Methane Production Quantification and Energy Estimation for Bangalore Municipal Solid Waste

Abstract

Landfills are considered as cornerstone of solid waste management. Landfill gas (LFG) and leachate are principal outputs from landfills. Methane, occupying significant volume of landfill gas, has considerable potential as a source of energy replacing enormous amounts of fossil fuels currently in use. Gas extraction and utilization systems need to be designed and implemented in order to exploit this resource. Assessment of economic viability of these systems necessitates estimation of gas released and its energy potential. Gas quantification and energy estimation for municipal solid waste (MSW) of Bangalore city was carried out using five independent methodologies. A small scale experiment was conducted to monitor the gas generation and the results were compared and analysed. Results show that significant energy can be harnessed from the MSW if requisite LFG management systems are installed. The use of methane as an energy source maximizes the extraction of useful resources from landfills, minimizes the global warming and offsets significant amount of fossil fuels.