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As cited in previous letters - this is a high temperature thermal depolymerization reaction of which a similar process was documented in a Discovery Magazine article earlier this year. The main point is that the cost of processing the waste was almost $70 a barrel! The company in Missouri was looking to set up a facility in the EU because they could get almost $100 bbl in subsidies to get rid of the waste.
It is a great idea to reuse waste - and maybe the idea of converting lots of organic wastes (from animal processing plants which generate enermous volumes of the stuff) into fuel is better than just burying it or converting it into feed. But one has also to be hard headed in asking the question - am I willing to pay the additional disposal premium for converting? - because if you are not in terms of taxes, you will end up paying on the other end - in the cost of items you purchase.
You do not get something for nothing - the laws of economics and thermodynamics place limits on the percentage of gain you get in reuse of an item. There is no question that there is a lot of potential energy in trash - through incineration, through gas production or perhaps through this conversion process. But none of them work really well alone - I would love to see someone (in the Department of Energy?) look at combining the waste heat from a power plant (especially a nuclear one) with the heat requirements of a process like this to try to actually accomplish some environmental gains. But please do not think that this will ever be an economic success as a stand alone enterprise without massive subsidies.
