Types of Waste to Energy technologies and how Gasifiers Stand Out

Solid waste management usually involves the processing of municipal solid waste. These are solid wastes coming from offices, schools, houses, hospitals, restaurants, etc. The domestic waste is generally thrown in the garbage vans or on open waste lands on the roadside. The municipality vehicles collect these wastes and transport to the landfills on the outskirts of the city. The huge amount of waste piling up in the outskirts of every city is a huge problem, with pollution levels rising day by day. Additionally, without proper waste disposal, one cannot leverage the various latent possibilities offered by the waste on hand.

Waste to energy technologies can certainly help in proper solid waste management compared to municipal solid waste management. These technologies although new to the world, are being implemented in various countries. But in India, many cities, towns, and villages are yet to adopt and implement it.

Advantages of waste to energy implementations

Listed below are few advantages of a well-implemented waste to energy solution:

• They generate renewable energy.
• They utilizes waste effectively by generating energy through power or gas.
• They provides eco-friendly solutions.
• They provide usable solution in cities and villages.
• Their emissions are in alliance with defined environment laws
• They lead to decentralized processing of waste
• They reduce the cost and need of transportation of waste disposal

Here are some types of waste to energy implementations:

• • Dendro Liquid Energy (DLE) – This is a zero-waste technology having its roots from Germany.
  • Dry Anaerobic Digestion (AD) – This technology treats the wastewater or animal manure. It follows the process of breaking down the organic matter. The end-products are biogas that can be used for electricity and as biofertilizers.
  • Hydrothermal Carbonisation (HTC) – It tracks down the slow-process of geothermal conversion of waste. Its end-product is hydro-car which possesses properties like the fossil fuels.
• Syngas – This approach leverages the process of gasification. It converts solid and liquid waste into gas called Syngas. This is then used to generate energy or heat.

The most prominent waste to energy technology that is expected to be implemented globally is gasification – development of Syngas.

Apart from the domestic waste, the poultry farms, manure and litter also contribute to the massive volume of waste. Such waste can be processed efficiently through the process of Gasification. The gasifiers treat the waste and generate sustainable energy. This innovative technology can even convert wasted tires into a combustible gas that can be used for several domestic purposes. The energy can be used for power generation and thermal or heat applications. The by-product of many gasifiers are usable metal wires and charcoal that is already hard to find.

The gasification process can convert paper and currency waste into a renewable source of energy. These notes are briquetted into a combustible gas. During the process, heavy metal chlorides, present in the form of chemical dyes/ inks are eliminated by the system. Cold gas is freed from the mixture producing charcoal and high-quality combustible gas. As mentioned above, the remnants can be used for power and heat generation while resolving the issue of heavy metal pollution. Several waste to energy companies are now relying on the gasification process too.

With gasifiers, one can effectively reduce air pollution and even contribute to several usable applications through environment-friendly process.