Renewable Energy

http://www.waste-management-world.com/index/display/article-display/0836676860/articles/waste-management-world/waste-to-energy/2012/05/_32_Million_Waste_to_Biofuel_Contract_in_China.html?cmpid=EnlWMW_WeeklyMay42012

01 May 2012

Jersey based biofuel technology manufacturer, China New Energy (LSE: CNEL) has signed a letter of intent to develop a facility in northeastern China that will use non-edible plant waste to produce clean fuel.

According to a stock market report the company has entered into an agreement of intent with a state-owned ethanol producer to convert an existing facility into a more efficient and advanced facility that will be capable of producing 50,000 tonnes of biofuel each year.

The report said that the agreement has been reached with Jilin Tianshun Biochemical Development Co, a subsidiary of JEIC, for the production of biofuel using cellulosic materials (non-edibleorganic waste from agriculture).

Under the agreement, CNE and Tianshun will modify and convert an existing JEIC production facility in Jilin into a commercial-scale, integrated facility to commercialise CNE’s proprietary technology for cellulosic ethanol and butanol production, according to the report.

The Jilin biofuel facility is expected to be completed by the end of 2013 and will have an annual production capacity of 50,000 tonnes per annum of acetone, butanol and ethanol.

The total cost of the developing Jilin facility is reported to be approximately RMB200 million ($32 million).

Read More

Membrane Contract to Boost Waste to Biofuel Efficiency
KmX Corporation has agreed to provide biofuel specialist, Fiberight exclusive rights to its membrane aided concentration and dehydration technologies for the conversion of Municipal Solid Waste into ethanol.

160 Million Euro French Algae Project Targets Biofuels from Wastes
The Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA) in France has launched a 160 million Euro project aimed at developing efficient biofuels from waste by utilising micro-algae.

Fuelling the Asian Dragon: WtE challenges in China
Today more than 100 waste to energy plants operate in China. However, approximately 400 new facilities are planned over the next decade.Michael Nelles and Thomas Dorn explain why this will require adaptation of new technology and suitable pre-treatment.

Recent Articles

E.ON in Receipt of Offers for Waste to Energy Business(May 3, 2012)

Canadian Gasified Waste to Biofuels Firm Selects Construction Partner(May 3, 2012)

Pickles Postpones Planning Decision for EnviRecover Waste to Energy Plant(May 3, 2012)

Green Light for 3000 TPD Waste to Energy Facility in Florida (May 3, 2012)

PVC Recycling Rises but Cooperation Key to Continued Growth(May 2, 2012)

New York’s Largest Farm & Food Waste Biogas Facility Opened(May 2, 2012)

Biofuel Specialist Expands Enzyme License from Dyadic(May 1, 2012)

Hazardous Waste Tracking System Extended at DoD & NASA(May 1, 2012)

Plasma Gasification Technology Licensed for Industrial Waste Applications(May 1, 2012)

http://www.waste-management-world.com/index/display/article-display/_printArticle/articles/waste-management-world/waste-to-energy/2012/05/Plasma_Gasification_Technology_Licensed_for_Industrial_Waste_Applications.html

01 May 2012

Swindon, UK based Advanced Plasma Power (APP), a specialist in waste gasification, has entered into an exclusive licence arrangement with institutionally-funded Plasma Green Energy (PGE) to construct and operate Gasplasma plants globally utilising particular industrial wastes.

APP said that it is already a joint venture partner in PGE and holds a 20% interest.

The Gasplasma process is a gasification and plasma conversion technology that converts wastes into an energy rich synthesis gas (syngas) and a solid, vitrified product each with multiple applications.

The syngas can be used to generate electricity directly in gas engines, gas turbines and fuel cells or it can be converted to substitute natural gas (Bio-SNG) or liquid fuels.

According to the company the deal is the first of its kind in the sector and will see an exclusive licence fee of £6.25 million payable to APP immediately, with plant licence fees and royalties payable to APP thereafter on a project specific basis.

In addition, the deal grants exclusive rights for PGE to market the APP’s Gasplasma solution for use in treating specific industrial waste feedstocks which arise from certain industrial processes and applications including oil, petrochemical, coal and paper industry wastes.

The initial exclusivity period laid out in the deal is 5 years, during which time PGE will be required to secure sales for a minimum of 540,000 tonnes per year of throughput (or the equivalent of six standard APP plants).

Thereafter APP said that the annual sales milestones require the purchase of the equivalent of four plants in year 6 and then five plants from year 7 onwards in order for exclusivity to be maintained.

APP added that PGE and its shareholders have particular industry expertise in the sectors licensed under this deal, which are not currently areas of focus for APP.

The PGE Board has committed to putting significant resources behind the penetration of these markets, whilst APP said that it will concentrate its efforts on the extensive municipal (MSW) and commercial & trade waste markets.

“We have secured sector expertise and extended our reach into specialist waste markets in which we are not currently active,” explained Rolf Stein, CEO of Advanced Plasma Power.

APP also recently announced a project with National Grid to demonstrate the production of Bio-SNG at the Swindon Gasplasma plant.  (See WMW story).

PurposeThis study, commissioned by the American Chemistry Council’s Plastics Division and conductedby RTI International, investigated the range of emerging waste conversion technologies that useplastics as all or a portion of their feedstocks. The focus of the study was to report on theenvironmental aspects of the technologies, using a life cycle approach, and to report what isknown about the economics of these technologies.

Download full PDF : Environmental-and-Economic-Analysis-of-Emerging-Plastics-Conversion-Technologies

http://www.waste-management-world.com/index/display/article-display/5564410912/articles/waste-management-world/waste-to-energy/2012/04/Covanta_to_Offer_300_TPD_Commercial_Gasification_System.html?cmpid=EnlWMW_WeeklyApril272012

25 April 2012

Morristown, New Jersey based waste to energy developer, Covanta Energy (NYSE: CVA), has completed commercial testing of the ‘first-of-its-kind’ modular gasification technology that it plans to offer to its clients.

The company said that the technology has demonstrated the ability to gasify unprocessed post-recycled municipal solid waste (MSW) in a commercial environment, while reducing emissions and increasing energy efficiency.

According to Covanta its gasification unit has been processing 350 tons (317 tonnes) per day of post-recycled MSW and has demonstrated reliability of over 95% availability.

To gasify the MSW – which does not require pre-treatment – the system subjects it to high temperatures and reduced air in the gasification platform, where it undergoes a chemical reaction that creates a synthesis gas, or syngas.

The syngas is then combusted and processed through an established energy recovery system, followed by a state-of-the-art emissions control system.

The company said that the commercial demonstration paves the way for the company to offer a new 300 ton (272 tonne) per day modular system, called CLEERGASTM (Covanta Low Emissions Energy Recovery Gasification), to its clients.

“This new gasification technology is truly exciting. Communities interested in emerging technologies can now partner with Covanta’s industry leading team to assure successful project execution,” explained Anthony J. Orlando, Covanta’s president and chief executive officer.

“Completing this commercial demonstration was a major step in developing new facilities capable of gasifying unprocessed post-recycled municipal waste,” added John Klett, executive vice president and chief technology officer.

The company said that its research and development efforts will focus on continuing to improve the syngas quality created in the gasification process.

“One day, we anticipate this syngas will be utilised as a fuel in a combined cycle facility and potentially, in the production of liquid fuel,” Klett concluded.

http://www.gizmag.com/plasma-flashlight/22075/

The handheld plasma flashlight that can rid the skin of bacteria in an instant (Image: X. Pei et al., Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics)

An international team of scientists has created a handheld, battery powered device that has been shown to effectively rid skin of bacteria in an instant by blasting it with plasma. The plasma flashlight, which shouldn’t be confused with a plasma torch that will damage much more than bacteria if used on the skin, could provide a convenient way for paramedics and military personnel to deal with harmful bacteria in the field.

The self-contained device is powered by a 12 V battery and doesn’t require any external gas feed or handling system. The plume of plasma it generates is between 20-23°C (68-73.4°F), so it won’t damage the skin. It is also fitted with resistors to stop it heating up and becoming too hot to touch. Its creators say it can also be easily manufactured at a cost of less than US$100 per unit.

In an experiment carried out by the scientists, the plasma flashlight effectively inactivated thick biofilms of Enterococcus faecalis, a bacterium that often infects the root canals in dental treatments and is highly antibiotic- and heat-resistant. Created by incubating the bacteria for seven days, the biofilms consisted of 17 different layers of bacteria. After treating each biofilm with the plasma flashlight for five minutes, the plasma was found to penetrate deep into the very bottom layer and inactivate the bacteria.

“In this study we chose an extreme example to demonstrate that the plasma flashlight can be very effective even at room temperature,” said co-author of the study, Professor Kostya (Ken) Ostrikov, from the Plasma Nanoscience Centre Australia, CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering. “For individual bacteria, the inactivation time could be just tens of seconds.”

While plasma has previously been shown to effectively kill bacteria and viruses on the surface of the skin and water, the exact mechanism behind this is still not understood. Ultraviolet radiation has been theorized as a reason, but the jet created by the plasma flashlight is low in UV radiation, which adds to the safety of using the device on a person’s skin. The reactions between the plasma and the surrounding air has also been suggested as another possibility.

The international team behind the plasma flashlight consists of scientists from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Sydney and the City University of Hong Kong. Their work is detailed in the Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics.

Source: Institute of Physics

http://www.waste-management-world.com/index/display/article-display/_printArticle/articles/waste-management-world/waste-to-energy/2012/04/Gasification___Pyrolysis_the_Answer_for_U_S__Waste_Plastics_.html

25 April 2012

A new study showing has shown that emerging new technologies designed to convert waste into fuels or raw materials offer environmental benefits and cost savings over landfill disposal.

The study – Environmental and Economic Analysis of Emerging Plastics Conversion Technologies – has been The American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) Plastics Division and conducted by RTI International – an independent, nonprofit institute that provides research, development, and technical services to government and commercial clients.

The research examined two types of advanced conversion technologies: gasification and pyrolysis.

According to the ACC, although both technologies are capable of processing a wide range of wastes, the study looked specifically at gasification technology that accepts all municipal solid waste (MSW), including non-recycledplastics; and pyrolysis that handles non-recycled plastics only.

In performing the study, RTI said that it conducted a search of the published literature on waste conversion technologies coupled with a survey of companies known and identified to be developing, or having deployed, waste conversion technologies.

When compared to landfill disposal, RTI found that gasification of MSW saves 6.5 to 13 million Btu per ton and 0.3 to 0.6 tons of carbon equivalent emissions per ton (1 ton = 907 kg).

Similarly, pyrolysis, which converts plastics to oil or gas, saves 1.8 to 3.6 million Btu per ton and 0.15 to 0.25 tons of carbon equivalent per ton over landfill disposal.

RTI identified 41 advanced conversion technology facilities that are under development or undergoing demonstration in North America that that will accept MSW or non-recycled plastics as feedstocks.

According to the study, due to their benefits – such as the potential to produce a range of energy, fuel, feedstocks, and chemicals, as well as waste diversion benefits – these waste conversion technologies are expected to become much more attractive in North America in the next five to ten years.

However, the study also found that plastics-to-oil pyrolysis technologies are generally closer to full scale commercialisation than MSW based technologies (typically gasification), in part because of the more consistent feedstock composition and supply for the former.

Key findings

The key drivers for conversion technologies identified by the research include the alternate costs for disposition of the waste (generally landfill costs), meeting waste diversion goals and targets, and developing alternative energy sources.

Significantly, the study showed that that in some regions waste conversion technologies are already able to produce fuel outputs at lower costs than landfill.

According to RTS, survey data indicates that the cost to process the waste is approximately $50 per ton (for pyrolysis and gasification technologies), and is generally related to the cost of electricity or fuel required to run the process. For comparison average U.S. costs for landfill disposal and recycling range from $30 to $75/ton depending on region.

“This study is the latest in a growing body of information showing that many of the things we’ve viewed as waste actually have tremendous potential as energy resources,” commented Steve Russell, vice president of Plastics for ACC.

“As a complement to a robust recycling infrastructure, conversion technologies offer environmental benefits and cost savings over traditional waste disposal processes,” he added.

However, the authors do also point direct comparisons of the costs and environmental benefits of gasification and pyrolysis technologies are not recommended due to differences in the energy value of the different feedstocks they use and differences in beneficial offsets.

These beneficial offsets are explained in further detail in the study.

http://blog.tetronics.com/whats-been-happening/thermal-technologies-over
coming-the-variability-of-waste-by-dr-tim-johnson
28th February 2012 in What’s been happening

One of the most difficult aspects of waste treatment is that ‘waste’ is
a highly variable thing.  By its very nature, waste comes from an almost
unlimited number of sources and in a huge range of compositions and
forms.  Unfortunately, this inherent variability makes it harder to
select the right waste treatment process for each pile of waste.
Thankfully, many wastes can be kept separate as they are being produced
and this makes finding the right treatment option much easier.  For
example, catalytic converters, old tyres and used engine oil all come
from cars that end up in scrap yards, but they are pretty easy to keep
separate from each other during the dismantling process.  This general
principle of keeping wastes separate, or ‘segregation’ as it is known in
technical-speak, can be seen spreading to most areas of waste
management, as anyone will testify who (like me) has the weekly
excitement of feeding multiple green bins, brown bins, black boxes and
blue sacks with the correct parts of their household waste.  Not
bothering to segregate your waste certainly makes throwing things away
much easier, but since all the goods we use are produced in separate
industrial processes it is not very surprising that recycling those
things at the end of their useful lives works best when the waste is
also separated into piles of similar objects.

In several of my previous blogs I have explained how Tetronics’ plasma
technology can be used to treat specific waste streams and often to
extract valuable materials or energy from them, so that ‘disposal of
waste’ becomes ‘recovery from waste’.  Naturally, each of these
processes depends on someone making sure those waste streams are kept
nicely segregated from other things.  The good news is that the list of
wastes suitable for a ‘recovery’ process is growing all the time, as
Tetronics and other waste treatment innovators roll out new
technologies.  However, it is clear that eventually, after all materials
suitable for recycling and recovery have been picked out, there will
still be a motley collection of unwanted wastes with no elegant and
economic treatment solution.  For these wastes a more generic treatment
solution is required, one that can accept everything from liquids to
solids, flammable or non-flammable, hazardous or benign.

There are very few such treatment processes available and historically
the choices have tended to be restricted to landfilling and
high-temperature incineration, both of which have their drawbacks.  In
the case of landfilling of generalised hazardous and industrial wastes
this was often preceded by mixing various different types of waste
together in an attempt to create a mixture that was less hazardous than
the sum of its starting materials.  For some years now regulators have
frowned on such practices because in many cases the ‘treatment’ amounted
to little more than dilution of hazardous materials rather than
rendering the waste non-hazardous in any true sense of the word.  Even
when materials are encased in concrete (a process known as
‘cementation’) the hazardous aspects of the material often still remain
for future generations, it is just that the materials are contained more
effectively in the short term.

Happily, Tetronics plasma technology offers the sort of generic waste
treatment solution that many local authorities, waste operators and
communities are looking for.  Plasma furnaces are very ‘omnivorous’
animals and will eat more or less anything, since using plasma to heat
waste up to 1600°C results in almost everything melting or being
vaporised.  Plasma’s combination of high temperatures and high
ultra-violent light leads to efficient destruction of organic pollutants
and the capturing of heavy metals in a glassy non-leaching material
suitable for inert disposal or reuse as aggregate.  The fact is, all
materials look fairly similar at plasma furnace temperatures, which
means that although treating a mixed bag of very different wastes in a
single process will never be easy, the enormous versatility and
effectiveness of Tetronics’ plasma technology looks certain to make it
an increasingly obvious choice for the treatment of hazardous and
industrial wastes around the World.

From: James Middleton [mailto:dynamco@netvigator.com]
Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2012 8:14 PM
To: ‘enquiry@cyleung2012.com‘; ceeo@ce-elect-office.hk
Subject: Gasification news

Dear CY Leung,

please find the attached self explanatory information on what the world is doing with its waste – – – – making jet fuel.

It seems this freely available information somehow eluded our current HK Environment Minister’s decision making.

Kind regards,

James Middleton

Chairman

www.cleartheair.org.hk

Download PDF : Gasificationews

http://www.letsrecycle.com/news/opinions/innovation-in-waste-management

Dr Tim Johnson, technical director at high temperature plasma arc technology manufacturer Tetronics, argues that plasma technology can be seen as a viable option for waste management.

We are often told by politicians and think-tank consultants that it is innovation that drives growth in jobs and in the economy. It is of course very easy to talk about such things and rather more difficult to implement them practically in the ‘real world’ but despite this you often hear the same commentators criticising sectors of UK business for not adopting this innovation culture.

Dr Tim Johnson, technical director, Tetronics

Now I am sure there are plenty of organisations across UK industry who struggle to put innovation into practice but you don’t have to read very far through the many magazines and publications of the environmental industry to see innovation in every nook and cranny. Maybe it’s because the environmental sector is growing strongly or perhaps it is the type of people it attracts but you certainly can’t accuse the waste management industry of lacking imagination or innovation.

Innovation

Literally, ‘innovation’ means ‘making into new’ and naturally, innovation takes many forms. You have one group of people innovating new and exciting equipment with which to treat waste and others who are developing innovative ways of measuring, monitoring and analysing waste.

Meanwhile, there are whole groups of people finding innovative ways to cut corners on existing legislation and still more developing innovative new forms of legislation to try to close those loop holes and drive up standards of operating practice.

All this innovation is surely a sign of a vibrant and healthy industry and it’s certainly an exciting business to be involved with at the moment. However, all this ‘making into new’ does make for a constantly moving landscape with all its attendant uncertainties and if there a downside to innovation perhaps this is it. For the waste producer this means a lack of certainty about his future waste management requirements and these uncertainties are reflected in how well waste management companies can forecast the costs and the best methods for treating wastes both now and in the future.

Challenge

In this context the challenge for companies that provide waste treatment equipment must surely be to help others to manage and reduce these uncertainties by developing technologies which combine the reassurance of a historical track record with a degree of future-proofing about them. Plasma technology is emerging as one such technology.

Plasma technologies have been used for many decades in a bewildering variety of industrial settings both inside and outside the environmental industry. It has its roots in welding, which is hardly space-craft technology, and combines intense heat and intense light in a highly directional and controllable arc that can be used to vaporise or melt virtually everything.

Having tried it myself I can say with confidence there are very few materials that do not respond well to this kind of formidable treatment and the ultimate outputs from plasma processes nearly always consist overwhelmingly of materials suitable for resale or reuse; i.e. it is a recovery based solution as opposed to just simple disposal. It seems highly unlikely that such a process will ever provide anything other than a top-quality solution to many of the key waste management challenges that face industry and society today and in the future.