Potential energy production from organic waste and its environmental and economic impacts at a tertiary institution in Palestine

Municipal solid waste (MSW) is one of the most well-known biomass resources that can be utilized to produce renewable energy. Numerous countries are plagued by the proliferation of waste, particularly organic waste that can be utilized for energy recovery. Palestine suffers from inefficient solid waste management, and only recently have a few projects focused on bioenergy production been implemented. Throughout the years, the city of Tulkarm experiences power outages which cause a challenge to the Palestine Technical University-Kadoorie campus in Tulkarm. Thus, the possibility of energy recovery from the organic portion in Palestine Technical University-Kadoorie was evaluated. The analysis of an economic impact included discussions of a number of economic aspects, including Levelized cost of energy, internal rate of return, present worth, annual worth, and payback period. On the other hand, a carbon dioxide savings analysis and gas emission were evaluated. The outcomes of the energy optimization demonstrated that the suggested system could supply the institution with an average of roughly 7 MWh of electrical energy. According to the economic study, this project offers 0.25 million dollars in present value, 0.144 million dollars in annual value, a 13 percent internal rate of return, a payback period of 6 years, and a levelized cost of energy of 0.11 dollars for each kWh generated. Additionally, the environmental assessment revealed that this system might reduce CO₂ emissions by around 8,343,778 tons. For effective waste management, energy recovery, and emission reduction, it is advised to implement anaerobic digestion technology.     

废旧硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料的木质素改性及再生

采用含有二乙二醇(DEG)和乙醇胺(ETA)的双组分解交联剂降解废旧硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料(PU硬泡),并利用降解得到的低聚物多元醇与木质素复合制备出性能增强的再生PU硬泡。通过对制备的再生PU硬泡的红外光谱、密度、吸水率、抗压强度、热稳定性、导热系数、热重曲线等进行分析测试,考察m(DEG)∶m(ETA)对再生PU硬泡性能的影响。实验结果表明:m(DEG)∶m(ETA)=1∶3时废旧PU硬泡的降解效果最好;木质素加入量为2.0%(w)时再生PU硬泡的密度低、抗压强度高、保温性能良好,达到国家标准《建筑绝热用硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料》(GB/T 21558—2008)的品质要求。     

北京市典型废弃物焚烧源2010—2017年二NFDA1英排放特征和减排效果分析

分析2010—2017年北京市三类典型废弃物焚烧源的废气二NFDA1英排放监测数据,计算排放因子和排放量,评估减排政策成效,并分析不同排放源达标排放时同类物分布特征异同和变化规律,探讨影响排放的重要因素。结果表明: 5家焚烧源平均排放浓度为 0.008～0.069 ng/m³(以TEQ计,下同),废气二NFDA1英排放因子为 0.027～1.7 μg/t,2016年向空气中排放的二NFDA1英量为 0.002 5～0.058 g；生活垃圾、危险废物和医疗废物焚烧源的低、高氯代同类物质量分数比的平均值分别为接近于 0.5、大于0.5和小于0.5,危险废物焚烧源的 ∑PCDFs、∑PCDDs质量分数比的平均值大于2； 123478-HxCDF和123678-HxCDF质量浓度接近且线性相关,具有相近的生成机理和去除效率； I-TEQ变化趋势与∑PCDFs质量分数的变化趋势基本一致,活性炭喷射和布袋除尘的去除效率是影响二NFDA1英排放的重要因素之一；危险废物焚烧源HWI1随运行时间增加排放浓度增加,而及时更换烟道管壁有助于消除“记忆效应”的不良影响。     

Critical review for the quantification of leachate production: Evaluation example for the “Oum Azza” public landfill in Rabat city,Morocco

The estimation of leachate quantities produced in landfills is necessary to dimension the treatment plants allowing to reduce the polluting load of these effluents and consequently avoid their negative impacts on the environment. Different leachate quantification methods were used in this study to assess the leachate volume produced at the Oum Azza landfill. The water balance method give comparable estimations of leachate production to the Ouled Berjal landfill ratio. The first method showed average values between 487 and 495 m³/day for 2015, 2018, and 2019, and at the same time, the second method gave values between 470 and 477 m³/day for the same years. In contrast, the World Bank ratio showed high values that vary between 2260 and 2295 m³/day for 2015, 2018, and 2019. The on-site data and the statistical analysis showed us that the World Bank ratio is not adapted for the estimation of the leachates produced in Oum Azza landfill, while the water balance and the ratio of Ouled Berjal landfill allowed to give comparable results to reality.     

Physico-chemical characterization of Residual Household Waste for energy recovery in insular territories: Case study of Reunion Island

Waste-to-energy is a promising approach to face the current challenge of waste overproduction in Reunion Island, a French territory. In this particular context of an isolated and tropical territory, it is essential to study the properties of potential feedstocks to choose the most appropriate conversion process. This article reports on the composition of Residual Household Waste from Reunion Island and its physico-chemical parameters. Twelve representative samples of Residual Household Waste were subjected to thermal and elemental analysis. The results showed that their composition had a significant influence on the physico-chemical properties, including calorific value. Residual Household Waste from the selective sorting (rich in wood, plastic, and sanitary textiles) as well as dry mixed RHW are the most interesting for energy recovery. Due to their high volatile matter and high carbon content, and their low moisture content, these types of waste have a high calorific value exceeding 18 MJ/kg. Furthermore, the RHW sample comply with the environmental and health criteria applied by French regulations concerning halogen and heavy metal. Thus, it seems that Residual Household Waste can be an alternative to conventional fuels used in incineration or pyro-gasification processes. However, the study also points the need for a pre-treatment process for these wastes. Indeed, it is necessary to sort them correctly in order to avoid the risks of pollution and important maintenance. And more importantly, drying beforehand is unavoidable to improve combustibility and obtain optimal energy conversion.     

Biohythane production from pineapple peel using Methanosarcina mazei enhanced with palm oil mill effluent (POME) sludge in single-stage anaerobic digestion

Biohythane production via single-stage anaerobic digestion (AD) is an effective way for sustainable energy recovery from lignocellulosic biomass. In this paper, biohythane was produced through the AD process from pineapple peel waste substrate using purely cultured Methanosarcina mazei with the enhancement of palm oil mill effluent (POME) sludge as the inoculum. This study focuses on the effects of the lignocellulosic pre-treatment method, the addition of POME sludge into M. mazei culture medium as inoculum, and various operational conditions (food to microorganisms (F/M) ratios, temperature, pH) on gas production performances. The experimental results indicate that these parameters influenced the efficiency of biohythane production by producing the peak maximum biohythane production rate values (HPR_max) and (MPR_max), H₂:CH₄ = 1.93:0.67 L/L-d, and biohythane yield (HY) and (MY), H₂:CH₄ = 1.18:0.55 mL/L-substrate. This study demonstrates that biohythane gas (H₂ + CH₄ + CO₂) production from pineapple waste can be accelerated by M. mazei only with the enhancement of POME sludge through single-stage AD system under mesophilic batch process conditions.     

Traditional agriculture in transition: examining the impacts of agricultural modernization on smallholder farming in Ghana under the new Green Revolution

Following the renewed effort at achieving a new green revolution for Africa, emphasis has been placed on modernizing smallholder agriculture through the deployment of improved inputs especially mechanized technologies. In Ghana, the government has in the last decade emphasized the provision of subsidized mechanized ploughing services to farmers alongside a rapidly growing private sector tractor service market. While mechanized technology adoption rates have increased rapidly, the deployment of these technologies has been without critical analysis of the impacts on production patterns and local agrarian systems. This paper examines the distributional impacts of agriculture mechanization on cropping patterns and farm sizes of smallholder farmers in northern Ghana using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) techniques, and semi-structured interviews with smallholder farmers (n=60). Specifically, comparative analysis of the field sizes and cropping patterns of participant farmers prior to and after the adoption of mechanized technologies was conducted. In-depth interviews were used to contextualize the experiences of smallholder farmers toward understanding how mechanization may be impacting traditional agriculture. Our findings reveal a mechanization paradox in which farm sizes are expanding, while cropping patterns are shifting away from traditional staple crops (pearl millet and sorghum bicolor) to market-oriented crops (maize, rice and groundnuts). This transition we argue, has adverse implications on the cultural dimension of food security, the organization of social life, and climate change adaptation. We recommend a retooling of the current agricultural policy focus to ensure context sensitivity for a more robust battle against food insecurity.     

不同好氧预处理方式对餐厨垃圾产甲烷的影响

为了研究不同好氧预处理方式对餐厨垃圾厌氧消化产甲烷的影响,通过建立3个模拟厌氧生物反应器,研究了传统厌氧生物反应器C1、上层好氧预处理-厌氧生物反应器C2和底部好氧预处理-厌氧生物反应器C3 3种不同操作条件下的产甲烷过程.结果表明,挥发性有机酸的累积使C1始终处于产甲烷滞后阶段;而C2、C3的好氧预处理通过加快易水解酸化组分和过量挥发性有机酸的好氧降解,有效缓解了酸性抑制,产甲烷滞后时间明显缩短至10 d内.第32天C2停止上层曝气后,在27 d内甲烷浓度达到了50％以上,同时,产甲烷速率迅速上升,并在第81天可达到峰值773 mL/(kg·d).C3在第11天停止底部曝气后,虽然经过22 d的时间甲烷浓度即上升至50％,但之后产甲烷速率经历回落阶段后再次逐渐上升,在实验结束时仅达到517 mL/(kg·d).上层曝气的好氧预处理方式所需曝气时间相对较长,但其产甲烷启动快,与底部曝气相比,其后期的甲烷化过程更稳定并可达到较高的产甲烷速率.     

响应面法优化黄粉虫幼虫处理餐厨垃圾饲养条件的研究

研究了黄粉虫幼虫处理餐厨垃圾的方法.首先在饲养温度、饲料含水量和饲养密度等条件下进行单因素实验,然后,以利用率为指标,运用响应面法优化了黄粉虫幼虫处理餐厨垃圾的饲养条件,结果表明,最佳饲养条件为饲养温度26.7℃、饲料含水量14.5％、饲养密度4.1头/cm2.在此饲养条件下,黄粉虫对餐厨垃圾利用率理论值为38.72％,实际餐厨垃圾利用率为38.88％,相对误差为0.41％,说明利用黄粉虫幼虫处理餐厨垃圾具有较好的效果.     

酸碱度对生活垃圾焚烧厂沥滤液蒸发处理效果的影响

采用蒸发法处理城市生活垃圾焚烧厂垃圾沥滤液,着重考察了不同沥滤液初始pH值对蒸发去除COD和氨氮效果的影响,并采用GC-MS对蒸发冷凝液中有机物成分进行了分析鉴定.结果表明,生活垃圾沥滤液的初始pH对冷凝液中COD、氨氮含量及有机污染物分布产生了决定性的影响.沥滤液在酸性条件下(pH≤6)蒸发,随着pH的增加,冷凝液中COD的含量线性降低,而氨氮的含量线性增加.当沥滤液的初始pH值从6增加到11,冷凝液中COD的含量呈对数函数降低,而氨氮的含量表现出显著增加趋势.从冷凝液中鉴定出38种有机污染物,多为沸点较低的醇、酸、酚和酯类.在酸性条件下(pH=3),冷凝液中挥发性有机酸和低碳醇的相对丰度接近90％.在近中性条件下(pH=6.2),冷凝液中的有机污染物以酚、酸和杂环类化合物为主.在碱性条件下(pH =11),冷凝液中酚和杂环类化合物占比较高,而酸的含量极少.