Evaluation of best available techniques for the selected integrated solid waste plant using life cycle assessment

Date

2023-12-04

Author

Köse, Elif İrem

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The Industrial Emissions Directive (IED) addresses the best available techniques (BATs) through BREF documents to be implemented in various processes to achieve the least environmental impact at a minimal cost. Waste management BREF is one of those and describes the numbers of BATs for various waste processing stages. These BATs are just those guided and the determination of the applicable ones for a given plant is a challenge. In this respect, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) appears to be a valuable tool for assessing the environmental impacts of various BAT implementations within the waste management systems, like for many other industrial production systems. Therefore, in this study, LCA was used to evaluate and identify the most suitable BATs for the selected Closed Integrated Solid Waste Separation, Processing and Power Generation Plant, in Turkey. The functional unit was selected as 1 ton of municipal solid waste processed. Moreover, the system boundary was defined as "gate to gate" for the entire facility as well as for the individual processing units. The cyclone separator, fabric filter, and wet scrubber have been implemented as effective technologies for minimizing dust emissions in mechanical treatment. These technologies have been guided by BAT25 in order to achieve optimal results. In a similar manner, various scenarios were developed to assess the effectiveness of biofilter, fabric filter, wet scrubber, thermal oxidation, and adsorption approaches in reducing H2S emissions within the desulphurization unit, based on the BAT34 guidelines. The environmental impact of the scenarios was assessed using the use of LCA. The significance of electricity is particularly notable in relation to its substantial influence on the category of Global Warming and Human Health (GWHH). The environmental impact of thermal oxidation for H2S removal in desulphurization is notably high due to its substantial energy demands. Conversely, the utilization of fabric filters in the desulphurisation unit was determined to have the least environmental impact. When comparing the environmental impacts of the techniques to reduce dust emissions in mechanical treatment, the observed differences in the findings were minimal.

Subject Keywords

Life Cycle Assessment, Waste Management, BREF, Best Available Techniques

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/107734

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Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Thesis