A Portable Refinery for Wake Island and Remote Pacific Islands (Elizabeth Corbin

A presentation at the Hawaii Conservation Conference 2007 by Elizabeth Corbin (and Howard Wiig of the Department of Business, Economic Development, & Tourism, Honolulu, HI) on "A Portable Refinery for Wake Island and Remote Pacific Islands". Wake Island disposes of its trash either by open burning in violation of EPA regulations or by shipping the waste to the O‘ahu landfill. The trash problem is worsening on low-lying islands of the former Micronesian chain as ocean levels rise. Another problem is the lack of affordable electricity. Diesel oil is literally rolled onto beaches in barrels on some islands and generators are often old, inefficient, and produce excessive emissions. The solution may be a portable waste-to-energy machine that turns waste into electricity. Developed by scientists at Purdue University for the Department of Defense, the machine is three technologies in one: a bioreactor that uses enzymes and micro-organisms to turn food waste into ethanol; a gasification unit that turns plastics, paper, and other residual waste into methane and low-grade propane; and a modified diesel engine that can burn gas, ethanol and diesel fuel in variable proportions. The main by-product is a benign ash. This presentation will: a) estimate the weight and composition of waste generated on Wake Island and select islands in the Micronesian chain; b) estimate CO2, particulates and hazardous emissions generated by current waste disposal methods; c) estimate emissions from a portable refinery processing the same waste; d) estimate the amount of diesel oil displaced by refinery-generated fuel; and e) compare the cost of a refinery on site with the economic and environmental benefits derived and conclude with a cost/benefit analysis.

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Google Video | November 19, 2007

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