So i recently posted an idea for a powdered milk turbine, and thought about the fact that many non-flammable substances become flammable once they are de-hydrated and powdered. Why not grind up garbage from landfills, completely dehydrate it via drum drying (using heat), then grind it back into a sort of garbage powder that would likely be flammable?
-- acurafan07, Aug 16 2009

SELCHP (South East London Combined Heat and Power) http://www.selchp.com/
This plant burns garbage to produce electicity. It has to burn at stupidly high temperatures, requires a *lot* of garbage and has pretty complex exhaust cleaners. It might be easier to charge an electric car from one of these plants. [wagster, Aug 16 2009]

Because I might be sitting behind you at the light smelling your exhaust.
-- normzone, Aug 16 2009


I reckon powdered milk contains a good bit more chemical energy than powdered garbage.
-- wagster, Aug 16 2009


Toxic plastics, metals, paints and all of the other nasties that end up in garbage, like fluorescent light bulbs and their mercury payload.
-- UnaBubba, Aug 16 2009


Also, given the random and heterogenous composition of garbage, results would vary quite widely.
-- 21 Quest, Aug 16 2009


Processing the garbage would probably take more energy than is in the garbage.
-- Spacecoyote, Aug 16 2009


I'd like to see a car that could safely use a plasma furnace as a power source.
-- UnaBubba, Aug 17 2009


If you could find a reliable stream of waste plastic, this might work. Just have to grind it into dust. Plastic is basically solidified petrol. On the other hand, perhaps it is better to bury that nicely sequestered carbon as-is.
-- BunsenHoneydew, Aug 21 2009



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