Refuse Derived Fuel
A type of Waste Derived Fuel, Refuse Derived Fuel or RDF has been prepared by a treatment process to produce a broad specification fuel, which is still considered to be a waste, that can be used by an EfW plant. The specification will depend upon the plant to be used, but typically at the most basic level will have had metals and inert materials removed, removal of some recyclables and limited shredding/bag splitting. More refined RDF will have had drying, shredding to a uniform size and Moisture Content reduction. At the very high end of production the RDF will move towards being a SRF.
Moving Refuse Derived Fuel and Solid Recovered Fuel from the UK abroad requires compliance with the Transfrontier Shipment Regulations (TFS) and in simple terms requires an application for movement to be made to the relevant authorities that requires a number of key measures to be satisfied before this can occur.
Export Yearly[1]
| Year | Tonnage Shipped | Increase on Previous | Percentage Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 11,102 | - | - |  |
| 2011 | 251,450 | +240,348 | 2164.9% | |
| 2012 | 1,009,971 | +758,520 | 301.7% | |
| 2013 | 1,963,362 | +953,390 | 48.6% | |
| 2014 | 2,661,870 | +698,508 | 35.6% | |
| 2015 | 3,211,635 | +549,765 | 20.7% | |
| 2016 | 3,530,858 | +319,222 | 9.9% | |
| 2017 | 3,460,663 | -70,194 | -2.0% | |
| 2018 | 3,222,711 | -237,952 | -6.9% | |
| 2019 (Quarters 1-3) | 2,008,235 | -1,214,476 | -37.7% |
Fuel Specifications
We have pulled together a number of specification (spec) sheets to produce give an overall feel for the spec of Refuse Derived Fuel and Solid Recovered Fuel, as shown in the table below. In reality the spec is usually very tightly controlled by the receiving plant.
| Measure | Units | Residual Waste[2] | RDF | SRF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net Calorific Value | MJ/kg (as received) | 9 - 15 | 10 - 15 | >18.5 |
| Moisture | wt% (dry basis) | 10 - 40 | <20 | <15 |
| Biomass Content[3] | wt% (dry basis) | >45 | >65 | >65 |
| Ash Content | wt% (dry basis) | 10 - 30 | <20 | <15 |
| Sulphur | wt% (dry basis) | < 0.85 | <0.5 | <0.5 |
| Nitrogen | wt% (dry basis) | <1.5 | <0.8 | <0.8 |
| Lead | mg/kg | <200 | <100 | <80 |
| Chlorine CI | wt% (dry basis) | <1.2 | <0.6 | <0.6 |
| Zinc[4] | wt% (dry basis) | <0.1 | ||
| Sodium and Potassium[4] | wt% (dry basis) | <0.8 | ||
| Mercury | mg/kg | <2 | <1 | <0.6 |
| Nickel | mg/kg | <200 | <100 | <100 |
| Thallium | mg/kg | <20 | <10 | <10 |
| Ferrous and non-ferrous metals | wt% (dry basis) | <7 | <3 | <1 |
| Non combustible material | wt% (dry basis) | <15 | <10 | <5 |
| Glass | wt% (dry basis) | <5 | <2 | <1 |
| Dust <1mm | wt% (dry basis) | <5 | <5 | <5 |
| Bulk Density (loose) | kg/m3 | 100 - 275 | 100 - 175 | 185 |
| Particle Size (max dimension) | mm | 500 | 300 | <40 |