Title: Municipal Solid Waste as Sustainable Energy Source for Brazil
Abstract: Depositing municipal solid waste (MSW) in dumps has provoked serious impacts in Brazil in the last decades because of the gas and liquid effluents which contaminate the soil and underground water resources in addition to emitting greenhouse gases (GHG) to the atmosphere. To mitigate these impacts, this paper presents proposals for treatment of solid waste by recycling, incineration and biodigestion with the objective of showing the decision makers that solid waste is not a problem and can be a solution as a source of renewable energy. The results of the study show that the MSW proposed treatments represent a forward march for sustainability and environment preservation. The biological treatment option can produce about 221.7 GWh/month or energy enough for 1.26 million homes. The incineration treatment option can produce energy of about 2902.6 GWh/month. The generated ash of about 10% can be used for manufacturing bricks, biofuels and other products. In addition, in all processes CO2 emissions are significantly reduced.