What is Plasma Gasification?
Gasification occurs in a Westinghouse Plasma Gasification System when carbon-containing feedstocks – such as municipal solid waste, industrial waste, biomass (wood chips, agricultural straw, etc.) – are exposed to extremely high temperatures (over 5,000°C/10,000°F) in the presence of controlled amounts of steam, air and oxygen. For an overview of Alter NRG and its Westinghouse Plasma technology, view our brochure here.
The feedstock reacts in the gasifier with the steam, air and oxygen to produce a synthesis gas (syngas) and slag. Syngas, composed primarily of carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2) and other gaseous constituents, and can be used for industrial purposes (as a substitute to natural gas). For more details on a plamsa gasification facility, please see our brochure.
Non-gaseous, inorganic components in the gasified feedstock (i.e., the rocks, dirt and other impurities which do not gasify) separate and leave the bottom of the gasifier as a glass-like slag. Slag, which is environmentally benign and resembles glass, is a marketable aggregate material with a variety of uses in the construction and building industries.
Advantages of Plasma
- Fuel Flexibility
- Process heterogeneous feedstock with minimal feed preparation
- Process high moisture and high inert content waste
- Blend MSW, RDF, tires, industrial waste, C&D waste, ASR, liquids and slurries
- Reduce dependence on single feedstock, optimize revenue based on available feedstocks
- Virtually 100% carbon conversion (higher ROC revenue)
- Vitrified Slag in inert/non-leaching and does not contaminate soil or drinking water
- Syngas can be tailored to meet downstream requirements - turbines, boilers, ethanol, etc
- Syngas, after clean-up, burns clean like natural gas
- High residence times with the reactor ensure tars are cracked and minimize particulates from exiting with syngas stream
- Augments the three R's