The US Army has tested technology to convert garbage into energy in the field.
Delivering fuel and removing waste from the battlefield is extremely costly and dangerous. For its implementation, soldiers and vehicles are required, which are in danger of attack and are distracted from performing direct combat missions.
This problem should be solved by the TGER device, which converts garbage into energy. Three-month testing of the new technology ended in Iraq.
TGER is a hybrid technology that can convert a wide range of waste products into fuel. Garbage is pre-shredded and materials such as plastic, paper, cardboard and foam are granulated and heated. As a result, they decompose into simple hydrocarbons, which have the characteristics of low-grade propane. Through fermentation, aqueous ethanol is produced from waste biomaterials, such as food. 10% diesel is added to the gas and ethanol, and the mixture is then fed to a diesel generator that produces electricity.
TGER has zero carbon emissions and allows you to reduce the volume of waste by 30 times - from 23 m3 of waste, only 0.7 m3 of ash is obtained. Ash is non-toxic and can be used as fertilizer.
A military unit of 500 people daily produces about 1000 kg of garbage. By converting this huge volume of waste into energy, fuel transportation can be significantly reduced and the need for waste disposal can be eliminated. The division will become less dependent on fuel supplies and have a minimal impact on the environment. The four-ton TGER recycles about a ton of garbage per day and can supply a 60 kW generator with fuel.
TGER technology can find application not only in the army, since garbage is everywhere where a person is present. However, first of all, the advantages of the new technology are obvious in difficult conditions of natural disasters, emergencies and environmental disasters. Generators based on TGER can find a consumer in countries with underdeveloped infrastructure and communications and in temporary settlements, for example, refugee camps, where the problem of power supply and waste disposal is usually acute.
