Planning and construction of a thermochemical test and research plant for the material utilisation of Burgenland waste fractions

Energie & Umwelt

Waste management is increasingly developing into resource management. This is due to a change in the way waste is viewed over time. Whereas in the past waste may not have been considered at all, the perspective has evolved from the basic need for disposal, through the increasing development of efficient disposal structures, to an ecological and economic approach with the aim of closing cycles and utilising energy content.

Acronym

W2M-I

Project running time

01/01/2020 - 31/03/2023

Projectbudget in EUR

1.140.000

The construction of a research facility on a pilot plant scale for the development of thermochemical treatment processes for waste streams of all kinds provides the project sponsor, Forschung Burgenland GmbH, with a previously unavailable infrastructure. This can be used to research the thermochemical pre-treatment of residual materials for the development of recycling and utilisation paths, giving Forschung Burgenland and the region an innovative edge.

The construction of the test and research facility will enable the development of thermochemical pre-treatment processes for the material and energy utilisation of residual materials. This will raise waste management processes to an improved economic and ecological standard.

With the help of this research facility, Forschung Burgenland is planning to develop an efficient recycling process for electronic waste in collaboration with companies from the recycling sector. Electronic scrap can be an attractive alternative source of raw materials to primary metal resources. Up to 60 different materials can be found in a mobile phone, for example, including more than 20 metals (including critical metals such as indium, gallium and germanium). Recycling processes already exist for the extraction of individual raw materials. Dealing with the various metals, plastics and ceramics that are also found in electronic waste is a challenge.

The aim of the project is to test the pyrolysis process, which can be used to recover different (including critical) metals or utilise them for energy. In addition to technical standards, sustainability and economic aspects are also used for evaluation.

The idea is to utilise the experience gained from this project and use the pyrolysis plant for the processing of electronic waste. The advantage of pyrolytic pre-treatment is that the plastic parts are decomposed and incinerated as pyrolysis gases in a second stage to generate energy. The solid residues containing the metals can be further processed for metal recovery.

Furthermore, a circular economy project is planned in which biowaste and green waste is converted into biogas by means of dry fermentation and the solid residues from the dry fermentation are further converted into combustible gases by pyrolysis and the remaining solid material is used as biochar.

There are also plans to develop the disposal of sewage sludge by means of pyrolysis and thus offer a decentralised alternative to incineration.