Improving the method for calculating carbon emissions from waste incineration: confirmed with carbon-14 testing of flue gas

Abstract An improved method was developed to calculate direct emissions from seven municipal solid waste incineration plants by adjusting the physical compositions of waste by invoking the proportion of co-incinerated waste and the bottom ash yield. The fossil carbon fractions of the waste components were determined by carbon-14 ( 14 C) testing. Based on the improved method, direct emissions were in the range of 222–610 kg CO 2 -eq/t waste, corresponding to reductions of 3.4–221 kg CO 2 -eq/t waste compared with the method without waste composition adjustment. The 14 C contents of the flue gas before and after gas cleaning were tested to validate the improved method, and indicated fossil CO 2 emissions of 249–446 and 233–405 kg CO 2 -eq/t waste, respectively. The direct emissions obtained by the improved method were closer to the results of 14 C testing, due to more accurate estimations of the actual waste composition. The method was further combined with a life cycle analysis of the waste incineration process, obtaining total carbon emissions in the range from –33.2 to 483 kg CO 2 -eq/t waste. The findings provide a new means of accurately calculating carbon emissions from waste incineration. Graphical Abstract