Abstract
Chemical engineering uses science and mathematics to evaluate and find solutions to problems related to food processing, materials development, environmental remediation and other challenges for the improvement of life. In this paper, knowledge on chemical engineering researches and principles are used to evaluate the proposed solid waste management project for Iligan City. Iligan City is situated in Northern Mindanao, about 800 km southeast of Manila, Philippines. It has a population of 322,821 persons as of May 2010, generating an average of 165 t of garbage per day. In 2005, the City Government applied for a loan amounting to USD 3.8 M for the construction of the Central Material Recovery and Composting Facility (CMRCF) to process the garbage. After eight years of construction and implementation, the project was stopped due to poor design, information and educational campaign failure, and misappropriation of resources. The City Council then requested the assistance of chemical engineers at Mindanao State University Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT). Studies at the chemical engineering laboratories of MSU-IIT were geared toward examining new alternative technologies to handle the mixed wastes. This paper presents technologies for the production of synthetic petroleum products from plastics, biomass gasification for electricity generation, and accelerated composting of kitchen and garden wastes using a patented composter and dehydrator machine. Research results are presented in graphs and tables; statistical tools are used to correlate empirical and experimental data. The research results served as sound basis in the evaluation and decision-making process on a company (Vistagreen Corporation) that claims to have clean technology for handling solid wastes, water-free waste processing, and waste-to-energy technologies based on thermolysis gasification followed by high temperature decomposition of toxic and residual wastes.
