Waste to Carbon: Estimating the Energy Demand for Production of Carbonized Refuse-Derived Fuel

Paweł Stępień, Małgorzata Serowik, Jacek A. Koziel and Andrzej Białowiec
Additional contact information
Paweł Stępień: Faculty of Life Sciences and Technology, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences (Poland), 51-630 Wroclaw, Poland
Małgorzata Serowik: Faculty of Life Sciences and Technology, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences (Poland), 51-630 Wroclaw, Poland
Jacek A. Koziel: Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Iowa State University (US), Ames, IA 50011-3270, USA
Andrzej Białowiec: Faculty of Life Sciences and Technology, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences (Poland), 51-630 Wroclaw, Poland

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 20, 1-17

Abstract: We have been advancing the concept of carbonized refuse-derived fuel (CRDF) by refuse-derived fuel (RDF) torrefaction as improved recycling to synergistically address the world’s energy demand. The RDF is a combustible fraction of municipal solid waste (MSW). Many municipalities recover RDF for co-firing with conventional fuels. Torrefaction can further enhance fuel properties and valorize RDF. Energy demand for torrefaction is one of the key unknowns needed for scaling up CRDF production. To address this need, a pioneering model for optimizing site-specific energy demand for torrefaction of mixed RDF materials was developed. First, thermogravimetric and differential scanning calorimetry analyses were used to establish thermal properties for eight common RDF materials. Then, the model using the %RDF mix, empirical thermal properties, and torrefaction temperature was developed. The model results for individual RDF components fitted well (R 2 ≥ 0.98) with experimental torrefaction data. Finally, the model was used to find an optimized RDF site-specific mixture with the lowest energy demand. The developed model could be a basis for estimating a net energy potential from the torrefaction of mixed RDF. Improved models could be useful to make plant-specific decisions to optimize RDF production based on the energy demand that depends on highly variable types of MSW and RDF streams.

Keywords: waste to carbon; municipal waste; energy recovery; CRDF; torrefaction model; circular economy; refuse-derived fuel; zero waste; waste management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/20/5685/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/20/5685/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:20:p:5685-:d:276594

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().