Around the world, landfill gas – specifically methane emissions from landfills – contribute significantly to climate change. There is great potential to significantly reduce methane emissions at these sites, and the solution is technically quite simple. By installing landfill gas recovery systems and flaring the landfill gas, it is possible to effectively mitigate methane emissions. The gas can also be utilised to generate electricity, provide heating, or replace fossil fuels.
Low landfill gas rates
In some situations, such as old landfills, or landfills that receive a low quantity of organic waste, it can be more challenging to reduce landfill gas emissions. Low calorific flares may be a perfect solution for effectively mitigating methane emissions at these sites, and they have been proven to work successfully on gas flows containing only 10-15% methane. These flares pre-mix air with the gas, enabling the gas to be burnt off at high temperatures (>900°C). There is also the option of recovering heat from these flares, making it an ideal solution for many landfill sites around the world with relatively low landfill gas generation rates.
Technical support
Low calorific flares are also a great replacement for traditional flares on sites at which the methane concentration in recovered landfill gas has declined over the years. Afvalzorg has implemented low calorific flares at its landfills for many years now. We offer our expertise in this technology, and landfill gas management in general, in the form of technical support and guidance to landfill operators around the world.
Spanish project
A low calorific flare owned by Afvalzorg was recently installed at an industrial landfill site in Spain. This site receives low quantities of organic waste, but it still generates significant amounts of landfill gas. The low calorific flare is ideal for this site with its relatively low landfill gas generation rates. The solution results in emission reduction and the effective mitigation of landfill gas-related hazards such as fires and explosion risks.