更小更乾淨的垃圾發電廠 - 生態環境討論

譯自英國Edie環境新聞網站2007/03/30報導
（原文網址http://www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp?id=12828）


更小更乾淨的垃圾發電廠


比垃圾焚化爐更小更乾淨的創新垃圾發電廠即將在英國問世。

這種發電廠利用新技術將不可回收的廢棄物轉化成乾淨的發電
用合成氣體（syn-gas）與高強度建築材料，而電廠本身運作
所需能源也來自於產生的氣體。

這種氣體電漿（Gaspalsma）技術除了二氧化碳淨排放量為零
（carbon neutral），其他污染排放也很低，電廠佔地更只有
焚化爐的三分之一，跟焚化爐相比有許多優點。擁有該技術專
利的先進電漿電力（Advanced Plasma Power）公司總裁Andrew
Hamilton表示：「我們的秘訣是把氣化與電漿技術結合。這兩
種現有技術結合的好處是能源需求大幅降低，整個過程的經濟
效益也就因此完全不同。」

「中間會有一些二氧化碳排放，但因為有一半到三分之二的廢
物是可生物分解的（自然分解過程原本就會產生二氧化碳），
所以在發電過程中產生的二氧化碳是零。」二氧化碳排放量是
這個技術遠勝過傳統焚化爐的因素。

他還表示，這項技術已經順利在測試廠中通過測試，現在準備
好要以更大規模組裝。大小也是它贏過焚化爐的優點之一，更
是一大賣點：一個十五公尺高的發電廠只需要約一個焚化爐三
分之一的空間。

Andrew也提到：「因為所需建築空間小，建築高度跟煙囪高度
低，又非常乾淨，所以非常適合都市環境使用。」

「但另一方面，因為它是模組化的，在一個幅員廣闊的郡內設
置兩三個點，跟集中到單一一個焚化爐相比，廢物需要被運輸
的距離減短很多。」

雖然目前鼓勵減低包裝、回收、再利用、垃圾減量的整體行動
可能會影響到這個公司的生意，Andrew並不認為垃圾發電廠會
面臨無廢物可燒的地步。

「我們的業務範圍是那些無法消除、不能回收的東西，永遠都
會有很多廢物是需要被處理的。我們絕對支持回收與垃圾減量
，但還是應該務實地考慮要怎麼對付其他垃圾。」


關於先進電漿電力的其他資訊可參考
www.advancedplasmapower.com.
（該網站首頁的簡介（英文）附在本文最末）

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Waste-to-energy process promises smaller, cleaner plants
(30 March 2007)

Cutting edge waste-to-energy plants that are smaller and cleaner
than incinerators could soon hit the UK market.

The plants run a new process that transforms non-recyclable waste
into a clean syn-gas, used to generate clean power and a high-
strength building material, with the plant itself powered by the
syn-gas it produces.

Carbon-neutral and very low in emissions with plants around a
third of the size of incinerators, the Gasplasma process can
compete with incinerators on a number of counts, according to
Andrew Hamilton, CEO of Advanced Plasma Power, the company that
patented the process:

"The trick here for us has been the combination of gasification
and plasma. The benefit of combining these two existing
technologies is that you substantially reduce the power
requirements, and that transforms the economics of the process,"
he told edie.

"You will get some CO2 coming out but a half to two-thirds of
the waste is biodegradable so it's carbon neutral," he said,
adding that the process beats incineration when it comes to the
carbon balance.

The process has passed tests in a pilot plant with flying colours
and is now ready to be implemented on larger scale, he said.
Numerous advantages over incinerators include size, a major
selling point as the 15m-high plant takes up around a third of
the space needed for an incinerator.

"Because it's got a small building footprint with a low profile
building and small stack, and it's very clean, it is very suitable
for urban settings.

"But equally, because it is modular, having two or three of these
in a large spread-out county means the waste has to travel a lot
less than if you have one incinerator in the middle of the county,"
he said.

And while the company could feel threatened by increasing efforts
to minimise packaging, recycle, re-use and cut out waste altogether,
Andrew Hamilton does not see waste-to-energy plants ever running
out of feedstock.

"Our business is dealing with what can't be eliminated, what can't
be recycled, there's always going to be a big volume of waste that
has to be treated. Absolutely support recycling and waste
minimisation but one has to be realistic about what to do with the
rest of it."

For more information on Advanced Plasma Power see
www.advancedplasmapower.com.


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Advanced Plasma Power

The Gasplasma Process is an Advanced Conversion Technology to
convert a pre-treated waste feedstock into two recyclable
products: a hydrogen rich synthetic or Syn gas and a vitrified
material suitable for use as a replacement aggregate or building
material.

It is a two-stage gasification process; firstly gasifying the
pre-treated waste feedstock in a fluid bed gasifier producing
a syngas contaminated with tars and soot as well as solid chars
and ash and secondly, using a plasma arc treatment to convert
the residual soot tars and chars into further syngas which has
consistent calorific values while simultaneously vitrifying the
ash.

It has been developed to:

* maximise the generation of renewable energy
* produce minimal waste residues and benign emissions
* operate on a small footprint with minimal environmental
impact.


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