Supplemental information for "Pellet Production from Municipal Solid Wastes Under Various Parametric Conditions in a Cold Canadian Climate"

<p>In this study, a lab-scale flat plate die mill was used to evaluate the pelletization of three organic municipal solid waste (MSW) streams: digestate from anaerobic processes (DAP), source-separated organics (SSOs), and refuse-derived fuel (RDF). Different particle sizes (4, 8, 12 mm) with moisture contents (MCs) of 10 and 15% were processed through a 6 mm die. RDFs and SSOs demonstrated excellent durability, but DAPs did not. RDFs had a high heating value (HHV) of 21.49 MJ kg^-1, twice that of DAPs (10.07 MJ kg^-1). The SSOs’ HHV varied seasonally (13.88 MJ kg-1 in spring-summer, 19.47 MJ kg^-1 in winter). At a 12 mm particle size, 10 and 15% MC RDF pellets had the lowest throughput capacity (6.99 and 12.20 kg hr^-1). Throughput capacity for 10 and 15% MC pelletized SSOs and RDFs decreased with larger particle sizes. The lowest specific energy consumption for 10 and 15% MC pelletized SSO and RDF was at 4 mm (256.99 kJ kg^-1) and 8 mm (1432.69 kJ kg-1) particle sizes. Specific energy consumption increased with particle size for 10% MC pellets, except for RDFs. At a 10% MC, RDFs reached a maximum bulk density of 594 kg m^-3, while SSO pellets achieved 730 kg m^-3. These optimized pelletization parameters are suitable for potential scale-up and future thermochemical conversion research, promoting sustainable use of organic MSW and the circular economy.</p>