SOLID WASTE ENGINEERING is one of a handful of engineering textbooks to address the growing and increasingly intricate problem of controlling and processing the refuse created by our urban society. While the authors discuss issues such as regulations and legislation, their main emphasis is on solid waste engineering principles. They maintain their focus on principles by first explaining the basic principles of the field, then demonstrating how these principles are applied in real world settings through worked examples.

Table of Contents

1. Integrated Solid-Waste Management. Historical Background. Materials Flow. Legislation and Regulations. The Need for Integrated Solid-Waste Management. Life Cycle Assessment. Special Problems (white goods, construction rubble, tires, household hazardous waste, paint and batteries). The European Experience. 2. Solid-Waste Characteristics and Quantities. Definitions. Solid-Waste Generation. Solid-Waste Composition. Estimating Refuse. Quantities and Composition. Characteristics of Refuse. Potential for Reclamation of Useful Materials and Energy from Solid-Waste. Obstacles to Recovery of Materials and Energy from Refuse. 3. Collection of Municipal Solid-Waste. Solid-Waste Collection Systems. Effectiveness of Solid-Waste Collection. Collection of Source-Separated Materials. Alternative Collection Strategies. Transfer Stations. Litter and Street Cleanliness. 4. Landfills. Planning, Siting, and Permitting of Landfills. Design of Landfills. Processes within a Landfill. Controlling Leachate and Gas. Operation of Landfills. Monitoring of Landfills. Closure of Landfills. Use of Old Landfill Sites. Landfill Mining. Hazardous Substances. 5. Processing of Mixed and Partially Separated Solid-Waste. Refuse Physical Characteristics. Storing. Conveying. Compacting. Shredding. Pulping. Roll Crushing. Plastic Granulating. 6. Materials Separation. General Expressions for Materials Separation. Picking (hand sorting). Screens. Air Classifiers. Jigs. Stoners. Sink/Float Separators. Inclined Tables. Shaking Tables. Flotation. Color Sorting. Magnets. Eddy Current Separators. Electrostatic Separators. Materials Recovery Systems. 7. Combustion and Energy Recovery. Heat Value of Refuse. Energy Production from MSW. Materials and Thermal Balances. Combustion Hardware Used for MSW. Waste Heat Recovery. Pyrolysis. Undesirable Effects of Combustion. 8. Biochemical Processes. Methane Generation by Anaerobic Digestion. Methane Generation from Landfills. Composting. Other Biochemical Processes. 9. Current Solid-Waste Issues. Flow Control. Public or Private Ownership and Operation. Procurement Issues. Financing Solid-Waste Facilities. The Role of the Solid-Waste Engineer.