University at Buffalo

Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering

CIE 340 J.N. Jensen

Environmental Engineering Fall 2014

Homework #6
Out 11/8/14, due 11/14/14 at 9:00am

The purpose of the first problem in this homework assignment is to have you appreciate the amount of energy
that can be recovered from one type of MSW. The second problem allows you to practice a simplified lifecycle
analysis (really just an accounting process).

1. One portion of MSW is construction and demolition (C&D) waste. Construction of a typical 2,000 square foot
residential home generates about 3,000 pounds of wood waste and 600 pounds of cardboard waste.

A. From the data in Table 1, calculate the lower heating value (LHV) of wood and cardboard in kJ/kg.

Table 1: Properties of Two Components of C&D Waste

HHV (kJ/kg) Moisture (%) % H (dry mass)

Wood 16,000 9.4 6.1
Cardboard 15,000 10.2 5.8

B. Assume that 20% of the C&D waste is recycled and 80% is incinerated to generate energy. What is the total
amount of energy that can be produced from the incinerated C&D waste? Assume the waste-to-energy facility is
25% efficient (i.e., 25% of the fuel energy is converted to usable energy out). Use the LHV as the heat value of
the C&D waste.

The average annual household energy consumption in the U.S. is 94,800 MJ per household per year. What
percentage of the annual energy use of one household would the incinerated C&D waste from the construction of
one house provide?

2. A lifecycle assessment (LCA) was conducted to compare 31 gallon steel and plastic (HDPE) fuel tanks for
cars. This question is only about the energy component of the LCA. There are three stages where energy is
consumed: extraction of materials, tank manufacture, and use.

A. Using the data in Table 2, calculate the energy for the steel tank and HDPE tank. In this part of the problem,
consider only energy for materials and manufacturing (i.e., only the data in Table 2). Which tank type requires
the least energy for materials and tank manufacturing? Be sure to include the scrap rate in your calculations. A
scrap rate of 10% means that it takes 111 kg of material to produce one 100 kg unit (10% of 111 kg is 11 kg,
leaving 100 kg for the product).
 Table 2: Energy for Materials and Manufacturing

Steel HDPE
Tank mass (kg) 21.92 14.07
Primary energy, materials (MJ/kg) 33.5 80.98
Primary energy, manufacturing (MJ/kg) 2.7 14.0
Scrap rate 18.9% 1.7%

B. In the LCA, we also must include the energy for the use of the tank. The steel and HDPE tanks have different
masses and therefore affect the gas mileage of the vehicle differently. Over the lifetime of the vehicle (here,
110,000 miles), we expect 4.0 L of gasoline to be consumed for each kg of tank mass. Each liter of gasoline
contains 42.1 MJ.

Calculate the usage energy for each tank type. Combine your answers from Parts A and B to calculate the lifecycle
energy use. Which tank type requires the least total energy over its lifecycle?