Distributed Power Plants for Landfills

Use of Methane for Efficient Power Production in Distributed Power Plants

With today’s focus on renewable energy and carbon emissions reductions, landfill-gas-to-energy projects are gaining momentum. Decentralized power plants that use existing landfill gas to generate electricity are becoming an increasingly important part of the electricity generation mix. Two common approaches to landfill gas collection include vertical well extraction and horizontal collectors or trenches.

These distributed power plants use our gas engines as generator sets to turn waste into economically viable electricity.

The Advantages of Deploying Landfill-Gas-to-Energy Power Generators:

• Extend equipment life and maintenance intervals for landfill applications
• Deliver improved output and reliability
• Offer lower operating and maintenance costs
• Efficient solutions even for the lowest methane content
• Reduce environmental impact

Optimally Adjusted to Your Requirements

Landfill gas is produced naturally as organic waste decomposes in landfills. It is composed of methane and small amounts of non-methane organic compounds. During gas processing, the organic silicon compounds present are removed. This prevents the escape of methane (CH₄), which has a global warming potential up to 25 times higher than that of carbon dioxide.

MWM offers generator sets specially designed for operations on landfills:

• A crankcase ventilation pump to eject potentially acidic blow-by gases.
• Specially designed aftercooler cores, cylinder heads, main bearings and connecting rod bearings that are hardened against corrosive elements
• Differentiated cooling systems to operate at elevated jacket water temperatures to prevent condensation of contaminants

Operators of landfill-gas-to-energy power systems, such as municipalities, generally use blowers or vacuums to direct the gas from a collection site through a network of pipes to a central facility. At most developed municipal solid-waste landfills, the methane and carbon dioxide are destroyed in a gas collection and control system or utility flare. An alternative is to divert the landfill gas from the flare to be used in electricity-producing MWM generator sets.

MWM continually researches, develops, and delivers landfill gas products specifically designed to be operated on landfill gas fuels.