Municipal solid waste to energy : a case study of Jaffna District, Sri Lanka | |
| Author | Arunprakash, Nithianantham |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.ET-16-07 |
| Subject(s) | Solid waste management--Sri Lanka Refuse and refuse disposal Biomass conversion |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering in Energy |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | This study is an attempt made to estimate the generation and composition of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) from different waste streams and involved the assessment of procedures available in waste collection, treatment, and disposal practices in Jaffna District, Sri Lanka. The total quantity of MSW generation in Jaffna municipality area was 86.25 ton/day and the average solid waste generation per capita is 0.94 kg/day/person. Approximately 250 kg of collected MSW sample was subjected to reduction of the sample quantity to 15 kg using coning and quartering technique without compromising the prevailing composition of solid waste components. The composition ratio of the waste was 53% of organic compounds, 12% of paper, 11% of polythene, 7% of plastic, 6% of glass, 7% of metal and 4% of others (e.g. sand, small stones). The main compositions of the generated short term biodegradable waste were 26% of yard waste and 20% of kitchen waste by weight and there were no significant differences in collected waste streams among the days of a week. Although, there is a significant volume of recyclable materials at the disposal site (approximately 25.61 tons/day), this materials are still being land filled without any form of treatments. Based on the results obtained, this study has estimated that more than 178 thousand LKR can be earned daily by recycling options as a feasible MSW strategy to reduce the amount of disposed waste at the dumpsite. Based on the local MSW composition characteristics, different waste to energy technologies have been compared with respect to various parameters and Anaerobic Digestion(AD), Composting, and Refuse Derived Fuel technologies were ranked as the most appropriate options for power generation by using Sustainability Assessment of Technologies. Eventually, AD was recommended as an economical and viable technological option for Jaffna. In this study, utilization of kitchen waste for the production of biogas was carried out and developed a proposal for setting up decentralized biogas plants in the 7 zones in Jaffna. In this regard, a number of existing digester designs was analyzed and the floating drum design adopted based on a weighted-point approach that was developed in this study. The results of the study indicates that the feeding of 2460 kg of kitchen waste enough to produce 329.3 m3biogas per day. It was estimated that, biogas production potential from kitchen is around 134 liters per 1kg of wet kitchen waste per day. Based on the results obtained, the biogas can be used in approximately 720 households for both lighting and cooking. Conclusively, it was decided that the feasibility of a biogas plant would be accurately determined by using standard financial measures of profitability which were estimated as follows; benefit to cost ratio is 1.78, payback period is 2.4 years, net present value is 17 million LKR, internal rate return is 41.5%, and return on investment is 41.7%. The study also involved finding out gaps, barriers, constraints, and issues in different aspects of Solid Waste Management in Jaffna and best practices have been suggested and compared with the successfully operating similar local authorities in Sri Lanka. |
| Year | 2016 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Energy and Climate Change (Former title: Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Change (DEECC)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Energy Technology (ET) |
| Chairperson(s) | Salam, Abdul P.; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Visvanathan, C.;Dhakal, Shobhakar; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Asian Institute of Technology Fellowship; |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2016 |