Search

Energy crisis and solid waste management have remained challenging issues for authorities in Pakistan. These issues tend to rise with increasing population and economic growth of the society. Therefore, environmentally sustainable waste‐to‐energy program must be part of the waste management system since they may substitute fossil fuels with renewable energy sources by enabling energy recovery instead of landfill of solid wastes. In this work, the combustion characteristics of fossil fuel (coal) and solid wastes such as municipal solid waste (MSW) and refuse‐derived fuel (RDF) were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) to compare their thermal decomposition behavior. Furthermore, proximate and ultimate analyses of these samples were carried out along with their heating values. The TGA profiles of samples indicate low reactivity of coal, whereas solid wastes present greater reaction rate reflecting their low ash and high volatile contents. It was found that the heating value of RDF sample was close to that of coal. The obtained thermal data were used to calculate the kinetic parameters using Arrhenius and Coats‐Redfern models with different reaction mechanisms. According to these models, the fuels could be arranged in order of activation energy as coal > RDF > MSW. The percentage difference between activation energy values found from Arrhenius and Coats‐Redfern models was in the range of 4.1%‐26.5%. However, the Coats‐Redfern model exhibited consistency in activation energy values, followed by a high value of R2. These results of the TGA could be very helpful to predict the combustion dynamics and confirm that MSW and RDF may be used as sustainable fuels, to meet the prevailing challenges of the energy crisis and solid waste management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multistage enthalpy extraction technology (MEET) provides an improvement in integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) technology and offers an attractive alternative of conventional pulverised coal and natural gas power generation. It certainly improves efficiency and allows better emission compliance. Although the operating cost of IGCC is low, high capital costs threaten its competitiveness. Improvements in turbine design and gas clean-up system have been the focus of studies to make it economical. The competitive nature of power generation industry has so far threatened IGCC technology. For a country such as Pakistan where generation of electrical energy is of major concern, all options including effective coal utilisation need to be pursued. The option of employing MEET is worth considering, which offers considerable process improvement and allows the utilisation of a variety of coals. Multistage enthalpy extraction technology (MEET) technology is briefly discussed here along with its suitability for the Pakistani energy situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]