The Role of Hydrogen Production in Landfill Gas
Utilization
The Role of Hydrogen Production in Landfill Gas
Utilization
Prepared ByKurt Kornbluth, Dr. Paul Erickson, Zach Mccafferty
Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering
and Rob Williams,Biological and Agricultural Engineering
Project ActivitiesProject Activities
– 1st Stakeholders workshopDefine Research Focus
– 2nd Stakeholders workshopPresent Draft Report
– Final Report
Report FocusReport Focus• California LFG Potential
• Producing Vehicle-grade hydrogen from LFG – Methods/Economics
• Hydrogen enrichment of LFG to reduce NOx emissions – Methods/Economics
California LFG PotentialCalifornia LFG Potential
Puente Hills
Spadra
Mission Canyon
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
2005 2010 2015 2020 2025
Me
tha
ne
(B
CF
/ye
ar)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
Total Methane Production Recoverable Methane
LFG Methane Model ResultLFG Methane Model Result
85 billion cubic feet per year (BCF/y) methane produced and ~ 55 BCF/y recoverable in 2005
* Updated from California Biomass Collaborative Resource Reports
0
100
200
300
400
500
2005 2010 2015 2020 2025
Po
ten
tia
l H
yd
rog
en
(mil
lio
n g
all
on
s g
as
oli
ne
eq
uiv
ale
nt)
0.0
0.4
0.8
1.2
1.6
2.0
Po
ten
tia
l N
o.
of
Fu
el
Ce
ll V
eh
icle
s
(mil
lio
ns
)
All Recoverable LFG for H2
300 MW LFG-to- electricity w/ remaining Recoverable LFG for H2
Hydrogen Potential From LFG in CAHydrogen Potential From LFG in CA
Assumes fuel cell vehicle efficiency
is equivalent to 60 mpg gasoline
LFG to Hydrogen for Vehicle Fuel
LFG to Hydrogen for Vehicle Fuel
Scenarios ConsideredScenarios Considered
Case 4: LFG Capture-LFGTE
ResultsResults
Case Technology Scale
COE1 ($/kW-h)
LCH2 ($/kgH2)
FFCO2 offset (gCO2/KJ
LFG) 2
H2 Yield (g H2/KJ
LFG)
1 Flare n/a n/a n/a 0 0 2 SMR 480
(kgH2/day) .055 2.31 51 4.22
3 Electrolysis 480 (kgH2/day)
.055 5.76 24 2.0
4 LFGTE 800 kWe .055 n/a 30 0
1 For this analysis the cost of electricity (COE) was taken to be the cost of electricity produced from a typical LFGTE pro ject incorporating conventional lean burn IC engine technology, estimated by SBS engineers study to be to 0.055 $/kW-h. 2 Fossil-Fuel based CO2 was calculated from figures based on from National Academy of Sciences report “The Hydrogen Economy: Opportunities, Costs, Barriers, and R&D Needs ”.
Hydrogen Enrichment of Landfill Gas
(HLFG)
Hydrogen Enrichment of Landfill Gas
(HLFG)LFG
Engine
HydrogenHydrogen
LFG
AIR
Landfill
Clean -up
NOx ReductionScenarios
NOx ReductionScenarios
ResultsResultsScenario Engine Operation Capital
cost
($/kWh)
O&M costs
($/kWh)
LCE
($/kWh)
Estimated NOx (g/bhp-hr)
1 Lean burn 0.024 0.022 0.055 ~2.0
2 Lean burn with SCR 0.042 0.023 0.086 0.05 to 0.15
3 Microturbine 0.034 0.018 0.086 ~0.02
4 Lean burn with Onsite H2 storage
0.076 0.022 0.106 0.032 to 0.10
5 Lean burn with SM reformer 0.048 0.032 0.088 0.032 to 0.10
6 Lean burn with Electrolysis .052 0.039 0.100 0.032 to 0.10
7 Lean burn with in-stream reformer
0.028 0.022 0.058 0.032 to 0.10
Results SummaryResults Summary• H2 potential from LFG is 2% of California’s gasoline
usage • H2 from LFG may be cost-competitive but technical
hurdles exist in pre and post-process clean up
• Early H2 fueling stations will be demonstration-scale only
• HLFG has potential for lowering NOx emissions but is only viable If Hydrogen is produced via the LFG fuel-stream
RecommendationsRecommendations
– Proof-of-concept HLFG in an IC engine
– Demonstration-scale project for LFG-to-hydrogen for vehicle fuel
Questions?Questions?
LFG and Hydrogen
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
0.520.570.620.670.720.77
Equivalence Ratio
Bra
ke S
pecif
ic N
Ox (
10^
-3g
/kW
-hr)
0% H2
10% H2
20% H2
30% H2
40% H2
50% H2
Hydrogen cost vs Biomethane production costs
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Biomethane production costs ($/mmbtu)
hy
dro
ge
n g
ate
co
st
$/k
g H
2)
LFG-SMR
LFG-electrolysis (COE=.055 $/kw-h)
LFG-electrolysis (COE=.07 $/kw-h)
SCS Engineers Estimate
Estimating Hydrogen Potential from California Landfill Gas
Estimating Hydrogen Potential from California Landfill Gas
• Predicted LFG production from California landfills (2005-2025)
• Then estimate Hydrogen potential from LFG using assuming basic steam-methane-reforming (SMR) of natural gas
Landfill Gas Potential from California Landfills (2005-2025)
Landfill Gas Potential from California Landfills (2005-2025)
• Based on waste-in-place (WIP) since 1970 and projected future disposal– WIP since 1970 is approximately 1.1 billion tons
20
30
40
50
60
1990 2000 2010 2020 2030
Am
ou
nt
Lan
dfi
lled
(m
illio
n t
on
s)
Disposal growth from 42 to 53 million tons per year (2005-2025)
Landfill Gas Potential from California Landfills (2005-2025)
Landfill Gas Potential from California Landfills (2005-2025)
• Model similar to LandGEM (USEPA) first order decay model for LFG estimate
• Assumes waste has ultimate methane yield of 3,200 ft3/ton
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
0 25 50 75 100Years since disposal
An
nu
al
Me
tha
ne
(f
t^3
/to
n/y
r)
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
Cu
mu
lati
ve
Me
tha
ne
(f
t^3
)
Model output for 1 ton of waste buried in year 0
ScopeScope
H2 Production Clean-up
Fuel Cell H2 Enrichment
Power GenerationElectricity Transportation
Landfill
LFG (CH4, CO2)
Vent FlareEnergy Recovery
CO2
removal/purification
High Purity CH4
CO2 recovery/sequestration