Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC

Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

COLLECTION OF SOLID WASTES

Collection of solid waste in urban areas is difficult and complex

because the generation of residential, commercial and industrial solid waste is
a diffuse process that takes place in every home, every apartment building
and every commercial and industrial facility as well as in the streets, parks,
and even vacant areas of every community. The like development of suburbs
all over the country has further complicated the collection task.

Collection Services includes not only the gathering of solid wastes, but also the
hauling of wastes after collection to the location where the collection vehicle is
emptied. Collection of solid wastes is one of the most costly functional elements,
because of high cost of fuel and labor.

Type of solid Waste collection services

Various types of collection services now used for municipal, commercial,
and industrial sources. The most common municipal collection systems are curb,
alley and backyard collection. The collection service provided to large apartment
buildings, residential complexes and commercial and industrial activities typically
centered on the use of large movable and stationary containers.

 Curb Service: The house owner is responsible for placing the solid waste
containers at the curb on the scheduled day. The workers come, collect, and
empty the container and put back at the curb. Curb collection has gained
popularity because labor cost for collection can be minimized. In the future
it appears that the use of large containers which can emptied mechanically
with an articulated containers pick up mechanism will be the most common
method used for the collection of municipal wastes

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

• Alley Service: The containers placed at the alley line from where they are
picked up by workers from refuse vehicle who deposit back the empty
container.
• Set out set back service: Set out man go to the houses to collect containers
and empty them in the refuse vehicles. Another group of persons returns
them to the house owner’s yard.
• Backyard Service: The workers with the vehicles carry a bin, wheel-borrow
to the yard and empty the solid waste container in it. See Figures 1, 2.

Fig.1. Collection of wastes from containers placed at curb by homeowner (a) with a side-loading
vehicle equipped with a right-hand drive mechanism, and (b) with rear-loading collection
vehicle. The rear-loaded type of collection vehicle is commonly used with two- and three- person
crews for the collection residential wastes in many parts of the United States.

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

Fig. 2. Typical example of mechanized collection vehicle with mechanical articulated pickup
mechanism used for the collection of domestic source waste

Types of collection systems

Solid waste collection system may be classified from several point of view
such as the mode of operation, the equipment used, and the types of waste
collected. In this text collection, system has been classified according to their mode
of operation.
Hauled – container systems
Stationary- container systems
Hauled Container Systems (HCS)
Hauled Collection system in which the containers used for the storage
of waste are hauled to the processing, transfer or disposal site, emptied and
returned to either their original location or some other location. Fig. 3

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

Stationary –Container System (SCS)

Stationary Collection system in which the containers used for the storage of
wastes remain at the point of waste generation, except when moved for collection.
There are two main types of stationary- container systems :(1) those in
which self-loading compactors are used, and (2) those in which manually loaded
vehicles are used. Fig.4
Hauled Container System and equipment
Hauled Container Systems are ideally suited for the removal of wastes from
sources, where the rate of generation is high, because relatively large containers
are used. The use of large containers eliminates time as well as the unsightly
accumulations and unsanitary conditions associated with the use of numerous
smaller containers. Another advantage of hauler container system is flexibility:
Containers of many different sizes and shapes are available for the collection of all
types of wastes.

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

Fig 4. Sketch for waste collection haul systems: (a) Conventional mode
and (b) Exchange –container mode

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

Fig.5 Schematic of operational sequence for stationary container

Analysis of collection systems

Definition of terms
The activities involved in the collection of SW can be resolved into four unit
operations: pickup, haul, at-site, and off-route. These unit operations are defined
in Table 3.1

Table (3.1) Definition of terms for the activities involved in the collection of solid wastes.
Term Definition
Pick up (p)
Hauled– The time spent picking up the loaded container, the time
container required to redeposit the container after its contents have
system Phcs been emptied, and the time spent driving to the next
container.

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

Stationary– The time spent loading the collection vehicle beginning with
container the stopping of the vehicle point to load the content of the
system Pscs first container and ending when the contents of the last
container to be emptied have been loaded.
Haul (h)
Hauled– The time required to reach the disposal site, starting after the
container container whose contents are to be emptied has been loaded
system hhcs on the truck , plus the time after leaving the disposal site
until the truck arrives at the location where the empty
container is to be redeposited. Time spent at the disposal site
is not included.
Stationary– The time required to reach the disposal site, starting after the
container last container on the route has been emptied or the collection
system hscs vehicle is filled , plus the time after leaving the disposal site
until the truck arrives at the location of the first container to
be emptied on the next collection route. Time spent at the
disposal site is not included.
At-site (s)
The time spent at the disposal site including the time spent
waiting to unload as well as the time spent unloading
Off-route (w) All time spent on activities that are nonproductive from the
point of view of the overall collection operation. Necessary
off-route time includes
(1) Time spent checking in and out in the morning and at the
end of the day
(2) Time lost due to unavoidable congestion
(3) Time spent on equipment repairs and maintenance.
Unnecessary off-rout time includes time spent for lunch in
excess of the stated lunch periods and time spent on taking
unauthorized coffee breaks, talking to friends, etc.

Hauled–container system
The time required per trip, is equal to the sum of pick-up, at site, and haul
times and given by the following equation:
Thcs= (Phcs+ s + h)....................................... (1)

Where Thcs = time for trip for hauled –container system, h/trip
Phcs = pick up time per trip for hauled- container system, h/trip

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

S = at site time per trip h/trip

h=haul time per trip h/trip

h =a+bx
a = empirical haul constant h/ trip Table (3.2)
b = empirical haul constant h/ km
x = round trip haul distance km/trip
The pick up time per trip Phcs is equal to:

Phcs= pc+ ac + dbc ............................................ (2)

Where Phcs = pick up time per trip h/trip
Pc= time required to pickup loaded container h/trip table 3.3
ac = time required to unload empty container h/trip
dbc = average time spent driving between container locations h/trip
(Determined locally)

Table (3.2) Typical values for haul constant coefficients a and b in eq. 1
Speed limit Speed limit a b b
km/h mi/h h/trip h/km h/mi
88 55 0.016 0.011 0.018
72 45 0.022 0.014 0.022
56 35 0.034 0.018 0.029
40 25 0.050 0.025 0.040

Table (3.3) Typical data for computing requirements for hauled and
stationary –container collection systems
Vehicle Pick-up loaded Empty contents of At site time
container and deposit loaded container h/trip
empty container h/container
h/trip (pc+ac)
Hauled-container 0.4 0.133
system
Stationary 0.05 0.10

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

The number of trips that can be made per vehicle per day with a hauled
container system, including a factor to account for off-route activities, is
determined using Eq. 3

Nd = [ ( 1-W) H – (t1 + t2 ) ] / (Phcs+ s + a+ bx)....................................... (3)

Where Nd =number of trips per day trip/d

W= off-route factor, expressed as a fraction
H = length of work day, h/d
T1 = time from garage to first container location, h
T2= time from last container location to garage, h
The off-rout factor (w) in eq. 3 varies from 0.1 to 0.25 a factor of 0.15 is
representative for most operations

Example 1
Solid waste from a new industrial park is to be colleted in large container
(drop boxes), some of which will be used in conjunction with stationary
compactors. Based on traffic studies at the similar parks it is estimated that the
average time to drive from the garage to the first container (t 1 ) and from the last
container ( t2 ) to the garage each day will be 15 and 20 min., respectively. If the
average time required to drive between containers is 6 min and the one-way
distance to the disposal site is 25 km (speed limit:88 km/h) , determine the number
of containers that can be emptied per day, based on 8-h work day
Solution

1. Determine the pick-up time per trip Phcs= pc+ ac + dbc

Use : pc+ ac = 0.4 h/trip (table 4)
dbc= 0.1 h/trip (given)
Phcs = ( 0.4+ 0.1) h/trip
= 0.5 h/trip
2. Determine the time per trip Thcs= (Phcs+ s + a+ bx)
Use : phcs = 0.5 h/trip (from step 1)
S = 0.133 (table 4)
a = 0.0166 (table 5)
b = 0.011 (table 5)
Thcs = [ 0.5+ 0.133 + 0.016+ 0.011 (50)] h/trip
= 1.20 h/trip

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

3. Determine the number of trips that can be made per day

Nd = [ ( 1-W) H – (t1 + t2 ) ] / (Phcs+ s + a+ bx)

Use : W= 0.15 assumed
H = 8 h given
t 1= 0.25 h given
t 2= 0.33 h
Nd=[ (1-0.15)8 (0.25+0.33) ]/ (1.20) h/trip
= (6.8-0.58)/ 1.20
= 5.18 trips/d
Nd actual=5 trips/d

1. Determine the actual length of the workday:

5 trips=[(1-0.15)H-0.58]/1.2
H=7.74 h (essentially 8h)

Collection routes
Collection routes must be laid so both the work force and equipment are
used effectively. In general, the layout of collection routes is a trial –and error
process. There is no fixed rules that can be applied to all situations. Some of the
factors that should be taken into consideration when laying out routes:
1. Existing company policies and regulations such as the point of collection and
frequency of collection.
2. Existing system conditions such as crew size and vehicle types
3. Waste generated at traffic-congested locations, should be collected as early in
the day as possible.
4. Sources at which extremely large quantities of wastes are generated should be
serviced during the first part of the day,
5. Scattered pick-up points where small quantities of solid wastes are generated
should, if possible be serviced during one trip or on the same day.

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

Layout of Routes
The layout collection routes is a four step-process.
First, prepare location maps on a relatively large scale map of the area to be
served, the following data should be plotted for each solid-waste pick-up point:
location, number of containers, collection frequency.
Second, prepare data summaries. Estimate the quantity of waste generated from
pick-up locations serviced each day. Where the stationary system is used, the
number of pick up cycle must also be determined
Third, lay out preliminary collection routes starting from the dispatch station. A
route should be laid out that connects all the pickup locations to be served during
each collection day. The rout should be laid out so that the last location is nearest
the disposal site.
Fourth, develop balanced routes. After the preliminary collection routes have been
laid out, the haul distance for each route should be determined. In some cases it
may be necessary to readjust the collection routes to balance the work load and the
distance traveled. After the balance, routes have been established they should be
drawn on the master map.
Example 2
The following average speeds were obtained for various round-trip distances to a
disposal site. Find the haul-speed constants a and b and the round-trip-haul time for
a site that is located 17.7 km away.
Round trip distance X Total Average haul
Km/trip time h Speed km/h
3.2 0.12 27 The linearization of
8.0 0.18 45 form of haul- speed
12.8 0.25 50 equation is
19.3 0.33 60 = h = a+bX
25.7 0.40 65
32.8 0.48 65
40.2 0.56 70

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Chapter three- collection of SW Solid and Hazardous Waste Management-MSC
Asst. Prof. Dr. Ahmed

Number of collection vehicles needed for a community may be determined from

below equation:

Where:
N = Number of collection vehicles needed.
S = Total number of customers serviced.
F = Collection frequency, number of collections per week.
X = Number of customers a single truck can service per day.
W = Number of workdays per week.
Example 3
Calculate the number of collection vehicles a community would need if it has 4000
services (customers) that are to be collected once per week during working days in
a city in Iraq. (Realistically, most trucks can service only about 200 to 300
customers before the truck is full and a trip to the landfill is necessary).
Solution
1) Given:
N = Number of collection vehicles needed
S = Total number of customers serviced = 4000
F = Collection frequency, number of collections per week = 1
X = Number of customers a single truck can service per day (A single truck can
service 300 customers in a single day and still have time to take the full loads to
the landfill) = 300.
2) W = Number of workdays per week (The town wants to collect on Saturday,
Sunday, Monday, and Tuesdays leaving Wednesdays for special projects and truck
maintenance) = 4 days.
3) Thus: N = SF/XW = (4000 *1)/(300*4) = 3.3
4) The community will need four trucks.

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