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How Plasma Arc could sabotage Zero Waste in Capannori. Dr Paul Connett Professore Emerito di Chimica St Lawrence University, Canton, NY pconnett@gmail.com www.AmericanHealthStudies.org www.FluorideALERT.org Capannori, Sept 20, 2009.
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How Plasma Arc could sabotageZero Waste in Capannori Dr Paul Connett Professore Emerito di Chimica St Lawrence University, Canton, NY pconnett@gmail.com www.AmericanHealthStudies.org www.FluorideALERT.org Capannori, Sept 20, 2009
Grazie a Rossano Ercolini (Ambiente e Futuro)per avere organizzato la mia # 42 visita in Italia Rossano Ercolini Ambientefuturo@interfree.it 338-28-66-215
Paul Connett ha parlato in 172 citta’
San Francisco • Popolazione = 850.000 • Carenza di spazio • 50% raccolta differenziata entro il 2000 • 63% raccolta differenziata entro il 2004 • 70% raccolta differenziata entro il 2008 • 72% raccolta differenziata entro il 2009 • 75% raccolta differenziata entro il 2010 (obiettivo) • Zero Rifiuti (o molto vicino!) entro il 2020
San Francisco’s Approach for Easy High Diversion Recycled Paper21% Food Scraps20% Plant Trimmings5% Glass and Plastic Bottles Aluminum and Steel Cans4% Compostable Paper& Fiber 10% Construction and Demolition Waste25% Other15% courtesy of Jack Macy, SF Dept. of Environment
Italia • Oltre 2000 Comuni in Italia stanno ottenendo oltre il 50% di conversione dalla raccolta porta a porta
Porta a Porta • Si risparmia • Crea lavoro • E’ piu’ conveniente per I cittadini • Scompaiano le campane e I contenitorri dalle strade • E’ piu’ attraente per il turismo
Italia • Novara (popolazione = 100,000) ha raggiunto il 70% in soli 18 mesi !
Italia • Nella provincia di Treviso (Priula Consorzio) 22 Comuni hanno raggiunto il 76% di conversione in 5 anni
RISULTATI QUANTITATIVI AUMENTO % RACCOLTA DIFFERENZIATA
RISULTATI QUANTITATIVI AUMENTO % RACCOLTA DIFFERENZIATA >80%
Italia • Villafranca d’Asti (popolazione = 30,000) ha raggiunto l’ 85% (Roberto Cavallo)
Italia • Provincia di Napoli • San Sebastiano al Vesuvio, Volla, Meta di Sorrento, Vico Equense e Sorrento > 70% • Quartiere Colli Aminei = 73% (in tre mesi!)
Nel Feb 24, 2007 Capannori (vicino Lucca) e` diventata la prima citta` a dichiarare una strategia rifiuti zero 2020Rossano Ercolini Ambientefuturo@interfree.it338-28-66-215
1. Tessili e cuoio 16.52 % 2. Pannolini 13.95 % 3. Materiale organico da cucina 10.56 % 4. Altra plastica: non imballo 9.98 % 5. Imballaggi cellulosici poliaccopiati 8.05 % 6. Imballaggi poliaccopiati in plastica 7.45 % 7. Imballaggi flessibili in plastica 6.81 % 8. Materiale organico da giardino 4.64 % 9. Imballaggi rigidi in plastica (non bottiglie) 3.23 % 10 Giornali (quotidiani e riviste) 2.54 % FRAZIONE RESIDUA –Capannori Questa e’ l’analisi del 17% che rimane dopo la separazione dell’ 83% del materiale raccolto porta a porta
Come gestiamo la frazione residua: un momento cruciale della filosofia Rifiuti Zero • L’incenerimento cerca di far sparire la frazione residua • Rifiuti Zero 2020 ha bisogno di rendere i residui MOLTO VISIBILI, perché… • Frazione Residua = cattiva progettazione industriale e • Cattive decisioni d’acquisto
Plasma arc plants are part of family of technologies competing with mass burn incinerators (gasification, pyrolysis and plasma arc/torch) with very little proven commercial track record • All claim NOT to be incinerators, but all involve two stages: • 1) the conversion of solid waste into a gas, • 2) the burning of the gas, producing many of the same problems as a regular incinerator • So the more appropriate names would be: • Gasifying incinerator • Pyrolyzing incinerator • Plasma arc incinerator
For every 3-4 tons of trash you get about one ton of ash ELECTRICITY TURBINE WET SCRUBBER SECONDARY CHAMBER DE-NOX STEAM FABRIC FILTER TEMP < 200oC CHUTE BOILER SEMI- DRY SCRUBBER Ca(OH) 2 SUSPENSION ACTIVATED CHARCOAL GRATES AMMONIA INJECTION TRASH FLY ASH BOTTOM ASH
Incenerimento di massa NON SOSTENIBILE Perche’ distrugge risorse di materiali limitate Torcia al plasma NON SOSTENIBILE Perche’ distrugge risorse di materiali limitate Paragone tra Torcia al plasma con l’incenerimento di massa
Incenerimento con Torcia al plasma -problemi pratici • Il problema con tutte le tecnologie di gassificazione aumentano se si passa da progetti pilota su piccola scala a progetti industriali su scala commerciale.
Incenerimento con Torcia al plasma - chimici constraints • Non c’e’ magia che annulli la chimica di base. • Quello che entra = quello che esce • Abbiamo bisogno di attenti studi di bilanci di massa per vedere dove finiscono il mmercurio, l’arsenico, il cadmio, il piombo, il cloro, il fluoro, e il bromo :nei fanghi, nei prodotti metallici, nelle ceneri leggere o nell’aria. • Il problema finale riguarda la tematica delle nanoparticles. Al momento queste non vengono ne’ regolamentate, ne monitorate ma hanno delle conseguenze sulla salute molto gravi..
Ogni 3-4 ton di rifiuti ottieni circa 1 ton di ceneri ELECTRICITY TURBINE WET SCRUBBER SECONDARY CHAMBER DE-NOX STEAM FABRIC FILTER TEMP < 200oC CHUTE BOILER SEMI- DRY SCRUBBER Ca(OH) 2 SUSPENSION ACTIVATED CHARCOAL GRATES AMMONIA INJECTION TRASH FLY ASH BOTTOM ASH
PLASCO • Has built a 100 ton per day pilot plant in Ottawa, Canada • Is aggressively marketing technology all over Canada, US and some other countries
PLASCO CEO Rod Bryden says: • 1) Filter ash goes back into furnace. • 2) System produces no dioxin because no oxygen available. • 3) System destroys nanoparticles. • 4) Slag to be used in asphalt & concrete. • 5) Salt to be used on roads. • 6) Sulfur to be used in agriculture
PLASCO plant in Ottawa a fiasco! • When officials from Los Angeles visited the plant it wasn’t working • Operators tried to start plant three times without success • L.A. dropped plant from its plan – because it hasn’t operated for 1000 hours in a one year period • Other communities in California and British Columbia have cancelled project
Solid converted to gas At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO
Gas Solid converted to gas At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO
Gas Solid converted to gas Solid At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO
Gas Solid converted to gas Solid At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO Vitrified slag
External energy Gas Solid converted to gas Solid At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO Vitrified slag
Gas Solid converted to gas Gas Cooling & Cleaning Internal Combustion engine At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO
When combustion engines not working F L A R E Gas Solid converted to gas Gas Cooling & Cleaning At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO
? Gas Solid converted to gas Gas Cooling & Cleaning Internal Combustion engine At about 600 -700 deg. C PLASCO
Heat Recovery unit Heat
NaOH solution Heat Recovery unit Wet Scrubber NaCl NaF NaBr NaCN ? Heat “Salt” + water
Activated Carbon NaOH solution Heat Recovery unit Wet Scrubber NaCl NaF NaBr NaCN ? Carbon + mercury + dioxins etc Heat “Salt” + water
Activated Carbon NaOH solution Heat Recovery unit Carbon Filter Plus bacteria Wet Scrubber NaCl NaF NaBr NaCN ? Sulfur Carbon + mercury + dioxins etc Heat “Salt” + water
Activated Carbon NaOH solution Heat Recovery unit Carbon Filter Plus bacteria Wet Scrubber NaCl NaF NaBr NaCN ? Sulfur Carbon + mercury + dioxins etc Heat “Salt” + water
PLASCO CEO Rod Bryden says: • 1) Filter ash goes back into furnace. • 2) System produces no dioxin because no oxygen available. • 3) System destroys nanoparticles. • 4) Slag to be used in asphalt & concrete. • 5) Salt to be used on roads. • 6) Sulfur to be used in agriculture
Recycling fly ash • Modern incinerators use activated carbon filters to remove mercury • This carbon is part of the fly ash, and this should then be a SINK for the mercury (and sent to special facilities for recovery or containment) • However if you put the fly ash back into the furnace then you will release ALL the mercury again • There is only place left for the mercury to go (and other volatile metals) and that is into the AIR.
No dioxin because no air • There is plenty of air in incoming waste! • Dioxin emitted in other plasma arc facilities
Yang & Kim (2004). Characteristics of dioxins and metals emission from radwaste plasma arc melter system. Chemosphere 57: 421-428 • When PVC was fed into the high-temperature melter, a significant quantity of PCDD/Fs, cadmium and lead was emitted. • Wet scrubbing with rapid quenching, as well as a low temperature two-step fine filtration, or both of them together cannot effectively control the volatile metal species and gas-phase PCDD/Fs. • The removal of PVC from the feed waste stream must also be effective to reduce the emissions of the PCDD/Fs, cadmium and lead species.
Using salt on roads • “Salt” will not be pure salt (NaCl) - could be problems with other salts which are very toxic , e.g. sodium fluoride
Using sulfur • Using sulfur in agriculture could be problem if it is contaminated with mercury etc.