Using Air Curtain Burners in the Construction of Solar and Wind Farms: Debris Management

Land Clearing for Solar and Wind Fields

With the dramatic shifts in climate and the increase in extreme weather, more people are turning to green energy. It doesn’t hurt that the government is offering valuable incentives for the switch. Many green energy developers are scrambling to acquire, clear, and develop these farms and switch to green energy. But what can be done with the debris?

Solar Farm and Wind Farm Debris Management

Solar and Wind farms usually require hundreds of acres of land. Air Curtain Burners and Air Curtain Destructors provide an environmentally friendly and safe way to efficiently manage the resulting debris. The powerful air curtain reduces (and almost eliminates) CO2 emissions and sparks from the fire- an important factor for air quality, permitting, and fire prevention. The debris volume will be reduced by between 95-98% and the resulting ash can even be repurposed as a soil amendment or for other uses.

To learn more about acquiring a burn permit in your locality, click here

To learn how air curtain burners/air curtain destructors/air curtain incinerators work, click here.

To see how to rent or buy an air curtain burner, click here.

Air Curtain Destructors & Air Quality:

Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association published a great article detailing scientific studies on air curtain destroyers as it relates to CO2 emissions.

“Combustion of vegetative debris in ACD (Air Curtain Destructor) units results in significantly lower emissions of particulate matter and CO per unit of mass of debris compared with open pile burning. ” (You can read more here.)

Waste Advantage Magazine posted an article all about Air Curtain incinerators and included this intriguing fact about CO2 emissions.

“Contrary to the CO2 emitted from sources that require hydrocarbon fuel, such as grinders, trucks or airplanes, air curtain burners only release biogenic CO2, which is the same amount of CO2 that the wood while alive as a tree took in from the surrounding air releasing oxygen through photosynthesis. This CO2 is called biogenic CO2. The CO2 from burning hydrocarbons would never turn into a greenhouse gas, if it were left deep down in the Earth where it has been confined for millions of years.”

(You can read the full article here.)

Let’s look at some hypothetical examples of air curtain incinerator use when developing a solar farm in order to gain a better understanding of the benefits:

Use Case: Cost Savings Analysis for Solar Farm Development Waste Management

Project Overview:

Mr. Johnathan Cambridge, a solar farm developer, is working on a 500-acre solar installation project. One of the major costs of the project is handling the tree debris from land clearing and the wood crate pallets used to transport solar panels. To reduce costs, he requests that the solar panels be delivered on plain wood pallets without glue so that they can be incinerated. Additionally, he plans to burn the tree debris and spread the resulting ash on-site to stabilize the soil. This strategy eliminates significant waste-hauling expenses.

Land Clearing and Waste Estimates:

Total Land Area: 500 acres
Percentage of Land Covered in Trees: 30%
Total Tree-Clearing Area: 500 acres × 30% = 150 acres
Tree Waste Volume: 750 yd³ per acre × 150 acres = 112,500 yd³
Wood Pallet Waste Volume: 15,000 pallets totaling 2,400 yd³
Total Burnable Waste Volume: 112,500 yd³ + 2,400 yd³ = 114,900 yd³
Dumpster Size: 30 yd³ per load
Cost Per Dumpster Load: $400

Hauling Waste Costs:

Total Dumpsters Needed: 114,900 yd³ ÷ 30 yd³ per load = 3,830 loads
Total Hauling Cost: 3,830 loads × $400 per load = $1,532,000

Burning Waste Costs Using an S327 Air Curtain Burner rented from BurnDebris.com:

Burn Rate: 78 yd³ per hour
Operating Hours Per Day: 8 hours
Total Burn Time Needed: 114,900 yd³ ÷ (78 yd³ per hour × 8 hours per day) = 183.7 days
Daily Diesel Consumption: 3 gallons per hour × 8 hours per day = 24 gallons per day
Diesel Cost Per Gallon: $4
Total Diesel Cost: 183.7 days × 24 gallons per day × $4 per gallon = $17,635
S327 ACI Rental Cost Per Month: $12,700
Total Rental Duration: 7 months (rounding up from 183.7 days)
Total Rental Cost: 7 months × $12,700 per month = $88,900
Total Burning Cost: $88,900 + $17,635 = $106,535

Cost Comparison Table:

Method	Total Cost
Hauling Waste	$1,532,000
Burning Waste	$106,535
Total Savings when burning	$1,425,465

The Conclusion:

Mr. Johnathan Cambridge knew that waste disposal costs could significantly impact his 500-acre solar farm development project. With 30% of the land covered in trees, clearing the land resulted in 112,500 cubic yards of tree debris. Additionally, he had 15,000 pallets generating another 2,400 cubic yards of wood waste. Traditionally, disposing of this material would have required 3,830 dumpster loads, each costing $400, leading to a staggering hauling expense of $1.53 million.

Given that the nearest disposal site was over an hour away, Mr. Cambridge looked for alternatives.

He decided to use an S327 Air Curtain Burner, which could burn 78 cubic yards per hour over eight-hour workdays. Over a span of seven months, he was able to reduce the waste volume by 96% and spread the ash to stabilize the soil, eliminating additional disposal costs.

The total cost of burning, including diesel and equipment rental, amounted to just $106,535, resulting in a cost savings of nearly $1.43 million.

By adopting this waste management strategy, Mr. Cambridge not only saved an enormous amount in disposal costs, but also reduced the environmental impact of long-distance hauling, making his solar farm project more sustainable and cost-effective.

Call 678-793-8546 if you need help with your solar project.