MHIEC Receives Order to Rebuild a Waste-to-Energy Plant in Kita City, Tokyo
-- Two Units of Mitsubishi Advanced Forward Acting Stoker System (V-Type Stoker) with High Environmental Performance, First Installation in Japan --

Tokyo, April 6, 2023 – Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Environmental & Chemical Engineering Co., Ltd. (MHIEC), a Group company of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), has received an order from the Clean Authority of TOKYO to rebuild the Kita Incineration Plant in Kita City, Tokyo. This municipal solid waste incineration plant with disposal capacity of 600 tonnes per day has been in operation since 1998, and has become superannuated. Completion and handover of the new facility is scheduled for February 2030.

The new plant will comprise two stoker incinerators(Note1), each with disposal capacity of 300 tonnes per day, and power generation equipment. The stokers to be used are V-type stoker　waste incinerators with low loss on ignition(Note2), developed exclusively by MHIEC to further optimize the drying and combustion process compared to conventional stokers. This is the first use of this system in Japan. The plant will also incorporate high efficiency power generation using heat energy produced during the incineration process, as well as provide excess heat to nearby city facilities.

The V-type stokers to be installed in the new plant have an optimized stoker structure and incinerator shape with the surface of the stoker directed at the center of the flame during each of the processes of drying, combustion and post-combustion. The main benefit of this design is the ability to efficiently make use of radiant heat as the waste is combusted, helping to stably burn and reduce the volume of waste, which varies in terms of characteristics and conditions, and reducing the proportion of unburned combustibles in the post-combustion ash (unburned waste), contributing to a lower environmental load. The environmental performance and other benefits of this design were recognized in July 2022 with the receipt of the top “Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) Minister’s Award” at the 48th Outstanding Environmental Systems Awards, hosted by The Japan Society of Industrial Machinery Manufacturers (JSIM).(Note3)

The tender for this project was conducted as a comprehensive evaluation that considered the technical aspects of the proposal along with the cost. MHIEC’s proposal was selected in recognition of the use an exterior design reflecting the history of the area that minimized the oppressive feel of the building, a reduced environmental load from CO₂ fixation through appropriate use of lumber from the Tama area, and improved automated combustion control using sensing technologies and deep learning. The total tax excluded value of the contract, including dismantling and removal of the existing structure and construction of the new facility, is approximately 55.2 billion yen.

MHIEC succeeded MHI’s environmental protection business in 2008, taking over its technological development capabilities in environmental protection systems and extensive expertise in the construction, operation, and maintenance of waste management facilities. The company is well positioned to propose comprehensive solutions encompassing all aspects from plant construction to operations, while also responding to needs for after-sales servicing and long-term operation and maintenance. Going forward, MHIEC will continue to seek to expand its business worldwide through proactive offering of proposals for enhancing the efficiency of existing facilities, making incinerators more advanced through AI and IoT supported remote monitoring and automated operation, and lowering life-cycle costs (LCC).

• 1A stoker incinerator is the most widely adopted type of furnace used in waste-to-energy plants. Waste is combusted as it moves along a fire grate made of heat-resistant castings.
• 2 Loss on ignition represents the weight ratio of the unburnt content in the dried bottom ash.
• 3 For more information on the “METI Minister’s Award” for the V-type stoker at the 48th Outstanding Environmental Systems Awards, see the following press release:
  https://www.mhi.com/news/220727.html