PAGMaWPlasma Arc Gasification of Municipal Solid Waste

Thesis PresentationApril 2, 2014Celerick StephensMasters Management (Marketing)Masters Engineering Science (Sustainability)

PAGMaW Plasma gasification process overview Benefits of plasma gasification of waste Application and benefits of technology Modeling the process Results Conclusions

Agenda

What is plasma Fourth state of matter

Ionized gas in which the number of free electrons nearly equals the number of free ions

Electric arcs Neon bulbs Lightning

Overview

What is Plasma Gasification Gasification is the process of changing

matter into a useful fuel-gas (syngas) Plasma gasification is applying high-energy

plasma to gasify any solid Plasma gasification

Severs molecular bonds of solids Releases elemental gases and solids Vitrifies precipitate solids Allows for high temperature recombination of

gases

Overview

Plasma Gasification of Waste Reduces/eliminates need for solid waste disposal

Vitrified waste is reduced (>90% reduction in solids) Produces low-heating value “natural” gas (syngas) useful for

power/heat production

Reduces carbon footprint

Reduces release of harmful products Dioxins nearly eliminated (ppb) Vitrified wastes make harmful agents inert

Nuclear waste conversion Biologically hazardous waste conversion

Benefits of Waste Gasification

Plasma Process In Real-World Usage

13 commissioned sites worldwide Europe Japan United States

Hawaii*

Proven energy production exceeds energy requirements

Application of Technology

Scaling the Technology Unique application of

technology on a smaller scale From 250 tons/day to 7 tons/day (or smaller)

Community Waste Disposal Reduces waste transport

energy Reduces electrical

transmission waste Reduces cost of operation Reduces electrical

consumption Supplements community

heating

Fast Facts Americans generate 4 lbs trash/day

60% of MSW is landfilled (145 million tons)

We can bury Rhode Island each year (1-foot) We use 1.5 billion gallons of fuel/yr to haul

trash (1.4 million average daily drivers)

10% of the power produced is wasted in delivery (400 million MW-hrs/year) US Line loss can power

Powers NYC for 35 yrs or Powers France for 1 year (10th largest

consumer of electrical power in the world)

Application of Technology

The Future Need Economists show the

United States as the Middle Class Model

Trends indicate unsustainable nature in energy consumption

Power cannot be created fast enough to match demand

Waste cannot be disposed fast enough to match demand

Application of Technology

Scaled Plasma Gasification of Community Waste

Modeling the Process

Waste stream

Plasma process

Power process

Energy generation

Functional Basis

Scaled Plasma Gasification of Community Waste

Modeling the Process

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

Was

te C

onte

nt

Year

United States Waste Content from 1960 to 2005

Paper and Paperboard

Glass

Metals

Plastics

Rubber and Leather

Textiles

Wood

Food Waste

Yard Waste

Other

Material

Weight

Generated

(Millions of

Tons)

Percentage

Generation

Typical

Moisture

Content

Water

Weight

of

Waste *

(Millions

of Tons)

Paper & Paperboard 77.42 31% 6% 4.65

Glass 12.15 5% 2% 0.24

Metals 20.85 8% 0% 0

Plastics 30.05 12% 2% 0.60

Rubber & Leather 7.41 3% 15% 1.11

Textiles 12.37 5% 6% 0.74

Wood 16.39 7% 35% 5.74

Other Organic Wastes 64.69 26% 60% 38.81

Other Inorganic

Wastes 8.28 3% 0% 0

Total 249.61 51.8934

Gasification Process

Thermochemical Analysis

Gasification ProcessChemical equilibrium evaluation

Molecular decomposition of the waste stream Proximate analysis Ultimate analysis

Mass Balance Molecular balance of constituents

Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Soot (metals/glass) Water (moisture content)

Heat Balance Heat capacities Heats of formation HHV refuse derived fuel

Products of equilibrium is syngas CO, CO2, H20, H2, CH4

Thermochemical Analysis

Results

Process independent of gasification temperature

Process scalable to waste stream input Optimized waste recycling content apparent

0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6,000 7,000 8,000 0

0.000001

0.000002

0.000003

0.000004

0.000005

0.000006Hydrogen Output Based Upon Energy Input

Energy Input - 1200 K

Energy Input - 1250 K

Energy Input - 1300 K

Energy Input - 1400 K

Energy Input (kJ/kg of input waste stream)

Hydro

gen P

roducti

on (

kg/s

)

Gasification Modeling

ResultsGasification Modeling

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%12.0%

13.0%

14.0%

15.0%

16.0%

17.0%

18.0%

Hydrogen Gas Content (Volume) based upon Random Recycled Waste Stream Content from

1200K to 1500K

OrganicsLinear (Organics)PaperLinear (Paper)PlasticLinear (Plastic)TextilesLinear (Textiles)WoodLinear (Wood)GlassLinear (Glass)MetalsLinear (Metals)

Percentage of Constituents in Waste Stream

%V

olu

me

ResultsGasification Modeling

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%0.0E+00

1.0E-06

2.0E-06

3.0E-06

4.0E-06

5.0E-06

6.0E-06

Hydrogen Gas Content (Mass) based upon Re-cycled Waste Stream Content

OrganicsPaperPlasticTextilesWoodGlassMetals

Percentage of Constituents in Waste Stream

H2 (

kg/s

)

Scaled-Distributed Plasma Gasification of Community Waste

Waste stream

Plasma process

Power process

Net generation

Facility Modeling

ResultsFacility Modeling

0 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.1 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.20

50

100

150

200

250

300

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

f(x) = 23.3542795587914 x − 1.02140518265514E-14

f(x) = 1420.95880050305 x

Hydrogen Gas Production and Waste Flow Rate as Related to the Gasifica-

tion Power RequirementsWaste Generation Rate (kg/day)Linear (Waste Genera-tion Rate (kg/day))Gasification Power Requirements (kW)

Gasification Power Requirements (kW)

Waste

Flo

w R

ate

(kg/d

ay)

Hydro

gen G

as P

roducti

on (

g/s

)

Plastics, Organics Textiles Only

Full Waste Stream Recycled Glass & Metals (with Contamination)

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Influence of Recycling Content on Power Input and Waste Input

Waste Requirement (kg/day)

Power Requriement (kW)

Waste

(kg/d

ay)

Gasifi

cati

on P

ow

er

Input

(kW

)

Facility Modeling

Next Steps Complete energy

cycle analysis H2 Fuel Cell

Integration Waste stream size

to support facility (net zero)

Waste stream size to support community (net zero)

Document challenges Facility complexity

Noise Location Maintenance

Complexity of byproduct recycling High temperature

materials discharge Waste gas reuse Sour gas elimination

Completing the Analysis