Separation & Cleaning
MSW dumped in landfills contains everything from refrigerators to recyclable materials to yard waste. Of this material about 50% to 60% is cellulosic material that can be converted into energy products. (Source: United States Environmental Protection Agency)
Landfill space in the United States is diminishing and being forced to move further and further distances away from the source of the waste. As a result, the disposal costs continue to rise. Once disposed of in the landfill, cellulosic material and plastics break down via natural processes, releasing methane and carbon dioxide (greenhouse gasses) into the atmosphere, which contribute to global warming.
Today, the only operating waste-to-energy plants are mass burn or incineration plants that burn garbage and produce electricity. Conventional sorting systems sort most of the metals in the garbage via pick and pull lines that remove unwanted materials. Even the most advanced waste to energy systems do little more than grind the hand-separated garbage after removing recoverable metals. The “fuel” derived from the garbage contains a significant amount of toxins that are released in the burning process. As a result, sophisticated and capital intensive scrubbers and cleaners are required in all incinerator and mass burn facilities in order to comply with local, state and federal emissions regulations.
Our PSC technology eliminates pick and pull lines by using a steam classification process to separate, and clean the various fractions in municipal solid waste. Our process removes a substantial amount of the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the garbage that allows us to burn the VOCs in a standard thermal oxidizer thereby avoiding any release into the atmosphere. The process generates a cellulosic material that has a moisture content around 50%. When removed from the process vessel, the cellulosic material is sorted from the recyclables and other contents of the garbage via shaker screens. The cellulosic material, which we call “Process Engineered Fuel,” or PEF, falls through the screens. The recyclable materials are recovered and the remainder, less than 20% of the total input, is sent to the landfill. The cellulosic material is used in our process and the recyclable materials are sold. As a result of this process, we recover 80% to 90% of the material in the garbage for commercial uses.
The PSC Process begins with the delivery of MSW to a tipping floor. Oversized bulky materials such as appliances and furniture are removed via hand. The remaining MSW is conveyed into a PSC Vessel and the vessel is sealed and pressurized. The MSW is agitated constantly while steam is injected. Excess moisture and volatiles are vented and captured for destruction during and at the end of the process cycle. After the PSC Vessel is depressurized, the sterile materials are conveyed to separation equipment where delaminated and crushed aluminum, steel, plastics and glass are removed.
The PSC Vessel and its associated equipment have been designed to prevent the contamination of the processed waste by raw waste. The major end product is a homogenous cellulosic biomass (PEF). The residue remaining for disposal at the landfill is sterilized and mostly inert.