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Tire-Derived Fuel
Tire-derived fuel is loaded at the MU Power Plant.
MU's Power Plant, providing steam and electricity to the entire university, has developed an innovative program for dealing with discarded tires — it burns them as fuel. The power plant replaces up to 20 percent of its traditional coal fuel with shredded tires, called tire derived fuel or TDF, in some of its coal fired boilers. The use of TDF has positive benefits for both the university and the state of Missouri.
The MU Power Plant burns over 3,500 tons of chipped tires each year, the equivalent of 350,000 passenger tires. Using TDF as an alternative to coal reduces fuel costs and lowers emissions from the plant.
The primary environmental benefit of using shredded tires with coal in the power plant is that tires burn cleaner and, thus reduce emissions. Testing at MU's power plant has shown that scrap tires have a lower ash content and lower sulfur content - reducing the sulfur emissions and the amount of ash generated.
Illegal tire dump.
Photo courtesy of Missouri Attorney General's office
Working closely with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MoDNR), Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), and the Missouri Department of Corrections (MoDOC), MU is the only one of a few universities in the nation to burn tire-derived fuel on a full-time basis. The tire-derived fuel project benefits all participating agencies and the citizens of Missouri. The MoDNR, MoDOT, and MoDOC remove and process tires allowing the university to obtain this fuel at a reduced cost. Using tires as a fuel at MU improves the environment and saves money. Tire Derived Fuel has 20 percent more heating value than coal, 50 percent less sulfur, and saves MU up to $300,000 annually.