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Waste Management

The new Concept is:

Design a process with zero waste

Waste Management
Wastes include:

Liquid or solid residues from a process Contaminated materials Off-specification products Accidental spillages Machine/finishing residue Fugitive emissions Gaseous discharges

Waste Management
Main causes of waste generation

Inappropriate raw material Inefficient process Unsuitable equipments Poor operation practices Accidents

Waste Management
The main objective is:

Design a new process or modify an existing plant or process to satisfy environmental, users and system requirements

Waste Management
To be learned:

How to eliminate/minimise the waste in the sources by substitution of raw material, changing the process conditions, equipment or recycling the Process streams.

Waste Management
The concepts that would be reviewed in this course are: Waste Minimisation, Polution Prevention, green Chemistry/Clean Technology, Recycling and Waste Treatment
M. Shahriari - Chalmers

Waste Management
Course structure Lectures
Waste Minimization and P2 Cleaner Technology Study Visit

Waste minimization practices


Waste Treatment and Utilization

Sustainability
Environmental Protection
Sustainable Development

Economic Stability

Social Responsibility
SD aims to meet two key objectives of modern societies; Economic development to secure higher standards of living Protection of the environment

Waste Management
How can we find ways to meet our current economic and social needs without compromising the ability of our children, and our children's children, to do the same? Our success will depend on understanding the difference between:

Sustainable practices: practices that provide ongoing economic and social benefits without degrading the environment. Unsustainable practices: "quick fixes" that fill an immediate need for resources. Over time, however, these practices deplete or damage natural resources so they cannot be used or enjoyed by future generations.

Waste Management
Waste Definition:
Any substance which constitutes a scrap material or an effluent, or other unwanted surplus substance arising from the application of a process.

What are the problems with wastes


Creating potential environmental problems

Require significant investment in pollution control

Wastes
represent losses from the production process of valuable materials and energy

Waste Management
Wastes include:
Liquid or solid residues from a process Contaminated materials Off-specification products Accidental spillages Machine/finishing residue Fugitive emissions Gaseous discharges
M. Shahriari - Chalmers

Waste Management
Main causes of waste generation :
Inappropriate raw material Inefficient process Unsuitable equipments Poor operation practices Accidents

M. Shahriari - Chalmers

Waste Management
Products
Feeds Process

Waste
Original Process Feeds Process

Effluent treatment

Products
Waste Effluent treatment

After Waste Minimisation

Waste Management
Waste management is involved with all efforts concerning with eliminating or minimizing of wastes including: Identification of wastes and the sources of generation in a process Selecting and implementing of the most appropriate techniques with respect to economic point of view as well as environmental reasons in the frame of the hierarchy of WM practices through process optimization or redesign in developing cleaner process

Waste Management
The main objective of waste management is:

Cost effective handling, minimization, treatment and disposal of waste under the key constraint of legislation and its enforcement
In a new process, the implications of waste must be considered at all stages from conceptual design through to detailed design/optimization and pilot studies

Waste Management
Wastes include:
Liquid, solid, and gaseous waste materials can be generated during the manufacture of any product Waste generated in process industries represents a loss of raw material, intermediates, by-products which may cause damage to the environment and requires time, manpower and money to manage.
M. Shahriari - Chalmers

Hierarchy of waste management options set down in EC Council Resolution on Waste Policy
Prevention Best

Minimization
Recycling Disposal Worst

Waste Management
Earlier policy
Reutilisation Material recycling Energy recycling Landfill disposal
Re-utilisation Material recycling Energy recycling Landfill disposal

present and Future policy

Change of system for management of disposed material

What is Clean Technology?


The reduction of waste at source is preferable and often cheaper than end of pipe solutions and may be achieved by various means such as process modification, recycling or recovery of waste materials. In these times of increased legislation, with stricter environmental controls and greater public access to company records , there is a very real need to look again at process design and company policies. It is imperative for industry that personnel both understand and implement the principles of Clean Technology.
M. Shahriari - Chalmers

Clean Technology
Reduce
Substitute Change Utilities Products Process

Unnecessary if Zero waste

Raw Materials

Waste
Improve
Minimise/recycle

Disposal/ treatment

Clean Technology can apply to all stages in Life Cycle

Waste Minimisation
Synonymous terms of waste minimisation:
- Waste Reduction - Clean or Cleaner Technology/Engineering/ Processing - Pollution Prevention (P2)/Reduction - Environmental Technologies - Low and Non-Waste Technologies

Waste Minimisation
- What are the benefits of Waste Minimisation? - What are the main barriers in Waste Minimisation? - What is the major element of success in Waste Minimisation? - Methodology of Waste Minimisation

What are the benefits of Waste Minimisation?


Improving the health and safety of employees Increasing operating efficiency and hence reducing production cost The implementation of a waste minimization project which is associated with additional capital investment, may be rewarded by benefits such as: Reduced on-site waste monitoring, control and treatment costs Reduced handling, pretreatment, transport and out-site disposal cost Reduced waste storage space Reduced administrative and paper work costs Reduced analytical costs for the characterization of waste streams Reduced production costs Reduced risk for handling of hazardous materials Reduced risk for the environment i.e., reduction/elimination of liability charges Improved operating efficiency and process reliability

Main Barriers in Waste Minimisation


Economic Barriers Technical Barriers Regulatory Barriers Cultural Barriers Resistance to change within a company may introduce barriers Problems may be caused by: * Lack of management responsibility * Lack of awareness of objectives * Individual or organizational resistance to change * Poor internal communication * In flexible organizational structure * Bureaucracy * Restrictive employment practices

Major Element of Success in Waste Minimisation is:


Training:
What should be on focus when the training for waste minimisation is concerned? Example subjects: Company policy Overview of legislation and regulations Definition of waste types Description of risk to health, safety, and the environment Definitions of waste minimisation, recycling and treatment Potential for waste generation within the company Benefits to be gained from waste minimisation Barriers and techniques for overcoming them WM techniques Case studies

Methodology of Waste Minimisation


Setting goals and timescales Establish assessment team Process and waste characterization including: mass & energy balance, identifying of waste sources in the process Finding and ranking of options Techno-economical study Report on assessment and evaluation:
Recommendations for implementation of WM projects including details for each option: WM potential, maturity of technology, overall economics, required resources and financing possibilities, time for installation Detail engineering work anf implementation of the project

Practical techniques to minimise waste


Waste Minimisation Techniques Waste reduction at source Recycling

Good Technological Input material Product practice changes changes Changes Cleaner processes

On-site Off-site recycling recycling

Retrofitting

Basic Approaches to Waste Minimization Are to Modify:


1. the chemicals/feeds

2. the process
3. the equipment 4. the effluent treatment

Sources of waste
In an existing plant before thinking about waste minimisation we need to know:
Where it is being generated ? How it is generated ? Where it is going ?
This requires a waste audit ( a material and energy balance) A balance which takes into account startup, shutdown, and product changeover is often required.

Reactor is at the heart of the process

M. Shahriari - Chalmers

Sources of Wastes
Process waste Reactor Separation Reactor and recycle Heat exchangerand network Separation recycle Heat exchanger network Utility waste

Utilities

Sources of Waste
Process waste in reactor in separation and recycling systems Utility waste
From furnaces, steam boiler, gas turbines, diesel engines, and stack outlets.

in process operations

Sources of waste in reactors (1)


1. Unreacted feed 2. The primary reaction can produce waste byproducts FEED 1+FEED 2 =>PRODUCT + byproduct 3. Secondary reactions can produce waste byproducts FEED 1+ FEED 2 =>PRODUCT PRODUCT => byproduct

4. Impurities in the feed materials become waste or can react to produce additional waste byproducts
5. Catalyst is either degraded and requires changing or is lost and can not be recycled

Minimising waste in reactors (2)


1. Minimising the waste of unreacted feed materials
- Change the process conditions e.g. retention time, temperature, pressure - Change feed material to another alternative - Change the technology and equipments

Minimising waste in reactors (3)


2. Minimising waste byproducts from primary reactions
1. For irreversible reactions higher conversion can be obtained by higher temperature, higher pressure, and longer retention time 2. For reversible reactions higher conversion can be obtained by: Excess reactants Product removal during reaction Inserts concentration Changing reactor temperature and pressure

Minimising waste in reactors (4)


3. Minimising waste byproducts from secondary reactions
- Choosing the correct type of reactor with regards to the type of reaction (series or parallel) can help the process of waste minimisation. In case of parallel reaction, look at the ratio of the rate equations of the secondary and primary reactions and choose conditions to minimise that ratio. - Minimising waste byproduct techniques depends on the reaction system. Figure shows some of these techniques and illustrate where each technique is appropriate for a number of reactions.

Minimising waste in reactors (5)


4+5. Minimising waste from impurities and catalyst loss Avoiding the waste in this case is possible by:
- Purifying the feed. Then we must trade off higher feed purification costs against lower cost for raw materials, product separation and waste disposal. - Reducing waste from catalyst loss by using heterogeneous rather than homogeneous catalyst. Homogeneous catalysts can be difficult to separate and recycle and this leads to waste. Heterogeneous are degraded and need replacement. If contaminants in the feed or recycle shorten catalyst life then extra separation to remove those contaminants before entering the reactor might be justified.

Sources of waste in separation and Recycling systems


Wastes in separation systems can be minimised By:

recycling waste streams directly; beneficiation/purification of the feed; elimination of extraneous materials used for separation; additional separation of waste streams to allow increased recovery.

Recycling (1)
With respect to the hierarchy of WM practices, recycling should Only be considered if all other options for W Minimization have been exhausted. The success of recycling depends on:

The ability to reuse the waste by return to originating process as a substitute for an input material The ability to use the waste as a raw material either on-site or off-site The ability to segregate recoverable and valuable materials from a waste

Recycling (2)
On-Site Recycling:
The optimum place to recover waste is within the production facility. The following wastes are good candidates for recycling:

Contaminated versions of process raw materials Lightly contaminated wastes which can be used in other operations not requiring high quality materials Wastes which have physical and chemical properties suitable for other on-site applications-e,g., the use of waste solvent, oil, etc in combustion process Reuse of extracted water from dilute, high volume waste streams Waste which can be refined on-site e.g., the recycling of slop oils in an oil refinery Most on-site recycling processes will generate some waste which must be disposed safely if can not be further used on-site

Recycling (3)
Off-Site Recycling:
Wastes may be considered for use off-side when: No facility is available on site Generated waste is not enough to make on-site recycling The recovered material can not be used in the process The cost of off-site recycling depends on different factors including the purity of the waste and the market. In a few cases waste may be transferred to another company to be used as raw material. Such an exchange can be economically advantageous to both companies.

Minimising Waste in Process Operation


Main Causes
Poor control and operation
(low conversion, additional Unwanted by-products)

Some Actions
Increase automation

Poor design Tank filling

Modify the system Send vapour into recovery system or use tank with floating roof as a flexible membrane Perform risk assessment Improve reliability

(e.g., loss during material handling)

Incidental/Fugitive emission Start up/shut down

Waste treatment Technologies


Gaseous treatment technologies Liquid treatment technologies Solids treatment technologies

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