Energy potential of municipal refuse

Journal Article · · NCRR Bull.; (United States)

OSTI ID:6607855

Bernheisel, J F

The largely untapped energy potential of municipal solid wastes (MSW) is estimated at one quad per year or 100 million barrels of oil equivalent and is available as combustion heat or through recycling materials. The environmental problems of MSW in urban areas make reuse desirable, while the collection and transportation costs make reuse in rural areas unfeasible at the present time. When the 12 major components of MSW are divided into combustible and non-combustible categories by weight and percentage of the total waste, the mostly organic combustible portion is found to represent nearly 80 percent of the total. The efficiency of recovering this energy depends on the steps chosen for processing and burning, with estimated values ranging from 37 to 70 percent. The main approaches to energy recovery are direct burning to generate steam, processing to make fuels either directly or with further refining to produce gaseous or liquid fuels. The present state of technology for each of these processes is described. Although waste screening to separate recoverable metals and glass requires capital-intensive facilities, 14 cities are already operating or building plants.

• OSTI ID: 6607855
• Journal Information: NCRR Bull.; (United States), Journal Name: NCRR Bull.; (United States) Vol. 8:3; ISSN NCRBD
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290400* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Energy Resources
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320305 -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Industrial & Agricultural Processes-- Industrial Waste Management
320604 -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Municipalities & Community Systems-- Municipal Waste Management-- (1980-)
42 ENGINEERING
420900 -- Engineering-- Waste Processing Plants & Equipment-- (-1989)
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COMBUSTION
COMMUNITIES
ECONOMICS
ENERGY SOURCE DEVELOPMENT
FUELS
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS RECOVERY
MUNICIPAL WASTES
ORGANIC WASTES
OXIDATION
PROCESSING
RECOVERY
REFUSE DERIVED FUELS
SOLID WASTES
STEAM GENERATION
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
URBAN AREAS
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WASTES