Egyptian Journal of Petroleum

Egyptian Journal of Petroleum

Volume 27, Issue 4, December 2018, Pages 1275-1290
Egyptian Journal of Petroleum

Review
Solid waste issue: Sources, composition, disposal, recycling, and valorization

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejpe.2018.07.003Get rights and content
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Open access

Abstract

Disposal of solid wastes is a stinging and widespread problem in both urban and rural areas in many developed and developing countries. Municipal solid waste (MSW) collection and disposal is one of the major problems of urban environment in most countries worldwide today. MSW management solutions must be financially sustainable, technically feasible, socially, legally acceptable and environmentally friendly. Solid waste management issue is the biggest challenge to the authorities of both small and large cities’.

Valorization of food organic waste is one of the important current research areas. The conventional landfill, incineration, composting, and ways of handeling solid wastes are common as mature technologies for waste disposal. Traditionally, the most commonly used technologies for the treatment and valorization of the organic fraction of MSW are composting and anaerobic digestion (AD). The generation of organic solid waste (OSW); worldwide; is dramatically increasing each year. Most of the OSW’s are composed of agricultural waste, household food waste, human and animal wastes, etc. They are normally handled as animal feed, incinerated or disposed to landfill sites. OAW’s are comprised of materials rich in proteins, minerals, and sugars that could be used in other processes as substrates or raw materials.

Abbreviations

MSW
municipal solid waste
EPA
Environmental Protection Agency
SWG
solid waste generation
HHW
household hazardous wastes
HW
household waste
BOD
biochemical oxygen demand
MC
moisture content
GHGs
greenhouse gases
BTEX
benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes
FTIR
Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy
OFMSW
organic fraction of municipal solid waste
AD
anaerobic digestion
MOW
municipal organic waste
SSF
solid state fermentation
PHB
poly-3-hydroxybutyrate
Bt
Bacillus thuringiensis
OM
organic matter
WWTPs
wastewater treatment plants
EWM
enhanced waste management
ELFM
Enhanced Landfill Mining
WtE
waste-to-energy
WtP
waste-to-product
RDF
refuse derived fuel
ISWM
Integrated sustainable waste management
SmF
submerged fermentation
IAA
integrated agriculture‐aquaculture

Keywords

Valorization of plastic and municipal solid wastes
Waste-to-energy
Organic solid state fermentation technology
Anaerobic digestion of organic solid wastes
Enhanced Landfill Mining

Peer review under responsibility of Egyptian Petroleum Research Institute.