Particle Size Distribution in Municipal Solid Waste Pre-Treated for Bioprocessing

While it is well known that particle size reduction impacts the performance of bioprocessing such as anaerobic digestion or composting, there is a relative lack of knowledge about particle size distribution (PSD) in pre-treated organic material, i.e., the distribution of particles across different size ranges. PSD in municipal solid waste (MSW) pre-treated for bioprocessing in mechanical-biological treatment (MBT) was researched. In the first part of this study, the PSD in pre-treated waste at two full-scale MBT plants in the UK was determined. The main part of the study consisted of experimental trials to reduce particle sizes in MSW destined for bioprocessing and to explore the obtained PSD patterns. Shredders and a macerating grinder were used. For shear shredders, a jaw opening of 20 mm was found favourable for effective reduction of particle sizes, while a smaller jaw opening rather compressed the wet organic waste into balls. Setting the shredder jaw opening to 20 mm does not mean that in the output all particles will be 20 mm or below. PSD profiles revealed that different particle sizes were present in each trial. Using different types of equipment in series was effective in reducing the presence of larger particles. Maceration yielded a PSD dominated by very fine particles, which is unsuitable for composting and potentially also for anaerobic digestion. It was concluded that shredding, where equipment is well selected, is effective in delivering a material well suited for anaerobic digestion or composting.