Tutorial 5 Solid wastes

1. One way to estimate the energy content of wastes is based on an empirical equation described in
Rhyner et al. (1995), which utilizes an elemental analysis (also called ultimate analysis) of the material in
question:

HHV (kJ/kg) = 339(C) + 1,440(H) – 139 (O) + 105(S)

where (C), (H), (O), and (S) are the mass percentages of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and sulphur in dry
material (for example a cardboard is 43.73 % carbon, so C=43.73). For the following materials, find the
higher heating values (HHV) of the dry waste and the HHV of ‘as received’ waste accounting for the
moisture content.
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moisture, % dry weight %
Material (as received) C H O S
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1. corrugated boxes 5.20 43.73 5.7 44.93 0.21
2. junk mail 4.56 37.87 5.41 42.74 0.09
3. mixed garbage 72.0 44.99 6.43 28.76 0.52
4. lawn grass 75/24 46.18 5.96 36.43 0.42
5. demolition softwood 7.7 51.0 6.2 41.8 0.1
6. tires 1.02 79.1 6.8 5.9 1.5
7. polystyrene 0.2 87.1 8.45 3.96 0.02
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2. Food wastes are estimated to be 72 % moisture, with the remaining portion containing 45 % C, 6.4 % -
H, 28.8 % - O, 3.3 % - N, and 16.5 % - other constituents
(a) write a chemical formula for the C,H,O,N portion of the waste
(b) write a balanced chemical reaction showing the production of methane
(c) what fraction of the volume of gas produced is methane?
(d) at 1 atm and 0ºC, 1 mol of gas occupies 22.4 x10-3 m3. What volume of methane is produced per
kilogram if food waste?

3. Suppose each customer puts out 0.25 m3 of waste each week. Packer trucks with a compaction ratio of
4 take 0.4 minutes per customer to collect the waste. Two trucks are being considered: one that makes two
trips per day to the disposal site, and another that makes three trips.

Trips per day to disposal site 2 3

Truck volume (m3) 27 15
Annualized truck cost ($/yr) 120 000 70 000
Time driving, unloading, breaks (min/day) 160 215

(a) Operating five days per week, with once-per-week pick-up, how many customers would each
truck service?
(b) How many hours per day would each truck and crew have to operate to fill the trucks each day?
(c) With the cost of crew being $40 per hour, what is the total annual cost of trucks and crew for each
system? From that, find the annual cost per customer. Which system is less expensive?

4. A country with a population of around 300 million people sends about 129 million tons of municipal
solid waste to landfill. What landfill area would be required for one’s year worth of MSW if the landfill
density is 800 lb/yd3, cell depth is 10 feet with one lift per year, and 80 % of the cell is MSW? What is the
area in acres/yr per 1000 people?