Environmental Assessment of Municipal Solid Waste by Two-Stage Plasma Gasification

Ana Ramos, Carlos Afonso Teixeira and Abel Rouboa
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Ana Ramos: INEGI-FEUP, Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal
Carlos Afonso Teixeira: CITAB, Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences, University of Trás-Os-Montes and Alto Douro, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Abel Rouboa: INEGI-FEUP, Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal

Energies, 2019, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Plasma gasification is a thermal treatment successfully applied to waste streams, especially for solid residues. It sets an upgrade to more common waste-to-energy (WtE) techniques as incineration or gasification, granting lower levels of pollutant emissions, less landfilled materials and higher conversion efficiencies and producer gas quality. A life cycle assessment (LCA) of plasma gasification for one ton of a defined stream of solid waste is presented and compared to the hypothetical outcomes of incineration, highlighting the need to implement such sustainable techniques rather than more polluting ones. CML 2001 methodology was applied, enabling the evaluation of eleven impact categories, all of them depicting avoided burdens for the environment. Enhanced efficiency and cleanliness were seen due to the plasma step and to the replacement of part of the electrical grid mix by the produced electricity. Plasma gasification presented an overall better performance than incineration, portraying savings in energy and material resources as well as lower emissions to freshwater. Additionally, lower amounts of air contaminants were seen as well as almost triple of the produced electricity.

Keywords: waste-to-energy; plasma gasification; sustainability; life cycle assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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