Waste characterisation (or ''waste characterization'' in the United States) is the process by which the composition of different

waste stream Waste comes in many different forms and may be categorized in a variety of ways. The types listed here are not necessarily exclusive and there may be considerable overlap so that one waste entity may fall into one to many types. * Agricultural ...

s is separated, "separate collection," and analyzed. Waste characterisation plays an essential part in waste treatment, which may occur. Developers of new waste technologies must analyze and evaluate what waste streams consist of to offer proper treatment. The biodegradable element of the waste stream is vital in systems such as

composting Compost is a mixture of ingredients used as plant fertilizer and to improve soil's physical, chemical, and biological properties. It is commonly prepared by Decomposition, decomposing plant and food waste, recycling organic materials, and man ...

anaerobic digestion Anaerobic digestion is a sequence of processes by which microorganisms break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen. The process is used for industrial or domestic purposes to Waste management, manage waste or to produce fuels. Mu ...

. Waste characterisation is a manual process carried out beside waste management plants. It consists of taking a tonne from a garbage truck, dividing the sample into four parts, mixing them, dividing again into four parts, and taking one of them (250kg) to analyze manually. This process takes around 3-4 hours to complete and generally involves 2-4 people. Even if this process is carried out very frequently (usually every 2 or 3 days), it is only a sample of the waste composition. Solid material waste is classified in material recovery facilities with mechanical tools (magnetic for metal, air pumps for plastic films, ramps for rolling objects, etc.), and the contents of the garbage truck are unknown until the process takes place. The Nine Major Waste Characterisations: * Paper and paperboard *

Glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...

Metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

Plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...

Textiles Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

* Organics *

Construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

and

Demolition Demolition (also known as razing and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction (building), deconstruction, which inv ...

(C &D) * Special Care * Other Municipal waste streams are commonly broken down into the following constituents: * Film plastic-

LDPE Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) is a thermoplastic made from the monomer ethylene. It was the first grade of polyethylene, produced in 1933 by John C. Swallow and M.W Perrin who were working for Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) using a high pr ...

* Dense plastic-

HDPE High-density polyethylene (HDPE) or polyethylene high-density (PEHD) is a thermoplastic polymer produced from the monomer ethylene. It is sometimes called "alkathene" or " polythene" when used for HDPE pipes. With a high strength-to-density ratio ...

PET A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive/ cute appearances, inte ...

Ferrous In chemistry, iron(II) refers to the chemical element, element iron in its +2 oxidation number, oxidation state. The adjective ''ferrous'' or the prefix ''ferro-'' is often used to specify such compounds, as in ''ferrous chloride'' for iron(II ...

metal *

Non-ferrous In metallurgy, non-ferrous metals are metals or alloys that do not contain iron (allotropes of iron, ferrite, and so on) in appreciable amounts. Generally more costly than ferrous metals, non-ferrous metals are used because of desirable proper ...

metals *

*"Other" any remaining items which do not fit Biodegradable Fraction: *

Paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...

cardboard Cardboard is a generic term for heavy paper-based products. Their construction can range from a thick paper known as paperboard to corrugated fiberboard, made of multiple plies of material. Natural cardboards can range from grey to light brown ...

*Garden waste or

green waste Green waste, also known as biological waste, is any organic waste that can be composted. It is most usually composed of refuse from gardens such as grass clippings or leaves, and domestic or industrial kitchen wastes. Green waste does not inclu ...

*Fines (items below a certain screen size) *

Food Food is any substance consumed by an organism for Nutrient, nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or Fungus, fungal origin and contains essential nutrients such as carbohydrates, fats, protein (nutrient), proteins, vitamins, ...

The European Waste Catalogue

Overview The European Waste Catalogue (EWC) refers to a set (non-exhaustive) list of wastes from households and businesses inside the European Union.The EWC is a code (six numbers in three sets of two) that adequately describes the waste transported, handled, or treated. The EWC is where Duty of Care Notices or Waste Transfer Notes are passed between waste management companies and waste carriers to report volumes received or treated back to the governing agency (such as the Environment Agency in England and Wales, Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) in Scotland, Northern Ireland (NI) Environment Agency, etc.). Typical Waste Characterisation & Reporting The first step in characterising waste is to decide on the appropriate EWC code. These codes carry three categories - absolute non-hazardous, mirror entries, and absolute hazardous. The initial assessment for the majority of wastes follows a simple derivation of industry (twenty main categories) from which they were obtained (agricultural, woodworking (furniture), electronics, etc.). Each derived section is denoted by the first two sets of two numbers, referring to a particular industry or sector. The final set of two numbers relates directly to the waste. The waste is hazardous by its very composition. An asterisk follows behind the EWC. Each member state's Environment Agency throughout the European Union must adopt the EWC in its reporting methods and enforce its use by the respective waste management sector. The lists are available through the European Commission's website. Submissions by Waste Management Companies to their respective member states' Environmental Agencies are collated, in many instances, by conversion to EWC STAT (European Waste Catalogue for Statistics) for submission to the EU, which oversees all member states and ensures compliance with unilaterally agreed standards and recycling rates. Waste Entries Waste entries are hazardous, not by the composition of the waste, but by virtue of the process that produced it. The same is true for non-hazardous absolute entries. Mirror entries can be hazardous or non-hazardous, depending on the waste composition. Deciding whether a mirror entry is hazardous or non-hazardous by composition involves the usage of the Approved Supply List (ASL). A substance not listed in the ASL permits other sources, such as Manufacturer's Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), to classify the waste. These documents contain "Risk Phrase," which describes the hazards that the substance or substances present. Risk phrases have threshold values that indicate what concentration of a substance must be present for the waste to be classified as hazardous by the Hazard Code attached to the Risk Phrase. Examples of Waste Characterisations - How is a waste characterisation study? - What is a waste characterisation study? - Webinar: Best Practices for Waste Characterization

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Waste Characterisation Landfill Waste legislation in the European Union Waste management

The European Waste Catalogue

See also

References