Using optimization to solve the dilemma of a delaware municipal solid waste landfill running out of capacity faster than predicted
Civil Engineering Department, North Carolina A and T University, USA.
Research Article
World Journal of Advanced Engineering Technology and Sciences, 2024, 12(01), 298–305.
Article DOI: 10.30574/wjaets.2024.12.1.0210
Publication history:
Received on 18 April 2024; revised on 06 June 2024; accepted on 08 June 2024
Abstract:
Municipal landfills play a vital role in disposing of the solid waste from a community. One of the biggest challenges landfill management face is when the available storage space is being reduced faster than the rate that was planned for. This shortening of the landfill lifecycle impacted the city of Wilmington, Delaware when it was found that their landfill had lost 11 years of its projected lifespan and would reach fully capacity within the next decade. In order to remedy the situation six alternative solutions were devised, with each having different costs (capital, operating, and transport) and varying lengths of landfill extension. This research used the principle of optimization via a LINDO program to determine which solution would achieve the longest landfill extension for the minimum total cost. Other constraints placed on the program include reducing the waste being sent to the landfill and to achieve a minimum of 25 additional years for the landfill. The calculated solution produced a cost reduction of $232.64 million dollars and 3.2 additional years of operation from the option that was eventually chosen by the landfill authority.
Keywords:
Optimization; LINDO; Landfill; Delaware; Recycling; Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)
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Copyright © 2024 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Liscense 4.0