Animal House: UW researchers say manure could be a viable source of renewable energy to heat homes
Posted Mar 9, 2018 07:09:50 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Most people would run away at the notion of using manure for anything but fertilizer. However, that isn’t the case for a team of engineers at the University of Waterloo.
Chemical engineering professor David Simakov says several kinds of manure, particularly cow and pig manure, are being developed into a renewable natural gas.
The research and development phase has been ongoing for two years and Simakov believes it’s at least another three years away from reaching the public.
The team wants to be a significant contributor in combating global warming.
“It will not solve the whole problem of global warming, but this is one of the solutions. I believe we need a portfolio of solutions in order to make this transition from the current fossil based energy infrastructure to the future clean energy infrastructure”.
In addition to being used by industries and in homes, the researchers say renewable natural gas could replace other sources of greenhouse gas emissions, such as Diesel.
