ReFood saves over 10MWh per day at waste-to-energy plant 07 March 2013

ReFood UK is recovering more than 10MWh a day of energy and saving over £80,000 a year at its new anaerobic digester (AD) facility near Doncaster, thanks to heat recovery systems from Spirax Sarco.

The AD plant and associated combined heat and power (CHP) engines generate heat and 2.8MW of electrical energy from food waste.

ReFood parent group Prosper De Mulder (PDM) is one of the UK's biggest recycling specialists and now plans to follow the success of Doncaster by rolling out a network of ReFood AD plants across the UK.

The site's two CHP units generate hot water, as well as electricity, used to drive the AD process. That breaks down 45,000 tonnes per year of food waste to generate methane gas and run the CHP engines.

However, the engines generate more hot water than needed, and that's where the Spirax Sarco steam systems come in.

Robert Smith, PDM special project manager, explains that the three heat recovery packages take the excess hot water at 90C and use it to carry out three heating roles within the plant.

The first raises the temperature of incoming water from ambient to 80C before it enters the hot well of the site's steam boiler.

The second heats water from ambient again to 80C to feed the site's general-purpose hot water tank.

The third maintains the temperature of the water that recirculates in ReFood's tank farm heating circuit, which typically needs raising from 70 to 85C to prevent oils and fats in the tanks from solidifying.

Without the systems, the site would need to meet its hot water reqjuirements from the steam boiler.

"The Spirax Sarco units have been very effective for the recovery of valuable waste heat that would otherwise be lost to the atmosphere," says Smith.

"They make a significant contribution to the PDM Group's commitment to produce energy from renewable sources and reduce climate change."

Brian Tinham

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