Waste as a resource

The volume of waste produced by human activity continues to grow, but steps are being taken to mitigate this problem by viewing waste as a resource. Recovering a proportion of waste for re-use immediately reduces the volume of landfill. Furthermore, the scarcity of some elements (such as phosphorous and the rare-earth metals) increases the need for their recovery from waste streams.

This volume of Issues in Environmental Science and Technology examines the potential resource available from several waste streams, both domestic and industrial. Opportunities for exploiting waste are discussed, along with their environmental and economic considerations. Landfill remains an unavoidable solution in some circumstances, and the current situation regarding this is also presented. Other chapters focus on mine waste, the recovery of fertilisers, and the growing potential for compost.

In keeping with the Issues series, this volume is written with a broad audience in mind. University students and active researches in the field will appreciate the latest research and discussion, while policy makers and members of NGOs will benefit from the wealth of information presented.

Author Notes

The series has been edited by Professors Hester and Harrison since it began in 1994.

Professor Roy Harrison OBE is listed by ISI Thomson Scientific (on ISI Web of Knowledge) as a Highly Cited Researcher in the Environmental Science/Ecology category. He has an h-index of 54 (i.e. 54 of his papers have received 54 or more citations in the literature). In 2004 he was appointed OBE for services to environmental science in the New Year Honours List. He was profiled by the Journal of Environmental Monitoring (Vol 5, pp 39N-41N, 2003). Professor Harrison's research interests lie in the field of environment and human health. His main specialism is in air pollution, from emissions through atmospheric chemical and physical transformations to exposure and effects on human health. Much of this work is designed to inform the development of policy.

Now an emeritus professor, Professor Ron Hester's current activities in chemistry are mainly as an editor and as an external examiner and assessor. He also retains appointments as external examiner and assessor / adviser on courses, individual promotions, and departmental / subject area evaluations both in the UK and abroad.

Reviews 1

Choice Review

Every year, massive and ever-increasing amounts of waste are generated worldwide. This is giving rise to the dual problem of diminishing resources and overflowing landfills. However, waste can be used as a resource to make new products, while simultaneously saving landfill space. This book addresses an array of different waste streams (e.g., plastic packaging, food wastes, mine wastes, and wastewater) as well as numerous issues associated with converting waste materials into useful resources. Chapter contributors discuss the use of these diverse waste steams in a practical manner and from a commercial perspective, rather than in a lab-based research context. They address chemical and engineering issues in a multidisciplinary approach, but at a level that makes the book more suited to a technical readership than a general audience. Besides describing the chemical, technical, and engineering issues associated with collection and use of waste streams, a noteworthy feature of this book is that in several chapters, the authors specifically examine economic and policy issues associated with waste as a resource. Therefore, while the readership for this book is likely to be multidisciplinary, it is also likely to be a higher-level readership. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, researchers/faculty, and professionals/practitioners. P. G. Heiden Michigan Technological University

Chunfei Wu and Paul T. WilliamsRichard A Shaw and Evangelia Petavratzi and Andrew J BloodworthJames H. Clark and Avtar S. MatharuKarl S. WilliamsSebastian Petzet and Peter CornelHe Pinjing and Lü Fan and Zhang Hua and Shao LimingYasuhiko HottaEd StentifordGeoff V. R. Watson and William Powrie

Editors	p. xv
List of Contributors	p. xvii
Advanced Thermal Treatment of Wastes for Fuels, Chemicals and Materials Recovery	p. 1
1 Introduction	p. 1
2 Pyrolysis	p. 2
2.1 Bio-oil Production	p. 5
2.1.1 Upgrading of Bio-oil?	p. 7
2.2 Pyrolysis Oils from Other Wastes	p. 10
2.3 Pyrolysis Chars	p. 13
2.4 Pyrolysis Gases	p. 14
2.5 Material Recovery from Wastes	p. 15
2.6 Reactors for Pyrolysis	p. 18
2.6.1 Fixed-bed/batch Pyrolysis	p. 18
2.6.2 Screw Kiln Pyrolysis	p. 19
2.6.3 Fluidised Bed Pyrolysis	p. 20
2.7 Examples of Semi-commercial and Commercial Pyrolysis Systems	p. 21
3 Gasification	p. 25
3.1 Introduction to Gasification	p. 25
3.2 Influence of Gasification Conditions	p. 28
3.2.1 Influence of Gasification Temperature	p. 28
3.2.2 Introduction of Catalyst in Gasification	p. 29
3.3 Gasification Reactors	p. 30
3.3.1 Fixed-bed Gasification	p. 30
3.3.2 Fluidised-bed Gasification	p. 32
3.3.3 Entrained-flow Gasification	p. 33
3.3.4 Other Novel Gasifiers	p. 33
3.4 Examples of Commercial and Semi-commercial Gasification Systems	p. 34
Acknowledgements	p. 36
References	p. 37
Resource Recovery from Mine Waste	p. 44
1 Introduction	p. 45
2 What is Mine Waste?	p. 45
3 Environmental Impacts of Mine Waste	p. 47
4 Why Recover Resources from Mine Waste?	p. 48
5 Recovery Technologies	p. 50
6 Recovery Case Studies	p. 50
6.1 Metal Recovery from Bauxite Tailings	p. 50
6.1.1 Iron, Titanium and Aluminium Oxides	p. 51
6.1.2 Scandium, Yttrium, Vanadium and Rare Earth Elements (REE)	p. 53
6.2 Precious Metal Recovery from Gold Tailings	p. 55
6.2.1 Gold, Silver and Base Metals	p. 55
6.3 Nickel and Cobalt Recovery from Nickel Laterite Tailings	p. 57
6.3.1 Nickel and Cobalt	p. 58
6.4 Cobalt and Copper Recovery from Copper Tailings	p. 59
6.5 Indium Recovery from Zinc, Copper, Lead and Tin Refining	p. 60
6.5.1 Indium Recovery from Zinc Refining	p. 61
6.5.2 Indium Recovery from Tin Refining	p. 61
6.5.3 Indium Recovery from Lead Refining	p. 62
7 Conclusions	p. 62
Acknowledgements	p. 63
References	p. 63
Waste to Wealth using Green Chemistry	p. 66
1 Introduction	p. 67
1.1 "Waste" - A Growing Problem and A Growing Opportunity	p. 67
1.2 Waste Policy and Waste Valorisation	p. 68
2 The Food Supply Chain Waste (FSCW) Opportunity	p. 70
2.1 Case Study 1: Citrus Waste	p. 73
2.2 Case Study 2: Food Waste in Hong Kong	p. 73
3 Electronic Waste Opportunity	p. 74
3.1 Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment	p. 74
3.2 Environmental Legislation: WEEE Directive, RoHS, RJEACH, EuP and ERP	p. 76
3.3 Case Study: Liquid Crystals Displays	p. 77
3.3.1 Demanufacturing and Resource Recovery	p. 78
3.4 Future Outlook	p. 80
References	p. 80
Plastic Packaging: Not a Throw-away Resource	p. 83
1 Introduction	p. 83
2 Plastic Packaging	p. 84
2.1 Types of Plastic Packaging Used	p. 85
3 Drivers in Legislation for Plastic Packaging	p. 88
3.1 Background to UK Waste and Sustainability	p. 89
3.2 The Role of Legislation	p. 89
3.3 Implementation of Packaging Legislation within Countries	p. 90
4 Plastic Packaging Collection	p. 93
5 Plastics Recycling	p. 95
5.1 Separation, Sorting and Recycling of Plastic Packaging	p. 97
6 Future for Plastic Packaging	p. 101
References	p. 101
Phosphorus Recovery from Wastewater	p. 110
1 Introduction	p. 111
2 Phosphate in Wastewater Treatment	p. 112
2.1 Sources of Phosphate in Wastewater	p. 112
2.2 Removal Phosphate in Wastewater Treatment	p. 113
2.2.1 Enhanced Phosphate Removal	p. 114
2.3 Release of Phosphate in Anaerobic Sludge Stabilisation	p. 116
2.4 Fate of Removed Phosphate in Wastewater Treatment	p. 116
3 Starting Points for Phosphorus Recovery	p. 118
3.1 Phosphate Recovery from Wastewater	p. 119
3.1.1 Phosphate Recovery in the Main Stream	p. 119
3.1.2 Phosphate Recovery from Concentrated Side-streams	p. 120
3.1.3 Precipitation of Phosphate within Digested Sludge	p. 122
3.2 Phosphorus Recovery from Sewage Sludge	p. 123
3.2.1 Wet Chemical Phosphorus Recovery from Sewage Sludge	p. 124
3.2.2 Thermal Processes: Phosphorus Recovery with a Smelting-gasification Technology for Sewage Sludge, using the Mephrec Process	p. 127
3.3 Phosphorus Recovery from Sewage Sludge Ashes (SSA)	p. 128
3.4 Direct Phosphorus Recovery in the Electro-thermal Phosphorus Industry	p. 129
3.5 Direct Recycling of Sewage Sludge Ash as Starting Material for Fertiliser	p. 129
3.6 Acidic Wet Chemical Phosphorus Recovery from Sewage Sludge Ash	p. 130
3.6.1 The Sequential Precipitation Process	p. 131
3.6.2 Liquid-Liquid Extraction	p. 131
3.6.3 Use of Ion-exchangers	p. 133
3.6.4 Separation of Cations by Nanofiltration	p. 134
3.6.5 Phosphorus Recovery by a Direct Alkaline Elution of Sewage Sludge	p. 134
3.7 Thermo-chemical Recovery of Phosphate (ASH-Dec Process)	p. 135
4 Cost of Phosphorus-recovery Processes	p. 135
5 Summary and Conclusions	p. 136
References	p. 138
Recent Developments in the Area of Waste as a Resource, with Particular Reference to the Circular Economy as a Guiding Principle	p. 144
1 The Role of Solid Waste in a Circular Economic System	p. 144
1.1 Introduction	p. 144
1.1.1 The Support of Resource Recovery from Solid Waste to Economic Development	p. 144
1.1.2 Policies Embodying Economic Laws are the Primary Methods to Improve the Development of Solid Waste Reclamation	p. 147
1.2 Theory and Method of a Circular Economy	p. 147
1.2.1 Theory of a Circular Economy	p. 147
1.2.2 Circular Economic Methodology	p. 149
2 The New Measures for Solid Waste Reclamation Promoted by the Circular Economy	p. 150
2.1 Principles and Standards	p. 150
2.2 Consumption and Manufacture of Products	p. 151
2.3 Waste Generation	p. 152
2.4 Waste Collection	p. 152
2.5 Sorting and Recovery of Waste	p. 152
2.6 Energy Recovery from Waste	p. 153
2.7 Recycling of Waste	p. 153
2.8 Landfilling	p. 154
3 Global Progress of the Circular Economy	p. 154
3.1 Germany	p. 154
3.2 European Union	p. 156
3.3 Japan	p. 158
3.4 United States	p. 159
3.5 China	p. 160
References	p. 161
Recycling Policy: The Sound Material Cycle Society and 3R Concepts from Japan to Developing Asia	p. 162
1 Introduction: Recycling Policy and Sustainable Waste and Resource Management for Developing Economies	p. 163
2 Institutionalisation and Governance of Recycling	p. 165
3 Japan's Sound Material Cycle Society Policy	p. 166
3.1 Support for Development of Infrastructure for Recycling	p. 169
3.2 Support Model Project on the 3Rs	p. 170
3.3 Information Exchanges	p. 171
3.4 Coordination with Other Stakeholders	p. 171
3.4.1 Coordination between MOEJ, METI and the Industrial Sector	p. 171
3.4.2 Revision of Product-specific Recycling Laws	p. 171
3.4.3 Coordination with Experts through the Central f Environmental Council	p. 172
4 Challenges of Developing Economies	p. 172
4.1 Government Capacity and Inter-agency Coordination	p. 174
4.2 Industrial Infrastructure and Technology-transfer for Recycling	p. 175
4.3 A Well-organised Recycling Market for Local Economy and Green Jobs	p. 176
5 Opportunities for Developing Economies	p. 176
5.1 Setting Clear Strategy and Policy Objectives, and its Follow-up	p. 177
5.2 Coordination among different Ministries and with Local Governments	p. 177
5.3 Linking Recycling Policy with Infrastructure Development	p. 180
5.4 Collaboration among Stakeholders, especially Citizens' Participation and Awareness-raising	p. 182
5.5 Establishment of a Stable Recycling Market	p. 183
6 Conclusion	p. 183
Acknowledgements	p. 185
References	p. 185
Composting and Compost	p. 187
1 Overview	p. 188
2 The Objectives of Composting	p. 189
3 The Role of Microorganisms in the Process	p. 189
4 Carbon Fuelling the Composting Process	p. 191
5 Energy Release and its Effect on Temperature	p. 193
6 Key Factors Affecting the Rate of Composting	p. 195
6.1 Available Nutrients	p. 195
6.2 Structure of the Material	p. 196
6.3 Moisture Content	p. 197
7 Controlling Pathogens in Composting	p. 197
8 Producing a Stable Compost	p. 198
9 The Main Stages in a Composting Process	p. 199
9.1 Shredding	p. 199
9.2 Mixing	p. 199
9.3 Composting	p. 200
9.4 Screening	p. 200
9.5 Maturation	p. 200
10 Types of Process	p. 200
10.1 Aeration by Agitation - Windrows	p. 200
10.2 Forced Aeration	p. 201
10.3 Agitation and Forced Aeration	p. 201
11 Compost Quality	p. 201
12 Composting Rules of Thumb	p. 203
References	p. 203
Landfill as a Resource	p. 205
1 Introduction	p. 205
2 What is Landfill?	p. 206
2.1 A Brief History of Waste Disposal	p. 206
2.2 Landfill Processes	p. 208
2.3 The Modern Landfill	p. 209
3 Waste in the UK	p. 212
3.1 Current Arisings	p. 212
3.2 What is in UK Landfills?	p. 213
4 The Future for Landfill	p. 215
5 Energy from Landfill Gas	p. 216
6 Landfill Mining	p. 218
6.1 Background	p. 218
6.2 Methods	p. 220
6.3 The Future	p. 220
7 Landfill as a Carbon Sink	p. 221
8 Conclusions	p. 221
References	p. 223
Subject Index	p. 227

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