Westinghouse Plasma’s technology is used in the commercial reference plant that converts municipal solid waste into electricity using plasma gasification.
Earlier in 2009, Alter NRG signed a Joint Development Agreement with Air Products, which gives Air Products the right to license and incorporate Alter NRG’s proprietary Westinghouse plasma gasification technology for use in renewable energy projects in Europe and North America.
Waste2Tricity’s agreements with Alter NRG, and its exclusive rights to new generation alkaline fuels cells under development by AFC Energy plc, provide Waste2Tricity with a distinct advantage in the UK market. AFC Energy is a producer of low-cost new generation fuel cells targeting waste hydrogen in commercial applications. AFC’s fuel cell system has successfully completed initial field trials at AkzoNobel’s chlor–alkali plant in Bitterfeld, Germany. Alter NRG’s technology is ideal for producing a hydrogen stream, from waste and other low value feedstocks, which is suitable as fuel for AFC’s technology.
Peter Jones, director of Waste2Tricity says: “Our appointment by Alter NRG Westinghouse as its independent UK sales representative is a great achievement. Waste2Tricity is in discussion with a number of potential end users and believes that key players in the waste industry recognise plasma gasification as a commercially attractive alternative to traditional incineration, maximising energy gains from diverting landfill material and minimising environmental impact.
“We believe that the combination of Alter NRG’s plasma technology and the AFC Energy fuel cell will give Waste2Tricity the most commercially attractive model available in the market for generating electricity and will ensure that Waste2tricity becomes the market leader.”
Kevin Willerton, Vice President of Strategic Alliances and Business Development at Alter NRG Westinghouse, adds: “Working with Waste2Tricity is a logical fit due to the close synergies between the two companies. Alter NRG’s technology can lead to power through applications such as combined cycle, steam cycle, or internal combustion engines. The syngas produced by our technology can also be used as fuel for the production of renewable ethanol and Waste2ricity will be looking to apply the technology for all these applications depending on customer requirements.”
Waste2Tricity will work with clients to help them specify Alter NRG’s commercially established plasma gasification technology to convert municipal solid waste and other feedstock into syngas. This syngas is then cleaned and used for energy generation or as a feedstock for other product production. During plasma gasification, carbon based feedstocks are exposed to high temperatures (5,000° Celsius plus) generated by plasma torches in an oxygen starved atmosphere. This causes the feedstock to break down into component molecules and form a syngas rich in carbon monoxide and hydrogen.
Waste2Tricity calculates that an Alter NRG gasifier combined with internal combustion engine (ICE) generators would use 8k tonnes of feedstock per year per MW of generating capacity, compared with 10-12k tonnes of feedstock for a traditional incineration model. Waste2Tricity believes it will have the most efficient commercial model for generating renewable electricity from diverted landfill feedstock once AFC’s low temperature alkaline fuel cell is available, with the capability of using only 5k tonnes of feedstock per year per MW of electrical generating capacity. A technology agnostic company, Waste2Tricity will advocate the use any power conversion technology including steam, ICE or gas turbine depending on customer’s individual requirements for their sites.
Alter NRG Westinghouse and Waste2Tricity are working closely with strategic partners to secure the specification of plasma assisted gasification for plants capable of processing between 100k and 250k tonnes per annum of waste feedstocks including refuse derived fuels. While not the focus, plants smaller than 100k tonnes per annum may be considered.
