This California Dairy Farm Has a Secret Ingredient for Clean Electricity: Cow Poop

  • 📰 thedailybeast
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 59 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 27%
  • Publisher: 63%

United States Headlines News

United States Latest News,United States Headlines

It has already proven its worth as a fertilizer and building material, and even as a secret ingredient in Ancient Egyptian ceramics. As it turns out, cow dung might also have a bright future as a plentiful source of clean electricity.

It has already proven its worth as a fertilizer and building material, and even as ain Ancient Egyptian ceramics. As it turns out, cow dung might also have a bright future as a plentiful source of clean electricity, thanks to the planet-warming methane it produces.

The technology isn’t all that hard to grasp. Manure and waste water from the farm’s nearly 7,000 cows are transported and sifted into a 25-million-gallon rectangular pit in the ground called a digester. The liquid sits for about 30 days while methane gas rises to the top of the closed digester. The gas then gets piped into a skid shifter, which separates the methane from hydrogen sulfide and other impurities.

This is where fuel cells lend a helping hand, since they don’t spew out carbon dioxide as a byproduct when running the methane-to-electricity reactions. Bar 20 Dairy uses solid oxide fuel cells made by San Jose-based company. They consist of an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte that’s sandwiched between two interconnected plates.

Sheheady, whose grandfather started Bar 20 Dairy, told The Daily Beast the farm’s microgrid is running better than expected. The fuel-cell system, which started operating in October, is expected to produce about 8.5 million kilowatt-hours of power per year, which is equivalent to powering over 750 homes, according to Bloom. Right now, the farm is basically making more power than it’s able to use.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.

Clean being a relative term here.

Very encouraging!

If we don’t keep eating ‘em, I guess.

If only we could harness republicans bullshit

But cows are one of the heaviest polluters on Earth..

We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 307. in US

United States Latest News, United States Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

New Paper Shows: 'A Win on Climate is a Win for Health'From ramping up clean electricity to eliminating food waste. From designing cities for walking and biking to preserving ecosystems. almost like creating a liveable planet will be good for us or something 👍❤️🤩💚 As you consider phasing out oil and gas wells in Los Angeles this week, please read about how our health will all improve immediately with every action you take. nithyavraman CD6Nury PaulKoretzCD5 kdeleon mikebonin
Source: cleantechnica - 🏆 565. / 51 Read more »

Improve Indoor Winter Air By Cleaning Your Air Purifier And HumidifierThe experts at Consumer Reports reveal the secrets to keep humidifiers and air purifiers clean and running at peak performance.
Source: NBCDFW - 🏆 288. / 63 Read more »

Is the Secret to Happiness Having a Gratitude Practice?A surprising unifier has emerged over the last year in WSJMag's My Monday Morning column, which chronicles the routines and productivity secrets people use to start their weeks: gratitude. Here's what research shows on the benefits of gratitude practice. Mag Absolutely true! Gratitude is key. Mag Gratitude requires a happy countenance and sometimes it's very hard to feel that but it's possible. You just have to keep going or so it would seem to me but that's just black and white! Mag Gratitude is important but sometimes not required or necessary but that's up to each person to decide but you have to stick it out. Thats what it takes! I no that the answer is not immediately apparent & that sux if gratitude is what U need. It will come eventually...worry not
Source: WSJ - 🏆 98. / 63 Read more »

Almond Butter Brownies With 3 Healthy Ingredients| Well+GoodGet the recipe for three-ingredient almond butter brownies. Every single ingredient is linked to preventing chronic inflammation.
Source: iamwellandgood - 🏆 462. / 53 Read more »

Wineries, Farms Eligible For Last-Ditch California InsuranceNapa wineries and others hard-hit by massive wildfires in California's wine country and elsewhere will soon be able to tap into the state's insurance plan of last resort, officials said Friday. Now that must suck if you own the place.
Source: CBSLA - 🏆 552. / 51 Read more »

'No one is happy about it': Rising cost of ingredients forces bakery shops to raise pricesNearly every ingredient used at a bakery costs more. That's Biden's economy for you!
Source: FoxBusiness - 🏆 458. / 53 Read more »