Sewage Sludge Gasification Process Optimization for Combined Heat and Power Generation

Alberto Carotenuto, Simona Di Fraia, Nicola Massarotti, Szymon Sobek, M. Rakib Uddin (), Laura Vanoli and Sebastian Werle ()
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Alberto Carotenuto: Dipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli Studi di Napoli “Parthenope”, 80143 Napoli, Italy
Simona Di Fraia: Dipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli Studi di Napoli “Parthenope”, 80143 Napoli, Italy
Nicola Massarotti: Dipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli Studi di Napoli “Parthenope”, 80143 Napoli, Italy
Szymon Sobek: Department of Heating, Ventilation and Dust Removal Technology, Silesian University of Technology, Stanisława Konarskiego St. 20, 44100 Gliwice, Poland
M. Rakib Uddin: Dipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli Studi di Napoli “Parthenope”, 80143 Napoli, Italy
Laura Vanoli: Dipartimento di Ingegneria, Università degli Studi di Napoli “Parthenope”, 80143 Napoli, Italy
Sebastian Werle: Department of Thermal Technology, Silesian University of Technology, Konarskiego 22, 44100 Gliwice, Poland

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 12, 1-22

Abstract: This work aims to assess the effect of the operating parameters of the gasifying agent preheating temperature and equivalence ratio (ER) on the conversion of sewage sludge (SS) to syngas through gasification and combined heat and power (CHP) generation. A novel gasification model was simulated in Aspen Plus to represent a fixed-bed updraft gasifier to generate syngas from SS through an equilibrium approach restricted by temperature. The novelty of this work is that the model was developed by applying the gasifying agent preheating temperature as an operating variable instead of the gasification temperature. It was calibrated by using a set of experimental values and then validated by comparing the numerical results with the experimental outcomes related to nine different operating conditions of air preheating temperatures and ER. A good agreement between the simulation and experimental results was observed. The optimum gasification process parameters of the air preheating temperature and ER were predicted to be 150 °C and 0.2, respectively. The CHP generation potentiality of SS was assessed to be 2.54 kW/kg SS as dry solids (DS), of which 0.81 kW was electrical and the remainder was thermal power. The conversion of SS to CHP through the proposed treatment can reduce 0.59 kg CO₂/kg SS as DS emissions compared with that of natural gas combustion to generate a similar quantity of energy.

Keywords: sewage sludge; gasification; air preheating temperature; equivalence ratio; syngas; combined heat and power; Aspen Plus (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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