How To Generate Electricity From Municipal Solid Waste

    Generate Electricity From Municipal Solid Waste Materials

Currently our biggest problem nowadays is how to deal with the wastages that are generated and how to convert them into useful product. So here is the topic which we are going to discuss is how to deal with the Municipal Solid Waste Materials and to Generate Electricity from them.

Municipal solid waste (MSW) refers to the stream of garbage collected through community sanitation services. Medical wastes from hospitals and items that can be recycled are generally excluded from MSW used to generate electricity. Paper and yard wastes account for the largest share of the municipal waste stream,and much of this can be recycled directly or composted.

Currently, over 30 percent of MSW generated in the United States is recycled annually. While not producing this waste in the first place is the preferred management strategy for this material, recycling is preferred over any method of disposal. The majority of MSW that is not recycled is typically sent to landfills after it is collected. As an alternative, MSW can be directly combusted in waste-to-energy facilities to generate electricity. Because no new fuel sources are used other than the waste that would otherwise be sent to landfills, MSW is often considered a renewable power source. Although MSW consists mainly of renewable resources such as food, paper, and wood products, it also includes nonrenewable materials derived from fossil fuels, such as tires and plastics.

At the power plant, MSW is unloaded from collection trucks and shredded or processed to ease handling. Recyclable materials are separated out, and the remaining waste is fed into a combustion chamber to be burned. The heat released from burning the MSW is used to produce steam, which turns a steam turbine to generate electricity.

 Environmental Impacts

Although power plants are regulated by both federal and state laws to protect human health and the environment, there is a wide variation of environmental impacts associated with power generation technologies. The purpose of the following section is to give consumers a better idea of the specific air, water, land, and solid waste impacts associated with MSW-fired electricity generation.

The average air emission rates in the United States from municipal solid waste-fired generation are: 3685 lbs/MWh of carbon dioxide, (it is estimated that the fossil fuel-derived portion of carbon dioxide emissions represent approximately one-half of the total carbon emissions) 1.2 lbs/MWh of sulfur dioxide, and 6.7 lbs/MWh of nitrogen oxides.

The variation in the composition of MSW affects the emissions impact. For example, if MSW containing batteries and tires are burned, toxic materials can be released into the air. A variety of air pollution control technologies are used to reduce toxic air pollutants from MSW power plants. There can be significant greenhouse gas reduction benefits from recycling and source reduction when compared to other management options. Note also that over 1.6 million ton of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, plastics, glass and combustion ash are recycled annually.

Water Resource Use

Power plants that burn MSW are normally smaller than fossil fuel power plants but typically require a similar amount of water per unit of electricity generated. When water is removed from a lake or river, fish and other aquatic life can be killed, affecting those animals and people who depend on these 

resources.

Also Read 

• How To Generate Hydrogen From Waste Materials

Tags : How to convert waste product to Generate energy, How to convert waste materials to Generate energy, convert waste materials to Generate energy, Generate energy from waste materials,How to convert waste materials to green and clean fuel.

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How To Generate Hydrogen From Waste Materials

                    Generate Hydrogen From Waste Materials

Currently our biggest problem nowadays is how to deal with the wastages that are generated and how to convert them into useful product. So here is the topic which we are going to discuss is how to deal with the waste materials and to generate hydrogen from them.

Environmentalists are continuously searching for green and clean fuel. Until now they have been putting a lot of energy and talent into hydrogen fuels because when hydrogen is burned, the only emission it makes is water vapor. So it is a great advantage that burning of hydrogen doesn’t produce carbon dioxide. Clearly, hydrogen is less of a pollutant in the air because it emits little tail pipe pollution. Engineers at the University of Leeds are working on a project keeping hydrogen in mind. They are developing an energy efficient, environmental-friendly hydrogen production system but with a difference. They are trying to extract hydrogen from waste materials. These materials can be vegetable oil or the glycerol by-product of bio-diesel. They are aspiring for the high purity hydrogen-based fuel that could be utilized for large-scale power production. They are also developing hydrogen cells for laptops or other gadgets. A grant of over £400k has been awarded to the University by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) within a consortium of 12 institutions known as SUPERGEN Sustainable Hydrogen Delivery.

Hydrogen is largely considered as a clean and green alternative fuel but it is costly to manufacture. If we follow conventional methods of hydrogen production then it emits greenhouse gases. Engineers at the University of Leeds are focusing on these points. The system they are developing is called as Unmixed and Sorption-Enhanced Steam Reforming. They are combining waste products with steam to release hydrogen. This process is comparatively cheaper and cleaner than the existing methods and more energy efficient.

They are using a catalytic reactor for mixing a hydrocarbon-based fuel from plant or waste sources. Waste sources are mixed with steam that produces hydrogen and carbon dioxide and excess water as a byproduct. The water is condensed by cooling without much hassle and the carbon dioxide is removed in situ by a solid sorbent material.

Dr Dupont voices his concern about carbon content: “It’s becoming increasingly necessary for scientists devising new technologies to limit the amount of carbon dioxide they release. This project takes us one step closer to these goals – once we have technologies that enable us to produce hydrogen sustainably, the infrastructure to support its use will grow.”

“We firmly believe that these advanced steam reforming processes have great potential for helping to build the hydrogen economy. Our primary focus now is to ensure the materials we rely on – both to catalyse the desired reaction and to capture the carbon dioxide – can be used over and over again without losing their efficacy.”

Tags : How to convert waste product to hydrogen energy, How to convert waste materials to hydrogen energy, convert waste materials to hydrogen energy, Hydrogen from waste materials,How to convert waste materials to green and clean fuel.

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