SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT OF ETHYLENE PRODUCTION FROM SEWAGE SLUDGE

Abstract

Ethylene products have become an important part of life for people all over the world. With the wide variety of properties that allow it to perform many functions, it has become increasingly important in many industries, from medical to consumer-oriented goods. Owing to its large range of applications the global ethylene market in terms of value was USD 162.50 Billion, in terms of Volume of 161.05 million Tonnes making it the largest produced chemical in the world. With the rise in population, urbanization, and improved standards of living there are increase in demand of ethylene and its derivatives. But right now almost all of the ethylene is made from petrochemical feedstock and is responsible for high GHG emissions, and as per Paris Agreement signed in December 2015, it was targeted to keep Earth's surface temperature below 2℃ compared to the pre-Industrial level. It was estimated that not more than 1000gt of CO2eq. should be emitted between 2011 and 2100.In addition to this with the increase in demand of products and manufacturing needs there is lot of waste generation and disposing of the waste is quite a big problem now. Therefore, there is a need for a process that reduces GHG emissions and adds value to the waste, thus proper waste management. The proposed ethylene production plan aims at such a sustainable approach of ethylene production by using waste to generate ethanol which is then converted into ethylene. This study focus on implementation and sustainability assessment of ethylene production in developing nation like India and in developed nation like Canada. Both countries have large economies and ethylene demand is on rise as per the recent trend. Sustainability assessment and ethylene production from waste performance will be compared with the fossil fuel route, which is most abundant source of ethylene in both the countries. Sustainability assessment basically will consist of life cycle analysis, techno economic analysis, and social impact analysis at two different markets and conditions i.e. India and Canada.