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In the past decade, the treatment amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) by incineration has increased significantly in Taiwan. By year 2008, ∼70% of the total MSW generated will be incinerated. The energy content (usually expressed by lower heating value [LHV]) of MSW is an important parameter for the selection of incinerator capacity. In this work, wastes from 55 sampling sites, including villages, towns, cities, and remote islands in the Taiwan area, were sampled and analyzed once a season from April 2002 to March 2003 to determine the waste characteristics. The LHV of MSW in Taiwan was predicted by the multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural networks model using the input parameters of elemental analysis and dry- or wet-base physical compositions. Although all three of the models predicted LHV values rather accurately, the elemental analysis model provided the most accurate prediction of LHV values. Additionally, the wet-base physical composition model was the easiest and most economical. Therefore, the waste treatment operators can choose the more appropriate analysis method considering situations themselves, such as time, equipment, technology, and cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Municipal solid waste (MSW) management is a major concern for highly urbanized societies. Among proposed MSW management systems, regionalization programs generally have received considerable attention. This study analyzes real-world operational data to assess different MSW management policies, especially regionalization strategies, and their impact on MSW management systems in the Taipei metropolitan area. Linear programming is also used to identify the minimum costs sustained by each policy. The linear programming results show that regionalization programs are more economical and also improve incinerator operation efficiency. Sensitivity analysis indicates that the minimum treatment requirement of incinerators is a very sensitive influence on the MSW flows distributed through the entire region. The MSW of several "sensitive" administrative districts will be allocated to different treatment facilities according to different management strategies. A list of preferential sequences of MSW treatment and disposal facilities can also be identified by the model presented in this study. The results of this study may provide a useful tool for aiding decision-making related to real-world MSW management problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ambient particulates of PM[sub2.5] were sampled at three sites in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, during February and March 1999. In addition, resuspended PM[sub2.5] collected from traffic tunnels, paved roads, fly ash of a municipal solid waste (MSW) incinerator, and seawater was obtained. All the samples were analyzed for twenty constituents, including watersoluble ions, organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), and metallic elements. In conjunction with local source profiles and the source profiles in the model library SPECIATE EPA, the receptor model based on chemical mass balance (CMB) was then applied to determine the source contributions to ambient PM[sub2.5]. The mean concentration of ambient PM[sub2.5] was 42.69-53.68 µg/m³ for the sampling period. The abundant species in ambient PM[sub2.5] in the mass fraction for three sites were OC (12.7-14.2%), SO[sub4, sup2-] (12.8-15.1%), NO[sub3, sup-] (8.1-10.3%), NH[sub4, sup+] (6.7-7.5%), and EC (5.3-8.5%). Results of CMB modeling show that major pollution sources for ambient PM[sub2.5] are traffic exhaust (18-54%), secondary aerosols (30-41% from SO[sub4, sup2-] and NO[sub3, sup-]), and outdoor burning of agriculture wastes (13-17%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Illustrates a thorough evaluation of the solid waste presorting process in Taiwan from both quantitative and qualitative aspects. Testing results; Performance evaluation; Conclusion.

Focuses on compatibility analysis of material and energy recovery in a regional solid waste management system. Reasons for increasing interest in the simultaneous recovery of materials and energy from waste streams; Impact of installing a refuse-derived fuel process before an incinerator; Information on a case study conducted in Taipei County, Taiwan that confirms the application potential of such a cost-benefit analysis.