Future Waste Management Research Articles

An integrated life cycle multi-objective optimization model for health-environment-economic nexus in food waste management sector

Food waste is a universal problem in many countries. In line with Sustainable Development Goals 7 and 12, it is crucial to identify a cost-effective food waste valorization management framework with the least human health and environmental impacts. However, studies on the synergistic effect of life cycle assessment and mathematical optimization interconnected with human health, environment, and economic are relatively few and far between; hence they cannot provide holistic recommendations to policymakers in developing environmental and economic feasibility of food waste management frameworks. Taking Malaysia as a case study, this study proposes a simple and deterministic model that integrates life cycle assessment and multi-objective mathematical optimization to unpack the health-environment-economic wellbeing nexus in food waste management sector. The model evaluates the life cycle human health, environmental, and economic impacts of five food waste disposal and valorization technologies: open landfill, sanitary landfill, aerated windrow composting, high-temperature drying sterilization, and anaerobic digestion, and identifies the optimal food waste valorization configuration solution in Malaysia. Based on the results modeled by SimaPro 9.0 and General Algebraic Modeling System with augmented ε-constraint, valorization of food waste into electricity via anaerobic digestion is the most favorable option, with 146% and 161% reduction of human health and ecosystems, respectively, as compared with open landfill. If cost is combined as an objective function with human health and ecosystems, high-temperature drying sterilization is the most attractive scenario due to the high livestock feed revenue. Among the 10 Pareto-optimal solutions, 9% sanitary landfill, 3% aerated windrow composting, 30% high-temperature drying sterilization, 30% anaerobic digestion to electricity, and 28% anaerobic digestion to cooking gas, is recommended as future food waste management configuration. The sensitivity results demonstrate that prices of electricity, cooking gas, and livestock feed affect the optimal configuration food waste management system.

Influence of cell opening methods on organic solvent removal during pretreatment in lithium-ion battery recycling.

The use and development of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are promoting the technological transformation of individual mobility, consumer electronics and electric energy storage. At their end of life, the complex compounds are disposed by different recycling technologies with defined secondary raw material production. The applied depollution temperatures of the process routes influence not only the recycling efficiency but also the process expenditure, design, medium and costs. Different pretreatment strategies in terms of dismantling depth and depollution temperature are existing. Furthermore, manual and mechanical methods for cell opening are distinguished, which together with the depollution leads to a respective organic solvent evaporation. In this contribution to LIB recycling, the influence of different dismantling depths, achieved by manual cell opening, on the thermal depollution of the LIB cells regarding the mass difference originating by organic solvent evaporation are quantified, in order to determine cell and equipment properties for a safe cell opening. As a result, combinations of thermal depollution and manual cell opening are discussed regarding technical and economic feasibility. The process medium and equipment properties for a safe cell opening are determined. Furthermore, recommendations for future industrial LIB waste management are presented.

Plastic Waste Management through the Role of Leadership Adaptation of Environmental Inspected Habits

The research method is qualitative with phenomenological approach. The research design using one site involving Banjarmasin City in South Kalimantan, Indonesia. Data collection techniques used were content analysis, participatory observation and depth interviews. The analysis used in answering this research is a combination of various analytical methods to answer each of the objectives namely miles & Huberman analysis and Webbed Spider Model Analysis as the ultimate in formulating management of plastic waste through a leadership role. The results of this research found that the adaptation of environmentally sound habits in minimizing the production of plastics waste through local wisdom approaches and changing the people's mindset to live healtier. The purpose of writing this paper is to provide examples of new habits of healthy living by starting to reduce the use of plastic bags as the main source of waste generation that is not easily biodegradable in Banjarmasin City produced in every citi anywhere and is a major problem of environmental damage, including Banjarmasin City as a city of a thousand rivers, south Kalimantan Province. Effort to reduce the use of pastic bags began in stages, starting with modern retailers in the City of Banjarmasin. Through a leadership role based on local wisdom and a persuasive approach that is environmentally sound, it can provide solutions in current and future waste management. Result from this research is Banjramasin as the first City in Indonesia implemented regulation to reduction of plastic waste for modern retailers which are widely scattered throughout the City, sub-districts and villages. This is effective through regulation and direct approach to society. In the waste management that is carried out in the City of Banjarmasin includes waste reduction activities with ten activities and waste handling through five activities. As a substitute for these plastic bags, plastic bag producers are forced to use environmentally friendly plastic bags and / or purun baskets which are products of local wisdom of the people of South Kalimantan, Indonesia, all of these activities are carried out by involving the community by applying the rules without sanctions. Until this paper was written, there has never been a leader with leadership who has implemented a similar regulation as a direct effort from the role of a leader in reducing the use of plastic bags, where the use of plastic bags is the biggest contributor as a source of producing plastic waste.

Scaling-up defect-free asymmetric hollow fiber membranes to produce oxygen-enriched gas for integration into municipal solid waste gasification process

Municipal solid waste (MSW) gasification is an attractive waste-to-energy (WTE) technology with promise for future solid waste management, owing to the production of syngas which can be used as an alternative energy resource. However, quality of produced syngas is not meeting expectation. One promising solution is to use oxygen-enriched gas (OEG) to elevate produced syngas quality but producing OEG is costly. Herein, we demonstrated an asymmetric defect-free hollow fiber membrane made up of Matrimid® 5218 polyimide for scaling-up to 2-inch membrane modules. Our modules have an effective surface area up to 2.6 m2 with a packing density of up to 44% to produce OEG of 45% O2 purity. The 2-inch membrane module was integrated into a lab-scale gasification process to produce syngas using refuse derived fuel (RDF) generated from MSWs collected from the university campus. Prior to this, the lab-scale gasification was first optimized by tuning the gasification temperature, O2 purity and equivalence ratio (ER). Then, MSW gasification using membrane-based OEG was carried out, and compared against air gasification and synthetic OEG of the same O2 purity. Our results showed that, at O2 purity of 45%, gasification temperature of 900 °C and ER of 0.15, the quality of produced syngas was elevated with a lower heating value (LHV) of 9.15 MJ/m3 and H2/CO ratio of 1.43, which was substantially higher than air gasification with LHV and H2/CO ratio reported at 5.38 MJ/m3 and 0.81, respectively. Gasification results for membrane-based OEG and synthetic OEG were also comparable, while process simulation evidence suggested that membrane-based separation was at least 2-fold less energy-intensive than cryogenic distillation and pressure swing adsorption. Overall, this proof-of-concept successfully demonstrates the viability and competitiveness of membrane process for producing OEG at medium O2 purity (i.e., 40–50%) to support MSW gasification for WTE conversion.

Opinion leaders in eco-innovation diffusion: Analysis of information networks for waste separation in Shanghai

Waste separation at source is a critical method for waste management, yet understanding of its human dimension, especially the social embeddedness, has been underestimated. Grounded in the perspective of innovation diffusion, we viewed the recent policy of mandatory source separation in Shanghai as an eco-innovation for citizens and investigated the role of opinion leaders in its diffusion process. Using a novel theoretical and methodological approach, social network analysis, we examined the relationships between opinion leaders’ centralities in the information exchange networks and their competence in source separation–knowledge and attitude. Results showed that opinion leaders’ higher level of knowledge in waste source separation was associated with their central network positions in terms of reaching out to others in person and providing information on social media. However, most participants generally had supportive attitudes toward source separation; their attitudes did not vary with the positions in the information networks. Findings highlight the importance of knowledge in eco-innovation and the role of opinion leaders in the diffusion process. The study contributes to a theoretical application of diffusion to a unique context, i.e., eco-innovation, and findings can be applied to effective policy implementations for future waste management programming.

Household preferences for improved municipal solid waste management services in Penang and Terengganu

It is important to acknowledge the interdependent relationships between the economic and the environment system in achieving sustainable development. The environmental system provides typically four classes of services to the economic system: the natural capital for production, amenity services, basic life support services, and waste sink services. High investment in technology, programmes, projects, or any measures related to the recycling concept in the circular flow of production and consumption relationships should be given more concentration in the future waste management plan and policies. This is because the mass of waste generated from the production and consumption relationships is continually increasing as the population grows, leading to a more polluted environmental system. This study examined the households’ perspectives on the potential improved municipal solid waste management system in their residential area. Two study sites were compared to their households’ willingness-to-pay (WTP) for the waste management system. By using the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) approach, the study concluded that the economic value of the improved municipal solid waste management services in the study sites ranged from MYR 15.42 to MYR 29.67 per month, which on aggregate, ranged from MYR 13.3 million to MYR 117.7 million per year. These economic values indirectly indicated the amount the population preferred to pay as the cost to reduce the impacts of improper management of municipal solid waste.

Life cycle assessment of plastic waste end-of-life for India and Indonesia

Developing countries like India and Indonesia struggle with proper management of plastic waste, causing rampant plastic pollution that adversely impacts the ecosystem and potentially human health. In this study, life cycle assessment (LCA) was adopted to compare the environmental impact of end-of-life (EOL) treatment of 1 kg plastic waste in India and Indonesia based on the EOL mix, which includes mechanical recycling, co-processing in cement kilns, incineration, sanitary landfill, open dumping and open burning. Nine environmental impacts were considered, namely climate change, cumulative energy demand, water depletion and marine eco-toxicity, human toxicity, terrestrial acidification, fossil depletion, particulate matter formation and urban land occupation. Waste plastics EOL treatment in India was found to have a lower environmental impact than Indonesia among all nine categories, which was attributed to higher mechanical recycling rates in India. Hotspot analysis revealed that open burning is a major contributor to climate change, while landfills are the major contributor to marine eco-toxicity. A sensitivity analysis found that the percentage of plastic waste collection, percentage of uncollected plastic waste openly burnt, percentage of plastic rejects from recycling and percentage replacement of virgin plastic from recycled plastic granules were key sensitive parameters. The results of a future scenario analysis showed that further investments in mechanical recycling by 2030 can not only reduce mismanaged plastic waste, but also contribute towards the Paris Agreement carbon reduction pledges for both India and Indonesia. The results from this study can be used to support future waste management investment decisions in both countries.

Institutional Dynamics of Municipal Solid Waste Management in the Bamenda Metropolis

Rapid and uncontrolled urbanization in several parts of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), has introduced a plethora of urban development challenges. This has left city governments ‘standing in their sleep’, as they strive to deal such issues. A classic example is solid waste management – with waste considered to be principally an urban problem. While the issue of waste has been belaboured in the literature, there is a dearth in geographical literature on the institutional dynamics of solid waste management. Viewed as structures and processes, institutions demonstrate potentials to determine the intentions and actions of urban waste managers and urban dwellers, within the waste management spectrum. Taking the case of Bamenda – a primate city par excellence – this paper explores the dynamics of institutions and their implications for solid waste management. Specifically, it explores the waste management institutional transition and its bearing on current and potentially, future waste management practices. Household surveys, complemented by expert interviews provided data for the study. Through narratives and descriptive statistics, we observed that despite the litany of institutions involved in solid waste management and their related institutional frameworks, their effectiveness remains questionable. This rests, in part, on the inadequacy in personnel, and the lack of law enforcement in the courts and city judiciary systems. The ineffectiveness of these instruments in the Bamenda Municipality is as a result of weak legal institutional setup, the absence of courts and a city judiciary system to handle environmental issues (solid waste), irregular or poorly enforced laws, inaccessible neighbourhood, and organizational lapses. Furthermore, the socio-political climate, characterised by insecurity, mars the effective implementation of waste management approaches. This paper argues that the institutional change process in waste management should strive towards the introduction of economic incentives that can motivate urban dwellers to fully engage in the process. Further empirical evidence on the right business-oriented waste management models are required to ground this claim.

Environmental impact assessment of organic fraction of municipal solid waste treatment by anaerobic digestion in Sri Lanka.

The management of organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW) has continued to be a significant challenge in Sri Lanka. Anaerobic digestion is one of the management options of OFMSW. However, it generates unavoidable environmental impacts that should be addressed. The present study focuses to assess the environmental impact of a full-scale anaerobic digestion plant in Sri Lanka from a life cycle perspective. The inventory data were obtained from direct interviews and field measurements. Environmental burdens were found to be in terms of global warming potential (230 kg CO2 eq) ozone formation on human health (6.15 × 10-6 kg NOx eq), freshwater eutrophication (2.92 × 10-3 kg P eq), freshwater ecotoxicity (9.27 × 10-5 kg 1,4 DCB eq), human carcinogenic toxicity (3.98 × 10-4 kg 1,4 DCB eq), land use (1.32 × 10-4 m2 a crop eq) and water consumption (2.23 × 10-2 m3). The stratospheric ozone depletion, fine particulate matter formation, ozone formation on terrestrial ecosystems, terrestrial acidification, marine eutrophication, ecotoxicity (terrestrial and marine), human non-carcinogenic toxicity, mineral resource scarcity and fossil resource scarcity, were avoided due to electricity production. Results show that the direct gaseous emissions and digestate generation should be addressed in order to reduce the burdens from the anaerobic digestion plant. Finally, the results of the study could help in policy formation and decision-making in selecting future waste management systems in Sri Lanka.

Behavioral impacts on residential food provisioning, use, and waste during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented disruptions to food systems, leading to both food shortages and food waste across the supply chain. These disruptions have, in turn, altered how people consume and then ultimately discard food. To better understand these impacts, their underlying drivers, and their sustainability implications, this study surveyed U.S. consumers about food purchasing, use, and waste behaviors during the pandemic. Survey respondents reported an increase in overall food purchases and a slight decrease in food waste generation due to the pandemic, but the linkages between these outcomes and underlying behaviors were complex. For instance, reduced household food waste was significantly correlated with an increase in behaviors such as meal planning, preserving foods, and using leftovers and shelf-stable items. On the other hand, behaviors aimed at self-sufficiency, including bulk purchasing and stockpiling, were significantly correlated with increased food purchase, which in turn led to increased waste. Results may offer insight for future resource and waste management strategies. For example, over 60% of respondents who started or increased efficient food use behaviors stated an intent to continue these activities after the pandemic. In contrast, less than 10% of respondents reported that they began or increased separating or composting food waste during the pandemic, and many stopped altogether due to suspension of local curbside composting services. Findings suggest that it may be easier to shift food consumption and use behaviors but more challenging to alter food waste separation behaviors, particularly those influenced by external factors, such as infrastructure that may be vulnerable to disruption. Identifying ways to facilitate ongoing behavior change and foster robust food waste management systems can contribute to resilience of food systems now and once the immediate threat of the pandemic has subsided.

Microwave-assisted organic swelling promotes fast and efficient delamination of waste printed circuit boards

A large amount of waste printed circuit boards (WPCBs) that contain valuable metals, namely gold and copper, are produced annually. WPCBs are constituted by a multi-layer structure reinforced by a brominated epoxy resin (BER), which is very difficult to separate into the metallic and non-metallic components. The main aim of this work was to evaluate the ability of microwave for assisting in the delamination of WPCBs by organic swelling of the BER. Additionally, its performance was compared with other strategies (thermostatic and ultrasonic baths) previously described in the literature. Firstly, a library of solvents [dimethyl formamide (DMF), dimethyl acetamide (DMAc), dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP), cyclohexanone (CH), γ-butyrolactone (GBL), tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol (TFA) and dimethyl malonate (DM)] was selected based on the calculation of Hansen solubility parameters plus others exclusion parameters and their performance to detach all components of WPCBs (25 mm2) was tested by microwave (200 °C for 10 min), thermostatic (153 °C for 10 min) and ultrasonic (60 °C for 25 h) baths. Microwave showed to be the most efficient approach and the delamination order for WPCBs was: NMP > DMSO >DMF > DMAc. Subsequent optimization of key parameters (dimensions of WPCBs and reaction time) were obtained: dimensions of 225 mm2 using NMP (solid/liquid ratio of 300 g/L) at 200 °C with 2 cycles of 10 min. In conclusion, microwave-assisted swelling revealed to be more efficient and faster process to delaminate WPCBs into metallic and non-metallic components, which are important advantages when envisaging a future industrial waste management implementation.

English

Effects of unsustainable solid waste management are found all around the world but it is worse in developing and under developed countries like East African Community (EAC) countries. A big proportion of their solid waste is not properly managed. This paper highlighted the situation of solid wastes management in EAC countries and compared with other countries. More than 62.5% of generated solid waste in EAC is organic, 19.6% of papers and plastics, 3% of glasses while other kind of waste occupies 14.9%. Waste management (WM) system in developing countries is dominated by insanitary landfill which cover more than 59% of the total collected SW, between 13 and 33% is openly dumped, a negligible quantity is recycled while between 6 and 26% is inappropriately thrown. Only less than 50% of the total generated solid waste (SW) in developing countries is collected and this is the same case in EAC. Sanitary landfill, sustainable composting, waste to energy (WTE) and other recycling system can change waste from unwanted materials to important products. Almost all generated wastes in developed and highly developing countries are collected, with high generation site sorting and sustainably treated and managed. Some countries achieved zero landfilling while others have sanitary landfills. The final destination of each kind of waste in developed countries determine collection mean and improve the quality of raw materials for recycling companies. Value of sorted waste to the recycling companies improves the interest of generation site sorting and maximization collection.   Key words: Solid waste management, East African Community (EAC), waste collection system, future waste management, level of income, waste prioritization, sustainable solid waste management.

Comparative life cycle analysis of municipal waste management systems: Kırklareli/Turkey case study.

Waste-to-energy approaches are becoming increasingly important around the world, and municipal solid waste (MSW) as a renewable and sustainable energy source is of great importance to be considered in preventing climate change. On the other hand, since uncontrolled MSW is a threat to the environment and human health, sustainable municipal solid waste management should be evaluated to reduce negative environmental impacts. In this study, various municipal solid waste management options having energy production were selected and analysed by using SimaPro 9.0.0.49 to determine the most environmentally friendly waste management system. One-ton MSW in Kırklareli/Turkey was chosen as the functional unit. Environmental impacts were calculated via the CLM-IA method; impact groups were abiotic depletion, abiotic depletion (fossil fuels), global warming, ozone layer depletion, human toxicity, freshwater, marine and terrestrial ecotoxicities, photochemical oxidation, acidification and eutrophication. The first results indicated that energy recovery reduces the environmental impacts and future waste management plant of Kırklareli (material separation for recycling, biomethanisation and landfilling) is the best option within the scope of the environment at present.

Microbial fuel cells—A preferred technology to prevail energy crisis

With ever increasing waste production worldwide, the development of newly emerging technologies is rising and advancing proportionately. Entailed instalment of sophisticated energy-producing plants is constantly expanding to meet the socio-economic demands of communities and industries. Innumerable superior technologies have been introduced to minimise waste pollution while reducing emissions of greenhouse gases hence, combatting the impact of global warming. This review shows energy conversion technologies including gasification, pyrolysis, incineration, landfill, and bioelectrochemical technologies mainly microbial fuel cell (MFC), microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) and microbial electrosynthesis (MES). Traditionally, incineration and landfill are the main mean of waste conversion but not favourable because of their side effects, economic viability, secondary pollution and difficulty in mechanical compression. Recently, biological processes including anaerobic digestion have gained huge interest but possess some inherent drawbacks and cannot provide a comprehensive solution for future waste management. Among energy converting technologies, bio-electrochemical MFC system is highly preferred as an elementary, clean, safe, economically viable and environmentally beneficial technology. MFC a renewable energy technology possesses multidimensional applications of producing electric power and treat wastewater. In addition, the MFCs can be modified into MEC to generate hydrogen energy from various organic matters. Prospective modification recommendations for scale-up application of this technology are also presented.

Solid waste management in rural areas nearby river Ganga at Haridwar in Uttarakhand, India

The solid waste found in rural areas can be used as a soil conditioner providing essential nutrients to crops and enhancing agricultural productivity. It is an eco-friendly and economic preference for Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSW). This study investigates the solid waste management scenario in rural areas along the river Ganga and proposes a sustainable waste management solution. Waste quantification and composition were determined in the five villages (rural areas) viz. Sajanpur, Shyampur, Kangri, Bhogpur and Dummanpuri of district Haridwar in Uttarakhand and their waste management and disposal systems were evaluated. Findings revealed that the average daily waste generation was 0.665 kg/day and per capita generation of household waste was around 0.16 kg/person/day. Major fraction of household waste was bio-degradable (74.14%) and remaining fraction comprised of paper (6.62%), polythene (2.82%), textile (2.52%), plastic (1.15%), glass (0.61%), metal (0.60%), rubber (0.35%), and inert (5.01%). The average bulk density of household waste was 460 kg/m3, whereas cattle waste bulk density was 834 kg/m3. Other waste characteristics included moisture content (60%), organic carbon (40%), nitrogen (1.7%), phosphorus (0.9%) and ash (31%). The calorific value of household waste (biodegradable) was 937.6 kcal/kg (dry basis). Since most of the waste was biodegradable, hence co-composting with cattle waste is recommended. The dry waste can be separated and stored for further processing and transported to nearby waste to energy-producing plants. The main hurdle to the program of waste recycling was the unsegregated collection of waste in rural areas. Hence, separation at the source comprised biodegradable waste, dried waste (paper, plastic, and metal) and other components are essential for the future solid waste management program.

Physicochemical and FTIR spectroscopic analysis of fine fraction from a municipal solid waste dumpsite for potential reclamation of materials.

Improper municipal solid waste management in the past has landed most of this waste in open dumps of India. This dumped waste has a negative effect on the environment and human health and needs to be reclaimed either for material/energy recovery or to create space for future waste management. Since nearly half of the waste in dumpsites can be classified as fine fraction, in-depth knowledge of its characteristics is required to reclaim these dumpsites successfully. In this study, we characterize fine fraction, <4 mm, aged 1-10 years old, obtained from Mulund dumpsite in Mumbai, using physicochemical and spectroscopic analysis. The study also highlights different valorization routes to reclaim the fine fraction. The fine fraction was ~45% in the dumpsite and increased with the age of the waste. Visual inspection revealed that fine fraction older than five years was relatively homogeneous compared with younger fine fraction. Furthermore, pH (7.4-7.8) and electrical conductivity (0.70-1.92 mS cm-1) of the fine fraction met the Indian MSW compost standards; however, heavy metal levels were higher than the proposed standards. The fine fraction also had a high concentration of metals like aluminium (11 g kg-1) and iron (78 g kg-1), indicating metal recovery potential. Furthermore, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy results show that the fine fraction had dominant inorganic peaks and became relatively homogeneous with age. The study proposes fine fraction use as a secondary resource; however, some prior treatment would be required based on the application.

Petrographic Characteristics of Coal Gasification and Combustion by-Products from High Volatile Bituminous Coal

The coal was gasified in a fluidized bed reactor with CO2 as a gasifying agent at 889–980 °C. The coal and gasification residue produced during gasification was burned at temperatures up to 900 °C. The petrographic analysis, gasification residues, and fly and bottom ash resulting from the combustion of coal and chars showed the efficiency of the gasification and combustion processes. The gasification residue primarily comprised inertoids and crassinetwork, which accounted for 60% of the sample. The analysis of the petrographic composition of fly ash revealed that the fly ash formed during the combustion of gasification residue had a higher mineral content. The fly ash from the combustion of gasification products contained significantly less unburned coal compared to that from coal. The samples of the bottom ash from coal combustion were composed of approximately 25% organic matter, most of which was chars. The bottom ash formed from the combustion of coal gasification products was composed mainly of mineral matter (95% or higher). The obtained results have significant implications in determining future waste management strategies.

The analysis of electricity production and greenhouse-gas emission reduction from municipal solid waste sector in Oman

Oman has witnessed a steady growth in greenhouse-gas emissions due to the increase in population and generation of municipal solid waste. Therefore, with the growing greenhouse-gas emissions, waste and energy demands, establishing waste-to-energy technologies is becoming an absolute necessity in Oman. The opportunities to mitigate greenhouse gas from the waste sector in Oman are not exploited or studied, and therefore, this study proposes a holistic quantification model to analyze future municipal solid waste management options. The quantification model is created through a set of assessment tools, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change models and emissions factors, and inputs to the model are based on the conditions of Oman. Total emissions from the disposal of municipal solid waste in landfills are estimated to increase from 2849 GgCO2eq in 2010 to 5565 GgCO2eq in 2030, whereas implementation of incineration, gasification and anaerobic digestion could reduce a total of 6257, 5489 and 4958 GgCO2eq in 2030, respectively, and could simultaneously generate 2096, 1205 and 136 GWh of electricity, respectively. Therefore, through carbon credits and sale of electricity, incineration could attract a total revenue of US$192 million, higher than gasification (US$139 million) and anaerobic digestion (US$81 million) in 2030. The higher potential of incineration to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions is attributed to its ability of treating higher amounts of waste and generating higher energy than gasification and anaerobic digestion. Therefore, this study concludes that incineration is the most optimum technology for Oman in terms of reducing volume of waste and greenhouse-gas emissions and generating energy and revenue.

Devising Synthetic Reaction Cycles for Dissipative Nonequilibrium Self-Assembly.

Fuel-driven reaction cycles are found in biological systems to control the assembly and disassembly of supramolecular materials such as the cytoskeleton. Fuel molecules can bind noncovalently to a self-assembling building block or they can react with it, resulting in covalent modifications. Overall the fuel can either switch the self-assembly process on or off. Here, a closer look is taken at artificial systems that mimic biological systems by making and breaking covalent bonds in a self-assembling motif. The different chemistries used so far are highlighted in chronological order and the pros and cons of each system are discussed. Moreover, the desired traits of future reaction cycles, their fuels, and waste management are outlined, and two chemistries that have not been explored up to now in chemically fueled dissipative self-assembly are suggested.

Majority of Rural Residents Compost Food Waste: Policy and Waste Management Implications for Rural Regions

A growing number of municipalities and states are implementing household food waste diversion efforts such as curbside compost programs, though these programs present challenges for participation and implementation. While many food waste diversion programs are occurring in densely populated regions, understanding food waste management in rural regions is less studied. This research examines the food waste perceptions and current and future food waste management behaviors of residents in Vermont, one of the most rural U.S. states, through a representative telephone survey of Vermont residents (n=583) in 2018. The findings suggest 55% of residents support banning food waste from landfills. Furthermore, 72% of residents compost at least some of their food waste currently and more than 75% anticipate doing so in the future. Conversely, 34% of residents anticipate using the garbage or a curbside compost pickup program in the future with urban county residents, renters, and those currently using garbage most interested in curbside programs. The majority of respondents were unwilling to pay anything additional for curbside compost pickup programs. These results suggest food waste management strategies in rural regions may be different than densely populated areas, particularly for programs that may require significant investments and have limited participation given the popularity of home composting. As a result, greater investment in education and infrastructure for backyard composting may be an important component of rural food waste management.