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A facility location model for municipal solid waste management system under uncertain environment
Vinay Yadav1, A K Bhurjee2, Subhankar Karmakar3
1Centre for Environmental Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai 400076, India.
The Science of the Total Environment
|April 12, 2017
Summary
This study introduces an interval analysis algorithm to manage uncertainties in municipal solid waste management. It optimizes transfer station locations, ensuring financial sustainability for waste management systems.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Engineering
- Operations Research
Background:
- Municipal solid waste management involves complex processes with inherent uncertainties.
- Ignoring these uncertainties can lead to facility capacity issues and financial mismanagement.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an efficient algorithm for modeling parameter uncertainties in waste management.
- To optimize the economic siting of transfer stations within a municipal solid waste management system.
Main Methods:
- Developed an algorithm based on interval analysis to handle parameter uncertainties.
- Formulated a facility location model using mathematical programming (AMPL with KNITRO solver).
- Applied the model to identify optimal transfer station locations in a hypothetical urban center.
Main Results:
- The developed model identified five economically optimal transfer station locations out of ten potential sites.
- The optimum overall cost for the selected locations was determined to be [394,836, 757,440] Rs./day ([5906, 11,331] USD/day).
- Sensitivity analysis highlighted the importance of uncertainty modeling.
Conclusions:
- The interval analysis algorithm effectively addresses uncertainties in municipal solid waste management.
- Economic siting of transfer stations is crucial for the financial sustainability of waste management systems.
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