Methodology for determining the mixing ratio of selected solid recovered fuels

Energy recovery is a preferable waste management method for waste that cannot be reused or recycled. For energy recovery, various types of waste with differing properties are being used, e.g. mixed municipal solid waste or end-of-life tires. To achieve a more stable and homogeneous characteristics of the waste derived fuels (RDF, SRF), they can be mixed in a number of ratios. The paper presents a methodology for determining the optimal mixing ratio of three selected waste derived fuels (mixed municipal solid waste, sewage sludge, end-of-life tires) considering environmental and economic aspects. The developed method is based on combining life cycle assessment method, mass balance calculations and multi-criteria analysis (the technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution – TOPSIS). The results show that mixing the various waste derived fuels allows obtaining a more sustainable solution than in the case of each separate waste derived fuel.