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Certain precautions should be observed in the operation of biogas systems. Biogas can be
explosive when mixed with air in the proportion of one part biogas to 8-20 parts air in an
enclosed space. This situation can occur when a digester is opened for cleaning, when biogas is
released to repair a gas storage tank, or when there is a gas leak in a poorly ventilated room. In
such cases, avoid sparks, smoking, and open flames.
A biogas leak can be smelled if the hydrogen sulfide has not been removed from the biogas. It
smells like rotten eggs. No one should go inside large digesters unless they have a companion on
the outside who can get them out in case they need help. Although the methane and carbon
dioxide of biogas are not poisonous, a person may stop breathing if there is too much biogas and
not enough oxygen in the air they are trying to breath.
Never allow negative pressure in a biogas system. Negative pressure occurs when the force
created by the weight of the gases outside the biogas system is greater than the force inside the
system. In normal operations the pressure inside the system should always be greater. How much
greater should always be measured on a pressure gauge (see Diagram 14).
Negative pressure will pull air into the biogas system and the mixture of biogas and air might
explode. If that does not happen, the oxygen in the air will kill the biogas bacteria and the gas
production rate will drop. The only time the danger of negative pressure usually becomes a real
possibility is when a person wants more gas from a digester than it can produce or there is an
unnoticed gas leak.
When biogas is used at pressures below one column inch of water as measured on a pressure
gauge, it is very likely that the flame will go out. Even though there is not much gas left in the
system, biogas will continue to come out. Then the possibility for a spark or flame causing an
explosion in the room or negative pressure pulling air into the biogas system causing an
explosion in the system, becomes real (Maramba, 1978).
When opening a biogas digester for cleaning or repairing, do not use candles or smoke cigarettes.
For light inside the digester, use a flashlight or have a person standing outside reflect sunlight off
a mirror.
Make frequent smell checks for gas leaks in plastic pipes, Joints, clamps, and gate valves. Rats
have been known to bite holes in plastic pipes. Stoves and gas mantle lamps should be placed
with fire safety in mind. Special care must be taken in buildings with grass roofs to make sure
that gas lamps are a good distance from the roof.
If the rotten egg smell of biogas is noticed in a room, immediately open doors and windows in
order to get rid of the trapped gas before looking for the leak. On no account should anyone
smoke cigarettes in the room. In case of fire in a house or engine room, shut the gas off at the
gate valve just after the gas storage tank to keep biogas from feeding the fire.
When using any kind of gas, light the match first, then open the gas valve. If the valve is opened
first and gas is allowed to flow without being lit for any length of time, large amounts of gas can
escape and any flame might ignite a fireball.
Children must be taught not to play with fire close to biogas systems, in case there are any gas
leaks which could cause a fire or explosion (A Chinese Biogas Manual, 1976).
Brass gate valves and pipes used in biogas systems must be of a lead-free type. The hydrogen
sulfide in biogas will destroy lead, which will cause gas leaks.
The following flame arrester suggestion is adapted from the Guidebook on Biogas Development.
A flame arrester is a safety device that should be added to every gas line. It is usually placed
either just after the gate valve at the digester and just before the gas stove or stationary engine.
Its purpose is, in case of fire, to prevent the flame from travelling down the gas pipe into the gas
storage tank or digester and causing an explosion.
The arrester can be a ball or roll of fine mesh copper wire (iron and steel would rust) inserted
into the gas pipe. It is sometimes not realized that this forms a barrier to the free and full flow of
gas. It is recommended that the flame arrester be placed in a length of pipe of slightly larger
diameter than the gas pipe. For a 0.5 inch pipe use a 0.75 inch arrester pipe; for a 1.0 inch pipe
use a 1.25 inch arrester pipe.
It is very important that if a digester is built underground, that it is built in a place that never
floods. If an above ground digester is built in an area that sometimes floods, make sure that the
openings into the digester are above the high water mark. If a digester is built in an area that does
have floods, safety measures should be taken in advance so that the gas can escape in case the
digester and/or the gas storage tank are flooded. Failure to do so could result in dangerous,
uncontrolled release of biogas and if the digester is a plastic bag, it could float up and away. An
upside-down "T" pipe should be placed at the highest vertical point in the gas pipe line above the
gas outlet from the digester. A vertical pipe and a gate valve should be joined to the stem of the
upside-down "T" pipe. The gate valve can then be opened to release the biogas if a flood
threatens to cover either the digester or the gas storage tank.
The following is a list of safety measures that should be read with great care before a biogas
system is built.
5) The engine room roof must be vented at its highest point to allow lighter-than-air gases to
escape. This is also true for greenhouses that have biogas digesters, engines, or burners in them.
6) The engine exhaust pipe must be extended so that the dangerous and deadly exhaust gases are
released outside the building.
7) Metal digesters and gas storage tanks must have wires to lead lightning to the ground.
9) No smoking or open flames should be allowed near biogas digesters and gas storage tanks,
especially when checking for gas leaks.
Methane, the flammable part of biogas, is a lesser danger to life than many other fuels. However,
in the making and using of an invisible fuel, dangerous situations can arise unexpectedly and
swiftly--such as when a gas pipe is accidently cut. On the other hand, precaution can be
exaggerated. When cars first appeared on the roads, a man waving a red flag came
first. Remember the ABC's: Always Be Careful (Fry, 1974).
Health hazards
Health hazards are associated with the handling of night soil and with the use of sludge from
untreated human excrete as fertilizer.
In general, published data indicate that a digestion time of 14 days at 35 C is effective in killing
(99.9 per cent die-off rate) the enteric bacterial pathogens and the enteric group of viruses.
However, the die-off rate for roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides) and hookworm (Ancylostoma)
is only 90 per cent, which is still high. In this context, biogas production would provide a public
health benefit beyond that of any other treatment in managing the rural health environment of
developing countries.