Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
6323792 Science of The Total Environment 2016 11 Pages PDF
Abstract
Due to unequal distribution of the world's Phosphorus (P) sources for fertilizer production, an evaluation of P flows throughout the consumption system of a city is needed. The prime objective of this paper is to assess and prioritize P recovery options as to bring about, as much as possible, a close-looped P-for-food system. Using the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) as a case study, the aim of this work is to quantify the potential mass flow of P for four major types of urban wastes: domestic wastewater (DWW), septage sludge (SS), food waste (FW) and green garbage (GB) and to determine the recoverable stock of P available. The consumption of food and supplements such as cleansing products and fertilizer is estimated at a rate of 1146.4 g P·cap− 1·year− 1. P contained in wastes being discarded from its average 7.9 million population plus 33.8 million Bangkok-visiting tourists per annum is determined to be 8.01 kt P annually. Only 4% of the above quantity is recycled and used internally for cultivating plants grown in public parks. An annual amount of 7.68 kt P was found to be disposed of in landfills (6.23 kt P) and in the river systems (1.45 kt P). From the findings of this study, therefore, it is recommended that P recovery efforts from BMA's urban wastes should be focused on wastes enrouted to landfills since these constitute 81% of P discarded. As a consequence, solid waste combustion coupled with energy recovery from P-binding organics may be an appropriate means of P recovery. This technology has the potential to reduce waste volume, generate electricity, and produce P-containing ash that can be used for further application on farm lands.
Related Topics
Life Sciences Environmental Science Environmental Chemistry
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