130
atmospheric CO 2 level is 400 ppm where the building sector is the major player for
creating this high level of CO 2 concentration into the atmosphere and it is accelerating by 2.11% per year which is the clear and present danger to the survival of all
living beings in this planet in the near future [8–10]. Necessarily, the atmospheric
CO 2 level must be lowered to a clean breathable level of 300 ppm CO 2 . Therefore, a
sustainable energy mechanism in the building sector is an urgent demand to confirm
a clean and green environment on earth.
There are some recent interesting studies showing that a person can produce average feces of 0.4 kg/day that can form 0.4 m
3
biogas/day and this amount of biogas
(0.4 m
3
/day) production is good enough to cook three meals for a family of four
persons in a day [11–13]. However, no one has shown that the mechanism of using
the cellar of a building as an acting bioreactor to transform biowaste into electricity
energy can satisfy the total energy demand of a building.
Therefore, in this research, a net zero carbon release by a building has been proposed by producing bioenergy by the building itself and transforming it into electricity
energy to meet its net energy need. Simply, the domestic biowaste including human
stool and wastewater of the building is being chosen to collect it into the sealed separation chamber into the basement. Thereafter, this biowaste is being isolated into (1)
wastewater and (2) sludge and transferred into two separation tanks into the cellar.
Then the wastewater is being conducted for treatment process in situ by integrating
required chemical and physical processes in order to use for landscaping. Consequently,
the solid biowaste has been permitted to undergo methanogenesis process in the bioreactor to form bioenergy and then convert it into electricity energy. Implementation of
this innovative mechanism shall indeed be a promising technology in green building
technology to fulfil the net need for a building which is delivered by the building itself.
Materials and Methods
For the conversion of domestic biowaste into bioenergy, a structurally sound longlasting bioreactor (BR) needs to be designed. Thus, load-resistant factor design
(LRFD) bioreactor must be constructed for a structurally sound bioreactor to operate
regularly under high water velocity pressure considering the mathematical calculation
of water velocity (379 mile/h), water density (1.2 kg/m
3
), and friction loss cofactor
1.00/m
2
, respectively [12, 14, 15]. As the water dynamic force is 0.5 of half of the
density of the water, the equation for water force into the bioreactor can be expressed
as p
Cv
w
pr
= 0 5
2
. ρ
, where p w represents the water force (Pa), ρ considers water density
(kg/m
3
), C p denotes water force gradient which is 1, and v r
2 is the water velocity (m/s)
into the bioreactor. Thus, the net resultant force of P w = 0.5 × 1.2 kg/m
3
× 379
2
m/s is
86,185 Pa of the water pressure resistance capacity of the bioreactor. It can be simplified as force of F = area × drag coefficient (constant = 1.00) × water dynamic force by
the following equation, F = 1 m
2
× 1.0 × 86,185 = 86,185 N (8788 kgf) = 19,375 ibf,
to confirm that the bioreactor is structurally sound with water velocity less than
19,000 ibf to operate the bioreactor normally throughout the year.
7 Advanced Green Building Technology
atmospheric CO 2 level is 400 ppm where the building sector is the major player for
creating this high level of CO 2 concentration into the atmosphere and it is accelerating by 2.11% per year which is the clear and present danger to the survival of all
living beings in this planet in the near future [8–10]. Necessarily, the atmospheric
CO 2 level must be lowered to a clean breathable level of 300 ppm CO 2 . Therefore, a
sustainable energy mechanism in the building sector is an urgent demand to confirm
a clean and green environment on earth.
There are some recent interesting studies showing that a person can produce average feces of 0.4 kg/day that can form 0.4 m
3
biogas/day and this amount of biogas
(0.4 m
3
/day) production is good enough to cook three meals for a family of four
persons in a day [11–13]. However, no one has shown that the mechanism of using
the cellar of a building as an acting bioreactor to transform biowaste into electricity
energy can satisfy the total energy demand of a building.
Therefore, in this research, a net zero carbon release by a building has been proposed by producing bioenergy by the building itself and transforming it into electricity
energy to meet its net energy need. Simply, the domestic biowaste including human
stool and wastewater of the building is being chosen to collect it into the sealed separation chamber into the basement. Thereafter, this biowaste is being isolated into (1)
wastewater and (2) sludge and transferred into two separation tanks into the cellar.
Then the wastewater is being conducted for treatment process in situ by integrating
required chemical and physical processes in order to use for landscaping. Consequently,
the solid biowaste has been permitted to undergo methanogenesis process in the bioreactor to form bioenergy and then convert it into electricity energy. Implementation of
this innovative mechanism shall indeed be a promising technology in green building
technology to fulfil the net need for a building which is delivered by the building itself.
Materials and Methods
For the conversion of domestic biowaste into bioenergy, a structurally sound longlasting bioreactor (BR) needs to be designed. Thus, load-resistant factor design
(LRFD) bioreactor must be constructed for a structurally sound bioreactor to operate
regularly under high water velocity pressure considering the mathematical calculation
of water velocity (379 mile/h), water density (1.2 kg/m
3
), and friction loss cofactor
1.00/m
2
, respectively [12, 14, 15]. As the water dynamic force is 0.5 of half of the
density of the water, the equation for water force into the bioreactor can be expressed
as p
Cv
w
pr
= 0 5
2
. ρ
, where p w represents the water force (Pa), ρ considers water density
(kg/m
3
), C p denotes water force gradient which is 1, and v r
2 is the water velocity (m/s)
into the bioreactor. Thus, the net resultant force of P w = 0.5 × 1.2 kg/m
3
× 379
2
m/s is
86,185 Pa of the water pressure resistance capacity of the bioreactor. It can be simplified as force of F = area × drag coefficient (constant = 1.00) × water dynamic force by
the following equation, F = 1 m
2
× 1.0 × 86,185 = 86,185 N (8788 kgf) = 19,375 ibf,
to confirm that the bioreactor is structurally sound with water velocity less than
19,000 ibf to operate the bioreactor normally throughout the year.
7 Advanced Green Building Technology