Waste minimisation

The term waste minimisation is now widely used in industry and is described in the Institution of Chemical Engineers Waste Minimisation Guide [8]  

Waste minimisation involves any technique, process or activity which either avoids, eliminates or reduces a waste at its source, usually within the confines of the production unit, or allows reuse or recycling of the waste for benign purposes. 

This example introduces another term which is gaining increasing use, cleaner production, where the emphasis is on using production routes which inherently forestall the production of wastes, in the chlor-alkali case the avoidance of mercury. 

Cleaner Production - UNEP (United Nations Environmental Programme) description 

The continuous application of an integrated preventive environmental strategy to processes and products to reduce risks to humans and the environment. For production processes, cleaner production includes conserving raw materials and energy, eliminating toxic raw materials, and reducing the quantity of toxicity of all emissions and wastes before they leave a process. 

The relative importance of waste minimisation varies in terms of reduced environmental impacts, financial savings, reduced energy and materials usage, achieving regulatory compliance thereby reducing potential liabilities. An improved environment profile of the company can enhance investor confidence and environmentally responsible products may promote customer acceptance of the product. Furthermore waste costs money through a reduction in yield, decrease in productivity and the direct 

It is essential that the senior management of a company is engaged in the waste minimisation programme and provides leadership to the process. This ensures interest in  

Waste can be reduced by the applications of a variety of techniques individually or in tandem including those discussed below. 

Source reduction is a term given to the activity that reduces or eliminates the generation of waste from a process. The techniques used may be outlined as follows  

The seven stages necessary to implement a successful waste implementation programme are  

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Smith, R., and Petela, E. A., Waste Minimisation in the Process Industries, paper presented at the IChemE Symposium on Integrated Pollution Control Through Clean Technology, Wilmslow, UK, May 20-21, 1992. 

Used oil disposal trends include waste minimisation such as by reclaiming used fluid on site, as well as recycling of mineral oil lubricants instead of disposing by incineration. The recycling effort involves a system where spent mineral oils are collected then shipped to specialty refineries where the materials are distilled, hydrofinished, and re-refined into fresh base stocks. These re-refined materials are virtually identical to virgin feedstocks. 

Martin, K., and Bastock, T.W. (ed.) (1994) Waste Minimisation A Chemist s Approach, Royal Society of Chemistry, London. 

Clark, J. H. (ed.) 1995 Chemistry of waste minimisation. Glasgow Blackie. 

The designer must consider all possible sources of pollution and, where practicable, select processes that will eliminate or reduce (minimise) waste generation. The Institution of Chemical Engineers has published a guide to waste minimisation, IChemE (1997). 

IChemE (1997) Waste Minimisation, a practical guide (Institution of Chemical Engineers), London. 

Smith R and Petela EA (1992) Waste Minimisation in the Process Industries Part 2 - Reactors, Client Eng, 12, 509-510 12. 

The waste minimisation reaction related examples in this text are represented mainly by combinations of consecutive and parallel type reactions. Although the major details of such problems are dealt with in conventional textbooks, it may be useful to consider the main aspects of such problems from the viewpoint of solution by digital simulation. 

These and other waste minimisation considerations can be explored more fully both by reference to conventional texts and by simulation. 

Glober, B. Lorrain H. Waste minimisation in tbe dyebouse. Text. Chem. Color. 1993, 25, 15-20. Sbab, H.A. Sbarma, M.A. Dosbi, S.M. Pillay, G.R. Practical approach towards energy conservation, economy and effluent control in a process-house. Colourage 1989, 15, 20c. 

J.H. Clark, Ed., Chemistry of Waste Minimisation, Chapman and Hall, London, 1995. 

The Applications of Photocatalytic Waste Minimisation in Nuclear Fuel Processing... 

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