Techno-economic analysis of municipal sludge co-combustion power generation with different fuels

Municipal sludge production has been growing due to urbanization, and the sludge co-combustion process has been proven to be a promising alternative. Bituminous coal, straw, and general industrial solid waste (GISW) were used as fuel with sludge co-combustion power generation (CPG). The life cycle cost (LCC) theory and life cycle assessment (LCA) were applied to study the techno-economic and environmental impact of three CPG processes. The results show that the sludge CPG process demonstrates significant economic benefits. Using 1 ton of wet sludge as the functional unit. The net gains for using GISW, rice straw, and bituminous coal as fuel are yen 947.38, yen 261.31, and yen 135.78, respectively. However, the sludge CPG process imposes a burden on the environment, and incineration is the main stage leading to environmental degradation. Therefore, it is essential to focus on the emission of pollutants during this stage. This study can promote the economic sustainable development of sludge CPG.