Recycling and Waste Management

Waste valorisation is the process of converting waste materials into more useful products including chemicals, materials, and fuels. Such concept has already existed for a long time, mostly related to waste management, but it has been brought back to our society with renewed interest due to the fast depletion of natural and primary resources, the increased waste generation and landfilling worldwide and the need for more sustainable and cost-efficient waste management protocols. Various valorisation techniques are currently showing promise in meeting industrial demands. One among such promising waste valorisation strategies is the application of flow chemical technology to process waste to valuable products.

Biofuel is energy made from living matter, usually plants. Bioethanol, biodiesel, and biogas are types of biofuels. Biofuels are considered renewable energies, emit less than fossil fuels, and have received increasing attention in the transition to a low-carbon economy.

Bioethanol (aka ethanol) is the most well know biofuel and is an alcohol produced from corn, sorghum, potatoes, wheat, sugar cane, even cornstalks and vegetable waste. It is commonly blended with gasoline. Biodiesel is oil from plants or animals used as an alternative to or blended with petroleum diesel in automobiles and industrial fleets with diesel engines. Biogas is created as a by-product of decomposing plant and animal waste in environments with low levels of oxygen: landfills, waste treatment facilities, and dairies. Biogas is made up primarily of methane and carbon dioxide (greenhouse gasses), thus the natural incentives are strong to keep biogas from entering the atmosphere.

Bio plastics are plastics in which all carbon is derived from renewable feed stocks. They may or may not be biodegradable. Bio based plastics contain both renewable and fossil-fuel-based carbon. The percentage of bio based ingredients and the conditions, under which the bio based product may biodegrade, if at all, vary widely. Products on the market are made from a variety of natural feedstock’s including corn, potatoes, rice, tapioca, palm fibre, wood cellulose, wheat fibre and bagasse. Products are available for a wide range of applications such as cups, bottles, cutlery, plates, bags, bedding, furnishings, carpets, film, textiles and packaging materials. In the US, the percentage of bio based ingredients required for a product to be referred to as bio based, is defined by the USDA on a product-by-product basis. ILSR has recommended that the USDA set a minimum threshold of 50 per cent bio based content for products to be considered bio based.

Solid waste management is the collection, treatment and disposal of solid materials that are discarded by purpose or no longer useful. Improper disposal of solid waste result in unsanitary conditions which lead to pollution and spreads various infections and diseases. Solid waste management is one of the major challenges faced by many countries around the globe. Inadequate collection, recycling or treatment and uncontrolled disposal of waste in dumps can lead to severe hazards, such as health risks and environmental pollution.

A Renewable resource is a substance of economic value that can be replaced or replenished in the same or less amount of time as it takes to draw the supply down. Some renewable resources have essentially an endless supply, such as solar energy, wind energy and geothermal pressure, while other resources are considered renewable even though some time or effort must go into their renewal, such as wood, oxygen, leather and fish. Most precious metals are considered renewable as well; even though they are not naturally replaced, they can be recycled because they are not destroyed during their extraction and use

"Remediate" means to solve a problem, and "bio-remediate" means to use biological organisms to solve an environmental problem such as contaminated soil or groundwater.

In a non-polluted environment, bacteria, fungi, protists, and other microorganisms are constantly at work breaking down organic matter. What would occur if an organic pollutant such as oil contaminated this environment? Some of the microorganisms would die, while others capable of eating the organic pollution would survive. Bioremediation works by providing these pollution-eating organisms with fertilizer, oxygen, and other conditions that encourage their rapid growth. These organisms would then be able to break down the organic pollutant at a correspondingly faster rate. In fact, bioremediation is often used to help clean up oil spills.

Electronic waste, or e-waste, is a term for electronic products that have become unwanted, non-working or obsolete, and have essentially reached the end of their useful life. Because technology advances at such a high rate, many electronic devices become “trash” after a few short years of use. In fact, whole categories of old electronic items contribute to e-waste such as VCRs being replaced by DVD players, and DVD players being replaced by Blu-ray players. E-waste is created from anything electronic: computers, TVs, monitors, cell phones, PDAs, VCRs, CD players, fax machines, printers, etc.

The potential for increasing total traditional biomass utilisation for energy purposes is limited. The thrust of the activities is therefore twofold, one aim is to broaden the scope of biomass utilisation into upgrading and the other aim is to broaden the biofuel base as such. This in turn implies an enhanced focus on fuels for transportation and power generation with respect to traditional biomass and a focus on direct heating for more complex biomass, such as waste etc.

At Waste Management, we care about the planet. We feel a responsibility to leave it to future generations in better shape than we were given it.Discover some of the imaginative ways that we're turning waste into a resource for a brighter, more sustainable future. 

The purpose of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is to identify and evaluate the potential impacts (beneficial and adverse) of development and projects on the environmental system. It is an useful aid for decision making based on understanding of the environment implications including social, cultural and aesthetic concerns which could be integrated with the analysis of the project costs and benifits.This exercise should be undertaken early enough in the planning stage of projects for selection of environmentally compatible sites, process technologies and such other environmental safeguards.

From a general perspective, remote sensing is the science of acquiring and analysing information about objects or phenomena from a distance. As humans, we are intimately familiar with remote sensing in that we rely on visual perception to provide us with much of the information about our surroundings. As sensors, however, our eyes are greatly limited by 1) sensitivity to only the visible range of electromagnetic energy; 2) viewing perspectives dictated by the location of our bodies; and 3) the inability to form a lasting record of what we view. Because of these limitations, humans have continuously sought to develop the technological means to increase our ability to see and record the physical properties of our environment.

A landfill is an engineered pit, in which layers of solid waste are filled, compacted and covered for final disposal. It is lined at the bottom to prevent groundwater pollution. Engineered landfills consist of a lined bottom; a leachate collection and treatment system; groundwater monitoring; gas extraction (the gas is flared or used for energy production) and a cap system. The capacity is planned and the site is chosen based on an environmental risk assessment study (UNEP 2002). There are also landfills specially designed to encourage anaerobic biodegradation of the organic fraction of the waste for biogas production by monitoring the oxygen conditions and moisture content. Landfills need expert design as well as skilled operators and a proper management to guarantee their functionality.

A microbial fuel cell (MFC), or biological fuel cell, is a bio-electrochemical system that drives an electric current by using bacteria and mimicking bacterial interactions found in nature. MFCs can be grouped into two general categories: mediated and unmediated. The first MFCs, demonstrated in the early 20th century, used a mediator: a chemical that transfers electrons from the bacteria in the cell to the anode. Unmediated MFCs emerged in the 1970s; in this type of MFC the bacteria typically have electrochemically active redox proteins such as cytochromes on their outer membrane that can transfer electrons directly to the anode. In the 21st century MFCs started to find a commercial use in wastewater treatment.

A successful recycling business is a venture that allows you to make a profit while helping the environment. It is, however, a large undertaking, and you'll face serious competition. By making a detailed plan, locking in financing, understanding the legal requirements, and using good business sense, you can get your recycling business up and running. 

1.Find your niche. The recycling business is very competitive, and much of the competition is from large, established businesses. In order to be profitable you need to offer a service that is in demand. Because a lot of towns and counties offer recycling pickup services for items like paper and glass, it may be best for you to focus on other materials that are not as easy for people to get rid of.

2. Budget. The amount of money that you will need to start your recycling business will vary greatly depending on what kind of operation you are planning to run. At the very least, you will need to budget for licensing and permits.

 3. Create a business plan. All of the research that you have done to plan your business will come together in your business plan, which is a formal document that outlines how you will develop and run your business

4.Get the capital you need. Once you determine how much money you will need to start your business, you will need to figure out how to get it. If you need to borrow money, you have several options beyond traditional bank loans.

There are a number of different waste treatment technologies for the disposal, recycling, storage, or energy recovery from different waste types. Each type has its own associated methods of waste Management.

The benchmark in the field of recycling and disposal of municipal solid waste machines are very important. Many types of machinery are directly linked to:

Recovery and waste sorting platforms

Waste treatment plants

C.D.R production facilities

Bio stabilization plants

Transfer stations

Landfills

Environmental pollution refers to the contamination of ecosystem and the surrounding atmosphere by different forms of pollutants (Chemicals and energies). Climate change refers to the variation in normal weather patterns caused due to pollution. The issue of environmental pollution and climate change has become an international concern due to their unfavourable affects to the physical and biological entities of the environment. Environment Pollution and Climate Change that convers several problems, associated risks, remediation methods and techniques pertaining to air, water, soil, noise, thermal, radioactive and light pollutions and climate change. This peer reviewed journal reports original and novel research observations in regard to environmental pollution and climate change thereby contributing to the new knowledge addition in the field.