The Newster healthcare waste treatment technology uses a thermal friction process to sterilise clinical and sharps waste, making it inert and unrecognisable. The on-site treatment unit has been tested, patented and certified to provide a suitable alternative to traditional treatment methods such as incineration.

The unit comprises a sterilisation chamber, an electrical control panel and filters.

Clinical and sharps waste are placed into the sterilising chamber, at which point stainless steel blades rotate at high speed to grind the waste by friction and impact. The temperature continues to rise until it reaches 150°C, resulting in the waste material being turned into inert sterile granules without any chemicals being added.

Once treated, the contents of the chamber are cooled and discharged into the waste hopper, water vapour is discharged to sewer and all air is filtered.

The treatment process results in the clinical and sharps waste being reduced by approximately 70–75%, ensuring a dry, odourless, inert and unrecognisable by-product. The by-product is claimed to be suitable for waste-to-energy plants, due to the high calorific value, or sent to landfill as general waste.

Benefits include: transportation and storage cost reduction due to weight and volume loss; reduction of the overall quantity of waste generated; increased resource recovery of waste by sorting and separation; reduction in disposal costs; and the opportunity to launch energy recovery projects by using the sterilised residue as a refuse-derived fuel (RDF). The technology is also claimed to reduce the environmental impact to near zero, with reduced environmental emissions and reduced risks associated with the transport of infectious waste.

This article is from Sustainability matters.

Reference: Wastegroup.” Newster healthcare waste treatment technology.” Sustainability matters, Wednesday 19 July 2017.

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