Identification and degradation of structural extracellular polymeric substances in waste activated sludge via a polygalacturonate-degrading consortium

By maintaining the cell integrity of waste activated sludge (WAS), structural extracellular polymeric substances (St-EPS) resist WAS anaerobic fermentation. This study investigates the occurrence of polygalacturonate in WAS St-EPS by combining chemical and metagenomic analyses that identify ∼22% of the bacteria, including Ferruginibacter and...

Roles of waste carbon fibers on the efficiency of multiple induction heating healing behavior in asphalt mixture for sustainable infrastructure

This study systematically investigated the potential of waste carbon fibers (WCFs) as a sustainable solution in enhancing the multiple induction heating healing of asphalt mixture, thereby tackling two major concerns: the environmental impact of WCFs and the durability of asphalt pavement. Firstly, four groups of asphalt binder samples with...

Release behavior of soluble salts in MSWI bottom ash used as road basement materials under continuous rainfall conditions

The bottom ash is increasingly used as a substitute aggregate material in road construction in China, and road salting is the major salt source in groundwater. Continuous rainfall releases soluble salts from the bottom ash subgrade into the surrounding soil and groundwater, resulting in potential hazards. Different methods were employed to...

Life cycle assessment of material footprint in recycling: A case of concrete recycling

Meeting the current demand for concrete requires not only mining tons of gravel and sand, but also burning large amounts of fossil fuel resources in cement kilning. Consequently, concrete recycling is crucial to achieving a material-efficient society, especially with the application of various categories of concrete and the goal of phasing...

An overview of the waste hierarchy framework for analyzing the circularity in construction and demolition waste management in Europe

The construction sector is the biggest driver of resource consumption and waste generation in Europe. The European Union (EU) is making efforts to move from its traditional linear resource and waste management system in the construction sector to a level of high circularity. Based on the theory of circular economy, a new paradigm called waste...

The Effect of Wet Treatment on the Distribution and Leaching of Heavy Metals and Salts of Bottom Ash from Municipal Solid Waste Incineration

One of the main challenges of bottom ash reutilization is heavy metal and salts' leaching potential. The effect of wet treatment on chemical composition and leaching toxicity of bottom ash were investigated in this study to mitigate this leaching potential. Batch leaching and column leaching tests were first conducted to investigate the...

Eco-efficiency assessment of technological innovations in high-grade concrete recycling

The increasing volume of Construction and demolition waste (CDW) associated with economic growth is posing challenges to the sustainable management of the built environment. The largest fraction of all the CDW generated in the member states of the European Union (EU) is End-of-life (EOL) concrete. The most widely applied method for EOL concrete...

Magnetic Density Separation of Polyolefin Wastes

Polymer recycling has significantly positive impacts on the environment, economics and society. Using recycled polymer to replace virgins reduces the growing amount of post-consumer polymer wastes, decreases the demand for fossil fuel and creates local jobs. As the most used polymer types, polyolefins certainly have attracted attention of...

Magnetic fluid equipment for sorting of secondary polyolefins from waste

The paper presents the researches made on the FP7 project „Magnetic Sorting and Ultrasound Sensor Technologies for Production of High Purity Secondary Polyolefins from Waste” in order to develop a magnetic fluid equipment for sorting of polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) from polymers mixed waste streams. Because both PP and PE float in...

Recycling of WEEE by magnetic density separation

The paper introduces a new recycling method of WEEE: Magnetic Density Separation. By using this technology, both grade and recovery rate of recycled products are over 90%. Good separations are not only observed in relatively big WEEE samples, but also in samples with smaller sizes or electrical wires.