After successfully testing its patented fumes-to-fuel technology at Michigan Truck Plant in Wayne, Michigan, Ford Motor Company is installing the system to capture paint emissions and help power the plant.
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The technology, co-developed by Ford and Detroit Edison, turns paint fumes into clean electricity and is scheduled to go on-line at the plant this autumn, said Matt DeMars, Ford’s vice president of North American Vehicle Operations, speaking at the 2005 Automotive News Manufacturing Conference.
“We’re installing an incredible technology at Michigan Truck called Fumes-to-Fuel,” DeMars said. “There, we can turn volatile organic compound air emissions from vehicle painting operations into electricity.
“We’ve tested the technology – and it works. This fall, we’ll turn it on and help power the plant with emissions from our paint shop – something we’ve had to collect and incinerate in the past. And will do so at a considerable cost saving,” he said.
Using the technology, Ford captures paint fumes, which contain air and volatile organic compounds or VOCs and sends them through a two-stage system. In the first stage, a concentrator turns the VOCs’ exhaust stream into rich mixture of hydrocarbons. Then at the second stage, the gas is fed into a combustion engine, which uses it to generate electricity for the plant. This technology supports future migration to fuel cell technology as fuel cells become more affordable.
The system eliminates the need for the expensive incineration process currently used to remove VOCs from paint fumes. It also significantly reduces carbon dioxide emissions.
