MID MIX technique
VSGM wants to contribute to a circular, environmentally friendly society. We do this with our MID MIX solution. The installation consists of several components. From the supply buffer, dewatered sludge is pretreated and then processed in two reactors. Here, CaO is added. By exothermic reaction, moisture is extracted and various chemical and physical processes take place. The core processes taking place in the plant are soldification and molecular encapsulation of heavy metals and other contaminants such as PFOS/PFOA, PAHs and PCBs. The water – about 65% – from the sludge passes through a cloth filter along with the ventilation air and leaves the stack clean washed in a scrubber. About 65% of the total input mass is converted into the final product Neutral. No residual product remains during the process to be disposed of as waste.
End Product Neutral
After processing sludge in MID MIX, the circular building material Neutral is produced as the end product. This consists of 80%-90% calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) and 20%-10% calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Neutral can be used as aggregate in construction, in asphalt, and as a soil improver. It replaces primary building materials such as cement and primary calcium hydroxide. It can also be used in industrial flue gas cleaning. This makes the technology interesting because it always has a very beneficial impact on the environmental score of the MID MIX process. That is why we can guarantee that Neutral can always be sold at a reasonable price. This makes it a very good choice, not only financially but also in terms of the overall environmental aspect. Adding to the environment and lower costs of sludge processing.
Carbonation
In an additional process for Neutral, known as carbonation, Neutral is reacted with CO₂, causing it to be permanently stored. Between 500 kg and 700 kg of CO₂ can be permanently captured in 1,000 kg of Neutral (CCU/CCS). This CO₂ can be captured elsewhere and fed into a ‘CO₂ conversion box’. When placed next to a flue gas duct, the CO₂ can be directed straight to the box where the process takes place. In both cases, the end product is a hybrid, synthetic limestone powder. Carmeuse has issued a purchase guarantee for this circular product at a positive value.
Choice of route to a final product
Each company has its own motives for choosing MID MIX. It may be from a financial perspective, or perhaps the environmental perspective is central. We can engineer MID MIX installations for your organization in such a way that we can work towards one type of end product, from the existing process. This allows us to easily adapt an initiated route to the new objectives in case of changing market conditions or changing legislation. After all, nothing is more subject to change than environmental legislation and its associated consequences. Investments in MID MIX technology are therefore not “cast in stone” and can be set up flexibly in the long term. We would be happy to discuss this with you in order to determine the most suitable route for your organization. Make an appointment soon!
Environmental impact
By using natural chemical reactions in the processing unit, MID MIX is a system that consumes little energy. It has a very low CO₂ footprint and emits no NOx. The route MID MIX + carbonation (capturing CO₂) has a lower environmental impact and thus a better score than sludge incineration. The route using Neutral (80-90% Calcium hydroxide) as an alternative secondary feedstock also scores above average. In both cases there is even a negative environmental impact! This makes all routes environmentally superior to sludge incineration. Although the use of CaO in MID MIX creates environmental impacts, these are more than offset by the uptake of CO₂ from the sludge and the circular application of the Neutral.
Origin
Application and capacity
The basic MID MIX plant with a single line processes between 8 and 10 tons of sludge per hour. However, various configurations are possible that can significantly increase the processing capacity at a site by deploying multiple lines in parallel. Given the limited footprint of the plants, they can often be placed at sites where sludge is collected. We can also flexibly deploy a semi-relocatable plant at sites where sludge is generated. The system is steerable to a required output. Do you have larger volumes? Then we design custom installations. Would you like to see how our installation works? Make an appointment to come and have a look at our trial/demo installation in Meppel.
Contact
5492 NG Sint-Oedenrode
+31 6 53 254 205