Advanced Conversion Technology

Advanced Conversion Technology (ACT) treatment of waste is considered to be the next generation of thermal treatment and can be applied to a variety of feedstocks.

ACT technologies are designed to recover energy in the form of electricity, heat, gas or fuels, principally using the processes of Pyrolysis or Gasification. The primary difference between ACT treatments and traditional combustion is the control of the environment in which the thermal processes take place; ACT processes create an oxygen-limited environment where the heating takes place.

An eligible ACT station for ROC or FIT is a generating station which generates electricity by the use of Advanced Fuel (gas or liquid formed by Gasification or Pyrolysis of Biomass or Waste). Most existing ACT plants produce a gaseous product known as Syngas (i.e. a mixture of methane, hydrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and other hydrocarbon gases). However, there are some processes in development that either produce combustible liquids or mixtures of combustible liquids and gases.

The ACT Efficiency is a numerical value expressed as a percentage that reflects the energy efficiency of an Advanced Conversion Technology for the processing of waste over period of time.