Is your next tank of gas from...seat foam?
As
previously posted,
the automobile is the number one recycled product in the U.S. Most of the recycled materials are re-used for different
purposes, like floormats being turned into sound-deadening materials.But how about fuel? In a new study, Changing World Technologies, Inc. used a process known as "thermal conversion" to recycle foam seats and other automotive parts into oil. The process involved pounding the scraps into a soupy mix, then subjecting it to 600 degree heat. The resulting oil was then separated from the waste water. One researcher estimated about 64 percent of the raw material was successfully processed into oil. The results were released by the U.S. Council for Automotive Research (USCAR).
Several hurdles from the process, such as carbon dioxide emissions and heavy metals, would have to be dealt with before the process ever becomes commonplace. Also, there is intense debate of what automotive parts would be allowed to be processed into fuel.
The USCAR decides this week if the process requires another study. See here on how General Motors is converting landfill gas into natural gas.
[Source: Detroit News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Cervus 8:53PM (4/08/2006)
This would be the first widescale use of Thermal Conversion beyond CWT's plant in Carthage. I really hope it succeeds. Even a few thousand barrels per day would be nice.
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Scott 11:21PM (4/08/2006)
But isn't this going to be a heavily energy-negative process? In other words, won't you have to put in just as much energy in the form of heat (which costs money to use) to create this "oil"?
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Cervus 12:56AM (4/09/2006)
Scott:
CWT claims an efficiency of 85%. They only use 15 units of energy out of the 100 units in the waste they process.
Some good info on the process here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_Depolymerization
There's an article about them in the April 2006 edition of Discover.
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mcd 3:21PM (4/10/2006)
and how much oil is going to be needed to heat the foam to 600 degrees now?
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Thinker 6:49PM (4/11/2006)
Not quite, guys.
The process claims to be 85% efficient, based on the energy available in the feedstock (foam). Since 100% of the foam now goes to landfill, we are essentially talking about free energy.
The heat needed to get the feedstock to 600 degrees, comes from two sources: 1. Heat is recovered from processed feedstock. 2. A byproduct is gas that is burned to heat the feedstock.
It is also claimed that ~3.6% of the energy in the oil needs to imported as electricity. So strictly speaking you have a net energy recovery of 100/3.6 ~ 28 units of energy for every unit of energy invested.
See the link below for an energy balance on turkey guts. It is a bit dated, but it helps one to understand the concept. See Figure 6 on page 8.
http://www.itcnet.org/Fire%20web%20site/B_Articles%20&%20Reports/Changing%20World%20Technologies%20-%20Thermal%20Process.pdf
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