Comparative analysis of WtE technologies based on multiple criteria analysis and life cycle considerations

Nowadays, a range of alternative options and technologies for Waste to Energy are currently available and analytically discussed in the effort to promote energy production and rational waste management. In this paper, a generic methodological scheme is proposed for the comparative analysis of WtE (Waste-to-Energy) technologies based on multiple criteria analysis and life cycle considerations. The approach is based on Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA). The methodological scheme simultaneously considers environmental, economic, and social criteria to support robust decision-making. Towards validating the methodology, the latter was demonstrated in a real-world case study taking for Greece, considering four main technological options i.e., incineration, gasification, pyrolysis, and anaerobic digestion. Questionnaires, both for a pool of fifteen experts and the public were disseminated and interesting results are analyzed and discussed. Based on the proposed methodological scheme, the results for the basic scenario (when social, environmental, and economic considerations have equal weighting factor) promote anaerobic digestion as a more preferred option for Greece, followed by incineration, gasification, and pyrolysis. However, the optimal solution puts forward a mixture of technologies (i.e., combination of anaerobic digestion and incineration or gasification), depending on the differentiations of the scenarios weighting factors. Life cycle thinking should also be considered to provide a more reliable analysis related to the estimation of environmental performance of alternative technological solutions.