Turning sewage sludge into oil and natural gas will at once solve two problems — oil shortage and getting rid of waste — and an Israeli company is trying to do exactly that.

 

“Biopetrol, the Israeli frm, is experimenting with a method of extracting oil out of sewage sludge and extracted oil could be converted into gasoline and natural gas,” said CEO of Israeli investing and consulting firm Eco Energy, Amit Mor, whose company advises Biopetrol.

 

“Sludge is a major problem in the world. Cities pay $50 a ton or more to get rid of it,” he said. “And it’s good-quality light oil.”

 

A ton of high-quality sludge can produce about 30 kg of such oil, Mor said.

 

The process can also convert pulp, agricultural waste, plastics and tires into oil.

 

Although Israel found a fairly sizable natural-gas field off its coast in 1999, the country relies on imports of oil and coal to keep the lights on.

 

Getting energy out of sludge potentially could help alleviate the problem. The energy could be sold or, on a more practical level, used to keep things running in the cities where it is harvested.

 

In the US, he said, another firm, Microgy, is building a facility in Texas that will convert manure from 10,000 dairy cows into natural gas and will be sold through conventional pipelines.

 

Microgy’s system breaks down manure with with microbes. Other companies are trying to improve the process of making ethanol from vegetable matter.

 

‘Biopetrol’ does not use microbes, Mor said. Neither does it produce ethanol. The process would yield standard hydrocarbon fuels.

 

The sludge is first dried and then combined with proprietary catalysts and heat.

 

For further information please visit:

http://www.bio-petrol.com/