Environmental assessment integrated with process simulation for process design

The decisions within design and renovation of processes have traditionally been based only on technical and economic aspects. The impacts that waste emissions have on the environment have been taken in consideration after setting the basic lines of the project and even after having fixed the layout. A new approach, involving all these issues at the same time, has been developed in order to make better use of natural resources. The aim of this work is to integrate both process design and environmental tools in order to develop a methodology that involves, simultaneously, environmental analysis and process modelling. This methodology integrates both raw materials and energy streams, and specifies the main elements needed to interconnect the available data and variables. Furthermore, the outputs in the process modelling and environmental analysis are used as feedback in the design process. As an application example of this methodology, the Municipal Solid Waste incineration plant in Tarragona has been studied.