IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jresou/v14y2025i1p12-d1562986.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Life Cycle Assessment of Methanol Production from Municipal Solid Waste: Environmental Comparison with Landfilling and Incineration

Author

Listed:
  • Cristiano Queiroz Cerqueira

    (Mechanical Engineering Institute, Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

  • Electo Eduardo Silva Lora

    (Mechanical Engineering Institute, Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

  • Lidiane La Picirelli de Souza

    (Mechanical Engineering Institute, Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

  • Márcio Montagnana Vicente Leme

    (DEG—Department of Engineering, Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Lavras 37203-202, MG, Brazil)

  • Regina Mambeli Barros

    (Natural Resources Institute, Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

  • Osvaldo José Venturini

    (Mechanical Engineering Institute, Federal University of Itajubá, Itajubá 37500-903, MG, Brazil)

Abstract

Inadequate waste management strategies play a significant role in exacerbating environmental challenges, such as increased greenhouse gas emissions, resource depletion, and other adverse ecological impacts. These issues are aggravated by the global rise in municipal solid waste (MSW) generation, surpassing the rate of population growth. Simultaneously, there is an urgent demand for sustainable energy solutions to combat climate change and its wide-ranging impacts. In response, this study addresses a critical question: is methanol production from MSW, a waste-to-chemical (WtC) alternative based on circular economy principles, a more environmentally sustainable approach compared to traditional waste-to-energy (WtE) methods like landfilling with biogas recovery and incineration? To answer this, this study evaluates the environmental performance of MSW-to-methanol technologies using life cycle assessment (LCA), focusing on key indicators such as global warming potential, resource depletion, and impacts on human health and ecosystem quality. The results reveal that methanol production from MSW significantly reduces global warming potential (GWP) by 87% compared to landfilling and 56% compared to incineration. Additionally, the process demonstrates high energy efficiency in electricity generation, achieving 80% of the output of incineration. These findings position MSW-to-methanol as a promising alternative for advancing sustainable waste management and renewable energy transitions. While the technology is still in its developmental stages, this research highlights the need for further advancements and policy support to enhance feasibility and scalability. By providing a comparative environmental analysis, this study contributes to identifying innovative pathways for addressing pressing waste management and energy sustainability challenges.

Suggested Citation

  • Cristiano Queiroz Cerqueira & Electo Eduardo Silva Lora & Lidiane La Picirelli de Souza & Márcio Montagnana Vicente Leme & Regina Mambeli Barros & Osvaldo José Venturini, 2025. "Life Cycle Assessment of Methanol Production from Municipal Solid Waste: Environmental Comparison with Landfilling and Incineration," Resources, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-25, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jresou:v:14:y:2025:i:1:p:12-:d:1562986
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/14/1/12/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/14/1/12/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rodrigues, Livia Fernanda & Santos, Ivan Felipe Silva dos & Santos, Thereza Isabelle Silva dos & Barros, Regina Mambeli & Tiago Filho, Geraldo Lúcio, 2022. "Energy and economic evaluation of MSW incineration and gasification in Brazil," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 933-944.
    2. Irena Wojnowska-Baryła & Katarzyna Bernat & Magdalena Zaborowska, 2022. "Plastic Waste Degradation in Landfill Conditions: The Problem with Microplastics, and Their Direct and Indirect Environmental Effects," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-15, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Maria del Pilar Rodríguez & Edna Vázquez-Vélez & Horacio Martinez & Alvaro Torres-Islas, 2023. "Life Cycle Analysis of a Novel Process from the Automotive Industry in Mexico for Recycling Nylon 6,6 into Polymeric Coatings," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-13, June.
    2. Natália Dadario & Luís Roberto Almeida Gabriel Filho & Camila Pires Cremasco & Felipe André dos Santos & Maria Cristina Rizk & Mario Mollo Neto, 2023. "Waste-to-Energy Recovery from Municipal Solid Waste: Global Scenario and Prospects of Mass Burning Technology in Brazil," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-20, March.
    3. Anastasiia Sholokhova & Inna Pitak & Gintaras Denafas & Regina Kalpokaitė-Dičkuvienė & Marius Praspaliauskas & Juris Burlakovs, 2023. "An In-Depth Analysis of Physical, Chemical, and Microplastic Parameters of Landfill Fine Fraction for Biocover Construction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-13, December.
    4. Soulayma Hassan & Tien Ngo & Andrew S. Ball, 2024. "Valorisation of Sugarcane Bagasse for the Sustainable Production of Polyhydroxyalkanoates," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-20, March.
    5. Khan, Muhammad Sajid & Huan, Qun & Yan, Mi & Ali, Mustajab & Noor, Obaid Ullah & Abid, Muhammad, 2022. "A novel configuration of solar integrated waste-to-energy incineration plant for multi-generational purpose: An effort for achieving maximum performance," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 194(C), pages 604-620.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jresou:v:14:y:2025:i:1:p:12-:d:1562986. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.