Recycling the energy values of municipal solid waste

Miscellaneous · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1993

OSTI ID:7290453

Korzun, E A

Management of municipal solid waste (MSW) requires consideration of the comparative cost of available options, such as recycling for recovery of material values and recycling for recovery of energy values by resource recovery. Incineration of municipal solid waste in resource recovery plants with subsequent generation of electricity provides a basis for the determination of the fossil fuel equivalent value for MSW. A method for determining the economic value of the recoverable energy content of municipal solid waste was developed. The method was then used to determine the equivalent fossil fuel energy value of municipal solid waste and some of the common combustible components found in municipal solid waste at two waste to energy (WTE) plants in Florida. The equivalent fuel value methodology was then used to compare recycling to recover material values with recycling to recover energy values at a mass burn WTE plant and a refuse derived fuel (RDF) WTE plant, both generating electrical power. It was determined that there is a saving of from 1.15 to 1.35 barrels of No. 2 fuel oil per ton of MSW when the waste is used to generate electrical power. Some of the other waste component equivalent fuel values determined were 2.4 barrels of No. 2 fuel oil per ton of newsprint, 5.63 barrels of No. 2 fuel oil per ton of polyethylene, and 0.81 barrels of No. 2 fuel oil per ton of lawn grass, (65% moisture). Various environmental impacts that can result from collection, shipping, and lost energy opportunity values appeared to exceed the environmental benefits of recycling the material values of combustible MSW components.

• Research Organization: Florida Inst. of Tech., Melbourne, FL (United States)
• OSTI ID: 7290453
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Thesis (Ph.D.)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
29 ENERGY PLANNING
POLICY AND ECONOMY
ENERGY RECOVERY
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
ECONOMICS
MUNICIPAL WASTES
WASTE PRODUCT UTILIZATION
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
ENERGY SUBSTITUTION EQUIVALENT
FUEL SUBSTITUTION
WASTE MANAGEMENT
EFFICIENCY
EVALUATION
MANAGEMENT
WASTES
320604* - Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization- Municipalities & Community Systems- Municipal Waste Management- (1980-)
290201 - Energy Planning & Policy- Economics- (1992-)