Incineration is a waste treatment process that involves the combustion of substances contained in waste materials. Industrial plants for waste incineration are commonly referred to as waste-to-energy facilities. Incineration and other high-temperature waste treatment systems are described as "thermal treatment". Incineration of waste materials converts the waste into ash, flue gas and heat. The ash is mostly formed by the inorganic constituents of the waste and may take the form of solid lumps or particulates carried by the flue gas. The flue gases must be cleaned of gaseous and particulate pollutants before they are dispersed into the atmosphere. In some cases, the heat that is generated by incineration can be used to generate electric power.
A waste-to-energy plant is a waste management facility that combusts wastes to produce electricity. This type of power plant is sometimes called a trash-to-energy, municipal waste incineration, energy recovery, or resource recovery plant.
Articles related to waste management include:
Waste-to-energy (WtE) or energy-from-waste (EfW) refers to a series of processes designed to convert waste materials into usable forms of energy, typically electricity or heat. As a form of energy recovery, WtE plays a crucial role in both waste management and sustainable energy production by reducing the volume of waste in landfills and providing an alternative energy source.
Bottom ash is part of the non-combustible residue of combustion in a power plant, boiler, furnace, or incinerator. In an industrial context, it has traditionally referred to coal combustion and comprises traces of combustibles embedded in forming clinkers and sticking to hot side walls of a coal-burning furnace during its operation. The portion of the ash that escapes up the chimney or stack is referred to as fly ash. The clinkers fall by themselves into the bottom hopper of a coal-burning furnace and are cooled. The above portion of the ash is also referred to as bottom ash.
Sewage sludge treatment describes the processes used to manage and dispose of sewage sludge produced during sewage treatment. Sludge treatment is focused on reducing sludge weight and volume to reduce transportation and disposal costs, and on reducing potential health risks of disposal options. Water removal is the primary means of weight and volume reduction, while pathogen destruction is frequently accomplished through heating during thermophilic digestion, composting, or incineration. The choice of a sludge treatment method depends on the volume of sludge generated, and comparison of treatment costs required for available disposal options. Air-drying and composting may be attractive to rural communities, while limited land availability may make aerobic digestion and mechanical dewatering preferable for cities, and economies of scale may encourage energy recovery alternatives in metropolitan areas.
The Kirklees EfW is a major moving grate incineration plant in Huddersfield, Kirklees, England. The incinerator is owned and operated by Suez Recycling and Recovery UK who signed a 25-year contract with Kirklees Council in 1998 with an option to increase the time period to 2028. The plant is integral to the waste strategy and Unitary Development plan of Kirklees Council, treating 150,000 tonnes of locally generated municipal waste, which when incinerated, will produce enough electricity to power 15,000 homes. Only 136,000 tonnes of waste is actually incinerated, the other tonnages permitted are recovered materials such as metals and Incinerator bottom ash (IBA) and Fly ash.
The Sheffield Energy Recovery Facility, also known as the Energy from Waste Plant, is a modern incinerator which treats Sheffield's household waste. It is notable as it not only provides electricity from the combustion of waste but also supplies heat to a local district heating scheme, making it one of the most advanced, energy efficient incineration plants in the UK. In 2004, the district heating network prevented 15,108 tonnes of CO2 from being released from buildings across the city, compared to energy derived from fossil fuels. The incinerator is a 'static asset' owned by Sheffield City Council and operated by Veolia Environmental Services under a 35 year integrated waste management contract (IWMC)/PFI contract.
South East London Combined Heat and Power, better known as SELCHP, is a major energy from waste incineration plant in Bermondsey, London. It was designed to generate both heat and electricity. The plant can generate up to 35 MegaWatts of power using a steam turbine in electricity only mode. It can incinerate up to 420,000 tonnes per year of municipal solid waste.
The Newhaven ERF is an incinerator, in the town of Newhaven in the English county of East Sussex, for the treatment of up to 210,000 tonnes per annum of the county's municipal solid waste. The facility, built by Veolia Environmental Services, was approved by planners at the Conservative-controlled East Sussex County Council.
The Isle of Wight gasification facility is a municipal waste treatment plant in Newport, Isle of Wight. It entered the commissioning phase in autumn 2008, and was replaced by a moving grate incinerator in 2019.
Teesside Energy from Waste plant is a municipal waste incinerator and waste-to-energy power station, which provides 29.2 megawatts (MW) of electricity for the National Grid by burning 390,000 tonnes of household and commercial waste a year. It is located on the River Tees at Haverton Hill, east of Billingham in North East England. Developed and built by NEM, a subsidiary of Northumbrian Water, the initial plant replaced the Portrack Incinerator and opened in 1998. Subsequently, the facility became part of SITA, now Suez.
Lisbjerg Power Station also known as Affaldscenter and Biomassefyret Kraftvarmeværk A/S is a combined heat and power plant in Lisbjerg, Denmark. The power plant is composed of two units; a waste-to-power incinerator and a biomass plant. The official address is Ølstedvej 20-36, 8200 Aarhus N and it is managed by AffaldVarme Aarhus as a part of the Teknik og Miljø magistrate of Aarhus Municipality. The biomass facility supplies district heating to 20% of homes in Aarhus Municipality and it is one of the largest of its kind in Denmark.
The Beitou Refuse Incineration Plant is an incinerator in Zhoumei Borough, Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan.
The Dublin Waste-to-Energy Facility, also known as the Poolbeg Incinerator, is a waste-to-energy plant serving the Greater Dublin Area, located on the Poolbeg peninsula. The plant is capable of producing up to 60 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 80,000 homes, and provide district heating for up to 50,000 homes in the Dublin area. The facility will process up to 600,000 tonnes of waste per year. Poolbeg accepted its first delivery of waste on the 24th of April 2017.
The anti-incinerator movement in China refers to the series of environmental protests that have occurred in opposition to China's numerous planned and operating industrial waste incinerators. The construction of these waste-to-energy facilities, which has prompted the ensuing protest movement, operates as part of China's ongoing efforts to restructure its waste disposal system in regard to its status as the largest producer of municipal solid waste worldwide since 2004. Described by some as being a new type of NIMBY protest, the roots of the anti-incinerator movement can be traced back to the early 1990s, following the introduction of China's first generation of incinerator plants. The movement, however, began in earnest with the benchmark 2006 Liulitun protest taking place in Beijing.
Allerton waste recovery park is a waste recovery and incineration site located on a former quarry at Allerton Mauleverer, near Knaresborough, England. It is operated by AmeyCespa on behalf of North Yorkshire County Council and City of York Council, the site is capable of handling 320,000 tonnes of household waste per year.
New York City's waste management system is a refuse removal system primarily run by the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY). The department maintains the waste collection infrastructure and hires public and private contractors who remove the city's waste. For the city's population of more than eight million, The DSNY collects approximately eleven thousand tons a day of garbage, including compostable material and recycling.
