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Converting waste to energy to meet the needs of the future

Pyrolysis is a process that converts carbonaceous materials, e.g. organic materials, biomass or petroleum products, into a synthetic gas by reacting the raw material at high temperatures. The resulting gas mixture is called synthesis gas or syngas and is itself a fuel. Pyrolysis is a very efficient method for extracting energy from many different organic materials.

The advantage of pyrolysis is that creating syngas is more efficient than direct combustion of the original fuel because more of the fuel’s energy is extracted. Syngas may be burned directly in internal combustion engines, used to produce methanol and hydrogen or converted into synthetic liquid fuel, like bio-diesel.

Pyrolysis can also begin with materials that are not otherwise useful fuels, such as biomass or organic waste. In addition, the high-temperature conversion refines out corrosive ash elements such as chloride and potassium, allowing clean gas production. Gasification, a process similar to pyrolysis, of fossil fuels is currently widely used on industrial scales to generate electricity. However, almost any type of organic material, such as wood, biomass, or even plastic waste, can be pyrolysied.

Importantly biomass pyrolysis is carbon neutral, as carbon dioxide will have been extracted in the process of growing biomass.

Pyrolysis relies on chemical processes at elevated temperatures above 700°C. This distinguishes it from biological processes such as anaerobic digestion that produce biogas, at ambient or slightly above ambient temperatures.