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Applications of the 3T Method and the R1 Formula as Efficiency Assessment Tools for Comparing Waste-to-Energy and Landfilling

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  • Stergios Vakalis

    (Faculty of Science and Technology, Free University of Bolzano, Piazza Università 5, 39100 Bolzano, Italy
    School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., Zographou Campus, GR-15780 Athens, Greece)

  • Konstantinos Moustakas

    (School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., Zographou Campus, GR-15780 Athens, Greece)

Abstract

The assessment of novel waste-to-energy technologies has several drawbacks due to the nature of the R1 formula. The 3T method, which aims to cover this gap, combines thermodynamic parameters in a radar graph and the overall efficiency is calculated from the area of the trapezoid. The present study expands the application of the 3T method in order to make it suitable for utilization in other energy-from-waste technologies. In the framework of this study, a 3T specialized solution is developed for the case of landfilling plus landfill gas recovery, with the potential inclusion of landfill mining. Numerical applications have been performed for waste-to-energy and landfilling by using both the R1 formula and the 3T method. The model Land GEM was used for the calculation of the total landfill gas. The Combined Heat and Power (CHP) efficiency of the landfill gas CHP efficiency was 16.6%–33.1%, and for the waste-to-energy plant, the CHP efficiency was over 70%. The full range of parameters, like metal recovery and quality of CHP, were not fully reflected by the R1 formula, which returned values of 1.07 for waste-to-energy and from 0.37 to 0.63 for different landfilling scenarios. Contrary to that, the 3T method calculated values between 0.091 and 0.307 for the waste-to-energy plant and values between 0.011 and 0.121 for the various landfilling scenarios. The 3T method is able to account for the recovery of materials like metals and assess the quality of the output flows. The 3T method was able to successfully provide a solution for the case of landfilling plus landfill gas recovery, with the potential inclusion of landfill mining, and directly compares the results with the conventional case of waste-to-energy.

Suggested Citation

  • Stergios Vakalis & Konstantinos Moustakas, 2019. "Applications of the 3T Method and the R1 Formula as Efficiency Assessment Tools for Comparing Waste-to-Energy and Landfilling," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-11, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:12:y:2019:i:6:p:1066-:d:215496
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    1. Vakalis, Stergios & Moustakas, Konstantinos & Loizidou, Maria, 2019. "Energy efficiency of waste-to-energy plants with a focus on the comparison and the constraints of the 3T method and the R1 formula," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 323-329.
    2. Krzysztof Gaska & Agnieszka Generowicz & Anna Gronba-Chyła & Józef Ciuła & Iwona Wiewiórska & Paweł Kwaśnicki & Marcin Mala & Krzysztof Chyła, 2023. "Artificial Intelligence Methods for Analysis and Optimization of CHP Cogeneration Units Based on Landfill Biogas as a Progress in Improving Energy Efficiency and Limiting Climate Change," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(15), pages 1-19, July.
    3. Martin Pavlas & Jan Dvořáček & Thorsten Pitschke & René Peche, 2020. "Biowaste Treatment and Waste-To-Energy—Environmental Benefits," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-17, April.
    4. Józef Ciuła & Agnieszka Generowicz & Anna Gronba-Chyła & Iwona Wiewiórska & Paweł Kwaśnicki & Mariusz Cygnar, 2024. "Analysis of the Efficiency of Landfill Gas Treatment for Power Generation in a Cogeneration System in Terms of the European Green Deal," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(4), pages 1-16, February.
    5. Józef Ciuła & Violetta Kozik & Agnieszka Generowicz & Krzysztof Gaska & Andrzej Bak & Marlena Paździor & Krzysztof Barbusiński, 2020. "Emission and Neutralization of Methane from a Municipal Landfill-Parametric Analysis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-18, November.

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