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Feasibility Study of Municipal Solid Waste Gasification for Power

Generation in Indonesia
a*. Muhammad Arif Susetyo ST and b. Dr. Ir. Toto Hardianto
a. PT PLN (Persero) Staff on Study in Fakultas Teknik Mesin, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Indonesia
b. Faculty of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering , Institut Teknologi Bandung , Indonesia

Abstract
The majority of large cities in Indonesia utilize a landfill system as a primary means of waste management. The sheer volume of
Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) produced creates extensive environmental problems and requires vast amounts of landfill space.
However, there lies an opportunity to extract the energy contained in the garbage whilst reducing its volume by means of Waste
to Electricity conversion. The main idea is to extract the energy contained in the MSW by direct burning (Boiler and Steam
Turbine System), or by Extracting combustible gas from MSW (Methane Extraction or Gasification System). This paper will
briefly explain of the aforementioned systems and focus on the Gasification System which the writer believes is the ideal solution
for Waste to Electricity System in Indonesia.
Keywords : Municipal Solid Waste, Waste to Electricity, Gasifier, Synthetic Gas, Renewable Energy

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Indonesia with a population of 300 million people is dependent mostly in fossil fuels to produce its electricity.
Currently, its population produces 184.000 tons Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) each day, comprising of 54% organic
waste, 14% Plastic, and 17% Metal, glass, etc. Jakarta alone produces 6270 Tons Daily [1]. According to the World
Bank technical guidance Report, Depending on its content, 1 kg of MSW can contain 600-1700 kCal of energy
(LHV). The table below shows the disparate range of MSW Calorific Value, and its relation to waste composition. It
is the typical range for MSW throughout the world, and is applicable to the MSW Characteristic found in Indonesia.
Table 1. Range of Calorific Value of MSW. Source : [2]

If not used, most of the MSW will release methane (CH4) gas, a flammable gas that is 23 times more effective of a
greenhouse gas than Carbon dioxide. If translated into raw heat energy, assuming a conservative calorific value of
1500 kCal (HHV) there is a potential of 276.000.000.000 kCal/day nationwide. Or in the case of Jakarta, an energy

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potential of 9.405.000.000 kCal/day. If all of that energy can be converted into electricity with 20% thermal
efficiency (HHV), nationwide it can produce 2674 MW continuously or 91MW in the case of Jakarta. Currently,
Bantar Gebang Landfill near Jakarta produces electricity with MSW as its fuel with power plant capacity of 12 MW.
However, due to the composition of MSW, converting it into electricity is not as straightforward as converting Coal,
or Natural Gas. The table below shows the typical composition of MSW and its relation to specific calorific value
according to the World Bank, which has similarity to the Composition of MSW Fond in Indonesia.
Table 2. Typical Composition of MSW. Source : [2]

It stood out that more than 40% of its mass consist of Moisture, and a high ash content. Thus, more process is
required, and the following aspects need to be considered;
-MSW Composition and Calorific Value
-Continuity of MSW Supply
-Preparation of MSW into ready-to-burn fuel
-Method of an efficient energy conversion system
-Emission and residue handling
MSW to electricity system is particularly interesting to be converted into electricity, especially if done by the
municipality in charge with the landfill because of the concentration of MSW in one place. This paper will mainly
discuss regarding the various applicable MSW to Electricity Systems, and its suitability of application in Indonesia
as follow;
-Landfill Biogas Extraction (Low Temperature Reactor)
-Incinerator Boiler System
-1st Generation Medium Temperature Gasifier
-2nd Generation High Temperature Plasma Gasifier
An emphasis on the1st and 2nd generation gasifier system will be made, and its superiority compared to the landfill
biogas extraction system, and Incinerator Boiler system.

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CHAPTER 2
MSW TO ELECTRICITY SYSTEMS
Various systems are available for MSW to electricity systems. This chapter will only explain the 3 main proven
methods of MSW to electricity systems commercially proven in the MSW to Electricity industry. While other
methods outside of these 3 systems exist, but the application is not in commercial scale. All of the MSW to
Electricity Energy have the following purpose:
Converting MSW to Useable Energy: The objective of this process is to convert MSW to thermal energy such
as steam , or ready To Burn Chemical Energy, such as Gas.
Converting Usable Energy into Useful Electricity: The objective of this process is to produce Electricity By
Using Gas Engine or Steam Cycle
2.1. Landfill Biological Gas Extraction (Low Temperature Reactor)
This system extracts flammable Methane gas by covering organic waste with HDPE to create an anaerobic
environment, and installing gas extraction piping. The extracted gas is scrubbed for cleaning, to make it suitable for
combustion. The ready to burn gas accounts for approximately 40-60% of the energy contained in MSW because it
yields 40-60% CH4, with the remaining majority as CO2 besides minor contaminants as described in Figure xx;

Fig 1. Landfill Gas Composition. [3]

Internal Combustion Gas Engine is favourable to produce electricity because of its high thermal efficiency (48%),
Incremental Capacity per engine (2-20 MW/engine), and selective operation in part load to maintain engine
efficiency. The An Example of such sistemis Bantar Gebang Power Plant with capacity of 11 MW. The overall
system illustrated below;

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Fig.. 2. Bantar Gebang Methane extraction Power Plant System. [4]

Fig 3 : Bantar Gebang Horizontal Type Landfill Gas Extraction System. [4]
The advantage of this system is minimum MSW pre-Processing, and a relatively simple Gas Treatment system. The
disadvantage of this system is the long time needed to convert all the waste into useable CH4 (Up to weeks before
initial Gas Production), unable to produce gas from the inorganic fraction of MSW, Methane extraction system
needing vast amount of landfill space, methane leaks and needing to handle the waste leachate condensate as a side
product. The overall schematic and Nett efficiency calculation of Methane Extraction system can be described by the
following flowchart;

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%Auxiliary Power

MSW Feed
100% Raw Energy

Methane
Extraction
System
1

Methane
Gas
Cleanup
2

Gas
Engine
Generator
3

Gross
Power
Production
gross

100% - %Auxiliary Power

4

Nett Power
Production
nett

Fig 4 : Thermal Efficiency Circuit for Landfill to electricity

The equation for overall efficiency is a follow:

Nett 1 x 2 x 3 x 4

The overall efficiency range is as follow:

Table 3 : Efficiency Range for Landfill to electricity system[4]
Subsystem
Minimum efficiency
Maximum Efficiency
Methane Extraction System 1
60 %
70 %
Methane Gas Cleanup 2
90 %
95 %
Gas Engine Generator 3
41 %
48 %
100% - 5 Auxiliary Power 4
90 %
95 %
Nett Efficiency
19,99 %
30,32 %
2.2. Incinerator Boiler System
This system is primarily consists of a moving grate type boiler generating steam for powering a steam turbine cycle
electricity generator system. As source of energy, the MSW can be directly burned, or turned into Refuse Derived
Fuel (RDF) prior to combustion. The objective in Converting MSW to RDF is to Increase the calorific value, and a
more desirable physical characteristic. Such system is suitable for relatively large capacity power generation (>20
MW / generator) and is technically more complex compared to methane extraction system.
The advantage of this system is major reduction in MSW volume, able to extract heat from all fraction of MSW,
and fast conversion of MSW into Electricity.
This system can extract more than 80% of heat energy in MSW into steam energy. But because of the nature of
steam power plant of that capacity, the system will yield thermal efficiency of 27 33% depending on design, in
which the efficiency will be further reduced in part load conditions. But the disadvantage is having to operate and
maintain a rather complicated Balance of Plant system associated with Boiler-turbine system, having to deal with
slagging & corrosion of boiler due to the flue gas associated with burning MSW, and the nature of grate type boiler
provides a slow response in load change. Moving grate type boiler is the only choice for this system because the
physical characteristic of MSW or RDF is not ideal for pulverizer type boiler. Also, direct burning of MSW creates
a lot of acids in the flue gas, subjecting the ducting system to corrosion and needing gas treatment prior to
discharging the flue gas to the environment.
The overall schematic and Nett efficiency calculation of Incinerator boiler system can be described by the following
flowchart;

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% Auxiliary Power

MSW Feed
100% Raw Energy

Dryer +
Boiler
Incinerator
System
1

Steam
Turbine
Generator
2

Gross
Power
Production
gross

Nett Power
Production
nett
100% - %Auxiliary Power
3

Fig 5 : Thermal Efficiency Circuit for Landfill to electricity

The equation for overall efficiency is a follow:

Nett 1 x 2 x 3

The overall efficiency range is as follow:

Table 4 : Efficiency Range for Incinerator System[2]
Subsystem
Minimum efficiency
Maximum Efficiency
Boiler Incinerator System 1
80%
85%
Steam Turbine Generator 2
27 %
33 %
100% - 5 Auxiliary Power 3
90 %
95 %
Nett Efficiency
19,44 %
26,64 %
2.3 Synthetic natural gasifier for powering internal combustion gas engine
Similar to the methane extraction method, this system generates power by means of gas produced from waste. The
difference lies in the production method of the gas. Instead of extracting the CH4 produced by biological
decomposition of waste, the waste is produced by thermal process of heating to a temperature of more than 700
Degrees Celcius with a controlled amount of oxygen and/or steam. This process will create Synthetic Natural gas
consisting of H2 and CO. The combustion of Hydrogen as the main component of syngas is carbon neutral with
H2O as a by-product. However, because of the nature of volumetric heat capacity of hydrogen, the gas engines
power production will be decreased by as much as 30% compared to burning of Methane or natural gas.
The advantage of this system besides the reduction in MSW volume is quick reaction of syngas production, and fast
response time of gas engine because the Syngas can be stored in an accumulator tank prior to combustion. The
gasifier system is also simpler compared to Boiler Incinerator system. Overall efficiency of Gasification system is
the highest compared to Landfill gas Extraction and Boiler Incinerator system. A more detailed explanation of 1 st
and 2nd generation system will be explained in chapter 3.

CHAPTER 3
MSW SYNGAS GASIFIER SYSTEM
MSW Gasifier system is the Main subject of the paper, and this paper will explain of the process involved in
producing Synthetic Natural Gas (Syngas) from Gasification of MSW. The main ingredient of Syngas is Hydrogen
(H2) and Carbon Monoxide (CO) with ratio depending on gasification method. Such method is divided into 1st
generation Medium Temperature Gasifier, and 2nd generation High Temperature Gasifier systems. The

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general Waste to energy system can be described by flowchart below;

%Auxiliary Power

MSW
Feed

MSW
Drying
System
1

Syngas
Gasifier
System
2

Steam
Heat

Syngas
Cleaning
System
3

Gas
Engine
Generator
4

Gross
Power
Production
gross

Nett Power
Production
Nett

100% - %Auxiliary Power

5

Fig.6 General MSW gasification to electricity Efficiency Circuit

Typically, MSW that enters has a high moisture content of 40-50%. A drying system is necessary to reduce the
moisture to below 20%. Further drying will occur in the Gasifier. While after the gasifier, Gas scrubber is
necessary to reduce the contaminants unnecessary for combustion.
2.1 1st generation Medium Temperature Gasification Reactor
The MSW in the gasifier is subjected to undergo the reaction process of Drying, Pyrolisis, Oxidation, and
Reduction. The Reaction occurring in the gasifier can be described by flowchart below in conjunction to Fixed Bed
updraft type Gasifier. The example is gasification of Coal, but also applies to Gasification of MSW. To gasify solid
waste, pre-treatment of MSW must be done. The process of shredding and drying is vital for proper gasification
process in the reactor.

Fig 7 a. Gasification of Coal , b Updraft Gasifier [5]

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First the, MSW is Fed into the Gasifier via the top chute. Ideally it is pre-dried, in which the low quality Steam
generated from the drying process can be channelled to the reactor via the air duct located in the near bottom of the
reactor as heat source and Hydrogen source. The MSW is subjected to temperature of 190 180 deg Celcius and
undergoes Drying Process to eliminate its moisture. The heat source of the reactor is the heart zone located on the
bottom of the grate. After The Moisture have all evaporated, the MSW Goes into the Distilation zone with
temperature of 180 700 deg Celcius which is basically Pyrolysis process that Releases its volatile matter.
After The Distillation zone, the MSW undergoes Reduction Reaction in with temperature of 700 1800 deg
Celcius in which the syngas is Created. The gas the flows upward and is collected via the top gas duct of the
reactor.
In Grate, lies the Hearth Zone, which is an oxidation reaction where the MSW that has been through all the
reaction is burnt to provide heat to the reactor providing temperature of up to 2000 deg Celcius.. The initial source
of heat can be from Gas Burner, or Liquid fuel Burner, with combustion temperature up to 2000 deg Celcius. The
key for a controlled hearth zone is to provide a very rich, non-stoichiometric ratio between the total MSW feed rate
and Air feed. This is necessary because the reactor needs heat energy, but the MSW cannot be burnt entirely, or the
only produced gas is only flue gas. A stoichiometric percentage of 20-25 % stoichiometric air (About 1,3-1,4 kg
Air/ kg MSW) is ideal depending on the heat needed, which will burn the same amount of MSW only in the bottom,
and the air is depleted of most of its oxygen content ready to undergo the Reduction reaction. The only purpose of
an oxidation reaction is mainly as heat source.
In the bottom of the reactor lies the ash zone for extraction as the remaining ash is discarded. Ash can be taken out
by a Submersible Scraper Conveyor (SSC) as widely applied in Coal Fired Power Plants.
Various Types of Gasifier system in relation to its Ga flow exist as follow;

Fig 8 . Various gasifier reactor configurations.

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The advantage of Medium Temperature gasifier is a relatively simple equipment with relatively lower Capital
Expenditure for gasifier Equipment. But the disadvantage is the Gas Produced will contain Carryover Solids, Oils,
Tar, and Acids that need to be treated properly before utilized, increasing the cost for Gas Treatment System. The
thermal efficiency figures of a medium temperature gasifier is as follow:
Table 5. Thermal Efficiency of a medium gasification system
Subsystem
efficiency
MSW Drying System 1
95%
Syngas Gasifier System 2
70 %
Syngas Cleaning System 3
85 %
Nett Power Production 4
41- 48 %
100% - % Auxiliary Power
95%
Nett Efficiency
22 25,77 %

2.1.1 1st Generation Medium Temperature Reactor Gas Cleanup

Because of the nature of reaction taking place in the gasifier reactor, a significant amount of contaminants need to be
removed by the Gas Cleanup System. The syngas produced has a high amount of Acids in the Form of Sulfur
Oxides (SOx) that is not suitable for direct burning, and have to be cleaned prior to burning. The typical systemfor
converting raw syngas into ready to burn gas is as follow;

Fig 9. MSW gasifier and gas Cleanup System. Source [6]

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After the Raw Syngas have been produced, it is fed through a cyclone separator to separate the carryover solids.
Because the Raw syngas have a temperature of more than 200 deg Celcius, it is cooled by heat Exchanger that
transfer its heat to the Drying Air to be used in the Dryer of raw MSW feed. The Syngas then enters the water
quench system to sprey it with 40% NaOH solution that lowers the gas temperature to 30 deg Celcius, and remove
some of its acidic content. Come of The SOx that come into contact with water will react and froms Sulfuric Acid
(H2SO4) A Venturi Scrubber is used to envelop the particulates in water and remove it from the Gas. The gas is
the fed through a Wet Electrostatic Precipitator that removes Tar, Oils, Moisture, and Sulfuric Acid Myst.
Necessity for a big capacity Wet electrostatic precipitator is one of the main characteristic of a medium temperature
system, because of the high amount of tar it produces that in included in the raw Syngas. The gas cleaned from most
of its particulate content the goes through Packed Bed Scrubber to remove SOx Content, and Tray Tower as final
cleanup process. The processed gas is sent to a storage tank ready for converting into electricity.

Fig 10. a. Venturi Scrubber and b. Wet Type Electrostatic Precipitator

2.2 2nd Generation High Temperature Plasma Gasifier
Unlike the Medium Temperature Gasifier, High Temperature gasifiers does not use Gas or liquid fuel burners as
initial source of heat, but Instead it utilized Plasma Burners with higher temperature of 4000 5000 deg Celcius. It
can reach such high temperature because it utilizes an electrical arc between cathode and anode to create a plasma
flame with pure oxygen as carrier gas. It can convert up to 80% of electricity energy into heat. Plasma gasifier is
able to achieve high temperature because of this type of plasma burner.

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Fig 11 . Illustration of Plasma Torch

This will increase the overall reaction of Oxidation, Reduction, Pyrolysis, and Drying. It will also increase the
syngas temperature exiting the reactor to 1200 deg C. The advantage of such system is the higher temperature will
completely breakdown the feedstocks organic chain, resulting Syngas that is free of Tar, Soot, Heavy Metals, and
Other Hydrocarbons. The absence of those contaminants reduce the capacity of Wet Type Electrostatic Precipitator
needed in the Gas Cleanup System. Also, the slag produced is inert, and is the fraction of volume compared to
Medium Temperature Gasification. The Disadvantage is of course higher capital expenditure, higher Auxiliary
Power Consumption for powering the plasma burners, and the limited lifetime of the plasma burners.

Fig 12. a. Updraft high temperature Gasifier and b. high temperature Plasma Torch

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The thermal efficiency figures of a medium temperature gasifier is as follow:

Table 6. Thermal Efficiency of 2nd Generation High Temperature Gasifier system[6]
Subsystem
Minimum efficiency
MSW Drying System 1
95%
Syngas Gasifier System 2
80%
Syngas Cleaning System 3
95 %
Nett Power Production 4
41-48 %
100% - % Auxiliary Power
87%
Nett Efficiency
25,7 30,1 %

3.3 Syngas End Gas Product Composition

The production of syngas with 1st and 2nd generation gasifier will yield different gas composition, especially in term
s of contaminant such as particulate and Tar. Both of these types of gas have to be treated in a slightly different
manner to achieve the same final gas quality. Raw syngas prior to treatment that is produced from various types of
gasifier have the following contaminant levels;
Table 7. Contaminants level of Raw Syngas from Various types of gasifier [7]

For usage of syngas in internal combustion engine, the maximum allowable contaminant level are as follow:
Table 8. Maximum Level of Syngas Contaminant for I ternal Combustion Engine [7]

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The actual end result of Syngas varies depending on its process. And because Syngas is not sold in gas form like
Natural Gas or Petroleum gas, the end gas result can vary from one plant to the other. The end gas composition of
syngas that is valuable to the combustion process is Hydrogen (H2) and Carbon Monoxide (CO). The Volumetric
Ratio of H2 and CO is 1:1 (40% : 40%) But because CO has a much higher Molar Mass than H2, the mass ratio of
CO : H2 is 67 : 4. A Fraction of syngas composition consist of inert Nitrogen (N2) gas, due to the 79% composition
of N2 in air that is used for Syngas Production. Tables below shows example of End Gas Syngas composition in
Volumetric and Mass fraction from two different plants;
Table 9 :End Gas Syngas volumetric Composition plant A

Fig 9. End Gas Syngas Mass Composition Plant B

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The combustion process of Syngas is different compared to Natural Gas that mainly consist of Hydrogen (H2),
because the characteristic of hydrogen that has higher flame speed, and lower energy density per volume, which
accounts for de-rating in gas engines [8].
CHAPTER 4
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, MSW to electricity system is an interesting solution in reducing waste and producing electricity,
albeit in smaller scale than generating by fossil fuels. By comparing the methods of generating, it can be concluded
of the following;
System

Overall
Thermal
Efficiency

Advantage

Disadvantage

Capital
Expenditure

2nd Gen Syngas

Gasifier
(High
Temperature
Thermal
Reactor)

25-30%

-Complete Carbon
breakdown resulting in
clean Syngas (no Tar)
-Very Little Remaining
Slag
-Fast MSW Conversion
Period

-Plasma Burner short

lifetime

Medium - High

1st Gen Syngas

Gasifier
(Medium
Temperature
Thermal
Reactor)

22-25%

-Major Reduction of MSW

volume
-Fast MSW Conversion
period

-Tar contaminants in
Syngas
- More Complex Syngas
Cleaning system

Medium

Incinerator
Boiler

19-26%

-Major reduction of MSW

Volume
-Fast MSW conversion
period

-Slow Response Boiler

Characteristics
-The Most Complex
System

Medium- High

Landfill Biogas
Extraction
(Low
Temperature
biological
Reactor)

19-30 %

-The Simplest System

-Need lots of landfill space

-Slow MSW Conversion
time
-Cannot convert energy
from plastics

Low -Medium

-Simple Biogas cleanup

system

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Based on the comparison, the writer thinks that the gasifier system is ideal for application in Indonesia. It is
optimal in terms of efficiency, space needed, and plant complexity. If such MSW to electricity system is to be
implemented, the main stakeholder is town municipality. Such system will provide huge benefit in terms of waste
management and income from selling electricity to the grid with fixed feed in tariff pricing.
References
[1]Tempo Magazine ANGKA Segment, 13-19-July 2015 edition
[2]World Bank Technical Guidance Report Municipal Solid Waste Incineration. August 1999
[3] Liubov Melnikova Landfill gas study performance on a IC Engine with addition
of Synga Masters Thesis, Department of Earth and Environmental Engineering, Columbia University
[4] Cynthia Hendrayani Municipal Solid Waste to Power Investment, Conference of Indonesian Electrical
Power Society - Jakarta, 05 September 2013
[5] Muhammad Rusviandi Studi Pemanfaatan Batu Bara Indonesia Peringkat Rendah dengan metode
GasifikasiEntrainned Flow.. Tugas Sarjana FTMD ITB, 2014
[6] Spyridon Achinas & Evangelos Kapetanios Efficiency Evaluation of RDF Plasma Gasification Process
[7] L.C. Laurence and D. Ashenafi Syngas Treatment Unit for Small Scale Gasification - Application to IC
EngineGas Quality Requirement Journal of Applied Fluid Mechanics, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 95-103, 2012.
Available online at www.jafmonline.net, ISSN 1735-3572, EISSN 1735-3645.
[8]Vincent G. McDonell Key Combustion Issues Associated with Synhas and High-Hydrogen Fuels. Advanced
Power and Energy Program, University of California.