Waste Minimization In Industry Research Articles

Green Building Practices on Waste Minimization in China Construction Industry

In China, a common practice for construction waste management is to dispose of it in landfills. A 5% construction waste recycling rate and ongoing insufficient landfilling practice resulted in decreased environmental and socioeconomic well-being. Management hierarchy that starts with rethink, redesign, reduce, reuse, refurbish, recycle, incineration, and finally disposal is a probable strategy to facilitate construction waste minimization in China. The green building concept pursued by China also served as a promising tool in evaluating the performance of Chinese green buildings. Barriers include lack of standard operating procedure in waste minimization, immature recycling technology and an undeveloped recycling market, leading to poor performance in construction waste minimization. Several strategies are proposed to ameliorate the current condition in China's construction sector. Even though results reveal that China falls behind in the engagement of green building compared to developed countries, green materials are utilized in various building structures such as flooring, roofs, walls, and outdoor pavements. Lastly, the benefits and shortcomings of two green material technologies, in particular material selection and recycling, applied in China were reviewed.

Drivers of Applying Ecological Modernization to Construction Waste Minimization in New South Wales Construction Industry

The application of ecological modernization (EM) (to delink industry growth from environmental damage) to minimize construction waste has not been explored within the construction industry in general, and the New South Wales (NSW) construction industry in particular. This study seeks to identify the drivers of applying EM to construction waste minimisation (CWM) in the industry. Also, to determine the CWM measures that are critical for each of the drivers. A survey was adopted in this study to target stakeholders engaged in the delivery of construction projects in NSW from design to completion. The survey was selected to reach a large number of respondents within a manageable period. A pilot study was conducted to ensure the reliability of the research design before a full-scale data collection was launched. The data from 240 valid responses was analysed using factor analysis, relative importance index and descriptive statistics. The results revealed five important drivers for EM’s application to CWM. These are agents of change, government policies, supply chain dynamics, skill-building and technological innovations. The CWM measures that are critical for each of these drivers were also identified. The study provides insights into the application of EM to address the construction industry problem of waste generation as by-product of its growth. It also shows the ability to protect the environment while enabling continuous economic growth. Furthermore, it demonstrates the applicability of EM to minimize the construction waste of NSW construction industry.

Peluang Penerapan Produksi Bersih pada Industri Tepung Sagu

Increased demand for processed sago has an impact on increasing sago starch production. The opportunity to produce sago flour is then used by some entrepreneurs to produce on a factory scale. Increasing competitiveness among entrepreneurs causes many aspects to be needed to improve marketing quality, including efforts to reduce waste generated from each production process. This study aims to identify the production process of sago starch and provide recommendations for waste minimization and clean technology in the sago flour industry. Interview methods and field observations were carried out in this study. The volume of waste generated in the production process of sago flour includes 10 kg of used sacks, 10 kg of spilled lamantak, 100 kg of sago dregs, 60 kg of spilled sago flour, 20 kg of burning ash and 50 kg of coarse sago flour. Liquid waste in the form of used water is 36,042 liters. Clean production methods that can be done are reducing the use of washing water, reselling used sacks into handicrafts, returning spilled flour and coarse sago flour to the demolition and dispensing basins, selling burning ashes, selling sago dregs for duck livestock feed and processing production liquid waste. using IPAL with a minimum capacity of 5,000 liters. The method offered can reduce the use of clean water by 2,358 liters of the total water requirement of 38,400 liters once produced

Azeotropes as Powerful Tool for Waste Minimization in Industry and Chemical Processes.

Aiming for more sustainable chemical production requires an urgent shift towards synthetic approaches designed for waste minimization. In this context the use of azeotropes can be an effective tool for “recycling” and minimizing the large volumes of solvents, especially in aqueous mixtures, used. This review discusses the implementation of different kinds of azeotropic mixtures in relation to the environmental and economic benefits linked to their recovery and re-use. Examples of the use of azeotropes playing a role in the process performance and in the purification steps maximizing yields while minimizing waste. Where possible, the advantages reported have been highlighted by using E-factor calculations. Lastly azeotrope potentiality in waste valorization to afford value-added materials is given.

Use of PC elements for waste minimization in the Sri Lankan construction industry

PurposeIn the construction industry, it is well known that there is a relatively large volume of material being wasted due to a variety of reasons. The problem of material waste on construction sites is not an isolated issue and is of environmental concern. Therefore, waste minimization has become an important issue in the construction industry. The aim of this research was mainly to identify the pre‐cast contribution to the construction waste minimization in the Sri Lankan construction industry, through a comparison of material waste arising from pre‐cast, ready‐mixed and site‐mixed concrete.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from 27 building construction projects and three concrete elements: slabs, beams, and columns, were considered to quantify construction waste. To compare the wastage due to pre‐cast involvement with other types, three categories of building projects were used, including projects using pre‐cast concrete elements, in situ concrete elements – site mix, and in‐ situ concrete elements – ready mix.FindingsThe study found that mean wastages of cement, sand and metal in PC elements amounted to 5.34 per cent, 13.86 per cent and 7.62 per cent respectively showing lower values compared with the material wastages in the other two technologies (in situ concrete elements – site mix, and in situ concrete elements – ready mix). Further, statistical t‐test and ANOVA were carried out to ascertain whether these results were significant. Results revealed that there is a significant waste reduction when pre‐cast concrete is used.Originality/valueThe paper provides useful information on pre‐cast contribution to the construction waste minimization in the Sri Lankan construction industry.

Progress toward pollution prevention and waste minimization in the North American gold mining industry

This paper presents a case study of pollution prevention and waste minimization in the North American gold mining industry. Specifically outlined are: 1) the environmental options available to North American goldmines for use in cyanidation setups and Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) control, generally recognized as the two most environmentally problematic areas in the industry; 2) the progress made towards pollution prevention and waste minimization in each of these industrial areas; and 3) operational areas in need of further environmental improvement. Analysis of selected data and questionnaire feedback indicates that most of the gold mines operated by the larger Senior Mining companies have implemented the state-of-the-art measures that best prevent environmental problems in cyanidation practices and AMD setups, but that the remaining operations, which are owned by small- and medium-sized Junior Mining companies, lag far behind, and are only doing what is necessary to comply with environmental regulations. Senior Mining Companies clearly have the research, technologic, and financial resources to design and implement effective environmental management practices at properties. Communications with the managers from Junior Mining Operations, however, reveal that a number of barriers, which are economic and legislative in nature, are preventing implementation of the leading edge environmental technologies needed to minimize problems with pollution and wastes. It is concluded that perpetuating a uniform pattern of pollution prevention and waste minimization in the industry will require the complete removal of these barriers, the North American gold mining industry to form research partnerships with governments and academic institutions, and a number of largely unexplored environmental aspects of the industry to be heavily researched and improved, in particular, biological oxidation.