Biogas – not just cow power or poo power - it is renewable natural gas

[taavazhi]

Biogas from azolla biomass – the ultimate energy solution

For centuries, rice farmers in China & Vietnam have been using azolla as a green manure in their wetland fields. The aquatic fern fixes nitrogen directly from the atmosphere (with the help of blue-green algae called Anabaena azollae which lives symbiotically in the leaf cavities of the floating plant) and nourishes the fields. The protein content of azolla is about 20-30% of dry weight making it a good feed supplement for cattle, poultry & fish. The tiny plants are used to purify and recover nutrients from waste water. Azolla requires zero agricultural land and less water compared to terrestrial crops.

[IMG]file:///C:/[/IMG]
Recent studies show that azolla can generate biomass upto165 ton/hectare/year dry matter which is many times higher that can be achieved in the case of popular energy crops and azolla biomass yields high amounts of methane (480 l/kg) - which is equivalent to natural gas, besides giving us speciality chemicals, jet fuel and bioplastic.