5. Conclusion

The conversion of RDF into methanol, which can be termed bio-methanol due to its production from a renewable source, has the advantage of offering a new nontoxic-disposal methodology and of valorizing the feedstock by transferring the RDF carbon source into a valuable resource; in this process, in fact, the RDF carbon matrix is partially fixed in the methanol molecule and the remaining part is recovered in the form of pure CO2. In this way, on one hand, an environmental-friendly process has been proposed, and, on the other hand, the target of providing 10% of advanced biofuel within 2020, disposed by Italian regulation, is achieved, taking into account the possibility of adding 'Bio-methanol' to transport fuel. Moreover, a reduction of 50% of GHG emission could be reached, comparing waste-tomethanol process with both methanol conventional process and RDF combustion as disposal method. From an environmental point of view, a good combination of the HT gasification process, proposed by 'OESA s.r.l., with the conditioning process is fundamental to lower as much as possible the GHG emission and avoid toxic substances formation, as dioxins which cause devastating effects on human health. All this could not be achievable without the combination of both sections: the gasification process itself could lead to syngas formation free of toxic substances but its conversion into energy, in a WtE optic, will contribute to the addition of GHG emission, whereas the syngas conversion into bio-methanol will provide a major contributor in environmental terms due to the GHG emission reduction. From an economical point of view, the bio-methanol cost of production allows a good margin, taking into consideration a major selling price of bio-methanol, mainly because RDF gasification is an income and not a cost. Moreover, bio-methanol produced from waste has the benefit of the double counting, as reported in the Renewable Energy Directive, so exploiting the fact that it counts double, it could be seen as an excellent investment considering the target to achieve through advanced biofuel by 2020.

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## Author details

Annarita Salladini<sup>1</sup> \*, Emanuela Agostini<sup>2</sup> , Alessia Borgogna<sup>3</sup> , Luca Spadacini<sup>4</sup> , Maria Cristina Annesini<sup>3</sup> and Gaetano Iaquaniello<sup>5</sup>

