Environmental performance of municipal solid waste processing pathways

This study addresses the sustainable design of processing pathways for the utilization and conversion of municipal solid waste (MSW) into energy and value-added products. Based on the MSW superstructure we developed previously (capable of producing recycled materials, compost, bioethanol, electricity), we assess the environmental performance of potential MSW processing pathways. A mixed integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) model is formulated with the environmental objective function in a generic way, to select the environmentally sustainable route for the processing of MSW to energy and valuable products that minimizes the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). A case study of Abu Dhabi Emirate is considered, and the obtained results are discussed. The results show that the most environmentally sustainable route is comprised of (1) recycling of the recyclable components of MSW via material recycling facility, and (2) production of bioethanol via gasification of the rest of the waste followed by catalytic transformation.