Economic analysis of wet waste-to-energy resources in the United States
Abstract
Waste-to-energy (WTE) technologies provide opportunities to use waste materials beneficially in producing power, transportation fuels, and chemicals. Using a suite of economic models, this study estimates prices of four WTE resources: food waste; fats, oils, and greases (FOG); animal manure; and sewage sludge. Some of these materials are commoditized (e.g. FOG) thus their price is determined by market demand. For the materials regarded as waste, the study relates price to the avoided cost of disposal through waste management alternatives such as landfilling. This study finds that significant amounts of these feedstocks could be available at negative prices, meaning that a potential bioenergy facility could receive these materials for free or be paid to accept them in some locations. It is estimated that about 61% of sewage sludge, 27% of manure, and 7% of food waste may be available at negative prices. These negative price feedstocks are not uniformly distributed and are most likely to occur in areas with organic waste disposal bans, high population densities, and high landfill tipping fees. This study intends to open an initial discussion into how stakeholders view and value these materials, and how this view is evolving as their potential as WTE feedstocks is realized.
- Authors:
-
- National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Sustainable Transportation Office. Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1507293
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1636526
- Report Number(s):
- NREL/JA-6A20-72110
Journal ID: ISSN 0360-5442
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC36-08GO28308
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Energy (Oxford)
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Name: Energy (Oxford); Journal Volume: 176; Journal Issue: C; Journal ID: ISSN 0360-5442
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY; waste-to-energy; waste resources; wastewater sludge; animal manure; food waste; fats; oil; greases; supply curve; feedstock price; WTE resource price; biofuels; bioenergy; bioproducts; biopower; economics
Citation Formats
Badgett, Alex, Newes, Emily, and Milbrandt, Anelia. Economic analysis of wet waste-to-energy resources in the United States. United States: N. p., 2019.
Web. doi:10.1016/j.energy.2019.03.188.
Badgett, Alex, Newes, Emily, & Milbrandt, Anelia. Economic analysis of wet waste-to-energy resources in the United States. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2019.03.188
Badgett, Alex, Newes, Emily, and Milbrandt, Anelia. Mon .
"Economic analysis of wet waste-to-energy resources in the United States". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2019.03.188. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1507293.
@article{osti_1507293,
title = {Economic analysis of wet waste-to-energy resources in the United States},
author = {Badgett, Alex and Newes, Emily and Milbrandt, Anelia},
abstractNote = {Waste-to-energy (WTE) technologies provide opportunities to use waste materials beneficially in producing power, transportation fuels, and chemicals. Using a suite of economic models, this study estimates prices of four WTE resources: food waste; fats, oils, and greases (FOG); animal manure; and sewage sludge. Some of these materials are commoditized (e.g. FOG) thus their price is determined by market demand. For the materials regarded as waste, the study relates price to the avoided cost of disposal through waste management alternatives such as landfilling. This study finds that significant amounts of these feedstocks could be available at negative prices, meaning that a potential bioenergy facility could receive these materials for free or be paid to accept them in some locations. It is estimated that about 61% of sewage sludge, 27% of manure, and 7% of food waste may be available at negative prices. These negative price feedstocks are not uniformly distributed and are most likely to occur in areas with organic waste disposal bans, high population densities, and high landfill tipping fees. This study intends to open an initial discussion into how stakeholders view and value these materials, and how this view is evolving as their potential as WTE feedstocks is realized.},
doi = {10.1016/j.energy.2019.03.188},
journal = {Energy (Oxford)},
number = C,
volume = 176,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 EDT 2019},
month = {Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 EDT 2019}
}
Free Publicly Available Full Text
Publisher's Version of Record
Other availability
Search WorldCat to find libraries that may hold this journal
Cited by: 26 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science
Web of Science
Save to My Library
You must Sign In or Create an Account in order to save documents to your library.
Works referenced in this record:
Waste-to-Energy biofuel production potential for selected feedstocks in the conterminous United States
journal, February 2018
- Skaggs, Richard L.; Coleman, André M.; Seiple, Timothy E.
- Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol. 82
Evaluation of landfill gas emissions from municipal solid waste landfills for the life-cycle analysis of waste-to-energy pathways
journal, November 2017
- Lee, Uisung; Han, Jeongwoo; Wang, Michael
- Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 166
Techno-economic analysis and environmental impact assessment of energy recovery from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) in Brazil
journal, June 2014
- Leme, Marcio Montagnana Vicente; Rocha, Mateus Henrique; Lora, Electo Eduardo Silva
- Resources, Conservation and Recycling, Vol. 87
Food waste biomass: a resource for high-value chemicals
journal, January 2013
- Pfaltzgraff, Lucie A.; De bruyn, Mario; Cooper, Emma C.
- Green Chemistry, Vol. 15, Issue 2
Economic analysis of waste-to-energy industry in China
journal, February 2016
- Zhao, Xin-gang; Jiang, Gui-wu; Li, Ang
- Waste Management, Vol. 48
Markets for waste and waste–derived fertilizers. An empirical survey
journal, October 2017
- Lupton, Sylvie
- Journal of Rural Studies, Vol. 55
Assessment of the resource associated with biomethane from food waste
journal, April 2013
- Browne, James D.; Murphy, Jerry D.
- Applied Energy, Vol. 104
Food Waste to Energy: An Overview of Sustainable Approaches for Food Waste Management and Nutrient Recycling
journal, January 2017
- Paritosh, Kunwar; Kushwaha, Sandeep K.; Yadav, Monika
- BioMed Research International, Vol. 2017
Biogas digestate marketing: Qualitative insights into the supply side
journal, November 2015
- Dahlin, Johannes; Herbes, Carsten; Nelles, Michael
- Resources, Conservation and Recycling, Vol. 104
Works referencing / citing this record:
Performance-advantaged ether diesel bioblendstock production by a priori design
journal, December 2019
- Huq, Nabila A.; Huo, Xiangchen; Hafenstine, Glenn R.
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 116, Issue 52