Advanced Organic Waste Management: Sustainable Practices and Approaches provides an integrated holistic approach to the challenges associated with organic waste management, particularly related to sustainability, lifecycle assessment, emerging regulations, and novel approaches for resource and energy recovery. In addition to traditional techniques, such as anaerobic digestion, composting, innovative and emerging techniques of waste recycling like hydrothermal carbonization and vermicomposting are included. The book combines the fundamentals and practices of sustainable organic waste management with successful case studies from developed and developing countries, highlighting practical applications and challenges. Sections cover global organic waste generation, encompassing sources and types, composition and characteristics, focus on technical aspects related to various resource recovery techniques like composting and vermicomposting, cover various waste-to-energy technologies, illustrate various environmental management tools for organic waste, present innovative organic waste management practices and strategies complemented by detailed case studies, introduce the circular bioeconomy approach, and more.
Advanced Zero Waste Tools: Present and Emerging Waste Management Practices, Volume One in the Concepts of Advanced Zero Waste Tools series addresses the fundamental principles of zero waste that encourages the redesign of resource lifecycles so that products are reused. By promoting reuse and recycling, as well as prevention and product designs that consider the entire product lifecycle, the zero waste philosophy advocates for sustainability and environmental management and protection. This book takes the first step toward addressing the tools needed to implement zero waste, both on a practical and conceptual scale. In addition to environmental and engineering principles, the book also covers economic, toxicologic and regulatory issues, making it an important resource for researchers, engineers and policymakers working toward environmental sustainability.
Geological disposal has been internationally adopted as the most effective approach to assure the long-term, safe disposition of the used nuclear fuels and radioactive waste materials produced from nuclear power generation, nuclear weapons programs, medical, treatments, and industrial applications. Geological repository systems take advantage of natural geological barriers augmented with engineered barrier systems to isolate these radioactive materials from the environment and from future populations.Geological repository systems for safe disposal of spent nuclear fuels and radioactive waste critically reviews the state-of-the-art technologies, scientific methods, regulatory developments, and social engagement approaches directly related to the implementation of geological repository systems.Part one introduces geological disposal, including multiple-barrier geological repositories, as well as reviewing the impact of nuclear fuel recycling practices and underground research laboratory activities on the development of disposal concepts. Part two reviews geological repository siting in different host rocks, including long-term stability analysis and radionuclide transport modelling. Reviews of the range of engineered barrier systems, including waste immobilisation technologies, container materials, low pH concretes, clay-based buffer and backfill materials, and barrier performance are presented in Part three. Part four examines total system performance assessment and safety analyses for deep geological and near-surface disposal, with coverage of uncertainty analysis, use of expert judgement for decision making, and development and use of knowledge management systems. Finally, Part five covers regulatory and social approaches for the establishment of geological disposal programs, from the development of radiation standards and risk-informed, performance-based regulations, to environmental monitoring and social engagement in the siting and operation of repositories.With its distinguished international team of contributors, Geological repository systems for safe disposal of spent nuclear fuels and radioactive waste is a standard reference for all nuclear waste management and geological repository professionals and researchers.
A geopolymer is a solid aluminosilicate material usually formed by alkali hydroxide or alkali silicate activation of a solid precursor such as coal fly ash, calcined clay and/or metallurgical slag. Today the primary application of geopolymer technology is in the development of reduced-CO2 construction materials as an alternative to Portland-based cements. Geopolymers: structure, processing, properties and industrial applications reviews the latest research on and applications of these highly important materials.Part one discusses the synthesis and characterisation of geopolymers with chapters on topics such as fly ash chemistry and inorganic polymer cements, geopolymer precursor design, nanostructure/microstructure of metakaolin and fly ash geopolymers, and geopolymer synthesis kinetics. Part two reviews the manufacture and properties of geopolymers including accelerated ageing of geopolymers, chemical durability, engineering properties of geopolymer concrete, producing fire and heat-resistant geopolymers, utilisation of mining wastes and thermal properties of geopolymers. Part three covers applications of geopolymers with coverage of topics such as commercialisation of geopolymers for construction, as well as applications in waste management.With its distinguished editors and international team of contributors, Geopolymers: structure, processing, properties and industrial applications is a standard reference for scientists and engineers in industry and the academic sector, including practitioners in the cement and concrete industry as well as those involved in waste reduction and disposal.
Deep Geological Disposal of Radioactive Waste presents a critical review of designing, siting, constructing and demonstrating the safety and environmental impact of deep repositories for radioactive wastes. It is structured to provide a broad perspective of this multi-faceted, multi-disciplinary topic: providing enough detail for a non-specialist to understand the fundamental principles involved and with extensive references to sources of more detailed information. Emphasis is very much on “deep” geological disposal – at least some tens of metres below land surface and, in many cases, many hundred of metres deep. Additionally, only radioactive wastes are considered directly – even though such wastes often contain also significant chemotoxic or otherwise hazardous components. Many of the principles involved are generally applicable to other repository options (e.g. near-surface or on-surface disposal) and, indeed, to other types of hazardous waste.
Many countries are currently exploring the option to dispose of highly radioactive solid wastes deep underground in purpose built, engineered repositories. A number of surface and shallow repositories for less radioactive wastes are already in operation. One of the challenges facing the nuclear industry is to demonstrate confidently that a repository will contain wastes for so long that any releases that might take place in the future will pose no significant health or environmental risk.One method for building confidence in the long-term future safety of a repository is to look at the physical and chemical processes which operate in natural and archaeological systems, and to draw appropriate parallels with the repository. For example, to understand why some uranium orebodies have remained isolated underground for billions of years. Such studies are called 'natural analogues'.This book investigates the concept of geological disposal and examines the wide range of natural analogues which have been studied. Lessons learnt from studies of archaeological and natural systems can be used to improve our capabilities for assessing the future safety of a radioactive waste repository.
This volume presents the proceedings of the International Conference on The Science and Engineering of Recycling for Environmental Protection (WASCON 2000), of which a number of themes have been identified. All are inter-related and inter-dependent in so far as potential users of secondary, recovered or recycled material have to be assured that the material is environmentally safe and stable. It is the environmental challenge that forms a leading theme for the conference, and the themes of quality assurance and quality control support this aspect. In terms of use of 'recovered' materials, science and engineering play important and inter-dependent roles and this is reflected in themes which form the very core of the conference. Of no less importance is control of land contamination and how we propose to model for the long term impact of our aims. However dutiful and competent our ideas and studies, there has to be a measure of control and the role of legislation forms the final theme of WASCON 2000.The breadth of studies being undertaken world-wide and the innovative ideas that are expressed in papers submitted are worthy of this important subject. It is also interesting to note that papers were offered from 30 countries, a sign of the increasing awareness of the need to preserve our natural resources and utilize to the full those with which we are more familiar. This book will contribute to the understanding of and solution of environmental problems concerning the re-use of waste materials in construction.
Analyzes alternatives to land disposal of hazardous metal waste streams, focusing on methods to prevent waste generation. Source reduction, recycling and treatment strategies are covered.