Page 45 - Materials Chemistry, Second Edition

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Sustainable Industrial Design and Waste Management
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or more cleaner production techniques to be able to approach “sustainable
development” as will be explained.
Good housekeeping: Also referred to as good operating practices and depends
on reducing wastes from the source. It implies all the measures that a company
can take to minimize waste and emissions. Good housekeeping involves
either reducing potential wastes or conserving natural resources through opti-
mizing the process and eliminating spill, leakage, overheating or any fault
that would result in unnecessary losses. This can be achieved by following a
regular preventive maintenance program for the production process or rais-
ing staff environmental awareness or through an incentive mechanism.
Meanwhile, good housekeeping could be implemented at a very low cost or
no cost through procedural instructions in production, maintenance, storage
and material handling. The UNEP lists several good housekeeping measures
that industries could adopt to enhance efficiency, which could be summa-
rized in the following points (UNEP, 2000/2001):

• Minimize wastes and emissions by repairing all leakages from equip-
ments and spillage. Keep taps closed when not in use.
• Separate the hazardous wastes from the non-hazardous to avoid mix-
ing the two to decrease the volume of the hazardous wastes.
• Reduce the loss of input materials due to mishandling, expired shelf
life and proper storage conditions.
• Perform employee training and incentives to encourage all employ-
ees to continuously strive to reduce wastes.

Better process control: Good practice is achieved by an effective and effi-
cient planning and regulating process. It ensures that the conditions of the
process are optimal with respect to resource consumption, production and
waste generation. Process conditions such as temperature, pH, pressure, water
level, time, etc. should be measured, monitored and maintained at possible
optimum conditions. It requires continuous monitoring and management.
Good control for the operating parameters will save energy, water and raw
material as well as increasing the efficiency of the industrial process avoiding
excessive wastes and emissions.

Equipment modification: This technique would include any modification in
the existing equipment in order to improve the process and account for more
efficient (optimum) utilization of raw materials, water or energy as well as
reducing emissions to the environment. For example, switching energy from
using heavy liquid oil “industrial fuel” to natural gas for boilers or industrial
furnaces will have a lot of economical and environmental benefits. Heavy
liquid oil has a high percentage of sulphur and other heavy metals and impur-
ities. Sulphur generates sulphur oxides while heavy metal generates metal
oxide. Both chemical compounds are very dangerous to human health. Heavy