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Environmental Assessment of Waste‐Solvent Treatment Options
Author(s) -
Capello Christian,
Hellweg Stefanie,
Badertscher Beat,
Betschart Hugo,
Hungerbühler Konrad
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of industrial ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.377
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1530-9290
pISSN - 1088-1980
DOI - 10.1162/jiec.2007.1231
Subject(s) - incineration , waste management , life cycle assessment , hazardous waste , solvent , flexibility (engineering) , industrial ecology , distillation , environmental impact assessment , waste treatment , process engineering , environmental science , computer science , chemistry , engineering , organic chemistry , sustainability , mathematics , production (economics) , ecology , statistics , biology , economics , macroeconomics
The software tool ecosolvent is presented that allows for comparative environmental assessment of treatment technologies for specific, user‐defined, waste‐solvent mixtures. The tool is composed of models for waste‐solvent distillation as well as for thermal treatment in hazardous waste‐solvent incinerators and cement kilns. It was designed with a tiered structure in order to allow for a high flexibility regarding informational needs. The life‐cycle assessment method was used to assess the environmental impact. The applicability of the tool is shown with two case studies from industry. In these case studies, various waste‐solvent treatment technologies are compared for two specific waste‐solvent mixtures. Potential use of the ecosolvent tool for its role in practical decision making in chemicals industries is illustrated by two case studies of waste‐solvent systems. In the ethyl acetate case study, the tool indicates that solvent recovery by distillation is clearly better than incineration of the waste solvent. The results from the methanol case study are less clear‐cut. In the subsequent article (part II), the ecosolvent tool will be used to derive general rules of thumb and specific recommendations for 45 important solvents used in chemical industries. Additionally, a framework will be presented that provides quick and easy decision support regarding environmentally optimized waste‐solvent management.