Abstract

In January, 1976, a paper was presented before the Institute of Gas Technology describing the initial operation and design capabilities of the world’s first landfill methane recovery facility constructed at the Palos Verdes Landfill near Los Angeles, California. At the time of that presentation, the facility had been on stream for only six months and was experiencing severe operational difficulties which made an accurate appraisal of its performance impossible. In addition, one of the joint venture partners involved in the project was experiencing major financial difficulties which gave rise to speculation concerning the plant operator’s ability to correct the operational problems and make the plant commercially viable on a long-term basis.

I am happy to report that as of this date, the Palos Verdes Landfill Methane Recovery Facilities is alive and well, producing pipeline quality gas on a continuous basis and is operating on a sound financial basis. Likewise, the plant’s builder and operator, Reserve Synthetic Fuels, Inc., is healthy and growing.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a summary of the plant’s operations to date and to discuss the technical problems encountered during plant start-up, the procedures used to identify and to overcome these problems, and to look at the plant’s present operating characteristics and its future potential.