Showing papers in "Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management in 1999"

Distribution of organophosphoric acid triesters between water and sediment at a sea-based solid waste disposal site

Abstract: Organophosphoric acid triester (OPE) concentration levels in water and bottom sediment at the Osaka North Port Sea-Based Solid Waste Disposal Site were investigated, and the behavior of OPEs in the water environment of the waste disposal site was examined. The more highly water-soluble OPEs were frequently detected in raw water. Of the OPEs detected, TCEP and TCPP showed very high concentrations (1.0–90 μg/l), followed by TEP (0.3–10 μg/l) > TBXP (0.8–6.3 μg/l) > TDCPP (0.6–6.2 μg/l) > TBP (0.2–1.5 μg/l) > TPP (<0.1 μg/l). Most OPEs detected in water were eluted from the disposal waste to the water phase immediately and behaved as dissolved forms with no distribution in suspended solids (SS). On the other hand, the less water-soluble OPEs, such as TCP or TEHP, were detected in bottom sediment but hardly at all in water samples. All OPEs were detected at the waste disposal site, within which their concentration levels were uniform. It appeared that the less water-soluble OPEs were present as SS-associated forms and behaved in line with the floating surface sludge at the bottom.

Recent trends in recycling activities and waste management in Japan

Abstract: Japan's basic approach to municipal solid waste (MSW) is (1) waste reduction, (2) promotion of recycling, (3) volume reduction by intermediate treatment, and (4) environmentally sound final disposal. A brief history of legislative trends in waste management is given as background for current waste management and recycling activities. The material recovery rate for MSW collected by local municipalities was only 5.6% in 1996. More than half of MSW, on a volume basis, consists of containers and packages, while great amounts of landfill space are also taken up by bulky wastes such as electric appliances. Therefore, in order to promote recycling and decrease landfill waste, Japan is targeting containers, packages, and electric appliances. A law promoting separate collection and recycling of containers and packages (Packaging Waste Recycling Law) and a law requiring the recycling of specific home electric appliances into new products (Home Electric Appliance Recycling Law) were introduced in June 1995 and June 1998, respectively. These laws are in line with the OECD policy Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).

Substance flow analysis of coplanar PCBs released from waste incineration processes

Abstract: Previous reports have focused on the emission of coplanar polychlorinated biphenyls (Co-PCBs) which have a toxic mechanism similar to that of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDDs/DFs) released from municipal solid waste (MSW) incineration. Such emissions accounted for a small percentage of all the dioxins (PCDDs/DFs and Co-PCBs) recorded at the toxicity equivalent (TEQ) level. There is, however, very little information about Co-PCBs, such as the quantities being released and their effect on overall environmental pollution. The aim of this research has been to clarify the substance flow of Co-PCBs from MSW incineration processes. The results reveal that whereas the input of Co-PCBs into the MSW incineration facilities in Kyoto City was 0.13–0.29 μg-TEQ per ton waste, the total output of Co-PCBs (the sum of Co-PCBs released from emission gas, fly ash, and bottom ash) was 4.9 μg-TEQ per ton waste. The total output was therefore found to be higher than the total input. Over 90% of the total PCBs were decomposed in the incineration process. In comparing the profiles of congeners and homologues, those in the MSW were found to be similar to those detected in the atmosphere and products containing PCBs, but different from those in the MSW incineration gas.

Mass balance of arsenic and antimony in municipal waste incinerators

Abstract: The arsenic and antimony balance in two municipal waste incinerators was investigated Initially, the production rates of ash and wet scrubber effluent were estimated Then the arsenic and antimony in the ash and wet scrubber effluent were determined, which gave an estimate of the elemental balance The total amounts of arsenic and antimony in the municipal waste were 09 g/t and 30–44 g/t, respectively The distributions to fly ash were 45–47% and 33–74% for arsenic and antimony, respectively The distribution mechanisms of arsenic and antimony are discussed from the viewpoints of their thermodynamics as well as their initial valencies, which greatly affect their behaviour

Evaluation of electronic components in life cycle assessment

Abstract: Life cycle assessment (LCA), a quantitative method for evaluating the total environmental impact of a product, from the materials in its manufacture to its final disposal, is playing an increasingly important role in manufacturing. When the LCA method is applied to a product containing many kinds of electronic components, there is a need for life cycle inventory (LCI) data on the components. This paper provides an original calculation of the LCI data for each electronic components industry. These data show the amount of input energy and emissions into the atmosphere per yen of production yield. It is demonstrated that the magnitude of the LCI data for each industry is essentially equal to that of the other industries. Furthermore, we conclude that the LCI data for all electronic components are roughly equivalent, making it possible to calculate the LCI data of any electronic component by simply multiplying the LCI data for the industry by the price of the component. Furthermore, after comparing the materials production stages with the component manufacturing stage in the calculation, it became clear that for several component industries the materials production stage could not be omitted from the calculation.

Trends in waste plastics and recycling

Abstract: Zero emission is an ambitious project aimed at the conversion of the conventional top-down or one-directional flow type production systems of modern society to those of a recycling type. The basic idea underlying this project is to understand in detail the material flow mechanism in a particular segment of society and to evaluate the transformability of the hitherto one-directional types of process into recycling types. The authors, members of the Zero-Emission Research Group of Japan, are investigating the material flow of plastics in Japan. The present work describes the features of this project, as well as the results obtained so far.

The German packaging ordinance: the questionable effects of a fragmentary solid waste management approach

Abstract: Germany seems to be one of the leading nations in solid waste management, especially in the case of packaging waste; success stories about the ongoing increase in recycling strengthen this impression. However, enormous costs and questionable ecological benefits are the result of Germany's packaging ordinance and the formation of the recycling organization Duales System Deutschland (DSD). This article shows that similar progress in the reduction and recycling of packaging could have been realized without the packaging ordinance and dual system, with lower costs. This regulatory impact analysis of the German packaging ordinance covers all the effects on the different life-cycle stages of packaging, from production to recycling or disposal. The conclusion is that a fragmentary solid waste management approach – one that is based, like the German packaging ordinance, more on ideology than on facts – leads to enormous costs and questionable ecological benefits. To improve this situation, there is a need for an integrated solid waste management approach, based on evaluation of the economic, environmental, and social effects of different waste management options for the materials involved.

Fabric-filter-supported catalyst for removal of harmful solid and gaseous compounds in municipal waste incinerator exhaust gas: characteristics of NO x reduction

Abstract: We have investigated a fabric-filter-supported catalyst for removing harmful solid and gaseous compounds simultaneously from municipal incinerator exhaust gas. We studied the ways in which the efficiency of NOx removal is influenced by filter temperature, gas flow rate, and catalyst content. The reduction of the catalyst content by mechanical reverse washing was investigated, and the state of the catalyst supported in the fabric filter was also observed using a scanning electron microscope. The catalyst supported by the fabric filter showed a removal efficiency above 75% when the filter temperature was 200°C, the gas flow rate was 1 m/min, and the catalyst content of the fabric filter was above 300 g/m2. The catalyst was supported uniformly on the fibers of the fabric filter, and fine catalyst particles remained on the fibers after mechanical reverse washing.