(544c) Integrated Waste-to-Energy and Energy Management Platform: A Demonstration in an Eco-Industrial Park

The rapid expansion of urban populations leads to the increases in the generation of municipal solid waste (MSW) and energy consumption, causing great pressure on the waste treatment and energy systems. Waste-to Energy (WtE) technologies, which processes waste into electricity, heat, and biogas, are popular waste treatment alternatives to landfill that address the problem of rising energy consumption simultaneously. Nowadays, both the conventional centralized MSW and energy management systems are evolving toward a more decentralized form with smaller capacity. This shift would requires an adapted decision-support method to assist decision-makers in analyzing and optimizing the WtE systems. In this work, an integrated waste-to-energy and energy management platform was developed and it is comprised of two parts: 1) waste-to-energy decision-support system (WTEDSS) and 2) energy management decision support system (EMDSS).

The WTEDSS addresses the process of electricity generation from waste. Firstly, the historical amount of waste generation is analysed to projects future waste generation for different waste streams. Then, mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) optimization is used to determine the optimum capacities of waste treatment facilities (centralized vs decentralized, anaerobic digestion (AD) vs incineration) and the allocation of waste intakes from different waste generation sites for different facilities for each year by maximizing the net present value (NPV) of the waste management system.

The EMDSS deals with the management of electricity generated by the WtE facilities using a game-theory-based demand-side management (DSM) incorporating energy storage components. The DSM is used to reduce the Peak-to-Average ratio smoothen the dips in load profile caused by supply constraints. A novel data-driven optimization framework is incorporated to select and size energy storage systems at suitable locations of the electricity network. The emerging blockchain technologies are also introduced to guarantee the seamless and secure implementation of the proposed energy management scheme, illustrating how a decentralized DSM approach could be implemented in practice.

As a demonstration, the integrated platform is applied to Jurong Island, an eco-industrial park in Singapore. The platform help decision-makers with examining the design and operation of the waste-to-energy and energy management systems under different scenarios. A case study showed that decentralized waste-to-energy systems were preferred if the current capital cost of the decentralized AD system could be lowered. The incorporation of DSM and energy storage systems were able to maintain the supply and demand balance, reduce utility bills of consumers, and reduce stress on grid in daily operation.