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.