Synergizing environmental, social, and economic sustainability factors for refuse derived fuel use in cement industry: A case study in Espirito Santo, Brazil

Gisele de Lorena Diniz Chaves; Renato Ribeiro Siman; Glaydston Mattos Ribeiro; Ni-Bin Chang

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112401

Synergizing environmental, social, and economic sustainability factors for refuse derived fuel use in cement industry: A case study in Espirito Santo, Brazil

J Environ Manage. 2021 Jun 15:288:112401. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112401. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Authors

Gisele de Lorena Diniz Chaves¹, Renato Ribeiro Siman², Glaydston Mattos Ribeiro³, Ni-Bin Chang⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Engineering and Technology, Federal University of Espírito Santo (UFES), Espírito Santo, Brazil.
² Department of Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Espírito Santo (UFES), Espírito Santo, Brazil.
³ Transportation Engineering Program, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
⁴ Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA. Electronic address: nchang@ucf.edu.

PMID: 33774563
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112401

Abstract

The cement industry has been under pressure due to the environmental impact of high cement production, which demands a significant amount of energy and results in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In many developed countries, the cement industry has sought to replace conventional fossil fuels with alternatives to minimize GHG emissions; however, Brazil has underexploited this possibility. Considering the potential of refuse-derived fuel (RDF) to reduce the non-recycled waste disposed in landfills, and its suitable performance as an alternative fuel for cleaner cement production, this paper presents a reverse logistics network analysis for RDF production planning with respect to local economic incentives, social euqity and justice, pollution prevention, and global environmental concerns regarding carbon emissions reduction. The reverse logistics network involves important stakeholders related in waste management in Espirito Santo, Brazil, especially harmonizing social sustainability concerns between waste pickers' cooperatives and waste retailers. By considering the waste generated in 78 municipalities in the Espírito Santo state, the possible levels of fuel replacement in cement industries reflects the economic sustainability of the timeframe of the solid waste management policy implementation. The results showed that the RDF to be produced varies from 42,446.5 tonnes in 2024 with a small fuel replacement by cement industries, to 567,092.1 tonnes in 2040 if all non-recyclable waste available can be used to produce RDF. The avoided annual disposal costs via this network analysis vary from $3,855,412.0 in the initial years to $47,822,876.8 in the year 2040 under optimistic conditions, representing around 25% of the total cost in the network. The cost and GHG emitted reduced significantly in all simulated scenarios; however, the financial incentives are essential for achieving the network social sustainability.

Keywords: Alternative fuel; Cement production; Circular economy; Refuse-derived fuel; Reverse logistics network; Sustainable development.

MeSH terms

Brazil
Cities
Environment
Recycling
Refuse Disposal*