Search
Close this search box.

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Processing

Municipal solid waste (MSW), also known as trash or garbage, is non-hazardous refuse generated by households, institutions, hospitals, and businesses. It comprises waste, compostable, and recyclable materials, with the municipality overseeing its disposal.

msw-waste-handling

Typically, this refuse is collected, separated, and sent to either a landfill or a municipal recycling center for processing.

In some cases, what is defined by a community as municipal solid waste will vary by jurisdiction.

Definition of municipal solid waste = All types of solid waste generated by households and commercial establishments and collected usually by local government bodies.

 Municipal solid waste consists of:

  • household domestic waste that is set aside for collection or delivered by the householder directly to the waste facility,
  • other types of domestic waste (e.g., domestic clean-up, furniture, and residential garden waste),
  • local council generated waste (e.g., waste from street sweeping, litter bins, and parks),
  • commercial waste generated from food preparation premises, supermarkets, etc.).

The combined residential and commercial solid waste generated in an area can also be an MSW definition. MSW includes paper, cans, bottles, food scraps, yard waste, and other items.

Recently, the importance of alternative energy sources has become increasingly apparent, with landfills reaching capacity.

MSW consists of everyday items like glass, plastics, metals, textiles, organics, and paper.

The material mix of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) varies per country and, in some cases, even per community.

This mix contains many valuable products, compost, and high calorific materials (refuse-derived fuel / RDF) that, once separated by mechanical treatment or degraded by biological treatment, offer a broad range of new resources.

RDF (refuse-derived fuel) exploits the traditional household waste (MSW) energy content to substitute conventional fuels, thus posing an alternative.

MSW recycling is attractive, both environmentally and economically.

However, before the waste can be used as fuel, it must be sorted, and volume reduced into a homogenous fraction size.

MSW management consists of 4 components:

  • Disposal
  • Composting
  • Waste-to-energy
  • Recycling

It is crucial to monitor MSW collection and record the information about collection time, area, and other related data from a central location.

Municipal solid waste management covers the activities and actions required to manage MSW from collection to its final disposal.

Municipal Solid Waste recycling systems employ a variety of different pieces of equipment to quickly and reliably sort materials, including the following:

Subscribe to our E-newsletters

Get the extensive coverage for technical textile professionals who buy, maintain, manage or operate equipment, delivered to your inbox (it’s free!).

By signing up for our list, you agree to our Terms & Conditions.

Articles about Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Processing

Experts for Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Processing

Ankit Kalola, the General Manager of Fornnax Technology Pvt. Ltd, who has been an integral part of our team since May 2013, is an expert of shredding equipment and complete recycling solutions. Ankit’s academic excellence shines through his first-class B.Tech degree from Rajasthan Technical University. He possesses a wide range of skills including exceptional communication, Technical Knowledge in Shredding Field, Sales Strategies, Sales planning, Analytical process, CRM, Goal identification, Performance Management and Teamwork. His valuable assistance has propelled our business to new heights of achievement, particularly through the successful introduction of Fornnax’s recycling and shredding solutions in domestic and foreign markets. You can contact Mr. Ankit by phone +91-9033077711 or via email: info@fornnax.com for further questions.
Read more
Xu Xifeng, the founder of Keson and vice president of Jiangsu Low Carbon Environment Design Institute of China. He has been engaged in solid waste recycling industry for more than 10 years, and has unique insights on solid waste overall solutions and resource recovery and sorting systems. He has visited well-known solid waste treatment companies in the Middle East, Europe, America and other regions, introducing standardized, refined and systematic management concepts of global top enterprises to his enterprises, and transforming advanced technologies and processes into productive forces. Within five years of solid waste sorting technology and waste resources in the field of rapid layout, his products are sold in 17 countries and more than 40 regions.
Read more
Charles Daridon is the Director Global Sales of the Bollegraaf Group. Charles was born in Bretagne but has been living in the Netherlands for several years now (since 2018). After a BSC in Chemistry, Charles attended a business school INSEEC in Paris. For more than 25 years, Charles has worked in the waste industry (soil remediation engineering, landfills, wastewater treatment, biogas plant) and, in the last 15 years, he became an expert in waste sorting solutions. His environmental commitment is not only professional but also personal.
Read more

Promoted video

Upcoming events

Events