Search results for "WASTE"
showing 10 items of 2580 documents
Analysis of pipeline accidents in the United States from 1968 to 2009
2014
Pipelines are responsible for the transportation of a significant portion of the U.S. energy supply. Unfortunately, pipeline failures are common and the consequences can be catastrophic. Drawing on data from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) that covers approximately 40,000 incidents from 1968 to 2009, this paper explores the trends, causes and consequences of natural gas and hazardous liquid pipeline accidents. The analysis indicates that fatalities and injuries from pipeline accidents are generally decreasing over time, while property damage and, in some cases, the numbers of incidents are increasing over time. In five of the ten cases considered in this p…
Uncertainty estimation of a complex water quality model: The influence of Box–Cox transformation on Bayesian approaches and comparison with a non-Bay…
2012
Abstract In urban drainage modelling, uncertainty analysis is of undoubted necessity. However, uncertainty analysis in urban water-quality modelling is still in its infancy and only few studies have been carried out. Therefore, several methodological aspects still need to be experienced and clarified especially regarding water quality modelling. The use of the Bayesian approach for uncertainty analysis has been stimulated by its rigorous theoretical framework and by the possibility of evaluating the impact of new knowledge on the modelling predictions. Nevertheless, the Bayesian approach relies on some restrictive hypotheses that are not present in less formal methods like the Generalised L…
Performance of a pilot-scale biotrickling filter in controlling the volatile organic compound emissions in a furniture manufacturing facility.
2009
A 0.75-m3 pilot-scale biotrickling filter was run for over 1 yr in a Spanish furniture company to evaluate its performance in the removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) contained in the emission of two different paint spray booths. The first one was an open front booth used to manually paint furniture, and the second focus was an automatically operated closed booth operated to paint pieces of furniture. In both cases, the VOC emissions were very irregular, with rapid and extreme fluctuations. The pilot plant was operated at an empty bed residence time (EBRT) ranging from 10 to 40 sec, and good removal efficiencies of VOCs were usually obtained. When a buffering activated carbon prefil…
Assessment of data and parameter uncertainties in integrated water-quality model
2011
In integrated urban drainage water quality models, due to the fact that integrated approaches are basically a cascade of sub-models (simulating sewer system, wastewater treatment plant and receiving water body), uncertainty produced in one sub-model propagates to the following ones depending on the model structure, the estimation of parameters and the availability and uncertainty of measurements in the different parts of the system. Uncertainty basically propagates throughout a chain of models in which simulation output from upstream models is transferred to the downstream ones as input. The overall uncertainty can differ from the simple sum of uncertainties generated in each sub-model, dep…
Anaerobic digestion of organic solid poultry slaughterhouse waste – a review
2002
This work reviews the potential of anaerobic digestion for material recovery and energy production from poultry slaughtering by-products and wastes. First, we describe and quantify organic solid by-products and wastes produced in poultry farming and poultry slaughterhouses and discuss their recovery and disposal options. Then we review certain fundamental aspects of anaerobic digestion considered important for the digestion of solid slaughterhouse wastes. Finally, we present an overview of the future potential and current experience of the anaerobic digestion treatment of these materials.
Sensitivity and uncertainty analysis of an integrated membrane bioreactor model
2015
Sensitivity and uncertainty analysis, although can be of primarily importance in mathematical modelling approaches, are scarcely applied in the field of membrane bioreactor (MBR). An integrated mathematical model for MBR is applied with the final aim to pin down sources of uncertainty in MBR modelling. The uncertainty analysis has been performed combining global sensitivity analysis (GSA) with the generalized likelihood uncertainty estimation (GLUE). The model and methodology were applied to a University Cape Town pilot plant. Results show that the complexity of the modelled processes and the propagation effect from the influent to the effluent increase the uncertainty of the model predicti…
Long term energy efficiency study on different wall envelopes in Latvian climate conditions
2017
Abstract Five test stands have been built in Riga, Latvia equipped with sensors (temperature, solar radiation, humidity, etc.) to measure energy efficiency and thermal comfort conditions. Roof and floor constructions are made the same. For the walls building envelopes differ and typical materials used in Latvia (aerated concrete, ceramic building blocks, wooden log and plywood frame with rock wool insulation) are compared. Only rock wool is used for insulation to provide moisture transport through the construction. For study to be comparative thermal transmittance of all five test stands have been calculated equal (U=0.15…0.16 W/(m 2 ∙K)). The aim of research is to compare the integral calc…
Experiencing Urban Mining in an Italian Municipality towards a Circular Economy vision
2017
Abstract Selective waste collection in Italy has undergone significant changes over the last decade, highlighting very different approaches from one region to another. Research results presented in this paper are underlying differences between geographical regions and use them as a model of good practices to improve the less optimized systems. In the last decade, the Trento City Council has established a goal – the optimization of selective municipal solid waste collection – that led to a very low amount of recyclable materials in the residual fraction. More than that, for the first time sanitary textiles have been considered as a separable fraction at the source; for a long time this type …
Sicilian potential biogas production
2013
This study is aimed at predicting the Sicilian potential biogas production, using the Organic Fraction of Municipal Solid Waste (OFMSW), animal manure and food industry by-products, in a region where only one biogas plant using MSW and one co-digestion plant are nowadays available. The statistical data about OFMSW, the number of animals bred in medium and large farms and the amounts of by-products of food processing industries were evaluated, in order to compute the Sicilian potential biogas and energy production. The OFMSW produced in Sicily, that is 0.8 million tons ca. per year (37% of MSW), could be used in a bio-reactor, together with other raw materials, for Anaerobic Digestion (AD) p…
Thermoeconomic analysis of a coupled municipal solid waste thermovalorization–MSF desalination plant: an Italian case study
2006
Abstract A thermoeconomic analysis of a cogenerative system with steam bleedings produced starting from the thermal energy recovered in a municipal solid waste thermovalorization plant is presented. The authors assume that the bled steam is used to feed a seawater multi-stage flash (MSF) desalination plant. A case study was carried out for the desalination plant, which operates in Raffineria di Gela (Sicily). In particular, the MSF process is described and the most significant features of the plant are presented. Besides, an economic analysis of a hypothetically coupled MSW thermovalorization–MSF plant was carried out to estimate the capital and operating costs and the gain derived from the…