Fly Ash from Municipal Solid Waste Incineration as a Potential Thermochemical Energy Storage Material

Each year, combustion at municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) plants produces millions of tons of fly ash globally. This ash is characterized as a hazardous material and is mostly placed in landfills after a stabilization process or stored in hazardous waste sites. Thus, disposal of fly ash leaves a considerable social and environmental footprint and leads to high waste management costs. Thermochemical energy storage (TCES) systems are considered to be outstanding because of their high-energy density and near-zero energy loss over long periods of time. Calcium oxide (CaO), a main MSWI fly ash component, is a promising candidate for TCES. In this study, we investigate the potential of fly ash as a TCES material. To do so, we analyzed representative samples from different MSWIs using simultaneous thermal analysis (STA) under N2, CO2, and CO2/H2O atmospheres. These analyses were supported by additional techniques such as X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy, inductively coupled plasma-optical emission ...