Technologies for converting waste and water into green hydrogen, electricity, fuel and raw materials
UNIWASTEC AG
Rotkreuz, SwitzerlandNew on Amplifa
About UNIWASTEC
UNIWASTEC AG is a Swiss technology company based in Rotkreuz operating in the field of waste-to-energy. The company consolidates several processes under one roof: evaporation electrolysis for producing green hydrogen (99.999 % purity) from wastewater or seawater, catalytic pressureless depolymerization of biomass into synthetic-catalytic fuel, mechanical-biological waste treatment, a thermolytic cracking process for converting refuse-derived fuels into synthesis gas and carbon, combined cycle power generation, liquid manure treatment, hydrothermal carbonization of sewage sludge, cryogenic processing of scrap tires, as well as drinking water treatment and seawater desalination. The plants are modularly scalable, partly housed in 40-foot containers and can operate independently of the power grid. In addition to plant construction, UNIWASTEC handles the entire project execution, from consulting, financing and site planning through waste analysis and engineering to commissioning, operation and maintenance. Customers include industrial companies, municipalities, and local, regional and national governments worldwide.
- Site
- Rotkreuz
- Processes
- Evaporation electrolysis (production of green hydrogen from wastewater/seawater), Catalytic pressureless depolymerization (synthetic-catalytic fuel from biomass/liquid manure), Mechanical-biological treatment (sorting and biological treatment of mixed waste), Thermolytic cracking process (TCP: refuse-derived fuel into synthesis gas and carbon), Power generation in combined cycle power plant (combustion of synthetic natural gas), Liquid manure treatment (pressure sterilization 75–220 °C, 3–10 bar, phase separation), Hydrothermal carbonization (sewage sludge into HTC coal, HTC process water and phosphate), Scrap tire cryogenic processing (separation into rubber powder, steel and textile fibers at -195 °C
- Materials
- Hydrogen (green, 99.999 % purity), Oxygen (green, 99.999 % purity), Synthetic-catalytic fuel (Katfuel), Biocrude oil, Synthesis gas, Synthetic natural gas (SNG, predominantly methane), Carbon (residue, CO2 sink), Steel (from scrap tires)
- Certificates
- Monitoring & controlling of plant operation, Waste analysis as a process basis
- Industries
- Waste-to-Energy / Waste Management, Hydrogen and Energy Industry, Municipalities and Public Sector, Agriculture (liquid manure, biomass), Industrial Waste, Water/Desalination Technology
- 01
Consulting (financing, subsidies, legal structures)
- 02
Waste analysis and waste-to-energy concept development
- 03
Site planning, permits, logistics
- 04
Plant construction and project implementation
- 05
Commissioning, operation, service and maintenance
- 06
Monitoring and controlling
Processes & Products
Evaporation Electrolysis
Production of green hydrogen and oxygen (99.999 % purity) from wastewater, process water or seawater with over 85 % overall efficiency.
Catalytic Pressureless Depolymerization
Conversion of biomass and agricultural waste into biocrude oil and synthetic-catalytic fuel (Katfuel).
Mechanical-Biological Treatment
Sorting of mixed waste with sensors into recyclable materials, C-humus fertilizer and refuse-derived fuel (RDF).
Thermolytic Cracking Process
Emission-free conversion of municipal and industrial waste into synthesis gas and carbon as a CO2 sink.
Combined Cycle Power Plant
Power generation from synthetic natural gas in gas and steam turbines with heat exchangers.
Methanation into Synthetic Natural Gas
Upgrading of synthesis gas into predominantly methanic synthetic natural gas.
Liquid Manure Treatment
Pressure sterilization at 75–220 °C and 3–10 bar to separate into biomass, NPK fertilizer and process water.
Hydrothermal Carbonization
Conversion of sewage sludge into HTC coal, process water and phosphate.
Cryogenic Scrap Tire Processing
Separation of scrap tires at -195 °C with liquid nitrogen into rubber powder, steel and textile fibers (purity > 99 %).
Drinking Water Treatment
Purely physical process for treating industrial wastewater and seawater desalination; 900 l of drinking water per m³.
Locations
Rotkreuz
CHHeadquarters, engineering and project development
- Materials
- Waste, biomass, liquid manure, wastewater, scrap tires
- Evaporation electrolysis plants SH-1 to SH-20 (modular electrolyzer in 40-foot container, stackable up to 8 m)
- Catalytic depolymerization plants KF-5 to KF-15 (1.5–4.5 t/h biomass)
- MBA plants MBT-20 to MBT-80 (20–80 t/h mixed waste)
- Thermolytic cracking plants TCP-4 to TCP-36
- Combined cycle power plants
- Liquid manure treatment plants S-10 and S-50
- Cryogenic scrap tire processing plants
- Drinking water treatment plants
Solutions
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evaporation electrolysis (production of green hydrogen from wastewater/seawater)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Wastewater, Process water, Seawater, Hydrogen, Oxygen |
| Catalytic pressureless depolymerization (synthetic-catalytic fuel from biomass/liquid manure)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Biomass, Liquid manure, Agricultural waste, Katfuel (synthetic-catalytic fuel), Biocrude oil |
| Mechanical-biological treatment (sorting and biological treatment of mixed waste)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Municipal waste, Industrial waste, Hospital waste, Refuse-derived fuel (RDF), C-humus fertilizer, Organics |
| Thermolytic cracking process (TCP: refuse-derived fuel into synthesis gas and carbon)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Refuse-derived fuel (RDF), Municipal and industrial waste, Synthesis gas, Carbon |
| Power generation in combined cycle power plant (combustion of synthetic natural gas)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Synthetic natural gas (SNG) |
| Liquid manure treatment (pressure sterilization 75–220 °C, 3–10 bar, phase separation)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Liquid manure, Biomass, NPK fertilizer, Process water |
| Hydrothermal carbonization (sewage sludge into HTC coal, HTC process water and phosphate)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Sewage sludge, HTC coal, HTC process water, Phosphate |
| Scrap tire cryogenic processing (separation into rubber powder, steel and textile fibers at -195 °CEngineering | – | – | – | – | Scrap tires, Rubber/rubber powder, Steel, Textile fibers, Liquid nitrogen |
| Drinking water treatment (treatment of industrial wastewater and seawater desalination, pureEngineering | – | – | – | – | Industrial wastewater, Seawater, Drinking water, Raw materials from wastewater (99.99 % purity) |
| Methanation of synthesis gas into synthetic natural gas (SNG)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Synthesis gas, Synthetic natural gas (methane) |
8 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evaporation electrolysis plant (modularly scalable electrolyzer, 40-foot container, stackable up to | UNIWASTEC SH-1 to SH-20 (water flow 1–20 m³/h; SH-20: 172,800 m³/y H2) | – | required area 180–680 m² depending on size | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
| Catalytic depolymerization plant (pressureless, modularly scalable) | UNIWASTEC KF-5, KF-10, KF-15 (1.5–4.5 t/h biomass) | – | 250–750 m² | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
| Mechanical-biological treatment plant (sorting with sensors, manual or automated) | UNIWASTEC MBT-20 to MBT-80 (20–80 t/h mixed waste) | – | 1.5–4.5 ha | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
| Thermolytic cracking plant (autothermal, spatially separated apparatus, modularly scalable) | UNIWASTEC TCP-4 to TCP-36 (13.2–118.8 t/h conditioned waste) | – | 4.9–24.1 ha | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
| Combined cycle power plant (gas and steam turbine with generators, heat exchangers) | – | – | – | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
| Liquid manure treatment plant (pressure sterilization 75–220 °C, 3–10 bar, 40-foot container) | UNIWASTEC S-10, S-50 (10 or 50 m³/h liquid manure) | – | 30–150 m² | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
| Cryogenic scrap tire processing plant (shredder, milling, granulators, magnetic separators, screen, | UNIWASTEC | – | – | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
| Drinking water treatment plant (physical process, modularly scalable, grid-independent with | UNIWASTEC | – | – | – | Rotkreuz, Switzerland (HQ) |
Additional services
Quality & Processes
The plants are designed to be modularly scalable and are monitored through monitoring and controlling during operation; product quality includes, for example, hydrogen and oxygen with 99.999 % purity as well as raw materials from wastewater with 99.99 % purity.
| Evidence | Rotkreuz |
|---|---|
| Monitoring & controlling of plant operation | |
| Waste analysis as a process basis |
History
- 2014
Background: Domenico Binder and Tobias Somandin previously jointly built up Germania Flug AG; both later founded UNIWASTEC.