In the fall of 2002, Yokosuka City in Kanagawa Prefecture completed an experimental plant that extracts biogas from food waste for fuel use. Using this fuel for a garbage truck, The city used this fuel to run a garbage collection truck in an initial road test at the end of January 2003.

Yokosuka and a local business, Sumitomo Heavy Industries, are jointly developing a system to create automobile fuel using biogas extracted from raw garbage (ex. food waste and leaves) of combustible waste. The city generated about 117,000 tonnes of combustible waste in fiscal 2001, of which about approximately 50,000 tonnes consisted of disposed food.

The practical application of this system will utilize raw garbage as a resource, and decrease the amount of waste incineration at the same time. The city government hopes that using biogas as motor fuel can help reduce the burden on the environment caused by exhaust emissions. A wide range of research on biogas applications is now underway, from natural gas vehicles to fuel cells and gas turbine power generation.




Posted: 2003/03/20 09:17:34 PM
Japanese version

TAG Energy , Food/Water , Local government , Manufacturing industry , Material reduction , Technology