Introduction

Breaking of organic bonds using extremely hot air in an oxygen deficient environment, and
conversion of the organic material into fuel gas (called syn gas, similar to CNG used in cars
but consisting of mainly CO and H2) is called gasification. Plasma gasification technology
provides an attractive and universal means to treat most types of waste including municipal,
nuclear and other solid wastes in an environment friendly manner. Usual low temperature
burning has the issues of producing carcinogenic substances like dioxin, furan and other
pollutants like NOX and SOX. Poor waste to gas conversion, high ash content in residue, slow
process rate and no generation of fuel gas are some of the drawbacks of incineration.
Gasification is different from incineration as no pollutant is generated and synthesized gas
(syn gas) can be used as fuel for heat/electricity generation. The developed technology of Air
Plasma Incinerator adopts a judicious combination of the two in which it does high
temperature gasification at the bottom of the primary chamber and allows controlled burning
of the produced syn-gas at the top to supply energy required for the process. The technique
drastically reduces requirement of external supply of energy and mitigates waste in an
environment friendly manner extracting energy from the waste itself. Achieved waste process
rate in the developed system is of the order of 1-3 ton per day depending on the type of waste.

Components

Components of Triple Torch Air Plasma Incinerator

The basic components of the unit include waste feeder unit, primary chamber, secondary
chamber, venturi scrubber, packed bed column, id fan unit and a stack. Waste is fed from the
side at the top of the primary chamber. The id fan unit maintains a negative pressure
throughout the process zone and does not allow any synthesized gas to come out from the
process chamber. Three air plasma torches oriented azimuthally 120 degree apart discharge
inside a coke bed at the bottom of the primary chamber and form a highly uniform very high
temperature process bed of temperature in excess of 1500 oC. A skip-hoist waste loader drops
the wastes at the hopper which eventually reach the bottom of the primary chamber via
mechanically interlocked double door compartments, a pusher and a heat blocker gate.
Air Plasma Torch Technology

Three plasma torches discharging inside coke bed of primary chamber

The primary prerequisite for processing waste (organic and inorganic) in an

environment friendly manner using gasification technology is the 'availability of high
temperature'. Higher the temperature better is the conversion of waste into fuel gas and lower
is the harmful emission. Over the years it has been established that an arc plasma jet, a beam
of huge concentrated thermal energy at very high temperature consisting of electrons, ions
and neutrals, can meet the high temperature requirement of gasification process in a most
convenient manner. Air plasma torches are the most suitable in this regard as they take air,
freely available in environment and convert that into plasma jet. The offered technology uses
three air plasma torches (Patent# 201721012999, Technology transferred), oriented
azimuthally 120 degree apart, to produce beams in the form of an intensely luminous
extremely hot radiating atmospheric pressure cylindrical plasma jet controlled in terms of its
length, diameter, velocity and power content. The three plasma jets meet at the centre of a
coke bed to produce uniformly heated very high temperature coke bed process zone for
gasification. Low device cost, low operational cost, simple design, use of cheapest gas (air),
high efficiency (>60%), high temperature (~8000 K at the anode exit) and ease of control are
some of the key features of the air torch technology developed by BARC.
Environment Friendly Mitigation
High temperature of the coke bed immediately breaks all the organic bonds inside the waste
material as soon as it interacts with the extremely hot coke bed at the bottom of the primary
chamber. Released hydrogen atoms combine to form hydrogen gas. In presence of carbon in
coke bed, controlled supply of oxygen through air converts carbon to carbon monoxide and
strongly restricts formation of NOx and SOx. Formation of carcinogenic dioxin and furan is
eliminated first by breaking associated bonds at high temperature coke bed, followed by fast
quenching in the quencher unit above the venture scrubber. Particulates are efficiently
separated in by the venturi scrubber and eventually deposited as slag at the bottom tank.
Residual acidic gases are scrubbed in the spray column of alkaline solution sprayed at the top
of the venturi. The cooled off gas is further scrubbed in the packed bed column using water
before releasing to the stack.

Design Specialty of the Primary Chamber

The primary chamber is specially designed with an aim to run the system with maximum
possible extraction of energy from the waste itself. It has three distinct zones: the very high
temperature coke bed zone at the bottom, the gasification zone above it and the free board
zone at the top. The chamber is equipped with equi-spaced air injection ports at various levels
to facilitate extraction of energy through controlled burning of produced syn gas in the
gasification zone. Continuous supply of energy through this mechanism not only has the
potential to meet the requirement of energy in the process but also can generate additional
energy to be utilized for other processes like generation of steam, production of electricity
etc. Presence of plasma torches facilitates assured supply of external energy as and when
required. Under self-sustained mode with continuous feed, no supply of external energy is
required for wastes like municipal solid waste (MSW).

Process zones inside primary chamber

Advantages
• Oxygen starved environment: Limits production of harmful gases like NOx,
SOx,CO2
• High temperature plasma and sudden quenching: Gives ability to break chemical
bonds. Does not allow formation of Dioxin & Furan. Makes it suitable for hazardous
waste
• Very high solid to gas conversion efficiency: Due to vigorous reaction in presence
of species in atomic and ionic state. Very little amount of residue. Reduced landfill.
• Faster conversion: Higher the temperature better is the concentration of active
species (atoms and ions). Faster is the reaction.
• Syn gas: Produced high quality fuel gas (CO + H2) under gasification mode can
run gas engine and produce electricity from waste.
• Low carbon foot print: No burning of fossil fuel
• High energy density: Compact reactor
• Relatively low device and peripheral cost: Reduced installation cost.
• Low operational cost: Light weight portable compact device: easier handling.
• Low maintenance cost: Simpler design, easier maintenance
• Longer plasma jet (>300 mm): better plasma waste interaction volume.
• Low gas flow requirement (~20 slpm in each torch): Reduced cost of gas delivery
and effluent gas treatment.

Emission Features
The system can be operated in both incineration and gasification mode. Under incineration
mode the measured emission of harmful gases like CO, SOX, NOX are found well with the
permissible limit by CPCB. The syngas generation mode in the system gets activated once all
the external air inlet ports are closed. Obtained syn gas (total of CH4, CO and H2) quality
meets the energy content of more than 6.3 MJ/Nm3.

Safe emission in Incineration mode and good syngas quality in gasification mode
 Tech Specs
1. Plasma torch
Plasma exit Weig Coolant Gas Electrical connector
Diameter Length
bore ht connector connector type
4.5 1/4 inch Plate type with
96 mm 250 mm 15 mm 1/4 inch BSP
kg BSP central bore (10 mm)
No. of gas No. of elec. Current Anode elec. Cathode elec.
Coolant connection
connectors connectors supply connection Connection
Source: looped
Dc: 50A to Negative of DC Ground of DC
3 4 Constrictor: separate
300 A Supply supply
Anode: separate
Cathode Anode Constrictor Maximum coolant
Cathode type Anode type
cooling cooling cooling temperature
Button type Annular
Electrolytic Forced water jet Annular
Hafnium in copper channel 50
copper cooling channel flow
matrix flow

2. Power Supply

Type & Line supply Load voltage Maximu Ripple Control knobs Indicator
m
current
Constant current supply: 170 V 150 A <1% of 1. Current control 1. Fault indicator
Electrical line supply 2. Shut down 2. Line supply status
Supply: current 3. Emergenc3. Load current
400V(±10%), y stop 4. Load voltage
200A
50Hz(±5%), 3 phase AC
3. Air Supply System

Capacity Discharge Filter

pressure
275 cfm of air at a Work: 7 bar Oil content <2 ppm
pressure of 8 bar. Max: 10 bar Moisture content
< 1ppm

4. Coolant Supply System

Type Capacity Inlet & outlet Control and display

temperature
Outdoor, weather 200 liter per Inlet: 30-50 C 1. Set temperature
proof, Industrial minute at 7 Outlet: 15- 2. Coolant temperature
process cooling kg/cm2 of 30 C 3. Compressor status
system pressure

5. Arc Ignition, Control and Monitoring System

HF ignition Spectrometer RTD sensor Coolant Flow meter Gas flow meters
3 kV 3 MHz Spectral range: 400 Range:0-100 C Range: 0-30 lpm Range: 0-100 lpm
nm to 480 nm Accuracy: 0.1C Accuracy 0.25 lpm Accuracy: 2.5 slm
Resolution: 0.05nm
 Capacity, Investment & Unit Cost of Production
[* Figures given are only indicative and for a rough estimate only. Actual cost may vary depending on market
rate.]

Sl. Subsystem Component Subcomponents Cost (Rs.)

Plasma source Hafnium cathode 7000.00
Cathode holder 5000.00
Gas Injection ring 3000.00
Teflon core 7000.00
SS housing 4000.00
Copper nozzle 5000.00
Brass cup for nozzle housing 5000.00
Electrical and flow tubing 5000.00
Copper shroud gas injection ring 6000.00
with distributor cavity
Constrictor Constrictor with coolant channel, 15,000.00
1 Plasma Torch electrical and flow connectors
Anode Do 15,000.00
Teflon rings O-rings with machined grooves 4 10,000.00
Nos.
SS-Holder plates 2 Nos. 4,000.00
Holding studs 4 No s with bolts 2,000.00
Plasma source cost (per torch) 93,000.00
Total Source cost for three torches (Rs.) 279,000.00

2. IGBT Power supply (150A, 170V)x3 20,00,000.00

3. Air supply system Air compressor 12,00,000.00
Electrical networking and star-delta- 15,000.00
starter configuration
Gas supply lining (SS-304, 1 inch 1,00,000.00
NB pipe)
Total cost of air supply system 13,15,000.00
4. Chilled water supply system Chiller unit 15,00,000.00
Water piping (SS 304 2 inch NB) 5,00,000.00
with thermal insulation
Total cost of coolant supply system 20,00,000.00
5. Ignition and control system RF ignitor (3 kV, 3 MHz x3) 75,000.00
Thermocouple, pressure sensor, 15,00,000.00
control consol, mounting, display
and wiring
Gas flow meters (4 Nos.) 40,000.00
Water flow meters (3 Nos.) 45,000.00
RTD sensors with mounting (4 nos.) 40,000.00
and display
Total cost ignition and control system 17,00,000.00
Total cost primary chamber 25,00,000.00
Total cost secondary chamber 15,00,000.00
Total cost venturi scrubber 14,00,000.00
Total cost packed bed column 11,00,000.00
Total cost i.d. fan unit 6,00,000.00
Total cost stack (fabrication & installation) 10,00,000.00
1,53,94,000.00
Net Unit Cost (~1.54 Crore )
 Energy Consumption Rate under Full Load

Notes.
1. Depending on chilling requirement, the usual power consumption rate during operation will
be less, once steady state reaches in the system.

2. The Power consumption by air compressor will depend on the air flow requirement. For
lower flow rate, the compressor may stay in idle condition and the power consumption rate
will be reduced.

3. Once coke bed reaches very high temperature (>1500K) through plasma discharge, the power
coming from the waste found to be sufficient to run the system with requisite efficacy. The
plasma power input may be stopped at that time. The energy consumption rate may be
directly reduced by 75 kW under steady state operation with continuous waste feed.
 Process & Operational Features-I

Clean emission from stack: Only faint white The extremely hot coke bed with bed
stream of water temperature

Negative pressure maintained at different units Fast plasma gasification as waste interacts
with extremely hot coke bed
 Process & Operational Features-II

Formation of Dioxin and Furan takes place in the temperature

zone 200-600C. The zone is avoided by sudden quenching of
syn-gas from ~1200 oC to 50 oC in the ventury scrubber. Also,
the system generates least amount of fly ash to act as catalyst
for formation of Dioxin and Furan.
 Air Plasma Torch
A thermal plasma jet is a beam of huge concentrated thermal energy at very high temperature
consisting of electrons, ions and neutrals. Such plasmas are naturally formed in atmosphere during
thunderbolt and observed as a bright flash in the sky. Similar plasma is produced by the offered
technology in the form of an intensely luminous extremely hot radiating atmospheric pressure
cylindrical plasma jet controlled in terms of its length, diameter, velocity and power content using a
small device called air plasma torch. The novel technology offers a compact device that takes air from
the atmosphere and converts it into a controlled well defined jet of air plasma at an electrical power
level of many tens of kW with efficiency greater than 60%. Low device cost, low operational cost,
simple design, use of cheapest gas (atmospheric air), high efficiency (>60%), high peak temperature
(~9000 K at the anode exit) and ease of control are some of the key features of the technology.

ADVANTAGES
1. Low device and peripheral cost: reduced installation cost.
2. Use of air from atmosphere as plasma gas: low operational cost.
3. Light weight portable compact device: easier handling.
4. Simple design, easier maintenance: low maintenance cost.
5. High efficiency (>60% in non-transferred mode and >95% in transferred mode):
better performance
6. Extremely low cathode erosion: long electrode life and low operational cost
7. Very high plasma temperature (at the exit >8000K): more efficient heat transfer.
8. Very long plasma jet (>300 mm): better plasma matter interface.
9. Low gas flow requirement (~20 slpm): reduced cost of gas delivery and post
treatment section.

POTENTIAL APPLICATION AREAS

1. Conversion of waste into energy through plasma gasification
2. Municipal and medical waste treatment through plasma gasification
3. Hazardous waste destruction
4. Nuclear waste immobilization through melting and volume reduction
5. Chemical processing industries
6. Thermal barrier coatings
7. Steel and iron making industries
8. Metallurgical alloy making industries
9. High temperature testing of heat shield materials
10. R& D Applications
 DESIGN AND OPERATION
Internal components of the device are shown in below figure.

I
t has three major sections: (1) plasma source (2) constrictor and (3) main anode. The plasma source
section consists of a specially designed hafnium based cathode, gas distributor and coolant distributor.
A single coolant loop caters to all the sectors in this section. With the help of a radio-frequency
igniter, the plasma (arc) is initiated in this section between the cathode and the nozzle. Once the
source is on, the arc is transferred to the constrictor section at low power. The role of the constrictor is
to streamline the plasma jet as well as develop appropriate voltage in the plasma column for operation
at a given power level. For a given current and gas flow rate, the power of the plasma jet can be
adjusted just by changing length of this constrictor section. The power of the plasma is gradually
increased to medium level. Next, the arc is transferred the main anode and full power of the jet is
achieved. An extremely bright well-formed huge jet comes out from the device as shown in figure
below.
 ASSEMBLY AND ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS
The section of the assembled plasma torch and electrical connection with power supply for operation
is shown in figure below. Initially both the connectors "A" and "B" are connected and an arc is
initiated between the cathode and the nozzle. The connectors are sequentially opened to make a
gradual transfer of the arc from the cathode to the constrictor and finally to the main anode. While in
operation at full power, both the connectors remain open.

SUBSYSTEMS
The complete plasma system consists of the following five subsystems:

1. Plasma torch
The air plasma torch serves as the key device for the entire system. Rests of the units are the
supporting units for the torch.
2. Power supply system
An IGBT based DC power supply delivers the necessary power for the torch operation.
3. Air supply system
The air supply system, consisting of a compressor and a storage tank, supplies the necessary
airflow for the torch operation.
4. Water supply system
The chilled water supply system provides necessary cooling for the thermally stressed
components of the plasma torch.
5. Arc ignition and control system
The ignition and the control system consists of an HF (high frequency) unit, two contactors
and a power supply control unit. The HF unit (included in the power supply) ignites the arc, the
contactor units transfer the arc to the main anode, and the power supply control unit controls the
delivered power to the torch through control of arc current.
 PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS
V-I characteristics

Typical V-I characteristics for the plasma torch is shown in figure above. The arc voltage remains
nearly constant over a range of currents. A slight drop in the voltage is observed at higher currents.
Increase in power with increase in current is slightly non-linear. For operation around 50 kW the torch
operates near current 350 A and voltage 156 V.

Cathode performance

As shown above extremely low electrode loss due to erosion is observed for the cathodes. For new
electrodes, the loss is relatively high at the start but decreases fast with time and stays at that
extremely low level. The electrode loss reduces with increase in current.

Efficiency and Thermal Losses

Power delivered into the plasma by the power supply is partly dissipated in heating the anode,
constrictor and the cathode system. Rest of the delivered power goes into the plasma. As seen in
figure, less than 5 % of the total input electrical power is dissipated by the cathode. The torch
efficiency is nearly 65% around 20 kW and around 60% at 50 kW. In transferred arc mode, only loss
is due to the cathode and efficiency goes above 95%.
 25 kW, 150 A IGBT based power source for thermal
plasma application

Description
The power source of 25 kW, 150A DC for Thermal Plasma torch consists of a main arc DC power
supply and a trigger unit. The trigger unit initiates arc and main arc power supply gives energy to
maintain it. The main arc power supply have fast response to enable stabilizing the plasma. The main
arc power source is based on 25 kHz IGBT inverter operating in constant current mode. 3kV, 3 MHz
trigger unit is based on capacitor discharge through spark gap. Trigger unit is inductively coupled with
main arc power supply.

Salient Features & Technical Specifications

 25 kW power @150A DC
 Current ripple less than 1%
 Suitable for air plasma torch
 25 kHz IGBT inverter based design
 User friendly GUI (Graphical User Interface) with 10" touch screen display
 Rugged and light in weight
 Fits into a very compact size of 21.5” x 27.5” x 42”
 Low cost indigenous product
 Compatible with SCADA system
Applications
This power source is used to energize air/argon plasma torch used in gasification/incineration plants.
The plasma based incinerator/gasifier used for wide range of application in the field of MSW,
Biomass, and Nuclear waste. The user of this power source can be BARC, other units of DAE or any
industrial plant. This power source can be used in other industrial application of thermal plasma, viz.
cutting etc..

Theory and Operation

A high voltage high frequency (HVHF) supply is required for initiation of the discharge
between the cathode and anode without moving the electrodes. Since the electrical resistance of the
gas in the plasma torch is high enough that the low voltage of the main arc power supply cannot
bridge the inter electrode gap, a high voltage of 3 to 5 kV at a 3 to 4 MHz frequency easily produces
the breakdown between the electrode gap and produces ionization of the gas causing a plasma gap
discharge. Once the plasma discharge is initiated, its low electrical resistance enables the main arc
power supply to take over and maintain the plasma discharge.
The block diagram of a typical power source for thermal plasma application is given in below.
The major blocks of this power source are front end rectifier & DC link filter, Soft start rectifier,
IGBT inverter, High frequency link transformer output rectifier & filter and HVHF unit.

Conceptual block diagram of typical DC plasma power source

A soft start rectifier is required to charge DC link capacitor in the controlled manner when
conventional uncontrolled front end rectifier or high pulse rectifier is used. This is to avoid the over
stressing the diodes of main front end rectifier.
IGBT based single phase high frequency ac link inverter is used, which feed to a ferrite core
transformer. In the power source the operating frequency of inverter is 25 kHz. The output of inverter
is coupled to HF transformer through coupling capacitor for DC blocking. The output of transformer
is rectified using fast rectifier and filtered using balanced T filter.
Feedback current taken for control as well as display is sampled through high speed DC CT.
Voltage limit is insured by taking an output dc voltage feedback through resistor divider network and
feeding to control circuit.
Robust hybrid (Analog & Digital) control circuit not only ensures smooth implementation of
proportional integral control but also takes care of system interlocks for safe operation, interfacing
with other devices. User friendly GUI is implemented through 10” touch screen display.
Facilities & Manpower required for commercial production
 Material handling equipment such as Chain pulley, hydraulic trolley etc.
 Electrical test and measurement equipment such as Multimeter, Clamp on meters,
Oscilloscope, Megger etc.
 Floor space of 150 sq. ft. (15ft x 10ft) is required for integration and testing
 Utilities like 3 phase electrical power.
 One electrical engineer with bachelor’s degree, one electrician/wireman and one
helper is required for wiring and assembly of the power source

Technical Data Sheets

Sr. No. Description Rating
1 Input Voltage 415V ± 10%, 3Ph, 50Hz± 3%, 4 WIRE SYSTEM
2 Input kVA Approx. 35kVA at 85% efficiency
3 Class of Insulation Class H
4 Power Factor >0.9
5 System Frequency 25 kHz
6 Mode of Control Constant Current Control (PWM Technique)
7 Open Circuit Voltage 700V
8 Max Output voltage 170V
9 Max Output Current 150A
10 Max output Power 150A at 170V (Power will be limited to 25kW)
11 Cooling Forced air Cooling for IGBT and Rectifiers
12 Input Current THD as per latest IEEE std 519
13 Ripple factor <1%
14 Feed Back System DC CT & Voltage divider
15 Filtration LC Filters
16 Max. Ambient temperature 40 Deg.C

Sr.
Control/Indication Description
No.
1 Input 3-Ph R,Y,B indicators It shows the input 3-ph power supply availability.
(UV/OV/PR/PF) It shows the input supply monitoring and fault
2 Input Fault indication on HMI
status.
System over temperature indication on
3 It Shows the IGBT/rectifier over temperature indication.
HMI
4 Output over voltage indication on HMI It shows the output over voltage indication.
5 Output over Current indication on HMI It shows the output over current indication.
6 EXT-Trip indication on HMI It shows the External-Trip Indicator.
7 Emergency stop indication on HMI It shows the Emergency stop indication.
8 Set Current input from HMI To adjust the output current minimum to maximum.
Mains on/off button and indication on
9 To switch on the mains contactor.
HMI
10 DC on/off button and indication on HMI To switch on the output dc.
11 Reset button on HMI It resets the all the latched faults in the system.
12 Emergency Stop Push Button It is used to stop the system in emergency condition.
13 Output Voltage indication on HMI It shows the output voltage.
14 Output Current indication on HMI It shows the output current.
Testing of power source

Routine test Type test

• Sub-assembly/ components test • Heat run test
• Functional test • Water load test
• Light load test • Graphite rod plasma/spark test
• Rated load test • Air plasma torch test

Heat run test Ripple factor with resistive load is 0.3%,

output voltage 170V, 140A.
Sr. OUTPUT OUTPUT
No. VOLTAGE CURRENT
SET ACTUAL
1 185.2 150 149.5
2 185.2 150 148.9
3 185.2 150 149.2
4 185.3 150 149.3
5 185.5 150 148.6
6 185.5 150 149.1
7 185.5 150 149.5
8 185.9 150 149.8
9 185.9 150 149.5
10 185.9 150 149.3
11 185.9 150 149.8
12 186.2 Water
150 149.9 load test
13 186.2 150 149.6 OUTPUT
14 186.5 OUTPUT
150 149.5
Sr. No. CURRENT
15 186.2 VOLTAGE
150 149.1
SET ACTUAL
16 186.2 150 149.5
1 125 140 138.7
17 187.1 150 149.6
18
2
187.1
130
150 149.8
140 138.2
3 140 140 138.7
Rated load test : V=170V, I=150A 4 150 140 139.6
Power source is also tested at 110% of full 5 160 140 139.4
6 170 140 139.7
load
7 180 140 139.5