Orange County NC Website
!i _100= ­111' Gi DIE[ [,—Eli loon i'dli_000 <br />Based on a review of existing potential energy users in the immediate vicinity of the Eubanks <br />Road solid waste management facilities, it was determined that power production and/or high -Btu <br />gas production were the most feasible alternatives available at this time No significant medium - <br />Btu customers (i.e., customers with an existing boiler or combustion system that could direct fire <br />landfill gas) were identified in immediate proximity to the Eubanks Road site It is assumed that if <br />a school or similar type energy user is constructed in the area that the option of using landfill gas <br />for heating and electricity (cogeneration) rather than direct firing of a medium Btu gas would <br />prove to be the most beneficial use. <br />4.1 Electric Energy (Power) Production <br />Several proven technologies exist for generating power — internal combustion engines and <br />combustion turbines (microturbines). A typical landfill gas -to- electric energy installation has the <br />following components: <br />• Landfill gas collection system <br />Landfill gas compressor(s) <br />• L,andfill gas pretreatment equipment (for moisture, siloxanes, and particulates removal) <br />Microturbine, boiler/steam turbine, or Internal Combustion Engine Generator <br />• Motor control center <br />Switchgear and step -up transformer <br />Waste gas beat recovery (cogeneration option) <br />4.1.1 Internal Combustion Engine <br />The reciprocating internal combustion (IC) engine is the most commonly used conversion <br />technology in landfill gas applications — almost 80 percent of all existing landfill gas <br />projects use them. The reason for such widespread use is their relatively low cost, high <br />efficiency, and good size match with the gas output of many landfills. IC engines are <br />relatively efficient at converting landfill gas into electricity <br />4,1.2 Microturbines <br />Microturbines are an emerging landfill gas energy recovery technology option, especially <br />at smaller landfills where electric generation plants are not generally feasible due to <br />economic factor's and lower amounts of landfill gas <br />Microunbine technology is based on the design of much larger combustion turbines <br />employed in the electric power and aviation industries Microturbines generally operate <br />as follows: <br />Orange County 3 March 2006 <br />Draft <br />