Skip to main content

Refuse Derived Fuel - RDF




MSW is a poor-quality fuel and its pre-processing is necessary to prepare fuel pellets to improve its consistency, storage and handling characteristics, combustion behaviour and calorific value. Technological improvements are taking place in the realms of advanced source separation, resource recovery and production/utilisation of recovered fuel in both existing and new plants for this purpose. There has been an increase in global interest in the preparation of RDF containing a blend of pre-processed MSW with coal suitable for combustion in pulverised coal and fluidised bed boilers.
Pelletization of municipal solid waste involves the processes of segregating, crushing, mixing high and low heat value organic waste material and solidifying it to produce fuel pellets or briquettes, also referred to as Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF). The process is essentially a method that condenses the waste or changes its physical form and enriches its organic content through removal of inorganic materials and moisture. The calorific value of RDF pellets can be around 4000 kcal/ kg depending upon the percentage of organic matter in the waste, additives and binder materials used in the process.
The calorific value of raw MSW is around 1000 kcal/kg while that of fuel pellets is 4000 kcal/kg. On an average, about 15–20 tons of fuel pellets can be produced after treatment of 100 tons of raw garbage. Since pelletization enriches the organic content of the waste through removal of inorganic materials and moisture, it can be very effective method for preparing an enriched fuel feed for other thermochemical processes like pyrolysis/ gasification, apart from incineration. Pellets can be used for heating plant boilers and for the generation of electricity. They can also act as a good substitute for coal and wood for domestic and industrial purposes. The important applications of RDF are found in the following spheres:
·                       Cement kilns
·                       RDF power plants
·                       Coal-fired power plants
·                       Industrial steam/heat boilers
·                       Pellet stoves
The conversion of solid waste into briquettes provides an alternative means for environmentally safe disposal of garbage which is currently disposed off in non-sanitary landfills. In addition, the pelletization technology provides yet another source of renewable energy, similar to that of biomass, wind, solar and geothermal energy. The emission characteristics of RDF are superior compared to that of coal with fewer emissions of pollutants like NOx, SOx, CO and CO2.
RDF production line consists of several unit operations in series in order to separate unwanted components and condition the combustible matter to obtain the required characteristics. The main unit operations are screening, shredding, size reduction, classification, separation either metal, glass or wet organic materials, drying and densification. These unit operations can be arranged in different sequences depending on raw MSW composition and the required RDF quality.
Various qualities of fuel pellets can be produced, depending on the needs of the user or market. A high quality of RDF would possess a higher value for the heating value, and lower values for moisture and ash contents. The quality of RDF is sufficient to warrant its consideration as a preferred type of fuel when solid waste is being considered for co-firing with coal or for firing alone in a boiler designed originally for firing coal.

About Salman Zafar


Salman Zafar is a renowned expert in waste management, biomass energy, waste-to-energy and sustainable development. He is proactively engaged in creating mass awareness on renewable energy, waste management and environment. Salman is the CEO of BioEnergy Consult, apart from being the Founder of Cleantech Solutions and EcoMENA. Salman has successfully accomplished a wide range of projects in the areas of biogas technology, biomass energy, waste-to-energy and solid waste management. He has participated in numerous national and international conferences and has authored many articles in reputed journals and magazines. Salman can be reached at salman@bioenergyconsult.com or salman@cleantechloops.com.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Subsidy For Biomass Briquetting Plant Project In India

blog.briquettingpressmachine.com/subsidy-for-biomass-briquetting-plant-project-in-india/ Subsidy for biomass briquetting plant project is the unique feature of this project. The new energy system biomass briquette plant is the great option for need of renewable energy in future. Sustainable energy sources are new expect for future energy sources and that’s why biomass briquetting plant is more preferable in India as well as foreign countries. Government encourages biomass briquette plant project by offering best subsidy plans to buyers. You can find any information of government incentives on biomass briquetting project, here. State Subsidy for  briquetting machine  in India is varies depends upon government taxes. Due to subsidy for biomass briquette plant in India, advantages and profitability of briquetting press machine is great. Being Agriculture country, the current availability of biomass in India is estimated at about 500 millions metric tones per year which is ...

Solar Cell Manufacturers review

There are essentially 3 types of Solar Cell Companies .The tier 1 comprising top 2% do core R&d and are integrated end-to-end.The experience is more than 10 years. The second line about 8% do not indulge in R&d but use partial robotics etc for manufacturing. They have experience of 2-5 years .The rest 90% are assemblers and use human production lines for manual soldering.The projects however have a good capital output ratio .  Here's a good link to review the top Solar Companies  http://www.forbes.com/sites/uciliawang/2014/12/03/guess-who-are-the-top-10-solar-panel-makers-in-the-world/#2e34708f2812 Solar equipment makers are gearing up to expand production again after many of them had to idle production lines or close factories. So who are the top 10 solar panel makers these days? IHS   released its ranking today that put Trina Solar as the top shipper of solar panels in 2014, followed by Yingli Green  Energy . Both companies are based in ...

11 countries leading the charge on renewable energy

https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/11-countries-leading-the-charge-on-renewable-energy/   The need for a swift transition to renewable energy is more urgent than ever. Climate change, driven by the burning coal, oil and gas, is already wreaking havoc on communities, economies and ecosystems right around the world. The easiest, quickest and most effective way of driving down greenhouse gas emissions and giving ourselves the best chance of kicking climate change’s butt is by moving to an energy system based on renewables and storage.  Here are some inspiring countries that are using clever combinations of renewable resources and efficient, targeted policies to drive down their emissions . Sweden In 2012 Sweden reached their target of 50% renewable energy 8 years ahead of schedule. This puts them right on track to reach their 2040 goal of 100% renewable electricity production. How did they do it? By taking advantage of their natural resources and using a com...