In Zella-Mehlis in southern Thuringia, the regional \u201cZweckverband f\u00fcr Abfallwirtschaft S\u00fcdwestth\u00fcringen\u201d (ZASt) operates a waste recycling plant. By the end of 2023, a production plant for synthetic methanol will be built at that site, funded by the state of Thuringia. In a demanding two-stage, Europe-wide tendering process, STEAG GmbH, Essen\/Germany, together with the planning and engineering company Dr. Born\u00a0–\u00a0Dr. Ermel GmbH, was awarded the contract as architect engineer to design the plant and supervise its construction.<\/p>\n
The aim of the project, for which ZASt is to invest a total of around 23 M\u00a0\u20ac at the Zella-Mehlis site, is to produce green, climate-friendly methanol. This is widely used as a basic material in the chemical industry, e.\u2009g., but can also constitute a green alternative to fossil fuels and thus contribute to the decarbonization of the mobility sector. \u201cIt is conceivable that in the future we will operate part of our own fleet of refuse collection vehicles or even bus fleets in the local transport sector with the methanol produced here. This reduces CO2<\/sub>\u00a0emissions, protects the environment and shows in practical terms how the energy transition can be implemented in our region,\u201d says Thomas M\u00fcller, chairman of ZASt and also district administrator of Hildburghausen county.<\/p>\n H2<\/sub>\u00a0and CO2<\/sub>\u00a0are needed to turn the residual waste from around 480,000 Thuringians into climate-friendly synthetic methanol. When the two substances react together using a special catalyst, they can be converted into methanol.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the future, the hydrogen required will be produced directly at the Zella-Mehlis site,\u201d says Christian Hensel, who is in charge of the project at STEAG. For this purpose, the energy company is planning a water electrolysis plant with a capacity of 10 MW. This will be built and operated using the electricity generated in the South Thuringia Residual Waste Treatment Plant (RABA), the waste treatment plant in Zella-Mehlis owned by ZASt (Figure 1).<\/p>\n The second technical component is a plant for CO2<\/sub>\u00a0capture from the waste gas flow of the waste treatment process. \u201cIn the future, up to 10,000 t of CO2<\/sub>\u00a0will be collected year after year in this way and will therefore not end up in the environment,\u201d says Heiko Peters, managing director of Dr. Born\u00a0–\u00a0Dr. Ermel GmbH. Downstream from the electro-lysis and CO2<\/sub>\u00a0separation there will be the methanol synthesis plant proper, which will in future produce around 5,000 to 7,000\u00a0t\/a of green fuel in Zella-Mehlis.<\/p>\n \u201cThe project in Zella-Mehlis is a beacon for the recycling economy and the energy transition,\u201d says Ulrich Sigel, head of the STEAG Energy Solutions business unit, who is also impressed by the project. This is because methanol synthesis not only succeeds in significantly reducing CO2<\/sub>\u00a0emissions, but also makes an important contribution to successful energy integration by helping to decarbonize mobility. \u201cThis is an important contribution to the success of the energy transition as a whole.\u201d<\/p>\n In this respect, the project promises to be a real benefit for all those involved and for the region of southern Thuringia as a whole: \u201cOur region is known for top-level sports thanks to Oberhof. Now being a pioneer in the field of methanol synthesis is also very good for our reputation as a technology region,\u201d says M\u00fcller. (STEAG\/Si.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In Zella-Mehlis in southern Thuringia, the regional \u201cZweckverband f\u00fcr Abfallwirtschaft S\u00fcdwestth\u00fcringen\u201d (ZASt) operates a waste recycling plant. By the end of 2023, a production plant for synthetic methanol will be …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":13964,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[871],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13978","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-in-brief-issue-02_2022"],"yoast_head":"\n