Untha’s helps boost SRF production in South Korea

Asia – A new solid recovered fuel (SRF) facility has started production in South Korea’s Wonju City, utilising the expertise of global shredding technology provider UNTHA of Austria together with local partner Peritus.

South Korean waste management major Zion decided to build the plant to make smarter use of its residual materials. With the new system in place, pre-sorted C&D waste is shredded to produce a homogeneous 50 mm fuel for the cement industry.

The UNTHA XR3000C shredder with cutting concept was chosen following a series of tests at UNTHA’s headquarters. Demonstrations proved the technology could ‘comfortably achieve throughputs of 60-70 tonnes per day’. The machine can generate 40-50 mm particle sizes from the single-step shredding of plastic bales.

Peter Streinik, head of the waste business unit at Untha, comments: ‘South Korea may only be in the infancy of its waste-to-energy journey, yet the nation has formed a very sophisticated and disciplined approach to its waste roadmap, relatively quickly. Legislation is in place to drive the production of less than 50 mm SRF, and the necessary infrastructure is fast evolving to accommodate this.’

Zion’s president Geumju Kim observes: ‘Our family-run business is incredibly passionate about renewable energy, from solar power to alternative fuel production. Now that our new SRF plant is up and running, the next step is to investigate relationships with different customers. We can satisfy varied specifications, and look forward to improving South Korea’s resource agenda.’