Resource Resurgence from COVID-19 Waste via Pyrolysis: a Circular Economy Approach

Abstract

Since the end of 2019, COVID-19 pandemic has affected 220 countries and currently majority of the world is facing the wrath of the second wave. One of the outcomes of the ongoing pandemic is the generation of huge amount of solid polymeric "COVID-waste" comprising medical waste, personal protective equipment (PPE) waste, packaging waste, and other household waste with potential infectious components residing on it. Thermochemical route is the preferred treatment and effective way of disposal of such infectious polymeric waste. Typically, incineration is employed to ensure complete destruction of the pathogens which is not a resource-efficient method. Pyrolysis is a sustainable alternative which can handle the present COVID-waste stream in short-term and long-term yielding valuable fuel and material products. Recently published literature in this avenue have clearly shown the versatility of this technology in efficiently handling both mono and mixed stream of polymers. Based on facts, we propose a resource resurgence framework that utilizes pyrolysis as the core conversion route for effectively handling COVID-waste streams. Our framework suggests how these plants can be operational and helpful in generation of revenue in post-pandemic times as well. We expect that the conscientious adoption of pyrolysis will certainly lead us towards a circular economy paradigm.

Keywords: COVID-19; COVID-waste; Circular economy; Pyrolysis; Resource recovery; Sustainability.

Fig. 1

Suggestive framework showing waste management scheme utilizing pyrolysis as a potential technology for resource resurgence. Waste collected from households, curb side, and hospitals is subjected to pyrolysis. Pyro-oil and pyro-char can be used for revenue generation while there is in situ utilization of the pyro-gas for heating purpose