Waste to Energy
Generating electricity from waste
Progressive changes in social attitudes, such as the awareness of the impact of single use plastics, alongside evolving regulatory frameworks are making the disposal of waste to landfill sites increasingly unacceptable.
Whilst waste recycling, or avoiding its generation in the first place is the ideal, waste to energy (WtE) facilities offer a means of transforming waste from a social burden into a profitable revenue stream. Once any recyclables have been removed, the remaining waste is combusted under carefully controlled conditions and the heat produced used to generate electricity in much the same way as a traditional thermal power plant.
Decarbonising electricity generation from waste
Although WtE plants offer a solution to waste disposal, significant carbon emissions can result – up to one tonne of CO2 being emitted for each tonne of waste disposed of in this manner.
As with more conventional thermal electricity generation, C-Capture’s unique, low-cost, low-impact carbon capture technology offers a route to decarbonising this increasingly important activity and in those cases where the waste to be burned contains high levels of material of biological origin (e.g. crop waste), there is the potential for net negative emissions, where CO2 is effectively removed from the atmosphere.