A commercial plasma gasification reactor is to be developed under a new Task Agreement (TA) between the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy (KFE) and two major Korean companies. The reactor will be designed to dispose of waste in an eco-friendly way while producing high-purity hydrogen.

On April 12, KFE President Dr. Suk Jae Yoo announced that KFE had entered into the TA to develop a commercial plasma gasification reactor with Hyundai Power Systems and GS Engineering & Construction Corporation.

Under the TA, the three will closely collaborate on (i) research and development of a plasma pyrolysis gasification system, (ii) development and manufacturing of a commercial plasma gasification reactor, and (iii) commercialization of plasma gasification technology.

Plasma gasification is a technology that uses hot plasma to incinerate waste without polluting the air by gasifying the organic part of the waste into hydrogen, carbon monoxide, etc. Such byproducts can also be recycled after purification to produce high-purity hydrogen and generate energy.

KFE has been accumulating expertise and experience in plasma gasification technology: it has successfully developed a 500KW plasma torch, which will serve as one of the core components for the reactor. KFE is also running an experimental reactor with the capacity to dispose of 1.5 tons of waste per day using an innovative KFE reactor structure to increase pyrolysis efficiency.

(500KW plasma torch) (KFE experimental reactor)

Implementing the TA, Hyundai Power Systems will collaborate with KFE to develop and build a commercial reactor that can accommodate 100 tons of waste per day based on its expertise in manufacturing industrial boilers - It is renowned for its original circulating fluidized bed combustion boiler technology. GS Engineering & Construction Corp. will also contribute by developing technologies to establish facilities for hydrogen production and electricity generation, making use of its own experience in building multiple environmental, refinery, and petrochemical plants.

“There have been several domestic attempts to commercialize plasma waste disposal technology, with none reaching the commercialization stage yet,” commented Dr. Yoo. “Through the synergy between KFE’s technology and the companies’ expertise in boiler manufacture and plant construction, we expect to disseminate plasma gasification technology throughout the energy industry.”