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Transforming trash into energy
Trash has become a scary sight for Palu, but with the aid of technology, it can be turned into energy
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rash has become a scary sight for Palu, but with the aid of technology, it can be turned into energy.
The Palu City administration, in collaboration with the Boras municipality of Sweden, is engaged in transforming trash into methane gas - or biogas - under a program called Domestic Waste Recovery (WRD) - for electric energy.
Palu Deputy Mayor Andi Mulhanan Tombolotutu said garbage processing machines from Boras had arrived in Palu in 16 containers. The machines will be placed at the final trash disposal site (TPA) in Kawatuna subdistrict, Mantikulore district.
He said 40 gas wells would be built at the TPA to store the methane gas. The 15 meter- deep wells will hold 394,706 cubic meters of gas per year.
'The trash of Palu has a lot of potential for electric energy. This is the reason why Palu is collaborating with Boras,' he said, adding that previously the city had cooperated with Jakarta and Yogyakarta.
Data at Palu's Clean Up and Gardens Agency shows the city's residents produce 600 cubic meters per day. Research conducted by University Tadulako in Palu shows that the trash contains 5-10 percent metal and 5-15 percent plastic.
The daily 600 cubic meter trash will produce 228 tons of gas methane everyday. Annually, there will be as much as 283 tons of CH4 methane with a volume of 394,706 cubic meters per year and as much as 564 tons per year of carbon dioxide at a volume of 315,765 tons every year.
The trash will also produce as much as 0.32 tons of nitrogen per year with a volume of 55,259 cubic meters every year, 16.14 tons per year of hydrogen sulfide at a volume of 11.841 tons per year and 10.17 tons per year of oxygen with a volume of 7,894 cubic meters every year.
'The estimate revenue of just carbon is already US$1.2 billion every year. This is what I call transforming disaster into benefit for Palu,' said the deputy mayor.
He said that from Palu's daily 600 tons of garbage, there will be methane gas to produce electric energy and will gain revenue of Rp 162 billion per year, with the sale of carbon to bring in Rp163 billion per year.
He added it was predicted to produce 2,780,000 kilowatt hours (KWH) per year. A house consumes 450 watts in 24 hours and will consume 3,942 KWH per year.
'This means we can fulfill the electricity requirement of houses in Palu as there will be 2,780,000 KWH per year needed for 705 houses. Electric energy production will contribute revenue of about Rp 96.836 billion per year.
