High Temperature. Vol. 44, No. 6, 2006, pp. 823828. Translated from Teplofizika Vysokikh Temperatur, Vol.

44, No. 6, 2006, pp. 832837.

Original Russian Text Copyright 2006 by A. N. Bratsev, V. E. Popov, A. F. Rutberg, and S. V. Shtengel.

PLASMA
INVESTIGATIONS

A Facility for Plasma Gasification of Waste

of Various Types
A. N. Bratsev, V. E. Popov, A. F. Rutberg, and S. V. Shtengel
Institute of Electrophysics and Electrical Power Engineering,
Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg, Russia
Received December 15, 2005

AbstractGiven in the paper is a brief description of the main stages in the development of a facility for
plasma gasification of waste. Preliminary experimental data are given, as well as some predicted parameters,
used as a basis in designing and constructing. A detailed description is given of the facility, its basic specifications, and functional capabilities.

INTRODUCTION
With every passing year, the solution of problems
associated with the utilization and processing of solid
waste is becoming an ever more urgent objective of
applied investigations. The available world experience shows that one of advanced ways of solving
these problems is by using plasma technologies for
processing. Especially effective is the use of low-temperature plasma in the processes of gasification and
pyrolysis. Preliminary estimates and calculations
reveal that the resultant synthesis gas, which is a valuable raw material for energy applications, is capable
both of fully recovering the energy spent for the process and of making possible the activities associated
with generation of this energy [16].
A number of pilot facilities have been developed in
the world at present, which realize different schemes
and use plasma generators of different types as the
source of energy [7, 8].

PRELIMINARY EXPERIMENTS
AND CALCULATIONS
Preliminary experiments performed in model facilities revealed that the use of low-temperature plasma
as the source of energy makes possible the elimination
of waste at temperatures sufficient for decomposition
of all constituent materials, including highly toxic
materials. Figure 1 demonstrates the temperature level
of one of the experiments performed in a cylindrical
reactor. The experiments involved the use of a model

composition of medical waste with a moisture content

of 1520% containing 34% by mass rubber, 30% plastic, 11% textile, 9% medicinal preparations, 8% glass,
and 8% metal. The resultant synthesis gas contained
1115% by volume CO and ~18% H2.
The experience gained from preliminary experiments was taken into account in calculations and in
constructing a pilot facility for the preparation of synthesis gas from waste of various types by the plasma
method. The table gives the basic data of calculated
material balances of this process using the example of
T, C
1600
1500
1400
1300
1200
1100
1000
900
800
700

4
3
2
1
0

6
7
Time, hour

Fig. 1. The temperature variation in the course of

experiment in a cylindrical reactor: (1) temperature on the reactor wall, (2) gas temperature at the
reactor outlet, (3, 4) gas temperature at different
points of the reaction chamber.

0018-151X/06/4406-0823 2006 Russian Academy of Sciences and Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.

BRATSEV, POPOV, RUTBERG et al.

824

Basic data on material balances of the process of plasma gasification of waste

Fluxes

Composition of waste
Wood

Components
Waste (combustible
part)

Composition of plasma jet

RDF

Wood

kg/h

% by
mass

kg/h

% by
mass

48.0

96.0

41.0

82.0

RDF

% by
mass

kg/h

kg/h

Composition of gases at the reactor outlet

Wood

% by
mass

kg/h

RDF

% by
mass

kg/h

% by
mass

H2

2.45

1.89

2.64

2.41

CO

43.90

33.87

36.46

33.25

CO2

11.00

8.49

8.12

7.41

H2O

0.62

0.76

0.52

0.76

9.04

6.98

8.51

7.76

N2

61.50

75.37

51.78

75.37

61.50

47.45

51.91

47.33

O2

18.69

22.90

15.73

22.90

0.75

0.58

0.63

0.57

0.79

0.97

0.67

0.97

0.79

0.61

0.67

0.61

HCl

0.26

0.24

H2S

0.27

0.25

NOx

Other
Dust and ash
Total
Temperature in C

2.0

4.0

9.0

18.0

50.0

100.0

50.0

100.0

25

81.6

25

wooden waste and refuse-derived fuel (RDF), i.e.,

specially prepared garbage.
The facility is at present located at test stands of the
Institute of Electrophysics and Electrical Power Engineering of the Russian Academy of Sciences in St.
Petersburg.

DESCRIPTION OF THE FACILITY

The general view of the facility is given in Fig. 2.
The facility includes the following basic components:
a gasifier reactor, plasma generators with supply systems, an afterburner, and a system of cooling and
cleaning waste gases. The tentative capacity of the
facility is 50 kg/h and depends on the type of waste.
High-voltage commercial-frequency dc plasma generators with a power of up to 50 kW are used, which utilize air as the plasma-forming medium.
The process and design solutions realized in the
facility are called upon to:

100.0

1813

68.7

100.0

1995

0.14

0.13

0.20

0.17

129.6

100.0

109.7

100.0

1196

1187

minimize (up to complete elimination) the

amount of harmful impurities, including condensation
resin, in the vapor-gas mixture at the reactor outlet;
minimize the fraction of ballast nitrogen in synthesis gas; and
provide for 70% and higher volume content of
CO and H2 in the mixture.
The possibility of the foregoing is provided for, in
particular, by the choice of the manner of delivery and
direction of blast relative to the layer of waste. In the
facility, the waste and blast are delivered to the shaft
of the gasifier reactor from above and the synthesis
gas is removed from below, i.e., the waste and gas
move in the shaft in parallel flow. The reversed gasification process is realized, in which the waste from
the preparation (drying) zone comes first to the oxidation zone and then to the reduction zone. In the oxidation zone, resin vapors and gaseous hydrocarbons
arising during thermal decomposition of waste burn
up partly, and their unburned part is subjected to
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2006

A FACILITY FOR PLASMA GASIFICATION

825

1
2

Fig. 2. General view of the facility for plasma gasification of waste: (1) gasifier reactor, (2) afterburner, (3)
plasma generator.

heavy cracking. In the reduction zone, water vapors,

carbon dioxide, and resins formed during combustion
are reduced to CO and H2.
The plasma generator used in the facility [9] exhibits a sloping, almost horizontal, dependence of plasma
enthalpy on the flow rate of plasma-forming gas, i.e.,
it makes possible the control, in a fairly wide range, of
the amount of supplied air with an insignificant variation of flow enthalpy. This enables one to carry out the
process with minimal amount of air and, consequently, of ballast nitrogen at a temperature which is sufficient for the elimination of harmful impurities and
maintained at a level of 1200 C and higher. In the
end, the residual content of resins in synthesis gas
3

does not exceed 1 or 2 g/m .

Described below are the structural features of the
basic components of the facility.
The shaft-type gasifier reactor (Fig. 3) is a refractory-lined vertical metal cylinder. The experimental
material charged via top cover completely fills the
inner volume of the reactor and lies on a fire grate
located in the bottom part of the shaft. The reactor
cover, which seals the reactor hermetically on top, is
provided with a charging hatch, an inspection window, and a ball valve with a poking hole; some diagnostic equipment may be installed if required. The
reactor has a widening in the top part a bin for storing enough material for performing one experiment.
The plasma generator as the energy source [10, 11]
may be mounted both on top of the reactor and on one
HIGH TEMPERATURE Vol. 44 No. 6

2006

of the side flanges. In the former case, a flow of hot

plasma from the generator is delivered via special distributing device to the charge center; in the latter case,
the plasma flow is distributed over the shaft circumference via series of uniformly arranged side holes.
The gasifier reactor is additionally provided with several tiers of blast holes via which air or vapor may be
delivered for controlling the internal processes. The
resultant synthesis gas is extracted from the bottom
part of the reactor.
Because of the low capacity and, as a consequence,
small volumes, the thus produced synthesis gas is
burnt after its parameters are diagnosed. Yet another
component of the production circuit serves for this
purpose, namely, the afterburner. In the afterburner,
the resultant synthesis gas is mixed with the required
amount of air and burns up. This apparatus is a watercooled vertical cylindrical shell made of heat-resistant
steel. Synthesis gas and air are delivered to the bottom
part of afterburner. Located a little higher is a permanently effective pilot flame which provides for guaranteed ignition. A nozzle for spraying water for
quenching (rapid cooling) of waste gases is located in
the top part of the apparatus.
Prior to being discharged to the atmosphere, the
combustion products at a temperature of about 500 C
are subjected to cooling and two-stage cleaning of
harmful impurities. Two special devices, scrubbers,
are used for these purposes. One of these is of the
spraying type, and the other one of the packing type.

BRATSEV, POPOV, RUTBERG et al.

826

Waste
4

Air

Vapor

8
10

Synthesis gas

5
6

Slag

Fig. 3. Gasifier reactor: (1) plasma generator, (2) bin with waste, (3) cover, (4) charging hatch, (5) fire grate,
(6) bath with water for quenching the slag, (7) fire grate rotation drive, (8) gas duct, (9) temperature sensors,
(10) gas sampling.
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A FACILITY FOR PLASMA GASIFICATION

827

Valve
9

Flowmeter
Pump
12

Air
10

Water

Vapor

6
P

P C

t
P

t
t

3
t

1
t

11

t
t
t
t

11

Pressure cell

Temperature sensor

Gas sampling

Fig. 4. The scheme of monitoring the operating parameters of the facility: (1) gasifier reactor, (2) plasma generator up to 50 kW in power), (3) afterburner, (4) plasma generator (up to 10 kW in power), (5) cyclone, (6)
spraying scrubber, (7) packing scrubber, (8) fan, (9) exhaust pipe, (10) computer, (11) temperature sensors, (12)
pressure cells.

Both devices are sprinkled by a circulating alkaline

solution.
At the outlet from the system of gas cleaning, the
waste gases are additionally diluted with air and are
scattered in the atmosphere via exhaust pipe.
The entire system is under vacuum provided by a
high-pressure fan located before the exhaust pipe. The
fan drive is equipped with a frequency regulator,
which enables one to smoothly control the rotation
velocity of the fan wheel and maintain rarefaction in
the pipe used to remove the gases from the reactor at
a level of 300100 Pa.
In the process of gasification, the organic component of waste passes a number of successive stages to
be transformed to synthesis gas and escape from the
reaction chamber. As to the mineral component, it
forms the so-called ash residue or slag. Its removal
HIGH TEMPERATURE Vol. 44 No. 6

2006

from the reaction chamber and possible further utilization present an independent problem which is technically complicated and energy-consuming.
For example, liquid slag removal is largely
employed at plasma facilities presently existing in the
world, i.e., a bath of melt is present in these facilities
in one form or another. The main disadvantage of this
method is the high energy consumption. Significant
amount of energy is required to form the melt and
maintain it in the liquid form; this calls into question
the profitability of the facility. Technological difficulties exist in addition to economic aspects. Special
materials and devices need to be employed. The only
rather significant advantage of such systems consists
in that vitrified slag is a material which may be commercially utilized (for example, in road construction
or landscape design).

BRATSEV, POPOV, RUTBERG et al.

828

6
RS-232
Ethernet

Point 1 (1200)
Point 2 (500)
Point 3 (200)
Point 4 (200)

5
3

Fig. 5. Basic diagram of the gas-analyzing complex: (1) primary switching unit, (2) sampling system; (3)
EMG-20-1 time-of-flight mass spectrometer, (4) pump, (5) concentrator, (6) computer.

The problem of slag removal in the facility under

consideration has been solved using the conventional
method [12], namely, through slits in the fire grate. In
order to preclude slagging, provision is made of a
1
slow rotation of the grate (1 to 12 h ), and the efficiency of the process of slag removal is ensured by
positioning the grate at some angle to the horizon. The
slag is quenched in a bath with water, which is located
lower and, at the same time, seals hermetically the
bottom part of reactor against atmospheric air, i.e.,
forms a water lock. The slag is removed from the bath
bottom by a special scraper or pump.

The run of the process is monitored (Fig. 4) by the

readings of temperature sensors and pressure cells
located at the most important points of the flow
scheme. Simultaneously, the flow rates of all material
flows are measured continuously. The abundance of
parameters being monitored (far from all of which are
given in Fig. 4) is attributed to the experimental nature
of the facility.
The most important of the parameters being measured is the composition of resultant synthesis gas. A
gas-analyzing complex involving the use of an EMG20-1 time-of-flight mass spectrometer (made by ZAO
Mettek) (Fig. 5) is used for analysis. The modern
diagnostic equipment with which the facility is provided enables one to collect all information in a personal computer for subsequent analysis and opens up
extensive possibilities for the automation of control of
the gasification process.
Provision is made for the following ways of affecting the processes which occur within the reaction
chamber: the variation of the flow rate of plasmaforming medium, variation of the power characteristics of plasma generator, the provision of additional
plasma generators (up to three pieces), the delivery of
additional vapor or air blast to one or several of four
levels over the height of reaction chamber, the variation of the rate of removal of unburned residues, and
the variation of the rate of percolation of gases
through the layer of waste.

CONCLUSIONS
The designed and developed facility makes it possible to investigate the processes of plasma gasification of a wide range of waste. The chosen line of
research no doubt holds great promise, because the
successful realization of such projects will enable one
to simultaneously solve two problems, namely, those
of utilization of waste and of generation of energy
from renewable sources. The development of such
facilities was made possible by the advent of reliable
and efficient plasma generators.

REFERENCES
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