Publication
Title
Alternative strategies for energy recovery from municipal solid waste - Part A: Mass and energy balances
Author
Abstract
This two-part paper assesses four strategies for energy recovery from municipal solid waste (MSW) by dedicated waste-to-energy (WTE) plants generating electricity through a steam cycle. The feedstock is the residue after materials recovery (MR), assumed to be 35% by weight of the collected MSW. In strategy 1, the MR residue is fed directly to a grate combustor. In strategy 2, the MR residue is first subjected to light mechanical treatment. In strategies 3 and 4, the MR residue is converted into RDF, which is combusted in a fluidized bed combustor. To examine the relevance of scale, we considered a small waste management system (WMS) serving 200,000 people and a large WMS serving 1,200,000 people. A variation of strategy 1 shows the potential of cogeneration with district heating. The assessment is carried out by a Life Cycle Analysis where the electricity generated by the WTE plant displaces electricity generated by fossil fuel-fired steam plants. Part A focuses on mass and energy balances, while Part B focuses on emissions and costs. Results show that treating the MR residue ahead of the WTE plant reduces energy recovery. The largest energy savings are achieved by combusting the MR residue "as is" in large scale plants; with cogeneration, primary energy savings can reach 2.5% of total societal energy use. (c) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Waste management. - Oxford
Publication
Oxford : 2005
ISSN
0956-053X
DOI
10.1016/J.WASMAN.2004.09.007
Volume/pages
25 :2 (2005) , p. 123-135
ISI
000227834400003
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
UAntwerpen
Publication type
Subject
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 05.11.2018
Last edited 24.01.2023
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