Bioreactor for producing synfuel from carbonaceous material

Abstract

A bioreactor for producing synfuel from carbonaceous material includes a stacked particle heap comprising biodegradable carbonaceous material, an aerobic microbial consortium fermenting the biodegradable carbonaceous material into synfuel, and a gas impermeable barrier operatively covering the stacked particle heap. The covered particle heap is purged with at least one non-oxygenated gas. The bioreactor also includes a supply of anaerobic microorganisms which biodegrade the carbonaceous material within the stacked particle heap into synfuel. The synfuel is mixed with at least one reactor byproduct. The reactor byproducts are separated from the synfuel, which may include synthetic petroleum, alcohol, oil, and/or a gaseous fuel containing methane.

1 . A bioreactor for converting biodegradable carbonaceous material into fuel, the bioreactor comprising:
 a. a plurality of particles stacked to form a heap having a void volume of greater than or equal to about 15%, the particles comprising biodegradable carbonaceous material;   b. means for communicating gases to the heap;   c. means for communicating aqueous solutions to the heap;   d. means for communicating gas from the heap;   e. means for collecting liquids that drain from the heap;   f. a gas impermeable barrier covering the heap; and   a microbial consortium within the heap capable of biodegrading biodegradable carbonaceous material within the heap to synfuel.