Evaluation of the Energetic Valorization Potential of Polymeric and Textile Industrial Wastes

Abstract

Among the solid wastes produced by textile industry, there is a significant amount of wastes with energetic value and which are usually sent to controlled landfills, without any recovery. This traditional route corresponds to high economical and environmental costs, since wastes can be used as a source of energy and/or materials. With the recycling route strongly restricted due to the presence of mixtures of different types of polymeric compounds, some of them not biodegradable, the study of the feasibility of energy recovery from such wastes is of upmost importance and the aim of the present work. Most of the wastes are valuable resources that can be used as raw materials or as an energy source to produce heat or electricity. In this work the potentiality of energy recovery from solid wastes of some of the Vale do Ave textile units was investigated. For that purpose, wastes have been characterized for their weight loss at 105°C, calorific value and ashes content (after burning out at 850°C). The chemical composition of the ashes was determined by X-Ray fluorescence spectrometry. DSC-TGA tests were performed in two different atmospheres, air and argon, in order to evaluate the thermal behavior of the studied wastes. The characterized wastes showed calorific values not negligible, varying from 3500 to10400 kcal/kg (at dry base), similar to the results obtained by others authors and comparable to solid materials which are traditionally considered as fuels (sugar cane, lignite, etc). A weight loss at (105°C) lower than 6.5% and a maximum ashes content of 15% was achieved. However, some ashes present high contents of heavy metals, which can drives to environmental concerns. By the analysis of the thermal profiles it was found that wastes decomposition takes place at low temperatures (< 600°C) resulting in a small amount of the final solid fraction. Concerning the obtained results, the solid wastes collected from different textile units show high potential for energy recovery.