Evaluation of energy gain from the segregation of organic materials from municipal solid waste in gasification processes

The energy recovered from increasing amounts of municipal solid waste (MSW) is very advantageous as a source of sustainable energy. An option to convert MSW to useful products is the production of syngas for electric power generation. This strategy is viable with new and emerging technologies based on gasification. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the energy potential of MSW from its segregation. Through the obtained results, it was verified the expressive energy gain with segregation and consequent drying of MSW. It was estimated a production of 368 kW-770 kW, per tonne of processed MSW, in the studied gasification system. Therefore, the pre-treatment of waste through segregation may be a practical mean of achieving a sustainable route of electric power generation from MSW through gasification and combustion, as long as the process of segregation is executed through simple steps and with low cost. With the segregation of organic materials, in addition to doubling the amount of energy produced by the gasifier, it is also possible to make organic matter available for biodigestion and/or processes for production of gases with high aggregate value.