Mapping incinerability of municipal solid waste in Indian sub-continent

Abstract

Effective municipal solid waste (MSW) management is essential for sustainable development of a region. Waste management strategies are, consequently, aimed at waste minimisation with material and energy recovery. Rising MSW generation rates, acute shortage of land resources and improving thermal characteristics have collectively contributed to the growth of waste-to-energy sector in developing countries like India. Negligible source segregation and the resultant heterogeneity of the MSW necessitate ascertaining its incinerability to assess the feasibility of the technology. Incinerability index or i-Index is, hence, used to estimate the incinerability of MSW generated in cities across the Indian sub-continent. An incinerability-based map is developed to illustrate the variations in incinerability across the country. The lifestyle habits, topography, income level of the residents, culture and food habits are found to affect the composition and in turn the incinerability. The variations in incinerability of MSW generated in the northern, southern, eastern and western regions are graphically identified using incinerability plot or i-Plot. The reported power generation potential from MSW in Indian states is also found to be consistent with the incinerability of the MSW feed and the daily waste generation rates.