Energy from Waste: Difference between revisions

In legal terms, a '''‘waste [[incineration]] plant’''' means any stationary or mobile technical unit and equipment dedicated to the [[treatment|thermal treatment]] of waste, with or without [[recovery]] of any energy generated, or whether the gases resulting from the thermal [[treatment]] are subsequently incinerated <ref>As an example, a [[Pyrolysis]] facility that burnt the produced [[Syngas]] to generate electricity would be Incineration, whereas a [[Pyrolysis]] facility that processed [[Syngas]] for vehicle fuel would not be classed as an incinerator</ref><ref name='ref01'>European Commission, 2010 Industrial Emissions Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010 on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control). Official Journal of the European Union.</ref>. If the Incinerator can be shown to meet the energy efficiency measurement of [[R1]] it can be classified as a [[recovery]] facility, if it cannot it is classified as a [[disposal]] facility<ref>https://data.gov.uk/dataset/8287c81b-2288-4f14-9068-52bfda396402/r1-status-of-incinerators-in-england</ref>. This means that an incinerator that generates power, and is a net exporter of power, can be described as an '''[[Energy from Waste]]''' ([[EfW]]) facility. An incinerator that is an [[EfW]] facility that meets the [[R1]] criteria is the only type of incinerator under the legislation that can legitimately describe itself as an '''[[Energy Recovery Facility]]''' ([[ERF]]).  

The most recent recent [[BAT|BREF]] guidance<ref name="Inc">[https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/news/new-eu-environmental-standards-waste-incineration BAT and BREF for Waste incineration]</ref> also sets out how incinerators can be described by:

* the nature of the waste (e.g. Hazardous Waste Incinerators), '''and in WikiWaste includes [[Hazardous Waste Incineration]] and [[Clinical Waste Incineration]]''' (which may or may not be [[EfW]]

* the method/type of incineration (e.g. High Temperature Incinerators) (which may or may not be [[EfW]])

|rowspan=2|[[Gasification]]||rowspan=2|500 - 1600||rowspan=2| [[Advanced Thermal Treatment]] ([[ATT]] and [[ACT]])||[[Rotary]]

The large majority of incinerators built and operating to date in the UK are based on 'conventional' [[Combustion]] type incineration, with some development of [[Gasification]] and [[Pyrolysis]] types over the last 10 to 15 years in the UK, with varying degrees of success. These [[ATT]]/[[ACT]] types of technology were encouraged by the [[subsidy]] available for power generation under the [[Renewables Obligation]].  

The three types of incineration'[[EfW]] can have a variety of different furnaces (also termed kilns and reactors) and associated systems to ensure the uniform treatment and residence time of the waste in the kiln/reactor. The most common kilns/furnaces are [[Grate]] based (there are at least five different type of [[Grate]]), with [[Fluidised Bed]] kilns/furnaces more commonly used in [[Gasification]].  

In the most widely used [[EfW]] process, [[waste]] is [[treatment|treated]] via [[Combustion]] on a moving [[Grate]]. Air is introduced above and beneath the [[Grate]] in carefully controlled amounts to ensure proper [[Combustion]]. Good combustion is needed to manage the emissions from an [[EfW]] facility. The hot gases are then released are directed to a boiler to recover the heat. The combustion gases are then cleaned in several stages to strict standards set by the [[Industrial Emissions Directive]], which are monitored by the [[Environment Agency]] ([[EA]]) in England.

The residual [[Incinerator Bottom Ash]] or [[IBA]] left after the combustion process is generally around 20% of the input tonnage by weight for a [[Residual Waste EFW]] plant, but will vary in quantity and chemical composition depending on the composition of the waste feedstock. This often contains minerals and metals along with non-combustible ash, which is increasingly being recycled into [[Secondary Aggregates]], with some being used for the building of roads once processed (after processing [[IBA]] is termed [[IBBA]]<ref name='ref3'>WRAP, 2019. [http://www.wrap.org.uk/sites/files/wrap/6_O_And_EFW_Guidance_Outputs.pdf EfW Outputs and Residues Guidance on the management of energy outputs and residues including air pollution control residues and incinerator bottom ash. EfW Development Guidance.] [online] [Accessed 30 Oct. 2019].</ref>.

The combustion gases from [[EfW]] are cleaned in several stages to a strict standard set by the [[Waste Incineration Directive]] ([[WID]]), which are monitored by the Environment Agency (EA) in England. This gas cleaning results in a residual [[Flue Ash]] which is around 3% of the overall input to the plant by weight depending on the level of gas cleaning required. [[Fly Ash]] and [[Air Pollution Control]] (APC) residues are often combined. [[APC]] residues contain ash, carbon and lime in varying quantities and is considered a [[Hazardous Waste]] to be disposed of in a [[Hazardous Landfill]], or sometimes to be further processed through washing or stabilisation in order to make it a non-hazardous waste and allow it to be disposed of in a [[Non-hazardous Landfill]]<ref name='ref3' />.

The standards for emissions limits, monitoring, waste reception and treatment standards that are acceptable for waste incineration plants were set in the [[Waste Incineration Directive]] (2000/76/EC) and updated in the [[Industrial Emissions Directive]] (2010/75/EU)<ref name='ref01' />. The [[Industrial Emissions Directive]] provides the framework for regulating across the EU and requires such installations to hold a [[Environmental Permit|Permit]] based on the use of [[Best Available Technique]] ([[BAT]]).