Airport waste is a challenge no one can ignore

Airports are among the busiest places in any country and can generate more waste than you might imagine. As a result, the team at Carrasco International Airport (MVD) (General Cesáreo L. Berisso) came to Addfield to replace the incinerator they used for airline and terminal waste. Leading to us supplying the first dedicated waste-to-energy incinerator for an airport in Uruguay, Carrasco International is the country's largest airport and its main international gateway. This particular job was a joint project between Addfield Environmental Systems and Addfield Projects.

Carrasco International Airport has incinerated its waste with Ministry of Environment authorisation since 2006. This waste includes airline catering leftovers and their plastic packaging, waste from terminal cafés and offices, perishable import and export goods, and food and products seized by the authorities. Destroying it on site means it doesn't have to be transported anywhere which keeps contaminated waste away from Uruguay's farmland.

Upgrading to a new C100 Incinerator

The airport's previous incinerator was sadly unsuitable for such a demanding location and ceased to be operational leading them to raise the importance of a new solution. At the same time, Uruguay had brought in new air emission rules under Decree 135/021, and the new incinerator would need to achieve the new regulations in full from the start.

We worked closely with Addfield Projects for their expertise in higher capacity and waste-to-energy incinerators, and with Addfield Environmental Systems' LATAM/LATAC Spanish-speaking Sales Executive, Eduardo Sierra Torres, who has 10 years of expertise in the region and the industry.

The C100 was the clear choice for this project. It was designed to dispose of up to 100 kg/hr and can run for up to 16 hours a day, which is up to 1.6 tonnes a day.

Meeting emissions regulations

The conditions of approval include a maximum of 6,000 kg of waste a week, notice to the Ministry before commissioning tests, and annual operating reports with records of the waste burnt and the emission results. This is possible with the inclusion of a full SCADA system as part of the project.

We designed the system to EU emission standards with complete flue gas cleaning. At the end of May 2024 the Ministry's technical report approved replacing the old furnace with the Addfield C100 and granted the Air Emissions Authorisation, which is renewable every three years. Heat recovery and full gas cleaning are unusual on an airport machine of this size, and it was the full gas cleaning that made approval possible. The machine underwent a full Factory Acceptance Test and audit before shipping. Once it was installed, independent emissions monitoring in June 2026 delivered very positive results, with every pollutant measured at 44% of the legal limit or lower, and particulates and carbon monoxide below the detection limit. That is an enormous improvement on the previous incinerator.

How the system works

This particular C100 came with a bin tipper and automatic, hydraulic ram feeder that work together to lift and push the waste inside the primary chamber for continuous reloading. Additional filtration was also added to the incinerator, a dry scrubber, where sodium bicarbonate neutralises the acid gases and activated carbon captures heavy metals, organic vapours, dioxins and furans, and then a ceramic filter chamber that cleans itself with automatic pulses of air. The C100 has been installed with the option of a waste-to-energy system that recovers the heat from the process instead of losing it up the stack. A gas-to-water heat exchanger has been included that can turn the heat generated into hot water.

A sustainable solution for years to come

The airport's plan is to manage its waste properly with the best available technology, and this is where we came in. Eduardo Sierra Torres said, "We are proud to have supplied the first machine of its kind to an airport in Uruguay. It gives the country's main gateway a clean, safe and efficient way to manage its waste, and the impact of that will be huge."

Continuing to support airports around the globe

The project adds to our Latin American airport portfolio, which includes incinerators at five airports in the Dominican Republic and installations in Honduras. The airport also has direct engineer support by phone, WhatsApp and video call, and an online portal with training material and videos for new staff.

If you’d like to know how we have supported other airport around the world with their waste disposal needs, get in touch with us at sales@addfield.com.