costlier, hence the direct usage of raw bio gas is more economical for engines
or heat supply.

Economic Aspects of Bio gas: The Biogas programs and biogas units can serve the following purposes:
 The production of energy at low cost.
 Good growth in agriculture crop by the utilization of bio-fertilizer.
 The improvement of sanitation and hygiene.
 Conservation of tree, forest and reduction in soil erosion.
 Provision of skills enhancement and employment for rural areas
 Benefit for individual house holds.
 Low cost of bio gas plant (i.e production, running and capital) compared with conventional plants.
 Cost and benefit relation i.e the cost and benefits are directly related.
 Geothermal energy

Defination: Geothermal energy means production of energy using the internal heat of the Earth’s core i.e it
uses the thermal energy from the earth’s magma to create steam that drive the turbine and generate the
electrical power using generator. Geothermal energy is called a renewable energy source because the water
is replenished by rainfall, and the heat is continuously produced by the earth.
Advantages:
i) Renewable energy source: Geothermal energy is called a renewable energy source because the water is
replenished by rainfall, and the heat is continuously produced by the earth.
ii) No fuel is required: Since geothermal energy is a naturally occurring resource there is no fuel required.
iii) It is a sustainable/stable energy source: Geothermal provides a reliable source of energy as compared
to other renewable resources such as wind and solar power. This is because the resource is always
available to be tapped into, unlike with wind or solar energy.
iv) Since it is sustainable/stable energy source, it provide reliable power supply.
v) Environmental friendly: The Geothermal energy is more environmentally friendly than conventional fuel
sources such as coal and other fossil fuels because the emissions from the geothermal power plant is low.
vi) Huge potential: It is currently estimated that geothermal power plants could provide between 0.0035
and 2 terawatts of power.
Disadvantages:
i) The largest single disadvantage of geothermal energy is that it is location specific. Geothermal plants
need to be built in places where the energy is accessible.
ii) The initial cost of this type of technology is more.
iii) Environmental side effects are more i.e Although geothermal energy does not typically release
greenhouse gases, there are many of these gases stored under the Earth’s surface which are released into
the atmosphere during digging.
iv) Earthquakes: Geothermal energy also runs the risk of triggering earthquakes. This is due to alterations
in the Earth’s structure as a result of digging.

Geothermal fields: Geothermal energy is a form energy that is derived from the internal heat of the
earth. It is a renewable energy source because the water is replenished by rainfalls and the heat is
continuous produced inside the earth. Geothermal energy reserves from 0.5Km to the depth of 10Km.

Based on the above classification, the geothermal fields are classified as (i) Hyper thermal fields
(ii) Semi thermal fields.
Hyper thermal fields: These field further classified as
Semi thermal fields: These fields has a capability of producing hot water at temperature above 1000C.
Geothermal Energy Resources:
Geothermal energy is a form energy that is derived from the internal heat of the earth. It is a
renewable energy source because the water is replenished by rainfalls and the heat is continuous produced
inside the earth. Geothermal energy reserves from 0.5Km to the depth of 10Km. There are 4 major types
of geothermal energy resources. Those are
(i) Hydrothermal resources
(ii) Geopressure resources
(iii) Hot Dry Rocks (HDR) resources
(iv) Magma resources
im

Types of geothermal power plants or Methods of harnessing the geothermal energy:

There are three types of geothermal power plants. Those are
(i) Dry steam Power Plant. (ii) Flash steam Power Plant.
 (iii) Binary cycle Power Plant. (iv) Hybrid Power plant
Dry steam Power Plant:
To generate power from geothermal energy, wells are dug a mile deep into the earth to pump the
steam and hot water to the surface, which can then be used to drive turbines connected to electricity
generators. The dry steam geothermal plant has two separate wells to the extract the dry steam from the
reservoir under the earth's surface; those are (i) Production well (ii) Injection well.
In this power plant, the steam is supplied directly to the turbine in the power plant from
underground wells, that turns the generator to generate electricity. The steam come out from the
geothermal well is at a temperature of up to 150ºC. This is one of the oldest techniques of geothermal
electricity.

Flash steam Power Plant:

The flash steam geothermal plant has two separate wells to the extract the hot water from the
reservoir under the earth's surface; those are (i) Production well (ii) Injection well.
In this power plant, the hot water in well under high pressure is drawn to a region of lower pressure.
This pressure will vaporizes the hot water and emits steam at high temperature. The steam is then
separated from the water and used to power a turbine - generator. Any leftover water and condensed steam
are injected back into the well, making this a sustainable resource. The temperatures of the hot water is
greater than 182°C.
Binary cycle power plant:
The binary cycle geothermal plant has two separate wells to the extract the water at low temparature
from the reservoir under the earth's surface; those are (i) Production well (ii) Injection well.
This type of power plant will operate on water at lower temperatures of about 107°C -182°C. These
plants use the heat from the hot water to boil a working fluid (usually an organic compound with a low
boiling point). The working fluid is vaporized in a heat exchanger and used to turn a turbine. The water is
then injected back into the ground to be reheated.
 The water and the working fluid are kept separated during the whole process, so there are little or
no air emissions.
Hybrid power plant: It is a combination of flash and binary systems and is used for plants where the
geothermal reserves produce both steam and water.

Types of Geothermal wells:

To generate power from geothermal energy, wells are dug a mile deep into the earth to pump the
steam and hot water the surface, which can then be used to drive turbines connected to electricity
generators.
The geothermal power plants drill two separate wells to the extract the hot water from the reservoir
under the earth's surface; those are (i) Production well (ii) Injection well.
Production well: A production well is drilled into a known geothermal reservoir to exctract the geothermal
energy that is available in the form of hot water or steam or magma.
Injection well: The injection well in the geothermal plants is used for returning the geothermal fluids
(condensated steam) back into the geothermal reservoir after energy extraction.
The Geothermal well are further classified as three types. Those are
(i) Temperature/Geothermal Gradient (TG) Wells
(ii) Slim Wells (iii) Commercial Grade Wells
Temperature/Geothermal Gradient (TG) Wells: In this wells, the temperature/geothermal gradient will
increases with increase in earth depth. It indicates that the heat flowing from the Earth’s warm interior to
its surface. On average, the temperature increases by about 25°C for every Km of depth. This difference
in temperatures drives the flow of geothermal energy and allows humans to use this energy
for heating and electricity generation. The main features of these type of wells is
 These type of well for dig for less depth i.e <500m.
 The diameter of the well is less.
 Drilled with light truck-mounted rotary or diamond core rigs.
Slim Wells: This well is designed to reduce the drilling exploration cost for geothermal energy. The
diameter of these wells is small i.e less than 6“. The features of these wells is
 The slim wells are friendlier to the environment since there is less surface disturbance.
 Less noise and air pollution compared to a conventional large size well bcz it generate Smaller
footprint.
 There is less drilling fluid exposed to the surface and less heavy duty equipment and materials used.
 The overall project cost is less i.e typically 30% to 50% of the cost of a full sized well.
 Useful as reservoir monitoring wells.
Commercial Grade Wells: These well is designed to collect the for geothermal energy for commercial
applications. The commercial grade wells are subdivided into two wells. Those are (i) Supply well and (ii)
Injection/return well. The features are
 Designed to be very robust and long-lived.
 It is not always clear.
 These are used for space heating/cooling, Generation of electrical power, Industrial process heat.

Potential of Geothermal Energy in India:

Geothermal energy is a form energy that is derived from the internal heat of the earth. It is a
renewable energy source because the water is replenished by rainfalls and the heat is continuous produced
inside the earth. Geothermal energy available from 0.5Km to the depth of 10Km. Geothermal energy is a
renewable and reliable source of energy. An average geothermal plant generates about 122 kg of CO2 per
MWh whereas an average coal-based plant generates 1000 kg per KWh.
Geothermal power has considerable potential for growth. The amount of heat within 10Km of the
earth's surface is estimated to contain 50,000 times more energy than all oil and gas resources. India has
seven geothermal provinces and number of geothermal springs. In India, exploration and study of
geothermal fields started in 1970. The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has identified 350 geothermal
energy locations in the country. The estimated potential for geothermal energy in India is about 10GW.
The promising geothermal sites for direct heat use applications are Rajgir in Bihar, Manikaran in
Himachal Pradesh, Surajkund in Jharkhand, Tapoban in Uttarakhand and Sohana region in Haryana. The
six major geothermal regions/provinces in India are

i) Himalayan region: Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, etc.

ii) Areas of Faulted blocks: Aravalli belt, Naga-Lushi, West coast regions and Son-Narmada lineament.
iii) Volcanic Arc: Andaman and Nicobar Arc (Barren Island).
iv) Deep sedimentary basin of Tertiary age: Cambay basin in Gujarat.
v) Radioactive region: Surajkund, Hazaribagh, and Jharkhand.
vi) Cratonic region: Peninsular India.