Garbage To Fuel: Technology's Impact on Saving the Earth
Plasma zapping to turn trash into usable fuel and a glasslike byproduct is not really a new idea. The basic premise is that burning trash at extremely high temperatures (around 8000 degrees centigrade) produces plasma, which breaks the trash down into it's molecular components. This "plasma gasification" produces a byproduct called "syngas", which is mostly hydrogen and carbon monoxide. This can be converted into fuel. The other byproduct is something that looks like molten black glass, which can be ground up and used to make asphalt.Sounds, wonderful, doesn't it? All our garbage, going into a space age converter, that is energy negative, and produces usable byproducts. You know the old adage, "If it seems to good to be true, it probably is?" This time, it seems that the disadvantages to this technology may outweigh the advantages. First, even the companies touting this technology admit that although the process eliminates all VOC's, the resultant sludge (the black glass) could be full of toxic heavy
There is nothing new or evolutionary here..... only a marginal, wishful technology promoted to the hopeful by a new crop of deceiving MBAs." Japan tested out the technology and had trouble controlling the dioxin emissions when chlorine was present in the trash. Supposedly, today's technology works at more extreme temperatures, which will eliminate this problem. There is also the possibility that as the syngas cools, it may form/reform toxic emissions.
Some topics in this essay:
,
Power Electric,
Lucie FL,
Ottowa Canada,
MJ Cronin,
toxic materials,
black glass,
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Approximate Word count = 686
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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