DOI: 10.14457/tu.the.2015.457
title: Evaluation of Refuse derived fuel (RDF) as alternative energy source for the palm oil industry and its potential environmental impact

description: Increasing amounts of municipal solid waste (MSW) have become an issue for urban and rural municipalities. The aims of the research were to evaluate heating properties and combustion characteristics of the MSW, and to determine its potential environmental impacts if used as an alternative fuel in the palm oil industry.The research summarizes the results of a comparative analysis for use of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) as opposed to the use of Conventional fuel (CF) specifically for the Palm Oil industry in Southern Thailand andthe possible environmental impacts. RDF, in this study, was prepared by using MSW from the Lamae Municipality in Chumphon, Thailand where palm oil cultivation and milling is engaged, and has one of the largest palm oil industries in Thailand. The RDF was prepared from two main waste components, paper and low density polyethylene plastic (LDPE) in five various ratios. The RDF and CF fuel from the palm oil industry, such as wood and biomass were analyzed for their heating properties and potential environmental impacts in terms of their global warming potential, acidification, and human toxicity.More than 15 million tons of solid waste is generated annually, and this requires an enormous budget allocation for solid waste management (SWM). In order to increase the efficiency in SWM, waste-to-energy (WtE) technologies are provided as a solution toward a successful policy. Currently, there are 5 WtE technologies being employed in Thailand. The 5 types of technology are incineration, RDF, anaerobic digestion, pyrolysis and gasification, and landfill gas recovery. In this research, solid waste from the selected site of the (Lamae municipality) in Thailand contain a high heating value solid waste fraction, namely plastic and paper. Plastic (soft) waste that made from low density polyethylene (LDPE) is the largest portion of MSW, which contributes to 47%of the total solid waste generated. The second largest component is paper, which contributes to 24%of the total solid waste generated. This has potential for energy production and utilization as RDF. RDF in this study was prepared by using MSW from the Lamae Municipality in Chumphon, Thailand. MSW from the Lamae municipality was chosen to study in this research due for two reasons. First reason; Lamae district in Chumporn province engages in palm oil cultivation and milling, and has one of the largest palm oil industries in Thailand. The second reason, the solid waste composition is suitable for using it as fuel in industry because it is high heating value. For this research, the RDF was prepared from two main solid waste components, paper and LDPE in various ratios (100% of paper: 0% of LDPE, 75% of paper: 25% of LDPE, 50% of paper: 50% of LDPE, 25% of paper: 75% of LDPE and 0% of paper: 100% of LDPE). The heating properties, combustion characteristics, potential gas emissions during the combustion, and potential environmental impact of the RDF and the CF from the palm oil industry such as wood and biomass were determined. was not limited to alternative reuse energy source, but it also investigated the potential environmental impacts on the palm oil industry by using life cycle assessment (LCA) method and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).A life cycle approach was used to calculate and compare the environmental impacts from burning the RDF and CF. The environmental impacts were studied in terms of their global warming potential (kg CO2-eq), acidification (kg SO2-eq) and human toxicity (kg toluene-eq)per 1 kg of production (crude palm oil).The results demonstrated that the heating value and the environmental impacts varied with the different ratios. This research verified that RDF production and use of palm oil in the palm oil industry is an environmentally and economically viable solution for Lamae Municipality in Chumphon, Thailand. The result of this research area provides a data source for an industrial process model which will become more significant for national energy policies in Thailand.