scholarly journals Recovery of Waste Polyurethane from E-Waste—Part I: Investigation of the Oil Sorption Potential

Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (21) ◽  
pp. 6230
Author(s):  
Vincenzo Santucci ◽  
Silvia Fiore

The shredding of end-of-life refrigerators produces every year in Italy 15,000 tons of waste polyurethane foam (PUF), usually destined for energy recovery. This work presents the results of the investigation of the oil sorption potential of waste PUF according to ASTM F726–17 standard. Three oils (diesel fuel and two commercial motor oils) having different densities (respectively, 0.83, 0.87, and 0.88 kg/dm3) and viscosities (respectively, 3, 95, and 140 mm2/s at 40 °C) were considered. The waste PUF was sampled in an Italian e-waste treatment plant, and its characterization showed 16.5 wt% particles below 0.71 mm and 13 wt% impurities (paper, plastic, aluminum foil), mostly having dimensions (d) above 5 mm. Sieving at 0.071 mm was applied to the waste PUF to obtain a “coarse” (d > 0.71 mm) and a “fine” fraction (d < 0.71 mm). Second sieving at 5 mm allowed an “intermediate” fraction to be obtained, with dimensions between 0.71 and 5 mm. The oil sorption tests involved the three fractions of waste PUF, and their performances were compared with two commercial oil sorbents (sepiolite and OKO-PUR). The results of the tests showed that the “fine” PUF was able to retain 7.1–10.3 g oil/g, the “intermediate” PUF, 4.2–7.4 g oil/g, and the “coarse” PUF, 4.5–7.0 g oil/g, while sepiolite and OKO-PUR performed worse (respectively, 1.3–1.6 and 3.3–5.3 g oil/g). In conclusion, compared with the actual management of waste PUF (100 wt% sent to energy recovery), the amount destined directly to energy recovery could be limited to 13 wt% (i.e., the impurities). The remaining 87 wt% could be diverted to reuse for oil sorption, and afterward directed to energy recovery, considered as a secondary option.

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Waldemarson

Biodegradable MSW, industrial waste and sludge was treated biocellreactor (BCR). The waste was crushed and put in piles and covered with plastic foil. Horizontal gas drainage pipes and water pipes were placed in the waste. The waste was digested for about 5 years and then dug out, composted and sieved into 2 fractions, burnable and fine fraction. The burnable fraction was incinerated and the fine fraction is used as construction material in covering of an old landfill. After about 5 years the waste was digested and there was no odour when the reactor was dug out. The total weight lost was about 40 % due to gas production and drainage of water. After sieving the material in a 40 mm drum sieve the course fraction, about 45 % of initial weight, was sent to incineration. The fine fraction, about 15 % of the initial weight showed high content of copper (>400 mg/kg) and zinc (>1000 mg/kg) and has a content of about 60 % of inorganic material. The treatment in BCR was about 15 euro/ton and 18 euro/ton cheaper than incineration or landfilling.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tee L. Guidotti

On 16 October 1996, a malfunction at the Swan Hills Special Waste Treatment Center (SHSWTC) in Alberta, Canada, released an undetermined quantity of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) into the atmosphere, including polychlorinated biphenyls, dioxins, and furans. The circumstances of exposure are detailed in Part 1, Background and Policy Issues. An ecologically based, staged health risk assessment was conducted in two parts with two levels of government as sponsors. The first, called the Swan Hills Study, is described in Part 2. A subsequent evaluation, described here in Part 3, was undertaken by Health Canada and focused exclusively on Aboriginal residents in three communities living near the lake, downwind, and downstream of the SHSWTC of the area. It was designed to isolate effects on members living a more traditional Aboriginal lifestyle. Aboriginal communities place great cultural emphasis on access to traditional lands and derive both cultural and health benefits from “country foods” such as venison (deer meat) and local fish. The suspicion of contamination of traditional lands and the food supply made risk management exceptionally difficult in this situation. The conclusion of both the Swan Hills and Lesser Slave Lake studies was that although POPs had entered the ecosystem, no effect could be demonstrated on human exposure or health outcome attributable to the incident. However, the value of this case study is in the detail of the process, not the ultimate dimensions of risk. The findings of the Lesser Slave Lake Study have not been published previously and are incomplete.


1988 ◽  
Vol 20 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 131-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. D. Wong ◽  
C. D. Goldsmith

The effect of discharging specific oil degrading bacteria from a chemostat to a refinery activated sludge process was determined biokinetically. Plant data for the kinetic evaluation of the waste treatment plant was collected before and during treatment. During treatment, the 500 gallon chemostatic growth chamber was operated on an eight hour hydraulic retention time, at a neutral pH, and was fed a mixture of refinery wastewater and simple sugars. The biokinetic constants k (days−1), Ks (mg/L), and K (L/mg-day) were determined before and after treatment by Monod and Lineweaver-Burk plots. Solids discharged and effluent organic concentrations were also evaluated against the mean cell retention time (MCRT). The maximum utilization rate, k, was found to increase from 0.47 to 0.95 days−1 during the operation of the chemostat. Subsequently, Ks increased from 141 to 556 mg/L. Effluent solids were shown to increase slightly with treatment. However, this was acceptable due to the polishing pond and the benefit of increased ability to accept shock loads of oily wastewater. The reason for the increased suspended solids in the effluent was most likely due to the continual addition of bacteria in exponential growth that were capable of responding to excess substrate. The effect of the chemostatic addition of specific microbial inocula to the refinery waste treatment plant has been to improve the overall organic removal capacity along with subsequent gains in plant stability.


1994 ◽  
Vol 29 (8) ◽  
pp. 235-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norbert Amsoneit

As a rule, hazardous waste needs a pre-treatment, either a thermal or a chemical-physical one, before it can be disposed of at a landfill. The concentration of different kinds of treatment facilities at a Centralized Hazardous Waste Treatment Plant is advantageous. The facility of the ZVSMM at Schwabach is presented as an outstanding example of this kind of Treatment Centre. The infrastructure, the chemical-physical plant with separate lines for the treatment of organic and inorganic waste and the hazardous waste incinerator are described. Their functions are discussed in detail. Emphasis is laid on handling the residues produced by the different treatment processes and the final disposal.


2018 ◽  
Vol 171 ◽  
pp. 1006-1019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Esmeralda Neri ◽  
Fabrizio Passarini ◽  
Daniele Cespi ◽  
Federica Zoffoli ◽  
Ivano Vassura

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