Hospital waste generation and management in some provinces of Iran

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the rate of generation of different kinds of hospital waste and its management in 11 provinces of Iran in 2012. Waste samples were separated into two categories (domestic type and infectious waste) and weighed daily for 4 weeks, distributed over four seasons to determine quantities and composition. Data on waste management were collected through a questionnaire and interviews of hospital personnel. The total generation of hospital waste ranged from 2.3 to 4.6 kg bed-day^?1 for Razavi Khorasan and Sistan &; Baluchistan provinces. Generation of infectious waste varied from 1.0 to 1.7 kg bed-day^?1 for Sistan &; Baluchistan and Markazi provinces. The lowest and highest percentages of infectious waste generation were found in Golistan (3.8%) and Fars (15.3%). It was also revealed that management of sharps, infectious, and other hazardous wastes was not properly done. A segregation program must be implemented and each fraction of hospital waste must be collected and disposed of separately.     

Modelling gas release event behaviour in hazardous waste tanks

Certain radioactive waste storage tanks at the United States Department of Energy Hanford facilities continuously generate gases as a result of radiolysis and chemical reactions. The congealed sludge in these tanks traps the gases beneath it and causes the level of the waste within the tanks to rise. The waste level continues to rise until the sludge loses its buoyancy and rolls over, changing places with fluid on top. During a rollover, the trapped gases are released, resulting in a sudden drop in the waste level. This is known as a gas release event (GRE). After a GRE, the waste re-congeals and gas again accumulates, leading to another GRE. We are interested in the time between consecutive GREs. Understanding the probabilistic behaviour of the time between consecutive GREs is important because the hydrogen and nitrous oxide gases released during a GRE are flammable and the ammonia that is released is a health risk. From a safety perspective, activity around such waste tanks should be halted when a GRE is imminent. With a credible probability model for the time between consecutive GREs, we can establish time windows in which waste tank research and maintenance activities can be safely performed. We discuss the application of non-linear time series models to this problem.     

Hazardous waste management in educational and research centers: a case study

The hazardous waste management (HWM) practice at Tehran University of Medical Sciences Central Campus, Iran, was investigated in this study. Four schools were selected and the required information such as type and amount of wastes, temporary storage methods, waste discharge frequency, and final waste disposal methods using sampling, questionnaires, interviews with laboratory staff, and reference to available documents were gathered. The quantity of hazardous waste generation per year excluding the uncontrolled wastewater was found to be 2.072 tons per year. The obtained results show that wastes having features of being infectious, toxic, ignitable, carcinogenic, corrosive, and reactive were present at 32%, 28%, 16%, 14%, 8%, and 2%, respectively. In the central campus, hazardous solid wastes managed with household solid wastes and hazardous liquid waste were discharged into the sinks without any kind of control; improper HWM practices are evident from the point of waste production to final disposal.     

Valorization of agro-industrial fruit peel waste to fluorescent nanocarbon sensor: Ultrasensitive detection of potentially hazardous tropane alkaloid

• Transformation of agro-industrial waste to value-added material via green chemistry. • Orange peel is valorized into fluorescent nanodiamond-like carbon (fNDC) sensor. • fNDC detects potentially hazardous drug atropine sulfate (AS). • fNDC recognizes AS in biological fluids and pharmaceuticals. • fNDC assures applications in clinical and forensic toxicology. Millions of tonnes of agro-industrial waste are generated each year globally, with the vast majority of it going untreated, underutilized, and disposed of by burning or landfilling, causing severe environmental distress and economic downturn. A practical solution to this global issue is to use green chemistry to convert this waste into value-added products. Accordingly, in the present study, agro-industrial orange peel waste was valorized into fluorescent nanodiamond-like carbon sensor via a green route involving hydrothermal treatment of microwave carbonized orange peel waste. The developed sensor, used for the fluorescence detection of potentially hazardous drug atropine sulfate, exhibits unique dual linearity over concentration ranges of 300 nM to 1 M and from 1 M to 10 M, as well as ultra-low sensitivity of 34.42 nM and 356.46 nM, respectively. Additionally, the sensor demonstrates excellent reproducibility, high stability, and satisfactory recovery when used to identify and quantify atropine sulfate in biological samples and commercially available pharmaceuticals, indicating promising multidisciplinary applications.     

Practices,attitudes and motives for domestic waste recycling

SUMMARY

Solid household waste management in Malaysia has reached a critical stage. Increasing population, urbanization and changing patterns of lifestyle have instigated the phenomenon. The 15 000 tonnes of garbage produced daily are thrown into 230 landfills nationwide, where 80% of them have only two years of life span left. Although recycling programmes were launched as early as 1990, only 5% of the wastes are recycled. The purpose of the present research was to ascertain the current management of household solid waste, attitude and motivational factors towards recycling. Data were collected using interview survey on 150 households in an urban residential area. The findings demonstrated that the respondents had very low awareness and knowledge regarding local domestic waste management. Separation of organic and non-organic wastes was rarely practised by 76% of the respondents. Most waste was thrown away, except for newspaper and aluminium cans which were regularly recycled, while furniture, and electrical items were reused by giving away or trading-in. The attitude of the respondents towards recycling was modest. Of the five motivational factors, intrinsic satisfaction and individual commitment were more important reasons for recycling than convenience, economic motivation and societal commitment. The results of the study indicated that, in order to overcome the solid waste crisis, the conscience of the individual needs to be raised through environmental awareness and concern, inculcation of sustainable consumption practices and education on waste management.     

Anaerobic digestion and recycling of kitchen waste: a review

About 1.6 billion tons of food are wasted worldwide annually, calling for advanced methods to recycle food waste into energy and materials. Anaerobic digestion of kitchen waste allows the efficient recovery of energy, and induces low-carbon emissions. Nonetheless, digestion stability and biogas production are variables, due to dietary habits and seasonal diet variations that modify the components of kitchen waste. Another challenge is the recycling of the digestate, which could be partly solved by more efficient reactors of anaerobic digestion. Here, we review the bottlenecks of anaerobic digestion treatment of kitchen waste, with focus on components inhibition, and energy recovery from biogas slurry and residue. We provide rules for the optimal treatment of the organic fraction of kitchen waste, and guidelines to upgrade the anaerobic digestion processes. We propose a strategy using an anaerobic dynamic membrane bioreactor to improve anaerobic digestion of kitchen waste, and a model for the complete transformation and recycling of kitchen waste, based on component properties.

     

Task partitioning, division of labour and nest compartmentalisation collectively isolate hazardous waste in the leafcutting ant Atta cephalotes

We studied the organisation of garbage disposal and management in the leafcutting ant Atta cephalotes. The nest of this species has an internal garbage heap to which waste from the fungus garden is taken. The transport of waste from the fungus gardens to the garbage heaps is an example of task partitioning. Ninety-four percent of the garbage loads transferred from the fungus garden to the garbage heap were transferred indirectly via a caching site just outside the garbage heap entrance. A further 3% were transferred directly from a fungus garden worker to a garbage heap worker, again just outside the heap entrance. Only 3% were taken directly to the garbage heap without task partitioning. This is the first described example of task partitioning in insect societies for work other than foraging and the first example of task partitioning occurring entirely within the nest. Furthermore, there is a strong division of labour between the fungus garden workers and the garbage heap workers, with garbage workers hardly ever leaving the heap. Division of labour is reinforced by aggressive behaviour directed towards workers contaminated with garbage. This pattern of work organisation minimises contact between garbage heap workers, who are probably contaminated with pathogens hazardous to both the ants and their symbiotic fungus, and both fungus garden workers and the fungus garden. Task partitioning, division of labour (reinforced by aggression) and nest compartmentalisation act synergistically to isolate the hazardous garbage heap from the fungus gardens.     

Evaluation of recycling waste materials and by-products in highway construction

SUMMARY

The generation, handling, and safe disposal of waste materials has become a major concern in North America. Approval of facilities for waste processing and proper disposal is becoming more difficult to obtain. Furthermore, there is a growing public awareness of the importance of conserving and preserving our valuable natural resources. This expanding awareness has given rise to the trend towards recycling or reuse of awide variety of solid wastes. Experiences with using waste materials in highway construction can vary considerably, depending on material characteristics, construction processes, and climatic differences. A number of waste materials may be suitable for use in highway construction, but others may not. The objective of this paper is introduced in two tasks. The first is to include a survey of the waste materials and by-products that have been used successfully, or may be used, as materials for highway construction or maintenance work. This also includes determination of the state of practice concerning economic and technical factors for these wastes. The second is to rank these materials based on three criteria: number of uses by State agencies, economic uses and performance aspects.     

Towards a sustainable future: a holistic inquiry of waste management behaviors of Singapore households

ABSTRACT

In 2018, Singapore produced a 7.7 million tonnes of waste, which is a significant amount of waste for a small nation-state. In line with the Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) targets 11.6 and 12.5 of the 2030 Agenda, which addresses cities’ waste generation and management impacts, we ask the question of why Singapore households are not more proactively engaged in waste minimization, despite the presence of local waste minimization public campaigns. This study is the first known study to comparatively apply and test three major theories – social psychological, social-structural, and sociocultural theories, to explain household waste management behavior in Singapore. A national survey followed by regression analysis of 303 households was conducted. In our findings, we firstly describe current trends in household waste management behaviors. Secondly, we compared each applied theory’s ability to predict households’: (1) reuse and (2) recycling of a variety of household items; and (3) recycling frequency. We obtained partial evidence supporting the role of future-orientedness and environmental identity on householders’ variety reuse and recycling. Social-structural (age cohort x income, education) and situational variables (the convenience thesis), also predicted various waste minimization behaviors. Finally, householders’ knowledge of what is recyclable affected all forms of waste minimization behaviors. In view of the study’s findings, we propose a need for targeted planning and policy interventions for different segments of the Singapore population, and different short- and longer-term measures to initiate and achieve sustained household waste minimization.     

Determination of metals in printed wiring boards of waste mobile phones

Metal contents of waste mobile phones represent a major environmental risk, especially considering the adoption of inappropriate management options in developing countries including open burning and disposal into surface water bodies. In this study the metal contents of mobile phone printed wiring board (PWB) samples were assessed. Sixty-two waste mobile phones of 15 brands were collected, dismantled, and their PWB samples were analyzed for Cu, Pb, Ag and Cd. The metal concentrations in the samples varied widely between and within brands. Among these metals, Cu and Pb were found to be at very high concentrations. The range (mean?±?SD) of Cu and Pb concentrations were 94.1–532?g?kg^?1 (250?±?92.3?g?kg^?1) and 7.0–46.2?g?kg^?1 (20.1?±?8.4?g?kg^?1), respectively. All Cu and Pb concentrations exceeded toxicity threshold limit concentration (TTLC) regulatory limits used in characterizing wastes as hazardous in the state of California, USA. The mean Cu and Pb concentrations exceeded the corresponding TTLC limits by factors of 100 and 20, respectively. The Ag and Cd concentrations were in the range 59.4–759?mg?kg^?1 (mean 227?±?104?mg?kg^?1) and ND – 15.6?mg?kg^?1 (2.1?±?3.3?mg?kg^?1), respectively.     

Repercussions of COVID-19 pandemic on solid waste generation and management strategies

• Implication of COVID-19 on medical waste and MSW generation is studied. • Challenges and effective strategy of solid waste generation is reviewed. • 2.9 million tons of COVID-19 related medical waste has been generated until Sep. 22. • The pandemic has postponed policies related to the reduction of plastic use. • Blockade resulted in a significant drop in waste generation in some regions. It has been over ten months since the beginning of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-2019), and its impact on solid waste management, especially medical waste, is becoming clearer. This study systematically reviews the potential influences of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical waste, personal protection equipment waste and municipal solid waste (MSW), and discusses the corresponding measures and policies of solid waste management in typical countries. The results show that the generation of medical waste from the pandemic increased significantly, with 18%‒425% growth. It is estimated that the daily output of COVID-19 medical waste increased from 200 t/d on Feb. 22 to over 29000 t/d at the end of September 2020 throughout the world. The use of personal protective equipment will continue to grow in the long-term, while the blockade and isolation measures greatly reduced the volume of commercial waste, especially for tourist cities, and part of this waste was transferred to household waste. Residents’ attitudes and behavior toward food waste have changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to the pandemic, international organizations and several countries have issued new policies and guidelines and adjusted their management strategies for medical waste and MSW treatment. The pandemic has brought specific challenges to the disposal capacity of medical waste worldwide. It has also brought about the stagnation of policies related to the reduction of plastic products and waste recycling. This study will provide some useful information for managers and governmental officials on effective solid waste management during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.     

Thermochemical conversion of municipal solid waste into energy and hydrogen: a review

The rising global population is inducing a fast increase in the amount of municipal waste and, in turn, issues of rising cost and environmental pollution. Therefore, alternative treatments such as waste-to-energy should be developed in the context of the circular economy. Here, we review the conversion of municipal solid waste into energy using thermochemical methods such as gasification, combustion, pyrolysis and torrefaction. Energy yield depends on operating conditions and feedstock composition. For instance, torrefaction of municipal waste at 200 °C generates a heating value of 33.01 MJ/kg, while the co-pyrolysis of cereals and peanut waste yields a heating value of 31.44 MJ/kg at 540 °C. Gasification at 800 °C shows higher carbon conversion for plastics, of 94.48%, than for waste wood and grass pellets, of 70–75%. Integrating two or more thermochemical treatments is actually gaining high momentum due to higher energy yield. We also review reforming catalysts to enhance dihydrogen production, such as nickel on support materials such as CaTiO₃, SrTiO₃, BaTiO₃, Al₂O₃, TiO₃, MgO, ZrO₂. Techno-economic analysis, sensitivity analysis and life cycle assessment are discussed.

     

Integrated approach to winery waste: waste generation and data consolidation

The winemaking process involves the generation of a significant amount of waste and wastewater. These residues should be addressed for recycling or treatment before being returned to environment. As each winery is unique in waste generation and disposal, plans for environmentally friendly waste management are not universal and should be tested for their effectiveness. In this study, a diagnostic was made during three years, in different wineries, throughout Portugal, in order to quantify and characterize the waste and the wastewater produced. The results showed that solid waste and wastewater are mainly produced during the harvest period, corresponding to 74% and 87%, respectively. One ton of processed grape approximately produce 0.13 t marc, 0.06 t lees, 0.03 t of stalks and 1.65 m³ of wastewater. No significant differences (P≤0.05) were observed for grape marc, lees and wastewater ratios, between years or wineries. With respect to the stalk ratio, there was no effect of year but the winery significantly affected this ratio (P≤0.05). During the study period the treated wastewater, since diluted, revealed suitable characteristics for irrigation representing an additional source of water. In this regard, the data acquisition and consolidation ensure the transfer of information and experience which constitute an essential step in a support decision tool design.     

Physico-chemical characteristics of fine fraction materials from an old crystal glass dumpsite in Sweden

Physico-chemical characteristics of waste, particularly fine fraction (FF), from an old crystal glass waste dump in Sweden were studied to assess recycling or disposal alternatives. Hand-sorting of the waste indicated glass content of 44.1% while sieving established the FF as a more soil-like mix of glass and other materials constituting 33.3% of all excavated waste. The FF was around neutral pH with 24.4% moisture content, low values of Total Dissolved Solids, Dissolved Organic Carbon and fluorides, but hazardous concentrations of As, Cd, Pb and Zn according to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency guidelines. While the FF leached metals in low concentrations at neutral pH, it leached considerably during digestion with nitric acid, implying leaching risks at low pH. Thus, the waste requires safe storage in hazardous waste class ‘bank account’ storage cells to avoid environmental contamination as metal recovery and other recycling strategies for the glass waste are being developed. The study could fill the information gap regarding preservation of potential resources in the on-going, fast-paced excavation and re-landfilling of heavy metal contaminated materials in the region.     

Industrial solid waste flow analysis of eco-industrial parks: implications for sustainable waste management in China

Sustainable waste management in the industrial ecology perspective brings enormous challenges to the existing methodology of waste analysis at the industrial park (IP) scale. In this study, a four-step method was proposed for industrial solid waste (ISW) flow analysis of eco-industrial parks (EIPs) and applied to two IPs in eastern China. According to a park-wide census of 619 industrial enterprises and 105 questionnaires by a survey from 2006 to 2008, the results indicated that: 1) at the enterprise scale, more than 60% of enterprises were small-ISW-generation enterprises which encountered great difficulties on effective waste management; 2) at the IP scale, though the two IPs have set up their own environmental management systems and passed the ISO 14001 certification, the efficiencies of the ISW management systems have yet to be improved in the industrial ecology perspective; and 3) at the regional scale, more than 97% of ISW flowed within the provincial region, indicating that the provincial governments prevented the wastes from flowing into their own “back yard”. Effective waste management should be placed in a broader perspective. Approaches to sustainable waste management may include wastes exchange, efficient waste and information flow, virtual EIP, waste minimization clubs and regionalization of waste management.     

Assessment of key parameters in municipal solid waste management: a prerequisite for sustainability

Municipal solid waste management was studied for 1 year in a representative urban area of Lahore city for environmental sustainability. The effects of financial status of the household and the seasonal variations on generation rate and compositions of municipal solid waste (MSW) were determined. MSW generation rate and the economic status of the households were positively correlated (p < 0.05). Seasonal variations observed were significant only for organics (p = 0.001), plastics (p = 0.008) and food waste fractions (p = 0.009) in MSW. Response surface regression model developed and analysed by Minitab-15® showed that the interaction of season and different economic zones of the town on the MSW generation rate was non-significant (p = 0.334). Elemental and heating value analyses of the mixed organic fractions in kitchen waste had carbon 47.93%, hydrogen 6.20%, nitrogen 2.24%, sulphur 0.23%, oxygen 39.01%, and C and N ratio 27.78. Findings concluded that food waste was 56% of total MSW with 71.03% moisture content and a modest heating value of 5566 J/g. Existing temporary storage capacity of MSW is 51% of the total MSW generated considering the weighted MSW generation rate of 0.57 kg/person/day calculated in this study. Composting could be a possible final disposal option due to high moisture and organic content and can be studied in future research. Development of a transfer station, introduction of home composting programmes and awareness towards proper segregation and reduction of waste at the household level is suggested to attain sustainability in the MSW management system.     

Environment and economic feasibility of municipal solid waste central sorting strategy: a case study in Beijing

Although Beijing has carried out municipal solid waste (MSW) source separation since 1996, it has largely been ineffective. In 2012, a “Green House” program was established as a new attempt for central sorting. In this study, the authors used material flow analysis (MFA) and cost benefit analysis (CBA) methods to investigate Green House’s environment and economic feasibility. Results showed that the program did have significant environmental benefits on waste reduction, which reduced the amount of waste by 34%. If the Green House program is implemented in a residential community with wet waste ratio of 66%, the proportion of waste reduction can reach 37%. However, the Green House is now running with a monthly loss of 1982 CNY. This is mainly because most of its benefits come from waste reduction (i.e., 5878 CNY per month), which does not turn a monetary benefit, but is instead distributed to the whole of society as positive environmental externalities. Lack of government involvement, small program scale, and technical/managerial deficiency are three main barriers of the Green House. We, thus, make three recommendations: involve government authority and financial support, expand the program scale to separate 91.4 tons of waste every month, and use more professional equipment/technologies. If the Green House program can successfully adopt these suggestions, 33.8 tons of waste can be reduced monthly, and it would be able to flip the loss into a profit worth 35034 CNY.

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Metal removal with two biochars made from municipal organic waste: adsorptive characterization and surface complexation modeling

The adsorptive characteristics of biochar produced from garden green waste (S-char) and a mixture of food waste and garden green waste (FS-char) were investigated. Adsorption of Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Mn²⁺ onto the two biochars reached equilibrium within 48 hours. The metal adsorption was effectively described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic and Freundlich isotherm models which suggest heterogeneous chemisorption. The initial solution pH influenced adsorption of Zn²⁺ and Mn²⁺ but not of Cu²⁺. Simulation via a surface complexation model showed that the fraction of XOCu⁺ adsorbed onto biochar was increased with increasing pH until it reached the adsorption maximum at pH 8.5, while the endpoint for the maximum of XOMn⁺ was higher than pH 12.     

Twenty-six tons of lead oxide used per year in wooden boat building and repairing in southern Thailand

In southern Thailand, the wooden boat building and repair industry uses powdered lead oxide (Pb₃O_4, or red lead) in the caulking process. This had been shown to be a significant source of contamination in the workplace and the communities. This cross-sectional study was conducted to estimate the amount of lead oxide used in the region and to document the management of hazardous waste product in this industry. All boatyards in southern Thailand registered to the Ministry of Industry were visited with walk-through observation. After consent, questionnaire-based interviews were conducted among workers and boatyard owners who rented out the space for building and repairing the boats. Of the 63 active boatyards identified, approximately 26 tons of lead oxide was used to repair approximately 8,000 boats each year. Due to the casual employment system in this industry, no facility for the protection of workers and the environment from lead contamination exists. The findings indicate the need for further studies on the extent of contamination in the broader area. Intervention programmes are also urgently needed to reduce the release of this hazardous waste into the community.     

Hazardous waste solidification as a multiple barrier concept

The GFS process of waste solidification using pozzolanic material is described. This process is most successful for hazardous particulates. Final products have better landfilling properties in terms of fixing the hazardous contents of wastes, reducing leachates and improving the geo‐physical strength of particulates than the starting waste materials. Furthermore, recycling of metals from sludges of industrial processes as well as of biomass from municipal sewage sludges for agricultural purposes are improved.