Environmental Implications of Municipal Solid Waste-Derived Ethanol

Kalogo, Youssouf; Habibi, Shiva; MacLean, Heather L.; Joshi, Satish

doi:10.1021/es061117b

Cited by 105 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…The estimated GHG emissions associated with 1 MJ of fossil fuel gasoline range from 2.419-12 g CO 2 equivalents; whereas for cellulosic ethanol, the estimated emissions range from 0.336-8.5 g CO 2 Eq MJ À1 of energy. Examining the percentage GHG savings described by the data sources, we estimated that the substitution of gasoline use with waste paper-derived cellulosic ethanol could offer GHG savings of between 29.2% and 86.1%, which is consistent with estimates from Kalogo et al (2007).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 71%

“…Such studies typically account for the waste management of ethanol conversion co-products but do not claim carbon credits for these materials (Kalogo et al, 2007). There was some disparity between the emissions estimates from different studies (Kalogo et al, 2007;Chester & Martin, 2009;Shi et al, 2009), owing to varying assumptions on energy sources and process details. Therefore, we present our results in terms of a possible range of percentage GHG reduction per unit fossil fuel energy replaced.…”

Section: Ghg Savings Potentialmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The biofuel potential of municipal solid waste

2009

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The world in the 21st century is facing a dual crisis of increasing waste and global climate change. Substituting fossil fuels with waste biomass-derived cellulosic ethanol is a promising strategy to simultaneously meet part of our energy needs, mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and manage municipal solid waste (MSW). However, the global potential of MSW as an energy source is as yet unquantified. Here, we report increasing trends of MSW generation, and waste biomass-derived cellulosic ethanol potentials in relation to socio-economic development across 173 countries, and show that globally, up to 82.9 billion litres of waste paper-derived cellulosic ethanol can be produced worldwide, replacing 5.36% of gasoline consumption, with accompanying GHG emissions savings of between 29.2% and 86.1%.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 71%

Section: Ghg Savings Potentialmentioning

confidence: 99%

The biofuel potential of municipal solid waste

2009

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“…Classification. Raw MSW would be classified into organic and inorganic fractions prior to use in an ethanol plant (29). We assume that preplant classification must produce an organic feedstock that would be acceptable for producing compost.…”

Section: Ethanol Plantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cellulosic Ethanol from Municipal Solid Waste: A Case Study of the Economic, Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Impacts in California

Chester

Martin

2009

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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As cellulosic ethanol technologies advance, states could use the organic content of municipal solid waste as a transportation fuel feedstock and simultaneously reduce externalities associated with waste disposal. We examine the major processes required to support a lignocellulosic (employing enzymatic hydrolysis) municipal solid waste-to-ethanol infrastructure computing cost, energy, and greenhouse gas effects for California. The infrastructure is compared against the Business As Usual case where the state continues to import most of its ethanol needs from the Midwest. Assuming between 60% and 90% practical yields for ethanol production, California could produce between 1.0 and 1.5 billion gallons per year of ethanol from 55% of the 40 million metric tonnes of waste currently sent to landfills annually. The classification of organic wastes and ethanol plant operation represent almost the entire system cost (between $3.5 and $4.5 billion annually) while distribution has negligible cost effects and savings from avoided landfilling is small. Fossil energy consumption from Business As Usual decreases between 82 and 130 PJ largely due to foregone gasoline consumption. The net greenhouse gas impacts are ultimately dependent on how well landfills control their emissions of decomposing organics. Based on the current landfill mix in the state, the cellulosic infrastructure would experience a slight gain in greenhouse gas emissions. However, net emissions can rise if organics diversion releases carbon that would otherwise be flared and sequestered. Emissions would be avoided if landfills are not capable of effectively controlling emissions during periods of active waste decay. There is currently considerable uncertainty surrounding the recovery efficiency of landfill emissions controls. In either case, burying lignin appears to be better than burning lignin because of its decay properties, energy and carbon content. We estimate the breakeven price for lignocellulosic ethanol between $2.90 and $3.47/gal (µ ) $3.13/gal).

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“…Thus identifying alternative sources of biofuel feedstock should be a high priority. In this context, ethanol produced from lignocellulosic feedstocks such as forest residues, grasses, and organic fractions of municipal solid waste (MSW) is emerging as an attractive option because of lower feedstock costs and higher potential for fossil fuel displacement and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared with corn-ethanol [4]. Although many lignocellulosic materials such as wheat straw [5], barley straw [6], corn stover [7], spruce [8], etc.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethanol Production from the Organic Fraction Obtained After Thermal Pretreatment of Municipal Solid Waste

Ballesteros

Saéz

Ballesteros

et al. 2009

Appl Biochem Biotechnol

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In this work, the use of organic fraction from municipal solid waste (MSW) as substrate for ethanol production based on enzymatic hydrolysis was evaluated. MSW was subjected to a thermal pretreatment (active hygienization) at 160 degrees C from 5 to 50 min. The organic fiber obtained after 30 min was used as substrate in a simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) and fed-batch SSF process using cellulases and amylases. In a fed-batch mode with 25% (w/w) substrate loading, final ethanol concentration of 30 g/L was achieved (60% of theoretical). In these conditions, more than 160 L of ethanol per ton of dry matter could be produced from the organic fraction of MSW.

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Environmental Implications of Municipal Solid Waste-Derived Ethanol

Cited by 105 publications

References 9 publications

The biofuel potential of municipal solid waste

The biofuel potential of municipal solid waste

Cellulosic Ethanol from Municipal Solid Waste: A Case Study of the Economic, Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Impacts in California

Ethanol Production from the Organic Fraction Obtained After Thermal Pretreatment of Municipal Solid Waste

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