Converting old landfills to energy producing sites, while capturing emitted greenhouse gases, has faced numerous technical, financial and social challenges and developments lately. Also, the re-mining of landfills to recover useful land in dense urban areas and proper landfill closure has been a subject of discussion and investigation. Designed as an overview text for landfill management from cradle to grave, this volume's content stretches from the fundamentals to the rather indepth details. By putting down their joint international experience, the authors have intended to both guide and inspire the user for his or her landfill project.
Introducing the fundamental concepts of landfill gas management and its needs and importance in the present world energy scenario, this accessible reference volume presents key landfill gas management techniques at regional, national and global levels. In detail, it gives an account of the recent technologies available for landfill gas treatment and its utilization. It summarizes landfill gas prediction models developed in various parts of the world and details their adequacy in various field conditions. Covering both landfill remediation aspects and economic considerations while selecting a landfill gas to energy utilization project, the reader gets familiar with the practical aspects of converting a landfill site. Also, the challenges faced by municipalities and landfill operators in recovering landfill gas as an energy source are described, and solutions are suggested for solving them effectively. These include practical execution problems, governmental issues, and developing policies to encourage investment. The volume also includes various case studies of landfill gas-to-energy utilization projects from around the world, which can be reviewed and customized for the reader's own application with the help of extensive reference section.
Intended as an overview text for advanced students and researchers in the relevant engineering and technology fields (Environmental, Civil, Geotechnical, Chemical, Mechanical and Electrical), this book will also be particularly helpful to practitioners such as municipal managers, landfill operators, designers, solid waste management engineers, urban planners, professional consultants, scientists, non-governmental organizations and entrepreneurs.
About the Author: Dr. Rajaram is a geotechnical and environmental engineer with 35 years of experience in sustainable environmental management. He obtained his B.E. from Osmania University, Hyderabad, Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, and a J.D. from Illinois Institute of Technology, Kent College of Law, Chicago. He has completed several large projects related to hazardous waste management, mining engineering, wastewater treatment and recycling, and municipal solid waste management. He opened and managed the operations of Tetra Tech India Limited (TTIL) in Delhi from 1994 to 2002, and built TTIL into one of the respected environmental consulting firms in India. He has transferred several waste management technologies from the US to India in the areas of municipal solid waste, wastewater treatment, and hazardous waste management. He earlier published the book "Sustainable Mining Practices - A Global Perspective" (CRC Press, 2005). Dr. Rajaram is an associate at Techknow Engineering LLC Chicago, an architectural/engineering firm. He manages Construction Quality Assurance for the O'Hare Modernization Program projects, and the Delhi office of Techknow Engineering. Dr. Rajaram received the International Leadership Award in 2000 and the International Award of Merit in 2002 from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) Chicago. Dr. Rajaram is active in community affairs, and serves on the Board of IIT Alumni Association and the University of Wisconsin Alumni Association. He is a Director at the Center for Transformation of Waste Technology in Wheaton, Illinois. He cofounded India Development Coalition of America (www.idc-america.org) in 2004 to promote sustainable development in India's villages. Through this organization, he is assisting with water and sanitation projects in rural India.
Mr. Faisal Zia Siddiqui is an environmental engineer having 15 years of experience in the field of solid waste management. He has worked on several landfill gas to energy projects in India. The scope of these projects included quantitative and qualitative assessment of waste and landfill gas emission modeling. Mr Siddiqui obtained his B.Sc in Chemical Engineering in 1996 from Aligarh Muslim University (A.M.U), Aligarh, India and M. Tech in Energy and Environment Management in 2001 from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, India. He has numerous publications to his credit in various International and national conferences, seminars and journals. He is presently Assistant Professor in the University Polytechnic, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, A.M.U, India. He has previously worked with the World Bank, Confederation of Indian Industries, Tetra Tech India Limited and Sycom Project Consultants, India. He is presently pursuing his PhD in the area of landfill gas recovery.
Dr Emran Khan is a mechanical engineer with over 26 years of experience in teaching and research in the areas of clean energy systems, renewable energy systems, life cycle analysis of energy systems, energy auditing and energy recovery from solid waste. Dr Khan did his B.Sc in Mechanical Engineering in 1984 from A.M.U., M.Tech in Energy Studies in 1992 from IIT, Delhi and Ph.D in 1997 from Delhi University, India. He has several publications in various International and national conferences, seminars and journals. He is presently serving as Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Jamia Millia Islamia University, Delhi, India. Dr Khan is co-principal investigator for a research project on pilot demonstration of clean technology for landfill gas recovery sponsored by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. The project can be replicated to other landfill sites in India.
