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Greetings
to every one on World Environment Day!
It
is now exactly one year since the Website registration for our
AGRO-BIOGENICS
was granted, and our initial website was also
hosted, within another few days, as seen here: http://www.agro-biogenics.com. However, our attempts to obtain a
Limited Company registration in India got jeopardized, in view of
certain drastic changes that were brought about by our Government in
India (during 2007/ 2008), which mandated that the Limited Company
should have minimum authorized shares (to be paid up shares later) to
an extent of Rs.10, 000, 000 (about US $200, 000). The value
prescribed earlier was the equivalent of $2, 000 (increased one hundred times now!). Additionally, the
Government Registration department has so far refused to recognize
the name – AGRO-BIOGENICS
– as an approved Company name; their reason being that it is a
"generic word"! All our "fast-track" actions stopped, and it
was thought appropriate that we bide time till a new Government came
up here. But then, we are now witness to the same (earlier regime)
forming the Government here, once again.
Inasmuch
as we, thus, grapple with the problems of Company formation and
related administrative matters, it would also be prudent on our part
to Standardize a Module for APIX-SEP (Agro-Polymer Industry
Complex-Sustainability Engineered Projects). The idea is to arrive at
an averagely useful Module that could be the standard "start-up"
module applicable in any tropical/ developing nation (Nigeria, Haiti,
Trinidad, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and other such developing
nations). This module has now been conceived, after initial study of
certain village level farm activities were studied and analyzed, in
certain regions of the Southern Indian States of Tamil Nadu and
Karnataka. The following environmental situations have been noted in
most such regions (covering a total area of about 330, 000 sq km):
- Average
temperatures ............. 42o
C max and 15o
C min
- Average
Rainfall …................... 900 mm to 1350 mm
- Major
cultivation …. Rice, Gram, Bajra, Rapeseed, Rye, Peanut, Cotton,
Potato, Sugar-cane, Banana, Coconut, Vegetables, Capsicums, and
Local fruits (Guava, Grapes, Jack-fruit, Pomegranate, Mangoes,
Papaya ...)
- Non
Agro-resources …...... Sisal, parthenium, water hyacinth, grasses,
and various weeds
- Average
vegetation growth …....... 45 T to 60 T per annum per ha
The
Optimized (primary) APIX-SEP Module has been defined based on average
Agro-Biogenic systems within a small area of 30 ha. And we shall name
this Standard APIX_Module as: APIX_30_PILOT. A separate Blog
elsewhere presents some of these data; but we shall present the basic
factors here so that all of CR4 could view and interact, here. The
said blog may be seen at: http://sustainabilityengineering.wordpress.com/2009/03/23/piloting-sustainable-%e2%80%9cgreen%e2%80%9d-development-an-overview/
and at: http://sustainabilityengineering.wordpress.com/2009/03/26/sustainable-%e2%80%9cgreen%e2%80%9d-development-an-initial-practical-pilot-plant-%e2%80%93-apix_30_pilot/
We
now call up on the entire Engineering community (especially the
effervescent young Engineers) to come forward with ideas and concrete
Designs for the various systems and sub-systems involved in
APIX_30_Pilot, finally arriving at "Knock-Down" Engineered
systems for any group to take up the project at the filed level. The solutions would involve a whole gamut of Engineering. Our
ultimate objective is to make available such Engineered GREEN
Technology Solutions to the developing nations, through Open Source
Engineering Design (OSED).
The Illustration could be better understood here:
http://sustainabilityengineering.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/schematic-apix_30_pilot.gif
The
schematic illustration here portrays the different techno-commercial
processes that create value additions to every gram of agro-bio
materials (agro-biogenics)
in village regions. Although Food Processing would also be
undertaken, the illustration does not portray the same.
The
following INPUT/ OUTPUT material balance may be noted:
INPUT
MATERIALS
A.
RENEWABLE RESOURCES (vegetation systems, rain water, atmospheric
oxygen etc)
- Non-food
vegetation materials ….. 1225 T
- Food
materials ……………………… 275 T
- Organic
wastes …………………… 120 T
- Rainwater
……………………… 2, 750, 000 L
- Atmospheric
Oxygen for Methane burning, obtained from 900 T of Air (at standard
pressure conditions)
B.
OTHER EXTERNAL INPUTS
- Slag/
Pozzolan Cement …………….. 142 T
- Ferric
Chloride (Inorganic Chemical) … 15 T
- Polymers/
Bio-Polymers …………….. 150 T (50% solids)
- Calcium
Chloride (Inorganic Chemical ) . 12 T
- Salt/
Turmeric/ tamarind/ condiments etc for Food processing (not
specified)
OUTPUT
MATERIALS (Three Stages)
I.
STAGE – I:
- Food
Materials for Processing (after local use) …..… 250 T
- Vegetation
matter for Engineered Composites …. 612.5 T
- Vegetation
matter + Organic wastes for methane gas … 732.5 T
(About
30 to 50 local people would have 300 days employment)
II.
STAGE – 2:
- Anaerobically
Digested Methane Gas ………. 55 T
- Digester
based Carbon Di Oxide gas ……….. 95 T
- Digester
based Hydrogen Sulfide gas ……… 1.5 T
- Digester
based Sludge Bio-Fertilizer … 1, 395 T (3.3% solids)
- Cellulosic/
Plant Fibrous matter (dry) …….. 165 T
(About
60 local people would have 300 days employment)
NOTE:
- We
are not presenting the data on water usage, as almost all of the
water collected (or recovered from vegetation and other processes)
would be recycled. The Water in Bio-fertilizer (sludge form) is
about 97%, and this entire quantity would be recycled back into the
soil (Self Regenerative Recycling – acronym SRR).
Thus, only about 50% of the originally collected rainwater would
have to be replenished every year, on account of the engineering
processes. As much as 50% of rain water collected would be available
for personal uses of the local people.
- The
total number of local personnel who would have 300 days work and
wages is about 150
III.
STAGE – III (MARKETABLE/ UTILIZABLE PRODUCTS):
- Natural
Fiber Polymer Composites (NFPC) … 318 T … Rs.31.8 M ($636, 000)
- Sludge
Bio-Fertilizer … 1395 T (3.3% solids) recycled for local soil
regeneration (SRR) … valued … Rs.690, 525 ($13, 810/50)
- Electricity
and Heat generated using Methane gas … 708, 408 units … Fully
used for in-house processes … valued Rs.3, 542, 400 ($70, 848)
- Inorganic
Fillers for Polymer Composites … 156 T … Rs.3.12 M ($62, 400)
- Intermediate
Inorganic Chemicals (in solution) … 12.8 T … Rs.96, 000 ($1920)
- GREEN
Sulfur … 1.4 T … Rs.56, 000 ($1120)
- Processed
Foods … 312.5 T … Rs.23.4375 M ($468, 750)
(MARKETABLE
VALUES ……… Rs.58, 509, 500 = $1, 170, 190)
A
FEW OBSERVATIONS
- The
estimated Capital investments for APIX_30_PILOT is about Rs.30 M
($600, 000)
- This
APIX-SEP (Agro-Polymer Industry Complex-Sustainability Engineered
project) Pilot plant, by itself, is Technically feasible and
Economically viable. While the Technologies involved are tried/
tested systems (anaerobic biogas generation, chemical cleaning of
biogas, chemical separation of biogas constituents, conversion of
cellulosic fibrous matter into Polymer Composites …), the
estimated ROI (before taxation) is about Rs.12 million ($240, 000).
This is 40%
- The
project would be supported by various GREEN "channel supports":
Carbon Credits and Government Tax concessions.
- Unlike
many GREEN projects, APIX-SEP units would be totally
Self-Sustainable, and these would be "self-perpetuating"
- The
APIX-SEP group would not own any land; but the entire operations in
the farmlands would be "leased out/ outsourced" to the group.
The farmers and other vegetation material owners would be paid the
values of these vegetation (Rs.1000 = $20 per "green" ton of
non-food vegetation and one-half market value of other crops. Etc.
Even organic wastes would be offered a value @ Rs.1000 per ton)
- The
biggest draw is that every Pilot project such as APIX_30_Pilot in
remote villages would be welcomed by the local people, as almost the
entire employable people would have "full time" jobs … in home
environment. This would be a boon to every individual, as there
would be no need to travel far away into alien lands/ towns/ cities,
in search of livelihood. Each such APIX_30_Pilot plant system would
employ not less than 150 local people for the various works needed
to be carried out
Note:
Each such APIX_30_Pilot could by itself form a commercially viable
unit, and about 30 such Pilot units would finally be integrated in an
average of 1000 ha farmland, finally arriving at our long-term
concept of APIX_1000. The ultimate Techno-Commercial values in each
APIX_1000 would be a whopping $30 Million businesses … India alone
having a Potential of not less than 140, 000 APIX_1000 units netting
a total of $4200 billion in business values! Even if we finally
achieve ONLY One-Third of these, it still becomes an astronomic
economic operation, bereft of environmental damages, offsetting shifting populations.
We
need to discuss the various "pros" and "cons", logistics
involved and also the techno-commercial and environmental management
of such APIX-SEP units.
The
Photo-illustration bellow shows a few of the different vegetation
systems available (both Agricultural and non agro-vegetation systems)
Our
Tags Concepts for this Project: Agro-biogenics, Alternate Energy, Alternate
Engineering Materials, APIX Pilot plant, Appropriate Technologies,
Clean Technology Design, Clean Tech Solutions, Developing Economy
Engineering, Environment Friendly Design, Global Warming Challenge
Solutions, Green Chemicals, Green Products, Green Technology, MDG
Solutions, Optimized Engineering Systems, Poverty Alleviation,
Sustainable development, Sustainability Engineering, Zero-Waste
Engineering, Zero-Waste Zero-Carbon Business Model
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