ARMY WASTE TO ARMY POWER

Energy-from-waste powers US army
Jason Palmer,5 October 2009 (BBC News)

"A system that generates energy from rubbish is being sent by defence firm Qinetiq to the US army.

"The PyTEC system heats mixed waste, releasing a gas that can be burned to produce five times more energy than is required to drive the system…[A]lready in use on British navy ship HMS Ocean, [the system] has been "containerised" for US army use."

PyTEC. click to enlarge)

"The approach could see use in urban areas, reducing municipal waste volume by 95% while producing energy.

"The process hinges on pyrolysis, in which waste subjected to high temperatures releases combustible gases…[In] the absence of oxygen…released gases are gathered and stored for later use…This is in contrast to simple incineration or gasification - another energy-from-waste approach that heats particular kinds of waste in the presence of oxygen to create combustible gases…"

PyTEC containerized. (click to enlarge)

"In the PyTEC system, a large screw-shaped column takes in up to 100kg per hour of untreated mixed waste - including glass and tin…The waste is heated, releasing gases that are removed and used to power a steam turbine…

"The systems will be deployed to one of 55 "forward operating bases" in Iraq and Afghanistan - temporary outposts of 600 front-line soldiers that, until now, had no formal arrangements for waste disposal…[T]he size and complexity reduction of the system for US army use means the approach could see application outside the military…"