Taking solid waste, "shredding" it until it is reduced to its smallest components (or almost), without releasing emissions and thus generating valuable materials and energy: this is what Sierra Energy promises with its FastOx® technology, which, being according to estimates, it would be able to feed 14 million homes cleanly if all US waste were treated in this way
Taking solid waste, "shredding" it until it is reduced to its smallest components (or almost), without releasing emissions and thus generating valuable materials and energy: that's what it promises Sierra Energy with its technology FastOx®, which, according to estimates, would be able to feed cleanly 14 million homes if all US waste were treated this way.
Technology would reduce waste at the molecular level, that is, it would destroy them to the point of reaching the single molecules of which they are composed, using heat, steam and oxygen. The result is actually a mixture of very dense, “energy-laden” gases and evaluable and flexible solid residues, but, the company promises, never toxic. That's all without emissions.
Is the revolution underway? Perhaps. The system does not guarantee that it will always be economically sustainable, because convenience also depends on the quantity (and quality) of the waste introduced. For this the company offers a online calculation system for an initial estimate of the revenue / cost ratio. And then of course he invites you to contact an employee directly for more details.
Furthermore, the fact that the amount of waste affects the feasibility of the system "is opposed" to the principle it sees in prevention the first way to follow. Added to this is the formation of gases such as carbon monoxide, which must still be managed correctly.
But the technology not only appears revolutionary in principles, but also really applicable. A first commercial system in fact, it has already been installed in California, purchased by the US Army Garrison Fort Hunter Liggett in Monterey County. The US Army and the US Department of Defense, in fact, even if it seems a paradox, are committed to managing their waste in a sustainable way.
Furthermore FastOx® can treat both organic and inorganic waste, producing from the organic ones molecules derived from carbon that can be used as fuels, and other potentially useful materials from the inorganic ones (to be studied on the basis of waste).
Finally, the company has announced to have concluded investments for almost 30 million euro aimed at further developing the technology so that it is increasingly effective in cities and landfills.
Currently 14 million homes (about a quarter of our country) could thus be fed using all the waste from the USA. Further development, which focuses heavily on built-up areas, could also improve estimates.
If the decisive step it was done is early to judge, but it shouldn't be long.
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Roberta de carolis
Photo: Sierra Energy
