Alternative treatment of solid waste and energy recovery through burning furnaces: an analysis

Abstract

Currently a new alternative for the treatment of urban solid waste consisting of a technology that promotes reduction of the volume of the solid residues combined with power generation has been observed. Such technology is the waste burning kilns, which had its greatest expansion in Europe and the United States, currently being introduced in Brazil, yet so timid, lacking large plants in operation. Therefore, from a literature review and identification of plants in operation, the proposal was to conduct a study of the applications of technology burning solid waste for energy generation in Brazil. At the same time there was a brief comparison between this technology and disposal of solid waste in landfills, and it can be seen that although not having large units in operation, Brazil has an energy potential for this type of treatment, placing it highlighted before European countries, where the use of furnaces to promote the treatment of municipal solid waste is a reality evident and where there are 60% of the energy use plants existent in the world. However, the potential of Brazil is observed in the quantity of waste containing an amount of 53 million tons per year, especially though the calorific potential of one of the constituents of domestic garbage, plastics, containing about 46,000 kJ of energy recoverable per kilo, about three times the energy contained in the average quality of coal.