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This paper focuses on possibilities to maximize waste conversion through integration of a Waste-To-Energy (WTE) plant with a gas turbine (GT). In particular, this study investigates the feasibility of utilizing the hot gases leaving the GT mainly to superheat the steam leaving the WTE steam generator. A parametric investigation on the steam product...
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... We used a bibliometric analysis to discuss the findings and research trends from the literature to encourage MSWI-BA sustainable management using existing or transfer-ready technologies as a helpful tool for decision-making in planning investment and advancing research fields. (Branchini, 2012). The maximum operating capacity of FC MSWI plant is 60,000 to 120,000 tons per year of urban waste. ...
Introduction: Municipal Solid Waste Incineration (MSWI) plants generate significant amounts of solid end-products, such as bottom ash (BA), containing potentially toxic elements like Cr, Ni, As, Cd, and Pb, base elements (e.g., Si, Al, Fe, Ti, Cu, and Zn), and other technology-critical elements (TCE), such as Co, Ga, Mg, Nb, P, Sb, Sc, V, Li, Sr, and REE. The accurate determination of these elements in anthropogenic wastes and the assessment of their removal are crucial for the circular economy.
Methods: This paper aims to characterize BA samples from two Italian MSWI plants (named FE and FC) by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and comparatively assess the removal of a selection of elements using the aqua regia digestion (ARD) method, followed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) analytical determination.
Results and discussion: According to the XRF analysis, Ca, Fe, Al, Mg, and Na had high concentrations in BA, and their contents increased with decreasing particle size in both FE and FC samples. The Enrichment Factor (EF) based on the upper continental crust’s average values of Zn, Cu, and Pb was high (EF > 30), while Cr, Ni, and As were scarcely enriched (EF > 1), and REE enrichment was very low (EF < 1). In both FE and FC plants, the Degree of Elements Extractability (DE) was high (>80%), especially in the fine-grained fractions of MSWI bottom ash. The Enrichment Factor (EF) based on the upper continental crust average values of Zn, Cu, and Pb was high (EF > 30), while Cr, Ni, and As were scarcely enriched (EF > 1), and REE enrichment was very low (EF < 1). The bibliometric analysis helped highlight research trends in the assessment and treatment of MSWI-BA, discriminating the literature impact on environment/health issues and recovery/recycling strategies for the circular economy associated with the MSWI-BA material.
Conclusion: Although higher data coverage is needed, the present study suggests ARD as an effective method for better understanding the environmental impact and recoverability of useful elements from anthropogenic materials like MSWI bottom ash.
... Mostly, up-to-date incineration plants have energy generation adeptness of about 30%. Assimilated Waste to Energy (WtE)-Gas Turbines electricity generators have been poised to increase energy efficiency to at least 40% and in 2012, only Spain, Netherlands and Japan had three of these plants (Branchini, 2012). While this technology is yet be considered matured, the assimilated gas turbine classification appeared to be the future of WtE incineration technologies. ...
... These systems are more efficient than the conventional systems since they operate on a hybrid combined cycle, a thermal connection between a topping cycle and a bottomer cycle. 45 Landfill-based electricity generation is not included in this study since the amount of electricity generated by landfill is considerable over large timeframes. It is also not possible to treat some of the waste components via certain methods, for example, the AD can only be applicable on organic waste, glass and metal cannot be processed via the PYR or the PLA, etc. ...
Utilizing waste‐to‐energy (WtE) technologies is becoming crucial in today's world where energy sources are scarce. Despite the fact that WtE technologies (incineration, gasification, pyrolysis, anaerobic digestion, and landfill gas recovery) have been analyzed thoroughly in the literature regarding their efficiency rates in treating waste, the applicability of each method to different waste compositions and in various economic environments has not been considered before. In this study, this issue is investigated by modeling and solving a mixed integer programming model. The model is illustrated in three settings, namely Turkey, Brazil, and Germany, each of which is an example of a lower middle income, upper middle income, and a high income country, respectively. The findings of the optimization model suggest that plasma‐arc gasification and advanced incineration stand out as the most efficient technologies to create the WtE conversion, provided that there are sufficient funds to build and run these facilities. If there are economic restraints, anaerobic digestion could be a more cost‐effective way to create energy from waste. However, the solutions can be highly dependent on the parameters of the problem, as indicated in the results of the sensitivity analysis performed. In particular, if CO2 emissions are a big concern, the optimization model favors more of plasma‐arc and pyrolysis technologies.
Novelty Statement
Despite a wide range of previous studies involving technical analysis of WtE technologies, an economic perspective involving facility building decisions comparing different income level countries has not been performed before. This study examines all waste‐to‐energy methods in the literature not only regarding their efficiency rates in treating waste but also selecting the most appropriate methodology in different settings. In this manner, considering different income level countries brings a proper perspective and novelty to the study.
... The feasibility study of waste to energy for Addis Ababa city, Ethiopia, is done by collaborating with Ethiopian Electric Power Cooperation (EEPCo); unlike other feasibility studies, a Team researcher joins three organizations [15]. The first African wasteto-energy was established in Addis Ababa, known as Rappi (koshe) waste-to-energy plant. ...
The present work aimed to show (explore) Adama city’s economic and environmental opportunities for solid waste incineration with energy recovery, also known as Waste to Energy. The current waste management system in Adama consists of landfills in the cities and open burning. Environmentally, this is an imperfect solution, and although there are plans for change, no specific strategy has been presented. This is a growing problem, both environmentally and logistically. Another important thing is that Waste to Energy is the additional way of getting energy for Adama city. Data was collected from Adama with four kebele and different literature review. From the collected data, waste-to-energy systems were simulated in CYCLEPAD, PYTHON, and MECH IN EXCEL. The simulations show that a system using waste incineration would be the best solution for Adama city. This study shows that implementing a waste incineration plant in the Adama city energy system is economically and environmentally feasible compared to the current conditions. The chosen system is designed to handle 50,000 tons of waste annually collected from Adama city. The system will provide 118.5 GW hours of electric energy annually. The system investment cost is around 149.5 MUSD, and it is expected to generate an annual profit of 4.71 MUSD. This study clearly shows that there is both economic and environmental potential for waste-to-energy technologies in the region. By implementing waste-to-energy technology, the supplied waste can be seen as a resource instead of a problem. This would give incentives for further actions and investments regarding waste management. Compared with the city’s current solution with landfills and fossil fuel turbines, the present work also develops a significant environmental improvement. During the plant’s design lifetime, greenhouse gas emissions are small, assuming that only a portion of the waste's carbon content is of fossil origin.
... With the development of technologies in the eld of power generation, a new structural design for a wide variety of power plants has been proposed, one of the most important parts of which is WTE sector. This technology is capable of controlling the process of converting waste to energy, providing the available process, and extracting the maximum energy from wastes [9,10]. As a result, analysis of these systems is of great signi cance. ...
... However, other emissions (CO and NO x ) have been also taken into consideration. The available volumes of fuel in grams per kilogram is prevented from entering the furnace stack [10]. Such emissions from WTE power plants are estimated through net electricity production (kWh) or climate coe cients considered for each country. ...
The present study brings together the bene ts of the results of exergy, exergoeconomic, and exergoenvironmental analyses as well as optimization of a waste-to-energy power plant. First, exergoeconomic balance for each stream was calculated. To validate the current simulations, the actual data from the Amsterdam waste-to-energy power plant in working conditions were examined. Moreover, the behaviors of the in uential parameters in the objective functions were evaluated. In order to perform multi-objective optimization, Multi-Objective Particle-Swarm Optimization (MOPSO) algorithm was employed. To obtain the optimum operating conditions, 14 design parameters and 3 objective functions were taken into consideration, with the total cost rate, total exergy e ciency of the cycle, and environmental impacts as the objective functions. Finally, the TOPSIS decision-making method determined the optimum-operating conditions. The results of exergy analysis indicated that the most exergy destruction belonged to the incinerator unit at 66%. Instead, the pumps contributed the least in this eld (approximately 1%). Under the in uence of the optimization process, the total exergy e ciency of the power plant increased from 30.89% to 38.9% at the total cost of 5188.05 USD/hour. A comparison of the obtained results from the optimization procedure revealed that introducing optimum working condition would cause an increase in the exergy e ciency and a decrease in the exergy destruction among the components.
... Recently, Carneiro and Gomes [14] investigated the performance of a waste-toenergy/gas turbine (WTE/GT) hybrid systems, by means of a 4E method (energy, exergy, environmental and economic analysis). Among the alternatives, the majority of the studies evaluate the use of exhaust gases from gas turbines, for example, [5,15,16] or internal combustion engines [3] burning natural gas, as topping cycle integrated to a biomass bottoming cycle. ...
Hybrid combined cycles, fueled by natural gas and biomass, have been present in several power plants. As shown by different authors, it is possible to increase the overall efficiency of these plants by means of waste heat recovery from exhaust gases of gas turbines. The main disadvantage, for some cases, is the higher natural gas consumption, making some plants economically unfeasible. The present work applies the concept of a novel hybrid combined cycle (HCC), adapted for sugarcane mills, burning sugarcane bagasse and natural gas. In order to evaluate the potential of application of this concept, a new hybrid configuration, starting from an existing plant, is proposed. A thermodynamic performance study has shown an electrical efficiency improvement (from 6.8% to 17.8%) for the same amount of bagasse originally burnt, thus allowing the plant to operate throughout the year, increasing the electricity generation (from 108.9 to 323.0GWhel) as well as meeting the same steam demands for sugar and ethanol production processes. The economic evaluation, considering investments, operating expenses and plant requisites, has pointed to an internal rate of return (IRR) of 22.89%. Furthermore, this new configuration does not depend on a large natural gas consumption (gas share of 11.4%), making the plant’s economic feasibility less dependent on fluctuations of natural gas prices. Finally, a sensitivity analysis of four different hybrid plants have shown the techno-economic feasibility of hybrid combined cycles applied to sugarcane mills, including during the off-season period.
... The third major combustible source of recoverable waste energy is coking oven gas. In Japan, for example, the total use of coke gas amounts to 10 billion m 3 of coking oven gas used annually, of which 22% is burnt in coking ovens, 56% is used in metals production, 10% is burnt in municipal heating systems, 8% is used at CHP plants, etc. Coking gas is also commonly used to power gas turbine combined cycle plants [34][35][36][37]. ...
In order to ensure their market sustainability, it is essential for energy-intensive industrial companies to address the issues of efficient energy use. Companies that are prepared to embrace tariff hikes, structural changes in fuel and energy markets, and a shortage of energy resources have a wider range of options to respond to the new challenges posed by the external environment and to reduce their risks. This task becomes particularly relevant in the context of the development of the circular economy that is aimed at resource optimization, energy conservation, zero-waste manufacturing, and business models that are based on maximum operational efficiency. This study aims to develop a methodology for rational behavior of the energy consumer in the context of the circular economy. The concept of “rational behavior” is defined by the authors as the intention to make the maximum use of the advantages and potential of energy markets in order to reduce the cost of energy supply, increase the level of electrification in industrial production, and use the capabilities of their own energy business. The article describes the main principles of rational behavior that serve as the foundation for effective implementation of various strategies (that of the seller, buyer, or both) in a company. A link is shown between rational behavior and energy market potential management in a company as a mix of technological, economic, and organizational activities performed by the energy consumer in a competitive market and effective market risk management. Forms of off-grid power supply and conditions for their application in manufacturing, for example, mini-combined heat and power (CHP) plants and quadgeneration plants at large metallurgical facilities were analyzed.
... Corrosion limits steam properties to maximums of 450-500°C and 4.0-6.0 MPa, while the steam temperature can reach 600°C in a coal cycle [27,29]. ...
... The heating surfaces of radiant parts are protected by a resistant refractory material and/or welded high-alloy to prevent corrosive attacks in the furnace of the boiler system. The feed water should be preheated to a minimum of 125°C, before being sent to the boiler, to prevent low-temperature corrosion [29]. ...
... The evaluated system presented a net thermal efficiency of 36%, which is much higher than the average efficiencies achieved by single fueled WTE facilities in the world. Nevertheless, recent works show that hybrid WTE-GT efficiency range can achieve efficiencies of 35-43% [73], one can thus conclude that there is still potential for improvement. The exergy analysis showed that improvement efforts should be concentrated on the combustion equipment, mainly on the MSW furnace. ...
Recently, studies have been evaluating the thermodynamic performance of new configurations of integrated waste-to-energy/gas turbine cycles, but a question still remains: “Instead of building new natural gas power plants or installing conventional waste-to-energy facilities, should one be investing in flexible efficient hybrid plants?” This article aims at presenting a novel comprehensive approach to help answering this question. The strategy intends to demonstrate how to integrate four known key procedures (energy, exergy, economic and environmental analysis) in an original manner in order to evaluate the feasibility of such systems. The technique consists of a conventional Energy-Exergy analysis followed by a new Environmental-Economic approach. The novelties are in the economic and environmental parts, namely: (i) the use of multiple cost equations for estimating the plant’s initial investment range and (ii) the indirect estimate of the pollution abatement system cost through an energy-ecological efficiency indicator. A case study configuration (similar to the existing plant of Bilbao) is used as exercise to demonstrate the method and its comparability potential, as well as to allow discussion using tangible results. The case-studied plant has a power output capacity of 107 MWe, thermal efficiency of 36%, ecological efficiency of 89%, thermal waste input capacity of 155 MWt and levelized cost of electricity production of US$ 64–89 per MWh. It is compared to several existing single-fueled waste-to-energy facilities and other energy sources, including renewable and non-renewable. As unique findings of this research, it is shown that the proposed economic method allows to predict costs quite accurately and that the specific investment costs of such technology are very attractive compared to existing single-fueled waste-to-energy facilities in Europe and other electricity sources in the Brazilian context. The proposed method proved to be a comprehensive procedure to analytically evaluate the feasibility of hybrid waste-to-energy power plants, which present good potential in the Energy conversion field.
... Most modern plants currently have an energy efficiency of around 30% [10]. Integrated WtE-Gas Turbines power plants have been proposed recently to increase the energy efficiency to more than 40% and in 2012, there are three such plants in Spain, Netherlands and Japan [31]. Although the technology is not yet matured, the integrated gas turbine system seems to be the future of WtE incineration technologies. ...
Municipal waste management and Waste-to-Energy (WtE) potentials in New Zealand are discussed. The existing main waste management strategy of New Zealand is to reduce, reuse and recycle waste. Most of the remaining waste is currently disposed of in landfills. WtE options were explored in this study as a more sustainable waste treatment alternative in the country, while making use of the annual 30.8 petajoule of available waste energy in New Zealand. Four WtE technology options were discussed and compared, namely incineration, anaerobic digestion, gasification and pyrolysis. The aspects in comparison were air pollution, cost, side products, capacity, commercial maturity, energy efficiency and type of waste treated. Special emphasis was given to environment-friendliness and cost. From the comparison, it was found that anaerobic digestion seems to be the most attractive solution for the country as it is environment-friendly, economical and the concept is consistent with New Zealand’s existing waste management strategy. The major limitations of anaerobic digestion are its low energy production efficiency and its limited waste treatment capacity. Hence, an effective national waste reduction and recycling strategy is crucial for the success of this waste management option.
