Solid Waste Disposal Research Articles

Climatic changes: knowledge and adaptation behavior to heat-related illness among solid waste disposal workers

BackgroundEarth’s climate changes are progressing at an alarming rate. One of the most severe effects of climate change is extreme heat. This study aimed to assess knowledge and adaptation behavior to heat-related illness (HRI) among solid waste disposal workers in the 10th of Ramadan City, Egypt, and to study the predictors for their knowledge and adaptation behavior.MethodsAn exploratory cross-sectional study was conducted on 220 solid waste disposal workers. A structured interview questionnaire was used to assess the studied workers’ sociodemographic and occupational characteristics, heat exposure risk, and their knowledge, and adaptation behavior.ResultsThe results showed that 40% and 30% of participants had adequate levels of total knowledge and adaptation behavior, respectively. There was a statistically significant relationship between workers’ knowledge and both age and education. There was a statistically significant relationship between workers’ adaptation behavior and age, duration of employment, working hours, and education. A binary logistic regression for significant predictors of knowledge and adaptation behavior showed that age and education were the most significant predictors.ConclusionSolid waste disposal workers were at high risk of HRI due to their low levels of knowledge and adaptation behavior regarding HRI. Educational health programs that guide workers to follow healthy behaviors and prevent HRI are recommended.

Exploring the Influence of Environmental Knowledge on Solid Waste Disposal Practices among College Students at a Community College

In the pursuit of sustainable living and environmental stewardship, educational institutions play a pivotal role in shaping the attitudes and behaviours of the next generation. This research investigates the intricate influence of environmental knowledge on solid waste disposal practices among college students, specifically focusing on Opol Community College. This study aims to shed light on environmental awareness and waste management dynamics within a localized educational setting. Despite global concerns about environmental degradation, literature gaps persist regarding the influence of environmental knowledge on waste disposal practices among college students, particularly in community colleges like Opol. Existing research often overlooks the unique characteristics and challenges faced by such institutions in smaller, close-knit communities. Employing a comprehensive research design, this study integrates descriptive and causal methodologies. Through purposive random sampling, 300 students were selected to represent a broader student population. Ethical considerations were carefully adhered to throughout the study. The findings reveal a balanced representation across sex, age groups, and academic profiles. Students demonstrate moderate to high levels of environmental knowledge but show varied engagement in waste management practices. Notably, environmental knowledge significantly influences waste disposal behaviours, emphasizing the importance of bolstering environmental education. These insights highlight the need for tailored educational strategies and community initiatives to enhance waste management practices within community colleges like Opol. Bridging this knowledge gap is vital for developing effective sustainability programs and informing local policies to promote environmental conservation.

An assessment of the consumption and disposal of medications home use

In the current scenario, the market society, an economic model consolidated in many parts of the world, faces some social and environmental challenges, such as the solid waste disposal and treatment of different residues generated daily, especially in big cities. In Brazil, 4,540 municipalities provided medical waste collection services, and more than a third (36.2%) sent the MS to landfills, dumps, and septic ditches. This issue faced by municipalities is challenging as they try to promote less damaging management that impacts the environment due to urban demography and fragile socio-environmental conditions. Action as reverse logistics is a strategy that enables the return of after-sales and post-consumption waste to the business environment and the productive sector, promoting the circular economy, the recovery of waste, the life cycle of products, decrease in the use of materials, reduction of environmental impacts, compliance with current regulations and non-contamination of the environment. The assessment of unusual medications and population knowledge allows drawing an overview of the disposal of uncommon medications for home use by an electronic questionnaire addressing different questions, referring to the identification of the user's profile, various forms of consumption, storage, and disposal of medication waste, and knowledge about the local regulation. Most medications consumed by the population are antibiotics, analgesics, fever reducers, and pain relief without medical recommendations, not used to seeing the expiration date, and not reading the drug leaflet. The assessment population could only pay a little for the additional tax for final medication waste disposal. Most of the participants disposed of the unusual medications in the household garbage. Finally, the reverse logistics implementation of medication waste in Brazil will be a significant challenge for decreasing the environmental impacts and pollution because of the culture of the local population.

Exploring Household Composting as an Effective Solution for Urban Waste Management

Organic wastes are generated from many sources’ compiles, solid waste, food, kitchens wastes, etc. Disposal of solid waste is stinging and widespread problem in both urban and rural areas in many developed and developing countries. Collection and disposal of solid waste is one of the major problems of urban environment in most countries worldwide today. Improper Solid Waste Management causes many environmental problems. Traditional composting methods have been common practices in many rural/sub urban areas and requires more time for complete degradation. Traditional method requires large sites for disposal, which nowadays is not possible, as limited spaces are available in the cities. So, here comes the need to find new techniques such as Home Composting. The research focuses on understanding the effectiveness of household composting as a waste management technique for household garbage. Household composting is an attractive method in which small bins can be used as an alternative to composting sites to a small scale. This technique helps to decompose the organic matter in lesser time than the traditional methods. Addition of compost accelerators in the bins increases the decomposition rate. Simply by home composting, the quantity of waste can be reduced. Key Words: Solid Waste Management, Composting, Compost Accelerators, Home Composting, Household Garbage

Assessing the circularity status of waste management among manufacturing, waste management, and recycling companies in Kigali, Rwanda

A high quantity of waste is generated from industrial activities by manufacturers across metropolitan cities compared to smaller cities with fewer industrial activities. Adopting Circular Economy principles in waste management has the potential for sustainable waste management to reduce the quantity of waste at dumpsites and harmful emissions from wastes. The study was conducted to assess circularity status and challenges for attaining higher circularity by Kigali’s manufacturing, waste collection, and waste recycling companies using the 10-R framework. The study also sought to build estimates for industrial solid waste quantity and methane emissions for the next 10 years (2020–2030) in Rwanda. A mixed method approach was utilized where primary data was collected from manufacturing, waste collection, and waste recycling companies using a validated questionnaire and an in-depth interview guide. Thematic, descriptive analysis and First Order Decay methods were used to analyze the qualitative, quantitative, and secondary data. Results show that adopting the 10-R principles of circular economy was low and varies across manufacturing, waste collection and recycling companies. There were instances of high adoption of R3-Reuse and R8-Recycle with a mean score of 7.17 and 7.21 among manufacturing companies. R7-Repurpose (8.80) recorded a high adoption rate among waste collection companies and a medium level of adoption for R7-Repurpose (3.50) and R9-Recover (3.00) among recycling companies. The overall low adoption toward attaining circularity was attributed to various economic, institutional, infrastructural, operational, attitudinal, and technological challenges. In 2030, it is projected that 922 Gg of industrial waste will be deposited in solid waste disposal sites in Rwanda; with an estimated methane emission of 157 Gg Carbon dioxide equivalence. It was recommended among others, that human resource capacity development should be prioritized to drive the adoption of the 10-R principles across manufacturing, waste collection, and waste recycling companies in Kigali, which can reduce the quantity of wastes that ends at dumpsites and methane emissions that contribute significantly to global warming.

Man as Nature’s Prodigal: A Study of Environmental Degradation in South East Nigeria, 1990-2022

Man’s degradation and abuse of the environment has become accelerated and much more difficult to manage due to increased human population and industrialization. Against this background, the study examines the role of man in environmental degradation in South East Nigeria between 1990 and 2022. This research, by its nature, adopted the qualitative research methodology because it cannot be subjected to quantitative analysis. The research findings showed that there were several environmental degradation challenges facing South East Nigeria, including soil erosion, land and water pollution, solid waste disposal and air pollution. These were caused mainly by human factors, especially technology and industrialization. The work argued that the South East people had a healthy relationship with the natural environment before the advent of British colonial rule. This relationship changed as a result of colonialism and its attendant effects in the area. Thus environmental problems in South East Nigeria developed over time as human socio-economic relations changed in global context.

Assessing the impacts and contamination potentials of landfill leachate on adjacent groundwater systems

Landfilling is a globally prevalent method for managing municipal solid waste disposal. Nonetheless, the potential for serious contamination and the significant regional disparities in the leachate produced pose varying degrees of risks to groundwater quality. Previous studies have focused on a single landfill or the same geo-climatic conditions, with a limited number of samples having resulted in a narrow distribution of landfill age and scale, which prevents the description of the pattern of change in landfill age and scale. As well as the effect of this change on the contaminants in the landfill leachate and surrounding groundwater is still unclear. Therefore, we sampled and analyzed leachate and surrounding groundwater from 62 landfills with different landfill ages, scales, and operating conditions in a region with dense and varied topography and climate. Aim to explore the effects of different landfill ages, scales, and operating conditions on contaminants in leachate and surrounding groundwater. Findings indicate that pollutant profiles in different media are influenced by the age, scale, and operational status of the landfill, and the impact of leachate on pollutant types and concentrations in groundwater is limited. A significant correlation exists between the concentration of contaminants in the groundwater affected by leaching from the impermeable layer and the age and scale of the landfill when compared to the leachate. The contamination potentials posed by different pollutants vary across environmental media. Total dissolved solids and NH4+-N in leachate presented high contamination potentials, whereas elemental metalloids (Mn, Al, Ba, and Fe) in the surrounding groundwater posed high environmental concerns. These insights furnish new avenues for monitoring, identification, and safeguarding against pollutants in landfills and proximate groundwater, which is imperative for the sustainable management of municipal waste.

Mechanical and microstructural properties of one-part geopolymer-solidified soil attacked by Na2SO4

In the construction of traffic engineering, a large amount of waste soils was generated. These soils have poor engineering properties, cannot be used as subgrade fill, so they were solidified treatment, commonly used cement curing agent have adverse effects on the environment. One-part geopolymer (OPG), as a green and new type of soil stabilizer, not only provides a new idea for the solidification of engineering waste, but also offers an effective way for the disposal of industrial solid waste, and reduces the consumption of cement. In order to evaluate the durability of geopolymer solidified soil, in this paper, with fly ash (FA) and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) as raw materials, solid NaOH and Na2SiO3 as solid alkali-activator to prepare OPG, which was used as a solidifier to solidify the waste dredged silt to produce one-part geopolymer-solidified soil (OPGSS). The variation patterns of mass, unconfined compression strength (UCS) and elasticity modulus of OPGSS with attack time under 0%, 5% and 10% Na2SO4 solutions were investigated. The changes in the phase composition, micro-morphology and pore size distribution of OPGSS were characterized by XRD, SEM-EDS and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The results showed that: Under both 5% and 10% Na2SO4 solutions, the UCS of OPGSS decreased in two stages with attack time, and the number of large pores and total pores of OPGSS increased in two stages. The inflection points appeared on day 8 under 5% Na2SO4 solution; the inflection points appeared on day 5 under 10% Na2SO4 solution. This was mainly due to the expansion of corrosion products formed by OPGSS under Na2SO4 attack, which destroyed the microstructure of OPGSS and led to a reduction in the UCS of the OPGSS.

Prophet time series modeling of waste disposal rates in four North American cities.

In this study, three different univariate municipal solid waste (MSW) disposal rate forecast models (SARIMA, Holt-Winters, Prophet) were examined using different testing periods in four North American cities with different socioeconomic conditions. A review of the literature suggests that the selected models are able to handle seasonality in a time series; however, their ability to handle outliers is not well understood. The Prophet model generally outperformed the Holt-Winters model and the SARIMA model. The MAPE and R2 of the Prophet model during pre-COVID-19 were 4.3-22.2% and 0.71-0.93, respectively. All three models showed satisfactory predictive results, especially during the pre-COVID-19 testing period. COVID-19 lockdowns and the associated regulatory measures appear to have affected MSW disposal behaviors, and all the univariate models failed to fully capture the abrupt changes in waste disposal behaviors. Modeling errors were largely attributed to data noise in seasonality and the unprecedented event of COVID-19 lockdowns. Overall, the modeling errors of the Prophet model were evenly distributed, with minimum modeling biases. The Prophet model also appeared to be versatile and successfully captured MSW disposal rates from 3000 to 39,000 tons/month. The study highlights the potential benefits of the use of univariate models in waste forecast.

A Review of Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Their Application in Sustainable Solid Waste Management

Indigenous communities have always used their knowledge systems to improve their quality of life. For example, rural communities’ resort to indigenous cultural practices to manage their own waste when local administration lacks coordinated ways to manage waste. In the context of indigenous knowledge systems, the idea of waste is non-existent. As indigenous knowledge is believed to provide a holistic framework for an approach that effectively promotes sustainability. As such, the current study conducted a systematic review to evaluate the extent to which indigenous solid waste management practices contribute to sustainable waste disposal methods. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines, a literature search was carried out in the field of indigenous solid waste management practices. The results indicate a significant imbalance in the amount of conclusive evidence that has been produced to date that suggests the sustainability of indigenous solid waste management practices. It is for this reason that the current study has discovered a substantial literature gap in sustainable solid waste management associated with indigenous knowledge systems. This is an unprecedented trend, especially for a knowledge system that is supposed to promote sustainability practices. However, to improve the likelihood of incorporating indigenous solid waste disposal methods into modern practices, it is imperative to understand the foundational elements that contribute to the advancement of sustainability, lest the sustainability aspect associated with this knowledge system in the discipline of solid waste management remain a mere rhetoric.

The Frequency of Porcine Cysticercosis and Factors Associated with Taenia solium Infection in the Municipality of Tuchín-Córdoba, Colombia.

Taeniasis and cysticercosis are parasitic infections that affect humans and pigs. Their global distribution constitutes a serious public health issue with significant implications for pork production. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the presence of porcine cysticercosis in backyard swine from 42 indigenous communities throughout Tuchín-Córdoba, Colombia. Between December 2020 and March 2021, free-range pigs (n = 442) were assessed using the ELISA cysticercosis Ag test; 85 pigs were examined through sublingual visual evaluation, and 4 slaughtered pig carcasses were subjected to standard operation inspection. The collected cysticercus underwent histological and PCR analysis. Furthermore, 192 surveys of knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) were used to identify the factors that facilitate infection transmission. Serological investigation revealed that 9.7% (46/472) of the animals were positive for cysticerci Ag. Sublingual inspection identified cysticercus in 28.7% (25/87) of the animals, while PCR analysis indicated that cysticercus corresponded to the T. solium American/African genotype. The factors associated with T. solium infection in the pigs in the surveyed areas numbered 14. The majority are associated with factors that promote the active persistence of Taenia solium's life cycle in an area, such as lack of environmental sanitation, a lack of coverage or care for drinking water and wastewater treatment services, and no solid waste disposal.

Assessing groundwater quality dynamics in Madhya Pradesh: Chemical contaminants and their temporal patterns

Groundwater is essential for maintaining ecosystem health and overall well-being as a pivotal resource for plants and animals. The increasing public consciousness of the deterioration of groundwater quality has emphasized the significance of undertaking extended evaluations of groundwater water quality, particularly in regions undergoing substantial hydrological alterations. This study primarily aims to investigate the spatio-temporal variations in groundwater quality and evaluate its suitability for potable purposes in the region of Madhya Pradesh. The study combines the Mann-Kendall (MK) test and Sen's Slope (SS) to analyze the changes in groundwater quality of all 51 districts of Madhya Pradesh, India, utilizing 12 water quality indices using MATLAB. Data was sourced from the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) in India from the year 2001–2021. The data was then tested for homogeneity at all 1154 sampling stations using the software XLSTAT. Piper plot clustering characterized the state's groundwater as bicarbonate-calcium-magnesium (HCO3−-Ca2+-Mg2+) type. The study found that the groundwater in the area is heavily impacted by high levels of nitrate and hardness, which is caused by an increase in multivalent cations. The water was classified as ranging from hard to extremely hard, and approximately 25.49% of the state's groundwater has nitrate levels that exceed the acceptable limits. The MK test showed a significant increasing correlation in trends for parameters such as nitrate, sulfate, fluoride, chloride, bicarbonate, total hardness, and electrical conductivity. It also showed a significant decreasing correlation for calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium. These results were observed at a confidence level of 95%. The analysis of trends has shown that human-related factors have a considerable effect on the characteristics of groundwater quality. It is therefore recommended that such human-related factors be taken into consideration when developing policies for managing groundwater resources. Consequently, these policies should emphasize the strict enforcement of rules and standards that limit the overuse of fertilizers, ensure the appropriate disposal of municipal solid and liquid wastes, and regulate industrial pollutants.

Analysis of the micro-drainage infrastructure on an avenue in the city of Aracaju-SE

The urban drainage system plays a vital role in the lives of people living in urban areas, protecting properties and citizens during heavy rainfall, preventing erosion on streets and public roads, and other benefits. To create an efficient drainage system, attention must be paid to the design, execution, and supervision of works by qualified professionals, as well as the maintenance of existing works. Because of the above, this article aims to analyze the micro-drainage infrastructure of Avenida Edélzio Vieira de Melo, in the city of Aracaju-SE. Initially, an in loco visit was made to assess the state of conservation and the presence of waste in the gutters and gutter inlet. It was observed that 51.2% of the gutter inlets are located in an undesirable way; 60.5% are partially or totally degraded and 81.4% have solid waste disposal. About the manholes, 90% are inadequately located, 80% are partially or totally degraded, and, finally, 70% are level with the sidewalk. The conclusion is that the devices need to be cleaned more frequently, and the population needs to be made more aware not to throw garbage in the street, since the presence of solid waste negatively affects the functioning of the drainage network. Finally, the location of the devices (manholes and gutter inlets) affects their efficiency, and durability and interferes with the comfort of those who use the road.

Factors affecting household solid waste source separation intention and disposal: a focus on Sri Lanka

Factors affecting household solid waste source separation intention and disposal: a focus on Sri Lanka

Mechanism study of the effect of superplasticizers in alkali-activated materials containing sludge

To realize the safe disposal of solid waste containing heavy metals, sewage sludge jointly with slag and metakaolin was used to prepare alkali-activated materials (AAMs), and the effect mechanism of polycarboxylate acid superplasticizer (PCE), naphthalene superplasticizer (NS) and aliphatic superplasticizer (AS) in AAMs were studied. The results showed that both the fluidity and strength of AAMs decreased with the addition of sludge. For the NaOH + Na2SiO3 activated mortar specimen, the incorporation of sludge can reduce their fluidity and strength from 206 mm and 80.25 MPa to 193 mm and 42.43 MPa, respectively. However, the addition of superplasticizers into sludge-containing AAMs leads to a reduction of 3–9% of the fluidity. Interestingly, it can enhance the strength of the AAMs, especially the NS and AS, which increase the strength by approximately 25%. This is attributed to the increase of particle dispersion by superplasticizers. However, the free water released in the process is reabsorbed by the sludge, which increases the local alkali concentration and promotes the activation of the activity. The dispersed sludge particles can play the role of physical filling, making the structure denser. HIGHLIGHTS Sludge is adverse effects on both the fluidity and strength of alkali-activated materials (AAMs). The addition of superplasticizers (SPs) increases the strength of AAM with sludge. SPs do not affect improving the fluidity of AAMs with sludge, even slightly bad. The dispersion effect of SPs on the sludge is beneficial to promote its activity in AAMs.

Filtration System for Solid Surface Waste in Coastal Waters Based on Biomimicry and Circular Economy

One of the biggest environmental problems in the world is the inadequate disposal of solid waste in the oceans. Therefore, this article aims to demonstrate the importance of biomimicry and the circular economy in the development of a boat with peculiar characteristics of the filtration system existing in the mouth of the Whale Shark, which is capable of filtering surface solid waste in coastal waters, submerged at a depth up to two meters. Therefore, the basis for the research focused on studies published in books, articles, dissertations, websites, magazines relevant to the topic, taking into account the methodological process of product design. Finally, the importance of Biomimicry, Circular Economy and Design as strategic tools to find innovative solutions in order to mitigate environmental problems was verified.

The one-step synthesis of Fe-N co-doped peony pod-based porous carbon for the removal of tetracycline

The peony pod is a component of the cash crop oil peony (Paeonia suffruticosa Andr.), it accounts for more than half of the quality of the peony seed. However, indiscriminate disposal leads to resource waste. In addition, the pollution caused by the overuse of antibiotics and the evolution of resistance have been a conundrum. There is an urgent need to find a pollutant removal method that conforms to the current concept of sustainable development. In this study, the biomass porous carbon (PCN,Fe-0.5) was prepared and modified by one-step synthesis method using the by-product peony pod as carbon precursor, urea as nitrogen source, and steel slag as magnetic material. The utilization of biomass waste solved resources waste caused by the unreasonable disposal of agricultural solid waste. The doped materials were cheap and easy to obtain, and they improved the structure and function of porous carbon. The maximum adsorption capacity of PCN,Fe-0.5 reached 726.4 mg·g−1 with 100 mg·L−1 of tetracycline (TC). The adsorption mechanism was summarized as pore filling, van der Waals force, π-π EDA, surface complexation, hydrogen bonding and chemisorption. A low-budget tetracycline (TC) removal method was explored through the investigation on the adsorption performance and recovery capability of PCN,Fe-0.5, which was also conducive to realizing the recycling of biomass waste and industrial waste.

Persistent organic pollutants: Impacts and control measures

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) represent a significant environmental problem due to their toxicity, with a high capacity to persist in the environment, resistance to conventional degradation methods, the ability to accumulate in living organisms and their magnification in food chains or food. In this review article, the impacts on health and environmental components are examined. Strategies and measures for control, mitigation and/or minimization of POPs are also addressed. Agricultural and industrial activities, inadequate final disposal of solid waste and lack of wastewater treatment are identified as the main sources of POP emissions. In addition, innovative and promising technologies are analyzed, such as nanotechnology, bioremediation, rhizoremediation, biochar, chromatography techniques, ultrasound, among others, for the adequate treatment of POPs. The review highlights both the advantages and limitations of these technologies, pointing out areas that still require developments to achieve effective treatments. More economical and ecological alternatives are also mentioned to counteract the impacts of POPs.

Review on Investigating Soil Stabilized Mud Blocks with Combined C&D Waste

Buildings built by ancient civilizations like the Mesopotamians and Egyptians were made of clay and other materials, and the use of stabilized soil for construction dates to those times. On the other hand, the scientific underpinnings of soil stabilization were not established until the early 1900s. In comparison to conventional building materials, the use of stabilized soil-based construction materials, such as soil stabilized mud blocks, can offer several advantages, such as improved strength and durability, less of an adverse effect on the environment, and lower costs. The world is facing an issue that calls for the disposal of inorganic solid waste to be addressed right away. This solid waste that is produced when old buildings are demolished is frequently classified as industrial waste or C&D waste. In India alone, enormous amounts of waste are produced, very little of which is recycled. When modifying the properties of stabilized soil, this C&D waste can be used in place of soil or quarry sand. This work explores the use of a stabilizing agent in conjunction with combined C&D waste for soil sampling. The studies use combined C&D waste and soil stabilized mud blocks to test the hollow blocks' water absorption capacity and strength for various replacements. The materials needed for the study came from nearby structures that had been demolished. Using mortar, cylindrical samples for 32 different ratios of mixed construction and demolition waste with a 9% cement content were cast for various compositions. To determine whether the stabilized samples were suitable for use in construction, tests were conducted on their compressive strength and water absorption properties. Based on the least compressive values found in cylindrical samples, the C&D waste was used in ratios ranging from 0% to 100% in place of soil. Mud blocks stabilized by soil were poured and examined for durability, strength, and mechanical qualities. In this study, an effort was made to use C&D waste—that is, brick and concrete waste—in varying amounts to create cylindrical samples that could be used to create concrete and stabilized mud blocks. In order to create cylindrical samples, different ratios of brick waste, concrete waste, and brick-concrete waste were used for 23 mix proportions. Cylindrical samples were manufactured using a cement content of 9 and 12%. These samples' mechanical and physical characteristics, such as their compressive strength, water absorption capacity, and initial rate of absorption, were investigated.

Numerical study of particle behaviours and heat transfer in a complex rotary kiln

Rotary kiln is widely used for thermal disposal of solid waste due to its effectiveness and high efficiency in recent years. To further improve the processing efficiency, a newly designed rotary kiln with three-section structure is proposed, and the behaviours of particle motion and heat transfer are investigated. Firstly, a lab-scale rotary kiln is manufactured, and experiments are carried out. Verified by experimental data, a CFD-DEM numerical model is developed to analyze the particle motion and heat transfer characteristics with the effects of inlet flue gas temperature, feeding rate and rotating speed. The results show that the outlet temperature increases linearly with the flue gas temperature, while it is negatively correlated with the feeding rate and rotating speed. In addition, the volumetric heat transfer coefficient in this complex rotary kiln is analyzed, the overall heat transfer coefficient is between 200 and 700 W/(m3 K).