Gasify Your World

Image SourceThe technology for advanced plasma gasification of garbage and hazardous waste was developed at MIT and Pacific Northwest National Lab back in the 1990s. With plasma gasification, you can eliminate waste and create useful energy and fuels in one fell swoop. Can you say, "peak garbage?"

....the technology can handle all types of waste, but some can be processed more efficiently than others. Hazardous wastes, they say, are prime candidates for plasma gasification.

"For this sort of process to work, we're focusing on waste materials that have high value in energy content," Vaillancourt said. "Smaller, more segregated waste streams, when they're sorted and prepped, optimize energy production. ... Medical wastes, shredded autos, hazardous wastes are prime candidates."

The S4 technology is currently scaled to handle 25 tons a day, Surma said. That scale is small on residential or commercial waste fronts but "perfect" for regional medical-waste processing, he said. Eventually, the company plans to process 125 tons of waste a day. _NYT_Also more here_and informative video here

Gasification technology can be adapted to turn any carbonaceous material into fuel. The technology is being adapted across much of the globe. From exclusive harbour-side communities in Victoria, BC, to the Green River oil shales of Wyoming, to the mean coal fields of Queensland, Australia, carbon is being converted from less useful to more useful forms.

Adapted from an earlier story at Al Fin Energy