Treatment and Reutilization of Medical Waste CHBE446 Team 2: Heather Cook, Savannah Green, Mike Wellen, Dave Weglein

Agenda Introduction Market Analysis Current Uses Goals Process Outline Safety Considerations Concluding Remarks

What is medical waste? According to the EPA: “Any solid waste that is generated in the diagnosis, treatment, or immunization of human beings or animals, in research pertaining thereto, or in the production or testing of biologicals” Plastics, textiles, PVC Biological material/waste Glass (syringes) Dressings livescience.com

How is it regulated? Medical Waste Tracking Act of 1988 Cradle to grave tracking system Management standards for segregation, packaging, marking, labeling, and storage of medical waste Record keeping requirements & penalties for mismanagement Coalition for Safe Community Needle Disposal Drop box/collection sites, mail-back programs, syringe exchange programs, at home needle destruction devices Specific state regulations For MD regulations, visit www.mde.maryland.gov

Is there a market for it? Yes! Hospitals, doctors offices, medical research facilities Seeking ways to cut costs Several billion pounds of waste generated each year Market for the products Get paid to take the inputs holykaw.alltop.com

Current Uses (I) Company - Environmental Energy Resources Uses “Plasma-Gasification-Melting” (PGM) technique High conversion of waste to syngas, steam, and solids Pyrolysis and gasification Plants in Russia and Israel

Current Uses (II) Company - Energy-Inc Pyrolysis (decompose organics w/o O2) Gasification (produce syngas w/o combustion) Heat/energy Syngas: 1,885,000 MMbtu/year Biochar: 9,125 tons of biochar annually Electricity: 22,000 kWh Energy-Inc Number 500 tons of waste per day 22,000 KWh of electricity or thee quivalent of 22,000 homes per hour 1,100,000MM btu of thermal energy per year or 1,885,000 MMbtu of syn gas per year and 9,125 tons of biochar annually

Our Goals Switch from disposal to utilization Sterilize and recycle waste Optimize the process to reutilize as much waste as possible Create a cost effective process Save money, preserve landfill space, follow regulations thecambelltimes.com

Overall Inputs/Outputs Inputs: (~10 tons/day) Gauze (99% collagen) Plastic (syringes) Gloves (latex) Needles Outputs: Steam CO2 Possibly the syngas itself Organic fertilizer ljworld.com

General Steps Separate waste in specified containers (completed by medical facilities) Pick up waste and deliver to reutilization facility Send to reactor to turn into syngas Send to Thermal Residence Chamber, which keeps the gasification going and brings to equilibrium Go through a heat recovery steam generator Clean gas with APC equipment and send to be sold or combusted Pyrolysis (Gibbs), Gasification (Gibbs), Thermal Res Chamber (Kinetic), Steam generator (Heat exchanger), APC? (Scrubber)

Process Flow Diagram PGM: [Pyrolysis (Kinetic), Gasification (Kinetic)], Thermal Residence Chamber: [bringing to equilibrium (Gibbs)], HRSG: [Steam generator (Heat exchanger)], APC (Scrubber, condenser, etc)

Unit Operations Heat exchangers Reactors Separators/scrubbers Pumps/compressors http://www.inentec.com/pemtm-technology/process-details.html

Safety and Environmental Considerations Personal protective equipment while handling waste and equipment (goggles, mask, etc) Specified containers for different types of waste Proper labeling Sterilization of product before reuse Controls in process Regulation of outputs Caution - high temperatures and pressures cvcenvironmental.com

Takeaway Points Proper disposal of medical waste has been regulated since 1988 Hospitals demand more cost effective waste treatment techniques Emphasis on reusing the treated waste Medical waste can be turned into useful, profitable products such as steam, syngas, and fertilizers

Thank you!

References http://www.epa.gov/osw/nonhaz/industrial/medical/ http://www.eer-pgm.com/_Uploads/dbsAttachedFiles/May_2011.pdf http://www.energy-inc.com/technology/ http://rpn.baumpub.com/news/1599/new-conversion-process-designed-to-eliminate-medical-waste-in-landfills http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306261912002322 http://www.inentec.com/pemtm-technology/process-details.html