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105 Comprehensive Review of Solid Waste Collection and Disposal Options The resulting sugar compounds and water are sent to a fermentation unit where yeast is added. The yeast reacts with the sugars to convert them to alcohol. The alcohol mixture is then heated and distilled to remove the solids. The resulting distilled alcohol (grain alcohol or ethanol) can be used as fuel, The lignin by- product is sent to a gasifier where it is used to produce heat for the drying process or can potentially be further processed for use as a fuel substitute in power plants, A basic bio- chemical process is shown in Exhibit 12 -10. Exhibit 12 -10. Basic Bio- Chemical Process 1310 - CHEMICAL (Hydrolysis) SE,Ka ge Sludge h+1sw _ Fermerter Distiller ♦ MRF iiydroiysis Fti,urel _¢ Reactor Production ."cid Lignin 6iagos Wurtewuter Gasifier 1 2.5 STATUS OF COMMERCIAL OPERATING WTE AND WC FACILITIES 12.5.1 Waste -to- Energy At the time of this report, there are about 1,300 WTE facilities worldwide. Large numbers are located in Europe (440) primarily because of the European Union's directive that requires. a 65% reduction in the landflling of biodegradable MSW. Asian countries (Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, and China) have the largest number (764) of WTE facilities worldwide. All of these countries face Iimited open space issues for the siting of landfills and have large urban populations. One of the largest current markets for WTE plant construction is in China, which is currently the fourth largest user of WTE worldwide. In the U.S., there are currently 89 WTE plants (Exhibit 12 -11) operating in 25 states managing about 7% of the nation's MSW, or about 85,000 tons per day. This is equivalent of a base load electrical generation of approximately 2,700 inegawatts to meet the needs of more than two million homes, while servicing the waste disposal needs of more than 35 million people. v2.1 171 10/22/12