9/17/2009

Solid Waste Management

From the point of waste generation
to final disposal

The 6 Functional Elements

The activities involved in the management of solid waste from the point of
generation to final disposal is grouped into 6 functional elements:

1
5

Waste
generation

Processing
& recovery

Collection
On-site
handling,
storage,
processing
Prepared by:

Transfer &
transport

Disposal

4
6

Engr. Nor Roslina Rosli

Faculty of Chemical Engineering
UiTM Malaysia

WASTE GENERATION:
TYPICAL GENERATION RATES
If waste generation data in unavailable, use:
Table 11-2
Table 11-3

ESTIMATION OF SOLID WASTE QUANTITIES

Important in design & operation of SWM
system.
Recommended method of estimation:
Load-Count Analysis
Mass-Volume Analysis

FACTORS THAT AFFECT GENERATION RATES

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Geographic location
Season of the year
Collection frequency
Use of kitchen waste grinders
Characteristics of populace
Extend of salvage & recycle
Public attitudes
Legislation

9/17/2009

ON-SITE HANDLING, STORAGE &

PROCESSING
Handling, storage & processing at source before
collection.

High % of food thrown away is edible (i.e. not peelings, bones, tea
bags)
Main reasons for waste food:
Buying more than we need unplanned shopping
Storage fridges are often too warm
Not eating short shelf life items before their use by date
Informal or unplanned eating patterns leading to food bought that is
not needed.

On-site handling
Domestic Waste
Example: In high-rise apartments, waste are 1)
Taken by tenants to the basement service area, (2)
picked up by building maintenance personnel, or
(3) bagged and dropped into chutes by tenants.
Example: Garbage are bagged are placed onto
curb for collection.

Commercial & Industrial Waste

Large containers mounted on rollers, then
emptied into a larger container, or compactors, or
to incinerator.

COLLECTION OF SOLID WASTE

The most costly functional element.
Subtopics:
1. Types of collection
service
2. Types of collection
system
3. Analysis of collection
system
4. General methodology
in setting up collection
routes.

On-site Storage
Factors to be considered:
Type of container see Table 11-4
Container location
specially designed compartments in in front of
linkhouse, designated enclosures at apartments,
basement or ground floor service area for highrise buildings.

Public health & aesthetic

Collection methods
Vehicle with an articulated pickup mechanism, or
manual collectors

COLLECTION SERVICES
1) Municipal collection services
Curb, alley or backyard
2) Commercial-industrial collection services
Apartments, commercial /industrial complex
Large containers
Compactors
Compress to form bales

9/17/2009

Types of collection systems

Hauled-Container Systems (HCS)

Garbage collection with an articulated

container pickup mechanism

Garbage collection in Venice

Containers are hauled to the processing, transfer or

disposal site, emptied then returned to
original/new location.
For collection of heavy rubbish e.g. sand, timber,
metal scrap. Often used at construction sites.

Stationary-Container Systems (SCS)

Residential waste

Waste handling cart/containers

RORO

TRANSFER & TRANSPORT

Refers to the means, facilities and appurtenances
used to effectively transfer waste from small
collection vehicles to larger vehicles, and to transport
them over extended distances to either processing
centers or disposal sites.
Must be economically feasible.

Location of transfer stations

Whenever possible, stations should be
located:
As near as possible to weighted center of the
individual solid-waste production areas to be
served
Within easy access of major highway routes &
near secondary means of transport
Where there will be a minimum of public &
environmental objection
Where construction & operation is most
economical.

In Haikou, China, a
man transports plastic
bottles and containers
for recycling.
Photo Credit:
REUTERS/China Photo

Transfer Means & Methods

Motor vehicle
Garbage trucks

Railroad
Commonly used in the past

Water transport
Barge, scows, special boats were used in the past
to transport waste to ocean disposal sites. It is no
longer practiced now.

Pneumatic transport
Modern vacuum like transport, sucks waste
through tunnel.

9/17/2009

Pneumatic transport in Disneyland

The Swedish-built
Automated Vacuum Assisted
Collection (AVAC) was the
first waste system of its type
installed in the United States.
It is an integral part of waste
collection for the theme park,
intricately linked through the
utilidors by pneumatic tubes.
Trash is deposited in several
collection points around the
park. Every fifteen minutes it
is drawn through the tubes at
speeds up to 60 miles per
hour and sent to a central
compactor station."

More facts on Disneylands SWM

The sanitation crew works 24 hours per day picking up the garbage
and dumping it into the AVAC systems throughout the park.
Garbage is literally sucked to a central location for processing.
The AVAC system moves garbage
through pipes at 60 miles per hour using
compressed air. The system operates at
intervals of about every 20 minutes.
Depending on where you are when it
happens, it sounds as if a tornado is
quickly approaching, then passes you by.
The system moves the garbage from all
points around the park to a central
location where it processed and recycling
takes place.

Example: Pneumatic Refuse Conveyance System

PROCESSING TECHNIQUES
Objectives:
To improve efficiency of solid waste disposal system
To recover resources (usable material)
To prepare material for recovery of conversion
products & energy
Important processing techniques:
Mechanical volume reduction (compaction)
Thermal volume reduction (incineration)
Manual component separation

Factors to be considered in evaluating onsite processing equipment

Efficiency
Capabilities
Environmental effects
Reliability
Service
Safety

Health hazards
Aesthetics
Economics

Ease of operation

Mechanical Volume Reduction

Trash compactor/ baler

Waste are compacted to increase the useful

life of landfills.
Papers, cans are baled separately, and sent for
recycling.

9/17/2009

Thermal Volume Reduction

Volume of MSW can be reduced >90% by
incineration.
Limited number of incinerators in operation
due to expensive air-pollution control
equipment.
Will be discussed further in next chapter.

Manual Component Separation

Individuals play a role to separate components.
Scavenging- informal practice of collecting saleable
items from garbage/disposal sites, for sales to
traders/middlemen, eventually to manufacturers.
Incomes from scavenging
ranges from MYR900-1500 per
month, above the official urban
poverty line of MYR1000.
For part-time waste collectors,
income from scavenging
ranges from 30-40%of total
household incomes.

Manual Collection & Separation

Manual Component Separation

In developed countries, garbage separation is mandatory
in every household.
Waste will not be collected if not separated by
components.

Children collecting floating waste for

recycling, Manila Bay, Philippines.

ULTIMATE DISPOSAL
Disposal in and on Earths
mantle is at present the only
viable way of long term
waste disposal.
Landfilling is commonly used
for municipal waste.
Landfarming & deep well
injection is used for
industrial waste.

Space Junk in Space Age

Orbital debris, also known as space junk, is
in orbit around Earth.
Everything from entire spent rocket stages
and satellites that no longer operate to
random metal fragments, paint flakes, dust,
and slag from solid rocket motors.

9/17/2009

LANDFILL
The most common and probably accounts for >90% of the
nation's municipal refuse.
The most cost effective method of disposal, with collection
and transportation accounting for 75% of the total cost.
Pollution of surface water & groundwater is minimized by
lining & contouring the fill, compacting and planting the
uppermost cover layer, diverting drainage, and selecting
proper soil in sites not subject to flooding or high
groundwater levels.
The best soil for a landfill is clay because clay is less
permeable than other types of soil.

Landfill Site Selection

Factors to be considered:
Available land area : useful life of > 1 yr
Haul distance : affects operating cost
Soil condition & topography : Available cover material
Surface water hydrology: drainage requirement
Geologic & hydrogeologic conditions: Most important factor,
wrt site preparation
Climatologic conditions : special provisions for wet-weather
Local environmental conditions: Noise, odor, dust, vector,
aesthetics
Ultimate use of site : Affects long term site management

Landfill: Area method

Use when terrain is unsuitable for the excavation of
trenches to place the solid waste.
First, build a levee/berm against which waste are
placed in thin layers, & compacted (layer height 2-3
m).
A layer of cover material (15 30 cm thick) is placed
over the completed fill.
Once completed, it is called a cell.
Successive cells are placed on top of one another
Final layer of cover material is used when fill reaches
final design height. Grass on surface.

LANDFILL
Important aspects of
landfill implementation:
1. Site selection
2. Methods & operations
3. Occurrence of gases &
leachate
4. Movement and control
of gases & leachate

Landfilling methods & operations

3 types of methods for landfilling:
Area method
Trench method
Depression method

Landfill: Trench method

Ideal for areas with sufficient depth of cover material
available, & water table is well below the surface.
First, dig a trench with a bulldozer, the dirt is
stockpiled to form embankment behind first trench.
Waste are then placed into trench, spread into thin
layer & compacted.
Continue operation until desired height is reached.
Cover material obtained from excavation of adjacent
trench.

9/17/2009

Landfill: Depression method

1. Excavation & installation of landfill liner

2. Landfilling

At location where depressions exist.

The methods prevent water accumulation.
Techniques differ depending on geometry of
site, cover material characteristics, site
hydrology & geology, & access to site.
E.g at canyons, ravines, dry borrow pits,
quarries

3. Complete

A. Ground Water
B. Compacted Clay
C. Geomembrane
D. Leachate Collection
Pipe
E. Protection Layer
F. Gravel (as vent)
G. Drainage Layer
H. Soil Layer
I. Old Cells
J. New Cells
K. Leachate Ponds

Occurrence of gases & leachates

1. Biological decay of organic materials (aerobic or
anaerobic) evolution of gases and liquids
2. Chemical oxidation
3. Escape gases from landfill
4. Movement of liquid due to different heads.
5. Dissolving & leaching of organic & inorganic
materials by water, & move through fill
6. Dissolved material movement by concentration
gradient & osmosis
7. Uneven settlement caused by consolidation of
materials into voids.

Gases in Landfills
Air, NH3, CO2, CO, H, HS, CH4, N2, O2
CO2 & CH4 from anaerobic digestion
Rate of decomposition in unmanaged landfills
(measured by gas production) reaches a peak
within 2 years, then slowly tapers off,
continuing up to > 25 years.

9/17/2009

Gas Production Graph

Leachate in Landfills
Defined as liquid that has percolated through solid
waste and has extracted dissolved or suspended
materials from it.
Liquid is composed of liq produced from
decomposition of waste, & liq that has entered
landfill form external source e.g. rainfall, surface
drainage, underground spring.
Leachate should be contained within landfill or
removed for treatment.
Table 11-12 Data on composition of leachate from
landfills.

Control of gas movement

Control by constructing vents, barriers, or by
gas recovery.

Control of gas movement using vents & barriers

Vents are installed, made out of material that are
more permeable than the surrounding soil (typically
gravel is used as the material)
Vents & barriers control lateral movement of gases.
Control of downward movement of gases can be
accomplished by installing perforated pipes in the
gravel layer.
If unable to vent out laterally, install gas well to vent
pumped gas into the atm (Figure 11-22).

Control of leachate movement

Clay: favoured material
Membrane liners are expensive, require care
Control surface infiltration (the major
contributor of total leachate volume.
Use impermeable clay layer, at appropriate
surface slope, & adequate drainage.

9/17/2009

Landfill design & operation

Important design considerations:
Land requirement
Types of waste
Evaluation of seepage potential
Drainage & seepage control facilities design
Solid waste filling plan design
Equipment requirement
Table 11-15

LANDFARMING
Biological, chemical & physical processes that
occur in the surface of the soil is used to treat
biodegradable industrial waste.
Waste are either applied on top of land or
injected below the soil surface.
Waste goes through processes:

Factors that must be considered in evaluating

biodegradibility of waste:

Waste composition
Compatibility of waste & soil microflora
Environmental requirements, e.g. O2, T, pH, nutrients
Moisture content of waste

The land is periodically aerated to aid biodegradation.

The final product of landfarming is a safe material
ideal for special use in construction and industry.
Suitable for petroleum waste & oily sludges.

Bacterial & chemical decomposition

Leaching of water soluble components
Volatilization of selected components

DEEP WELL INJECTION

Yet another method is the
pumping of hazardous liq
wastes into deep wells.
Inject waste deep in the
ground into permeable
rock formations or
underground caverns.
Often for chemical,
petrochem, pharmaceutical
waste.

Deep Well Injection

Follows the same
practice as oil & gas
drilling & well
completion.
There is a strong
opposition to this
method because of the
apparent explosions and
even earthquakes that
have resulted from waste
injection techniques

9/17/2009

Reduce waste

THANK YOU

10