The Gasification of residual plastics derived from municipal recycling facilities

over 50 years. The process involves the conversion of materials having Carbon and
Hydrogen in their chemical structure into clean synthesis gas, “syngas”, a mixture of
Hydrogen (H2) and Carbon Monoxide (CO). “Syngas” can be used as a source of energy
for combustion processes used to generate electricity (gas turbine or internal combustion
engine) or as a source of chemical building blocks from which a wide assortment of
commercial chemicals may be manufactured. In addition the Hydrogen may be extracted
and used in fuel cells.
In 1999 a survey conducted under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy
identified 160 commercial gasification plants in operation, under construction or in the
planning, design stages in the world. The capacity of these plants when operational will
produce an amount of energy equivalent to 770,000 barrels of oil per day.
Although most feedstocks for use in gasifiers are based on coal and petroleum byproducts
or residues such as tars, heavy oils and petroleum coke many other materials are
being considered for gasification.
Many developing nations with ever increasing demands for electrical power are not rich
in conventional fossil fuels. Their economies are often based on agriculture and as a
result there are large quantities of agricultural residues which one calls bio-mass. Even in
the developed world many industries, especially the agricultural and forest product
sectors generate large quantities of waste the disposal of which is becoming increasingly
difficult and costly. At the same time emphasis is being placed on the search for
renewable sources of energy. As a result of all of these currents there is a great deal of
work being conducted on the gasification of bio-mass and plants scaled to meet local
circumstances are being erected. At the present time in the United States, bio-mass is the
(non-hydro) renewable energy source with the largest generating capacity (about 7000
megawatts).
In addition, interest in the gasification of other residues including those from municipal
waste collection is increasing. Why landfill certain wastes if they can be transformed into
products that can be used as sources of chemicals or clean burning fuels?