Converting old landfills to energy producing sites, while capturing emitted greenhouse gases, has faced numerous technical, financial and social challenges and developments lately. Also, the re-mining of landfills to recover useful land in dense urban areas and proper landfill closure has been a subject of discussion and investigation. Designed as an overview text for landfill management from cradle to grave, this volume’s content stretches from the fundamentals to the rather indepth details. By putting down their joint international experience, the authors have intended to both guide and inspire the user for his or her landfill project. Introducing the fundamental concepts of landfill gas management and its needs and importance in the present world energy scenario, this accessible reference volume presents key landfill gas management techniques at regional, national and global levels. In detail, it gives an account of the recent technologies available for landfill gas treatment and its utilization. It summarizes landfill gas prediction models developed in various parts of the world and details their adequacy in various field conditions. Covering both landfill remediation aspects and economic considerations while selecting a landfill gas to energy utilization project, the reader gets familiar with the practical aspects of converting a landfill site. Also, the challenges faced by municipalities and landfill operators in recovering landfill gas as an energy source are described, and solutions are suggested for solving them effectively. These include practical execution problems, governmental issues, and developing policies to encourage investment. The volume also includes various case studies of landfill gas-to-energy utilization projects from around the world, which can be reviewed and customized for the reader’s own application with the help of extensive reference section. Intended as an overview text for advanced students and researchers in the relevant engineering and technology fields (Environmental, Civil, Geotechnical, Chemical, Mechanical and Electrical), this book will also be particularly helpful to practitioners such as municipal managers, landfill operators, designers, solid waste management engineers, urban planners, professional consultants, scientists, non-governmental organizations and entrepreneurs.

Examines the feasibility of generating electricity using the methane gas from landfills in Minnesota. The analysis includes an examination of the methane generation process, state & federal rules which affect the economics of producing electricity, a technical description of the energy conservation operation & the potential energy recovery from the landfills in Minnesota. The report also examines the theoretical electrical capacity estimates, the various factors affecting project economics & the future technological potential.

In 1987, a UK company built a power station to use the gas collected from a landfill site. The landfill gas fuels a gas turbine driving an alternator which generates 3.65 MW of electricity with an overall thermal efficiency of 27%. In 1993, a waste-heat boiler and condensing steam turbo-alternator were installed to exploit the additional gas being collected and to make use of the heat being wasted in the exhaust of the gas turbine. The power output was increased to 8.65 MW of electricity and the overall thermal efficiency improved to about 40%.