COH2 employs an innovative system of technologies to turn high-carbon waste into marketable products with zero emissions and zero landfillable byproducts.

 

EMISSION-FREE

Our closed system creates truly clean energy with no emissions. Any contaminants in the feedstock are encapsulated in vitrified slag or recovered for safe collection and sale.

WASTE-FREE

All of our outputs are 100% reusable, from synthesis gas that is cleaned and repurposed to valuable materials that can be sold for a profit. Nothing goes to the landfill.

USABLE BYPRODUCTS

Our proprietary process converts waste into useable materials such as jet fuel and paraffin wax, turning refuse into another source of revenue.

Plasma is the fourth state of matter, when intense heat causes molecular bonds to break apart and release individual atoms, which reform into the most basic, naturally-occurring molecules: hydrogen gas (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO).

 

We have been using plasma commercially and industrially for more than half a century, from welding to fluorescent lightbulbs. It is also responsible for some of nature’s most awe-inspiring events such as lightning, auroras, and solar wind.

 

Nature

Approximately 99% of the matter in the observable universe is in a plasma state, including the sun, the stars, and even Earth’s ionosphere.

Industry

Plasma has traditionally been used for welding and material processing or the breakdown of hazardous materials, but it has potential to create as well as destroy.

Technology

We have been harnessing plasma safely and efficiently for decades in every day products like fluorescent light bulbs, which proves that it can be carefully controlled.

 

For many years, the scientific community has been working to commercialize various “green” power technologies, including solar, wind and waste-to-energy conversion.

 

Each of these areas of investment has had moderate returns at best. Various waste to energy conversion technologies, ranging from incineration to pyrolysis, have had limited effectiveness. Most recently, particular interest has been paid to the gasification of municipal solid waste and various high-carbon waste products.

Traditional gasification processes use heat, pressure, and steam to convert complex organic molecules into simple gases. Although they have been in use for several years, current gasification technologies have had limited success due to relativity low energy recover rates (45-55%). Of all the potential energy inputs from electric and raw materials, approximately half is recovered for use. The remainder is trapped in leftover byproducts and lost as heat. Plasma gasification offers advantages over traditional methods.

 

Plasma Gasification is not a new technology.  It has existed in some form since the 1600s, but COH2 Energy’s Plasma Gasification system is a 21st century solution to a 21st century problem.

 

Our system integrates technical advancements in equipment, materials, process controls and instrumentation, allowing for a highly controlled, extremely high temperature plasma environment. The same high-carbon waste products, along with inherent non-carbon wastes, immediately begin to break down from solid waste material into their individual molecules.

As these molecules are further ionized to their atomic state, the vast majority of non-carbon molecules are tied up and vitrified into molten silica. The ionized carbon and hydrogen atoms are allowed to reform in the oxygen-controlled environment where natural reformation occurs. Light gases of carbon monoxide and hydrogen rise for extraction as Syngas (Synthesis Gas), while heavier elements progress downward toward the molten silica and the heaviest metal elements reform at the base of the system.  Syngas is captured, cleaned of any impurities, and sold or processed into other products.

 

Gasification itself is not a new technology either, however, to date, it has had limited effectiveness and has been focused primarily toward waste reduction.

 

Although there are many systems currently in use that perform gasification, each has limitations. There are three main gasifier classifications into which most of the commercially available gasifiers fall. All combine a feedstock, a gas (usually air, steam, or pure oxygen), and heat to produce gas and ash or slag.

 
Fixed or moving-bed gasifiers operate at atmospheric pressure and are not much different than a blast furnace.

Fixed or moving-bed gasifiers operate at atmospheric pressure and are not much different than a blast furnace.

Fluidized-bed gasifiers suspend particles in an oxygen rich gas so the resulting bed acts as a fluid. Fluidized-bed gasifiers offer load flexibility and high heat transfer rates. However, the lower temperature operation limits feedstock to reactive …

Fluidized-bed gasifiers suspend particles in an oxygen rich gas so the resulting bed acts as a fluid. Fluidized-bed gasifiers offer load flexibility and high heat transfer rates. However, the lower temperature operation limits feedstock to reactive and low rank coals.

Entrained-flow gasifiers introduce feedstock and steam, oxygen, or air into the top of the system. High temperature and pressure—along with an extremely turbulent flow—cause the conversion to occur very rapidly, achieving a high throughput.

Entrained-flow gasifiers introduce feedstock and steam, oxygen, or air into the top of the system. High temperature and pressure—along with an extremely turbulent flow—cause the conversion to occur very rapidly, achieving a high throughput.

 

While these three systems focus on a much more environmentally friendly method of waste disposal, we believe that any technology must be commercially viable before other environmental and intangible benefits can be realized.

COH2 Energy and our partners have focused on commercializing plasma gasification with the goal of the production of Syngas and subsequent production of Jet Fuel and Paraffin Wax to maximize return on investment. As the process produces no biproducts requiring landfilling and no emissions, the positive environmental benefits are a bonus and are leveraged to further enhance profits.

 

Our Plasma Gasification System differs from traditional gasification processes in several technical aspects but relies on five key engineering areas:

Method

We leverage Cold War technology to produce a targeted, superheated plasma pool within a vessel of molten and gaseous material. Temperatures are in the range of 10,000ºC. This methodology allows for greater temperature control, greater control of the size and shape of the plasma plume, and a reduced amount of energy required to maintain the plasma environment.

Design

The plasma gasifier design is significantly different from traditional gasification.  Plasma electric arc gasification operates at negative pressure (induced draft) and very high temperatures.  All the carbon in the feedstock is converted into Syngas.  Traditional gasifiers use a portion of the carbon feedstock as fuel to generate the heat in the gasifier. Thus, the overall return on energy invested is reduced.  Plus, traditional gasifiers are pressurized air or oxygen blown systems, which have a lower operating temperature that further reduces the conversion efficiency of the carbon in the feedstock. For a traditional gasifier to match up with a plasma electric arc gasifier, it must double or more in scale, energy input, and costs (capital and O&M).

Inputs

Our system utilizes a proprietary feed system, which introduces a methodology for maximizing temperature gradient control and management of material phase changes. The methodology also minimizes the electrical input requirements of the plasma generator by employing an innovative preheating, pretreatment and mixing approach.

Extraction

Because of the input design, the Syngas produced has far fewer impurities, which in turn allows us to remove any residual impurities with less gas cooling and subsequently less reheating of the gas in preparation for direct feed into a gas turbine or other post-processing. These cooling and reheating processes are also proprietary.

Recycling

The Law of Conservation of Energy states that the total amount of energy in an isolated system remains constant over time. We take advantage of this law to minimize the electrical input required to create and maintain the plasma environment. This is done by harnessing the heat, recycling it, and minimizing the amount of heat exchange outside of the closed portion of the system. We utilize much of the heat to generate steam from the water used to cool the gasification chamber, which is a common process. However, we also have several innovative ways of using and reutilizing heat and recycling steam, virtually eliminating the need for any additional electrical energy to power the subsystems surrounding the plasma gasification unit.

With COH2, nothing goes to waste. Our process can create a variety of hydrocarbon products.

 
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SynGas

Synthesis gas (AKA “Syngas”) is the primary byproduct of the gasification process. After cleaning and cooling, Syngas can be sold on the open market.  It is commonly used to generate electricity in a modified gas turbine and as a base chemical to produce other types of fuel products and hydrocarbon chemicals.

 
 

COH2 Energy focuses on the portion of Syngas for direct sale and post-processing Syngas into Jet Fuel and Paraffin Wax.

 

Jet Fuel

Synthetic jet fuels created by the Fischer-Tropsch process are certified for use in up to a 50% blend with conventional jet fuel in the U.S. and international aviation fleets. It has been used commercially by Qatar Airlines, and research shows that they drastically reduce pollutants, leading to improved air quality around airports in highly populated areas.

 

ParafFin Wax

Paraffin wax is typically derived from petroleum or coal. It was first used in the early 1800s to replace tallow candles (made from beef fat) because it was cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable. It is still used to make candles today, as well as lubrication, electrical insulation, and crayons when dyed.

 
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recovered Metals

Heavy metals are inherent in most waste streams.  Molten metals are tapped into ingots and sold for further refinement.

 
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Leftover INORGANICS

Any residual inorganic material (including anything potentially hazardous) is captured in a vitrified slag, which keeps it from leaching out into the environment.  The molten slag is extracted and broken down into an industrial-grade aggregate that can be used in construction.  It is ideal for use as landfill cap material.