Investigation of particle size on gasification process for solid waste treatment

Abstract

Copyright © 2014 by ASME. Gasification is a technologically advanced and environmentally friendly process for solid waste treatment. The chemical reactions in the gasification process highly depend on the agents' flow rates which, due to fluid dynamics and thermodynamics, are in fact functions of particle size and structure. Therefore, in order to obtain a better prediction model, it is important to determine the effect of particle size on the operation of a gasification system. The purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of particle size of some common solid waste on the gasification process. Specimens including starch and polyethylene of different sizes are investigated experimentally. To achieve the aim, the gasification processes are monitored by a thermal gravimetric analysis system. The mass change and the heat flow are measured in real time during the reaction. Comparison between the experimental results and different gasification models are made. Based on the experimental results, the effect of particle size was studied and the importance of the porous structure was revealed. The relationship between particle size and porous structure during gasification was developed.