Conversion of MSW Transfer Stations into

Renewable Energy Centers

Municipal Solid Waste Transfer Stations (MSWTS) play an important Wastes Common to MSWTS
role in a community’s total waste management system, serving as the Waste Category Generated by Contains
link between a community’s solid waste collection program and a final
Municipal solid households, businesses, food containers, packaging, food
waste disposal facility. W2E has developed an innovative system of
waste (MSW) institutions, and industry wastes, and paper products
converting municipal solid waste (MSW) into a slate of usable energy
and energy-related products. Yard waste biomass materials leaves, grass clippings, tree
from general outdoor trimmings and brush, often
maintenance seasonal

Household hazardous materials cleaning products, pesticides,

hazardous generated by herbicides; used automotive
waste (HHW) households products (e.g. motor oil, brake
fluid, antifreeze); paint

Recyclables materials that can be paper, newsprint, ferrous metals,

reprocessed for manufa- plastic, glass containers,
cture into new products aluminum cans, motor oil & tires

Construction debris from demolition or concrete, brick, wood, masonry,

and demolition construction of buildings, roofing materials, sheetrock,
(C&D) roads, other structures plaster, metals and tree stumps

MSWTS currently provide the standard intermediate handling step in

This mixed stream of MSWTS fluff presents a challenge for most clean
MSW disposal, preliminary to the disposal of non-recyclable wastes at
energy extraction processes. The W2E technologies were created to
a landfill or incinerator. MSWTS facilities can make MSW available in
overcome this challenge. The energy is easily, efficiently extracted from
large quantities, on a continuous basis. W2E has targeted these sites to
the combination wastes via this environmentally sound methodology.
become Alternative Energy Centers, which will eliminate MSW disposal
It is then processed further to electricity, CHP, or steam as needed,
issues and make energy from one of the most available domestic
to meet local energy demands. Options for the final selection of
sources of renewable power worldwide
this energy source include the conversion to hydrogen, ammonia,
and Fischer-Tropsch liquids, which is determined by the local energy
In a landfill the biodegradable components of MSW (e.g. paper and demand.
food wastes) decompose and emit methane – a greenhouse gas 23 times
more potent than carbon dioxide. Other components (e.g. leachate) can Because of the proximity of MSWTS to population centers, they offer
ideal locations for distributed renewable and alternative energy
also cause significant pollution in air and ground water. generation, including hydrogen production and dispensing. As the
Incineration, another disposal option for this waste, is already use of hydrogen moves into the mainstream, hydrogen vehicles,
restricted in the USA. A known source of air emissions pollutants, including on-the-road and off-the-road vehicles will be able to procure
the renewable fuel produced from the waste at the local AEC. W2E
such as dioxins and furans, incineration is under close scrutiny and
solutions for energy from MSW at the MSWTS include the production
can face resistance in other parts of the world. These options waste a of steam or electricity, hydrogen, or ammonia for energy and/or
valuable resource by not making use of it. fertilizer use, either individually or in almost any combination

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY CENTERS

The conversion of these transfer stations into Alternative Energy
Centers (AECs), to use the MSW onsite to produce a variety of energy
and energy-related products is a practical alternative to the standard
disposal options for this material. These AECs could achieve a significant
reduction in dependence on imported fossil fuels by making use of
these domestic resources. They will also increase energy security by
creating geographically dispersed distributed energy centers, and at
the same time, provide a more realistic waste disposal option for a
growing world population that is demanding and using more goods
and services and as a result, producing more waste.

At an MSWTS, the material is received and the recyclables separated

out, collected and sold to the appropriate recycler (scrap metal,
plastics, etc). After the recyclables are removed, some MSWTS will
take the remaining MSW and shred it to make a “fluff”. The fluff has
a heating value of 7000 BTU/lb to 9000 BTU/lb. The moisture content
of the fluff is 30-35%, which is in the ideal range for processing it into
alternative energy products using a W2E process.
Potential of Energy Products generated from 100 Tons/day of MSW AMMONIA PRODUCTION
delivered at the Transfer Station For the production of ammonia, the solid MSW fluff is reacted with
oxygen under substoichiometric conditions to produce clean fuel gas
ENERGY FORM MSW PROCESSED ENERGY PRODUCT GENERATED – the gasification process as above, but using the oxygen instead of air,
reserving the N2 separately for the ammonia synthesis.
Steam 100 Tons/Day 23 Tons/Hr

Electricity 100 Tons/Day 5 MW (Gross) The process begins by separating the air into O2 and N2. The O2 is
Hydrogen 100 Tons/Day 6000 kg/day used for the gasification process and the subsequent production of
a pure stream of compressed hydrogen. Nitrogen and hydrogen are
Ammonia 100 Tons/Day 35 Tons/day
subsequently brought together for the production of ammonia in the
ammonia synthesis reactor.
PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICITY
For the production of electricity, the solid MSW fluff is reacted with Recycled Air
Air
air under substoichiometric conditions to produce clean fuel gas – a Product Separation
process known as gasification. This clean fuel – often called syngas - is O2 N2
then utilized either in a gas engine, a gas turbine, or in a steam boiler
to produce electricity and/or steam. MSW Recycling Gasification Shift Reactor
Eletricity

Recycled Air
Product Ammonia Ammonia
H2 Separator
Synthesis
Syngas
Ammonia for
Turbine / Agricultural use CO 2
MSW Recycling Gasification
Engine/Boiler

PRODUCTION OF HYDROGEN ECONOMICS

For the production of hydrogen, the solid MSW fluff is reacted with Case studies indicate that a MSWTS changing over to a W2E system
air under substoichiometric conditions to produce clean fuel gas – the to become an AEC realize a simple payback in less than 3 years. The
gasification process. The clean fuel gas, or syngas, contains CO, H2, MSWTS owner can also generate additional revenues by increasing the
CO2, H2O, and N2. After adding more water to it, this gas is further volume of material handled on the same site, by adding the system to
reacted in a “shift reactor”. In a shift reactor, CO is shifted to H2 and the present operations.
CO2. The hydrogen component is then separated from the gas mixture
by using a pressure swing absorption (PSA) unit to yield pure hydrogen.
This pure hydrogen can then be compressed for use in a hydrogen
fueling station.

Electricity

Recycled Air
Product

MSW Recycling Gasification Shift Reactor

H2 Compression H 2 Separator

H2 Fueling Station CO 2

UNITED STATES
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V7.0 - Oct 2013