Dual-fueled trucks to be powered
by trash
SWACO proceeds with active testing of three power
systems for accurate evaluation
The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO)
has taken delivery of its first hybrid vehicle that will be powered
by landfill gas. The 2005 Ford Sterling truck with a 12.7-Detroit
series 60 diesel engine has been retro-fitted to be dual-fuel system
powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) and biodiesel.
Initially the CNG will come from a pump at the
Franklin County complex on Alum Creek Drive. Within a few months,
the CNG will come from landfill gas refined at the Franklin County
Landfill. The biodiesel will initially come from another source,
but eventually that fuel could also be manufactured by a blend of
Ohio produced soybean oil and methanol that would come from the
methane at the Franklin County Landfill.
SWACO executive director Mike Long sees this first
step toward alternate fuels bringing multiple benefits. “Landfills
as a source of over-the-road energy are an untapped market. It will
allow us to save taxpayer dollars and cut emissions.” The
new fuel system is expected to cut SWACO’s maintenance costs,
provide less expensive fuel, and bring more (equivalent) miles per
gallon.
The dual-fuel system is one of three power systems
to be studied on SWACO vehicles. Another SWACO transfer truck will
be run on pure biodiesel. The rest of the fleet will continue to
run on standard diesel fuel.
The fueling system next to the Franklin County
Landfill is part of the Green Energy Center to be built by FirmGreen
Fuels LLC of Newport Beach, California. The Center is expected to
produce up to 20 million gallons per year of methanol, which would
provide up to 100 million gallons per year of B20 biodiesel to the
marketplace.
Landfill gas will also be used to generate 1.6
MW from an engine and microturbines. Additionally, waste heat from
the microturbines will provide space heat and hot water for the
administrative office building and maintenance facilities of SWACO,
the adjacent landfill operator.
The annual reduction of greenhouse gases attributable
to this project has the same effect as removing the emissions of
nearly 12,000 cars from the road for a year, reducing oil consumption
by more than 142,000 barrels per year, or planting 16,704 acres
of trees.
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