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Plastic Waste Becomes Fuel in Landfill Innovation
7 Jun
Summary
- A facility converts plastic waste into nearly 10,000 liters of fuel.
- The process uses pyrolysis to break down plastic in the absence of oxygen.
- By-products like syngas and black carbon are also reused or sold.
In Mangaluru, a significant innovation is underway at the Pachanady landfill, where buried plastic waste is being converted into fuel. A newly established waste-to-fuel facility is successfully producing nearly 10,000 liters of pyrolysis oil from legacy waste.
The facility, a collaboration between ARV Conservation Care Limited and Kudla Green Wave, employs a pyrolysis process. Segregated combustible waste fractions, primarily plastic, are fed into a reactor. This process breaks down the plastic in the absence of oxygen, yielding pyrolysis oil, syngas, and black carbon.
The pyrolysis oil has been tested and can serve as industrial fuel, with yields ranging from 15% to 20% depending on plastic quality. The by-products are also valuable: syngas powers the plant's operations, and black carbon is suitable for cement industries and boilers.
This initiative addresses the estimated nine lakh tonnes of legacy waste at the Pachanady landfill. The successful trials have garnered attention from the Swachh Bharat Mission, with suggestions for similar facilities in other corporations.
