Despite nearly all UK citizens having access to constant clean & affordable electricity, the Covid19 pandemic has shown how restrictions have affected our electricity energy usage & needs. Add to this the energy crisis caused by the soaring cost of gas & the need to secure alternative & sustainable energy supplies has become of paramount importance.
During the most stringent Covid19 lockdown’s, electricity usage across Europe, India & China decreased. However, during the easing of lockdown restrictions in India from October 2020 & a stronger economic environment saw electricity demand (weather corrected) more than 10% above October 2019 levels, in line with pre Covid-19 trends. (1)
In China, once the Covid19 restrictions were lifted & industry returned to operation, from August 2020 on, the weather corrected demand was systematically 6% higher than 2019 levels. (1)
With ever increasing demand for renewable, safe, clean & affordable energy comes a need to find more innovative ways to transform the bi-products & waste produced by human endeavours, into part of the renewables mix.
One such company seeking out ways to transform industrial waste streams, non-recyclable plastics & tyres into energy, is Powerhouse Energy plc.
Powerhouse Energy plc
The Powerhouse Energy plc DMG® Technology is the pioneering process of recovering energy from unrecyclable plastic, end-of-life tyres & other waste streams through small scale gasification into an energy rich clean syngas (synthetic gas similar to natural gas) from which electrical power & hydrogen can be produced. (2)
Traditionally, tyres, contaminated plastics & plastic from industry cannot be recycled through domestic channels & more often than not, finds it’s way into landfill.
The outputs from the DMG® Technology can be built to suit customer needs such as:
- Energy rich syngas with chemical precursors for industry
- Electrical Power
- Heat or Cooling
- Road fuel quality 99.999% pure hydrogen (2)
DMG® is a new type of Chemical Recycling, a form of Advanced Thermal Conversion Technology which takes unrecyclable plastics & recovers the maximum amount of calorific value (energy) through an innovative approach to waste management. (3) Once the process of converting waste plastic is complete, there are several by-products which can be used as sustainable energy sources.
Syngas is synthetic gas which is a mixture of methane, hydrogen & a smaller volume of carbon monoxide. The calorific syngas produced using the DMG® can be used in the same way as Natural Gas in homes for heating & cooking. Once the energy rich syngas is further processed, it generates heat, electricity & sustainable hydrogen.
The by-products of the DMG® processes are being utilised by industry & domestic homes alike as a sustainable & clean form of renewable energy.
Biomass UK – Bio-energy
Biomass is the UK’s second biggest source of renewable electricity. Bio-energy is sourced through processing plant based bi-products such as food waste, wood chips or pellets & other plant based bi products of industry.
Companies across the globe have been tapping into the abilities to generate energy from biomass & household waste. The ability to convert biomass into fuels, energy, heat & electricity is not a new concept; but many people are wary of the carbon deposits which can still be inherent in the processing of such products.
With Biomass not being weather reliant, it enables a perpetual energy source to be generated. The Committee on Climate Change believes sustainably sourced bioenergy could provide up to 15% of the UK’s primary energy by 2050. (3)
Ensuring a perpetual stream of renewables is brought on stream by ever progressive & innovative engineering projects such as Energy Powerhouse plc & the work Biomass UK are undertaking, is essential as we find more efficient ways to move away from fossil fuel based energy.
Written & cited by Katy-Jane Mason for & on behalf of Dolphin N2
