Plasma Waste Destruction

Hrabovsky, Milan; van der Walt, Izak Jacobus

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-32003-8_32-1

Milan Hrabovsky⁹ &
Izak Jacobus van der Walt¹⁰

371 Accesses

Abstract

This chapter analyzes the physical and technological aspects of waste treatment using thermal plasma technology. The waste treatment problems are briefly characterized and an overview of methods of waste treatment is presented. Main industrial-scale plasma waste treatment units installed in the world are described. Basic principles of plasma waste treatment systems are presented and processes of waste-to-energy conversion by plasma gasification of organics are analyzed. Potential advantages of using plasma for gasification are summarized, fundamental chemistry of the plasma gasification process as well as basic thermodynamics, the energy balance, and the kinetics of the process are described. Examples of results of thermal plasma gasification of various organic wastes are presented. Produced gas compositions for different feed materials are shown, including sawdust, wooden pellets, brown coal, polyethylene, and pyrolytic oil produced from car tires. The results show that it is possible to produce syngas of high hydrogen and carbon monoxide content, with low levels of contaminants, and with a high calorific value. Plasma gasification is a process with huge potential for converting low-value materials to a high-value fuel, syngas. The process offers at the same time a means to convert electrical energy to chemical energy, which is particularly relevant to the storage of renewable energy.

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Acknowledgments

I.J. van der Walt gratefully acknowledges Mr. A.A. Jansen and Prof. P.L. Crouse for their valuable guidance and inputs as scientific mentors.

I.J. van der Walt gratefully acknowledges support from Necsa, DOE, and DST for allowing time to write this work and for support with funding, laboratory space, and plasma equipment.

M. Hrabovsky gratefully acknowledges the support of the Grant Agency of CR under the project number GA15-19444S.

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Authors and Affiliations

Institute of Plasma Physics ASCR, Prague, Czech Republic
Milan Hrabovsky
R&D Plasma development, The South African Nuclear Energy Corporation, Plelindaba, North West Province, South Africa
Izak Jacobus van der Walt

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Milan Hrabovsky
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Izak Jacobus van der Walt
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Correspondence to Milan Hrabovsky .

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Editors and Affiliations

Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Francis A. Kulacki

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Politecnica/COPPE, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro,, Rio de Janeiro, Brasília, Brazil
Renato Cotta
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Riverside, California, USA
Kambiz Vafai
Herff College of Engineering, The University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
Sumanta Acharya
Gas Technology Institute, Illinois, Illinois, USA
Yaroslav Chudnovsky
Rm 8260, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Javad Mostaghimi
Cekmeköy Campus, Özyegin University, Çekmeköy - Istanbul, Turkey
Pinar Mengüc
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
Vijay K. Dhir
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Javad Mostaghimi Ph.D

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Hrabovsky, M., van der Walt, I.J. (2017). Plasma Waste Destruction. In: Kulacki, F. (eds) Handbook of Thermal Science and Engineering. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32003-8_32-1

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32003-8_32-1
Received: 24 May 2017
Accepted: 22 June 2017
Published: 02 November 2017
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-32003-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-32003-8
eBook Packages: Springer Reference EngineeringReference Module Computer Science and Engineering

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