A Model for Waste Treatment Selection and Costing under Uncertainty

Abstract

The cost of treatment of the waste emanating from chemical production significantly contributes to the total production cost and should therefore be estimated as early as possible during process development. We developed a model that, taking the waste treatment facilities of an existing chemical plant as an example, calculates the cheapest feasible combination of treatment operations for a given waste stream that satisfies legal emission limits. A special feature of the software is that uncertainty in the waste stream composition and the separation efficiencies (e.g., in early process development phases) can easily be propagated through the model, leading to probability distributions of treatment cost and selected treatment paths. To demonstrate its capabilities, the model was applied to three waste streams. The results show that rather small variations in one or several input parameters might result in pronounced differences in treatment costs because certain treatment options become technically infeasible or emission limits are exceeded, thereby rendering a scenario legally noncompliant. The model also highlights recycling potentials and possible problems of waste streams that might best be resolved by modifying the chemical process.

A model to minimize joint total costs for industrial waste producers and waste management companies

“…In addition to the transportation and storage aspects, decisions concerning alternative treatment options need to be reached. Models to assess different treatment facilities by economic criteria can be found in Chakraborty & Linninger (2002, Cosmi et al (2000) and Cavin et al (2001). Other models primarily concentrate on the ecological assessment of waste treatment options (see e.g.…”

Integrated Waste Management in Multiproduct Biorefineries: Systems Optimization and Analysis of a Real-Life Industrial Plant

“…Extensions of the work can address uncertainties 26 and retrofitting problems. 27 A separate class of technologies includes systems based on ontology models, developed to account for treatment options and embedding rules to support decisions. 28,29 In the case of biorefineries, it is important to holistically address both, the waste streams as well as the waste treatment technologies.…”

“…Databases offer access to different options, like nonlinear models to predict residues and costs, or superstructure models to evaluate the better options. Extensions of the work can address uncertainties and retrofitting problems . A separate class of technologies includes systems based on ontology models, developed to account for treatment options and embedding rules to support decisions. , …”

Integrated waste management in batch chemical industry based on multi-objective optimization

“…This superstructure aimed to support long-term operation and investment planning under uncertainty conditions while satisfying emission limits. In a similar approach, Cavin et al (2001) presented a tool to optimize industrial waste treatment, including a sequence of optional and terminal operations and using cost and ecological scarcity as environmental assessment indicators. This system also handles uncertainty in waste composition and in treatment efficiency.…”