TITLE:
Assessment of Municipal Organic Solid Waste, as a Potential Feedstock for Briquette Production in Kampala, Uganda
AUTHORS:
Richard Basona Abondio, Allan John Komakech, Robert Kyeyune Kambugu, Nicholas Kiggundu, Joshua Wanyama, Ahamada Zziwa, Samuel Kyamanywa
KEYWORDS:
Organic Waste, Heavy Metal Concentration, Briquettes, Calorific Value, Renewable Energy
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Sustainable Bioenergy Systems,
Vol.10 No.2,
June
1,
2020
ABSTRACT: The
current shortage of energy resources coupled with environmental degradation
problems resulting from deforestation in Uganda has contributed to increased
demand for renewable energy resources including municipal organic solid waste
and agricultural residues. However, organic waste from Municipal Solid Waste
(MSW) may contain contaminants that are harmful to public health and the
environment. This study determined the heavy metal concentration in MSW in
Kampala City, Uganda. Also, the physicochemical properties of briquettes
produced from the MSW were compared with charcoal. The waste samples were collected
from residential, institutional and market areas over a period of two weeks. They were then analyzed for the presence of
heavy metals. Briquettes were made from the bio-waste and were subjected to calorific and proximate analysis.
Results indicated that the mean concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, and Pb were
1.25 mg/kg, 2.04 mg/kg, 38.2 mg/kg, 3.97 mg/kg and 1.99 mg/kg respectively
while Hg was not detected. The calorific values of briquettes ranged from 8.9
to 15.3 MJ/kg and were lower than those of charcoal. Heavy metal concentrations
in bio-waste collected were below the permissible acceptable limits. These findings indicate that the sampled MSW does not pose a health hazard
arising from the presence of such heavy metals and therefore could be a safe
source of renewable energy.