Premium
Optimal landfill gas utilization for renewable energy production
Author(s) -
Ahmed Saeed Isa,
Johari Anwar,
Hashim Haslenda,
Mat Ramli,
Lim Jeng Shiun,
Ngadi Norzita,
Ali Asmadi
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
environmental progress and sustainable energy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.495
H-Index - 66
eISSN - 1944-7450
pISSN - 1944-7442
DOI - 10.1002/ep.11964
Subject(s) - landfill gas , greenhouse gas , renewable energy , waste management , carbon footprint , biogas , environmental science , environmental engineering , municipal solid waste , bioreactor landfill , production (economics) , electricity generation , methane , fossil fuel , engineering , chemistry , ecology , power (physics) , physics , electrical engineering , macroeconomics , quantum mechanics , economics , biology , organic chemistry
Landfill gas (LFG) is essentially greenhouse gas (GHG) composed predominantly of methane and carbon dioxide produced from the anaerobic biodegradation of municipal solid waste in landfills. The amount of gas produced can be estimated using the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change methodology. Most sanitary landfills flare this potential renewable energy source, which is an unfortunate waste of a valuable resource. This study develops an optimization model for effective LFG utilization as a sustainable energy source based on economic and environmental considerations. The mixed integer linear programming model developed was applied to Seelong Sanitary Landfill, Malaysia, and led to profits 7.6 times higher than those currently gained. This enormous increase is due to the incorporation of renewable energy production in the new plan. In addition, the combined heat and power generation proposed is 2420 tons of oil equivalents, which is 0.0035% of the total energy production of Malaysia. Similarly, the LFG utilization leads to a national GHG reduction of 0.007%. Implementing this at the 14 sanitary landfills in the country will go a long way towards broadening the energy base while simultaneously reducing the carbon footprint of the nation. © 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 34: 289–296, 2015