Method of converting animal waste into a multi-phase fuel

Abstract

A method of creating a multi-phase fuel wherein said fuel comprises a gas, a solid, a liquid solvent phase and an aqueous phase from animal waste comprising the combination of the animal waste, a solvent, and a water/alcohol solution into a fluid mixture, placing the mixture into a closed reactor, heating said reactor between about 245° C. and 385° C. for between about 5 and 70 minutes and cooling said resulting multi-phase fuel. The animal waste may be manure, mortalities, municipal waste, or chicken litter. The preferred solvent is petroleum with the preferred petroleum being diesel fuel. The final multi-phase fuel can be separated into four separate fuels: a solid fuel, an emulsified solid in the liquid solvent phase by blending the solid, the solvent and a surfactant, an aqueous phase, and the recovered liquid solvent phase. Petroleum is the preferred solvent and the separation may be any conventional means. The mixture preferably consists of 1 part by weight animal waste, about 1.5 parts by weight diesel and between about 0.11 to about 1.86 parts by weight a water/alcohol solution. The water/alcohol solution is between about 5% to about 85% alcohol before heating. Additionally, an alkali base may be added to increase waste solubility.

1 . A method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste wherein said fuel comprises a gas phase, a solid phase, a liquid solvent phase and an aqueous phase comprising combining said animal waste, a solvent, and a water/alcohol solution into a fluid mixture, placing said mixture into a reactor and heating said mixture for a sufficient time, at a sufficient temperature, and at a sufficient pressure to create said multi-phase fuel.  
     
     
         2 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising the step of cooling said multi-phase fuel after said heating.  
     
     
         3 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  wherein the reactor is a closed reactor.  
     
     
         4 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 3  further comprising heating said closed reactor between about 245° and 385° C. for between about 5 and 70 minutes at a pressure of between about 2250 psig and about 3750 psig  
     
     
         5 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  wherein said solvent is petroleum based.  
     
     
         6 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 5  wherein said petroleum based solvent is diesel fuel.  
     
     
         7 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  wherein said animal waste is selected from one or more of the group consisting of manure, mortalities, municipal waste, and chicken litter.  
     
     
         8 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  wherein said fluid mixture is further comprised by about  1  part by weight said animal waste, about 1.5 parts by weight said solvent and between about 0.11 to about 1.86 parts by weight a water/alcohol solution.  
     
     
         9 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 8  wherein said water/alcohol solution is about 1 part per weight.  
     
     
         10 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 8  wherein said water/alcohol solution is between about 5% to about 85% alcohol.  
     
     
         11 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 10  wherein said water/alcohol solution is about 25% alcohol.  
     
     
         12 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  wherein said alcohol in said water/alcohol solution is normal propyl alcohol.  
     
     
         13 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising separating said liquid solvent phase from said multi-phase fuel.  
     
     
         14 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 13  wherein said separation is selected from the group of separation techniques consisting of distillation and reverse osmosis.  
     
     
         15 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising separating said aqueous phase from said multi-phase fuel.  
     
     
         16 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 15  wherein said separation is selected from the group of separation techniques consisting of filtration and centrifugation.  
     
     
         17 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising an ash product within said aqueous phase.  
     
     
         18 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 17  wherein said ash product is separated from said aqueous phase.  
     
     
         19 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 18  wherein said separation is selected from the group of separation techniques consisting of filtration and centrifugation.  
     
     
         20 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising separating said solid from said multi-phase fuel.  
     
     
         21 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 20  wherein said separation is selected from the group of separation techniques consisting of filtration and centrifugation.  
     
     
         22 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising blending said solid with a surfactant and emulsifying said solid within said liquid solvent phase.  
     
     
         23 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 22  further comprising separating said emulsified solid within said liquid solvent phase from said multi-phase fuel.  
     
     
         24 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 2  wherein said cooling of said mixture is passive cooling.  
     
     
         25 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 2  wherein said cooling of said mixture is active cooling.  
     
     
         26 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising adding an alkali base to said fluid mixture.  
     
     
         27 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 26  wherein said alkali base is sodium hydroxide.  
     
     
         28 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  wherein said solid fuel is further comprised by an ash by-product.  
     
     
         29 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 28  wherein said ash by-product is separated from said multi-phase fuel.  
     
     
         30 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 29  wherein said separation is selected from the group of separation techniques consisting of filtration and centrifugation.  
     
     
         31 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 28  wherein said ash by-product is a fertilizer.  
     
     
         32 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 1  further comprising releasing said gas from said multi-phase fuel.  
     
     
         33 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 32  wherein said released gas is captured.  
     
     
         34 . The method of creating a multi-phase fuel from animal waste of  claim 33  wherein said captured gas has the gas components isolated.  
     
     
         35 . A fuel comprising: 
 a plurality of phase products wherein said products comprise a gas, a solid and liquids produced by combining about  1  part by weight animal waste, about 1.5 parts by weight diesel and between about 0.11 to about 1.86 parts by weight a water/alcohol solution, wherein said water/alcohol solution is between about 5% to about 85% alcohol into a mixture placing said mixture into a closed reactor, heating said reactor between about 245° C. and 385° C. for between about 5 and 70 minutes, cooling said plurality of phase products and releasing said gas after said cooling.    
     
     
         36 . The fuel of  claim 35  wherein said animal waste is selected from one or more of the group consisting of manure, mortalities, municipal waste, and chicken litter.  
     
     
         37 . The fuel of  claim 35  further comprising adding an alkali base to said mixture  
     
     
         38 . The fuel of  claim 35  wherein said alcohol is normal propyl alcohol.  
     
     
         39 . The fuel of  claim 35  further comprising removing said solid from said plurality of phase products.  
     
     
         40 . The fuel of  claim 35  further comprising removing said liquids from said plurality of phase products.