Advanced Medical Waste Incineration Solutions for Mauritania’s Healthcare Sector

Addressing the Growing Waste Management Challenge

Mauritania’s healthcare system, like many in West Africa, faces increasing pressure to safely dispose of infectious and hazardous medical waste. With expanding vaccination programs, hospitals, and regional clinics, the demand for environmentally compliant incineration systems has never been greater. Traditional open burning or low-temperature disposal methods no longer meet international health and environmental standards. To close this gap, Mauritania has defined technical requirements aligned with EU Directive 2000/76/EC and WHO guidelines, emphasizing dual-chamber high-temperature incineration and modern air pollution control systems.

HICLOVER’s Technical Response

HICLOVER has developed incineration systems that directly meet Mauritania’s specifications, ensuring both operational efficiency and compliance with strict emission controls. The proposed solution includes:

Combustion Chambers

• Dual chamber design (primary + secondary) with refractory lining ≥ 230 mm, high-alumina content (65% Al₂O₃), resistant up to 1750°C.

• Operating temperatures: primary chamber ≥ 850°C, secondary chamber up to 1100–1200°C, maintaining a gas residence time ≥ 2 seconds to ensure destruction of persistent organic pollutants (POPs).

Performance

• Processing capacity: 30–50 kg/hour, suited for regional healthcare facilities.

• Combustion efficiency ≥ 99%, reducing ash residue to ≤ 3–10% of initial waste weight.

• Non-combustible waste deformation: ensures destruction of sharps, glass vials, and metal components.

Construction & Safety

• CS steel structure with watertight ash feed and discharge doors under slight vacuum to prevent leaks.

• Thermal insulation ensures external surfaces remain ≤ 70°C for operator safety.

• PLC automated control with digital interface, data recording, alarms, and interlocks to prevent unsafe operation.

• Operators PPE Kit (3 full sets) supplied for safe handling.

Emission Treatment

To comply with EU and WHO standards, HICLOVER integrates:

• Quench tower for rapid cooling to prevent dioxin formation.

• Desulfurization and acid gas scrubber for HCl, HF, and SO₂ removal.

• Demister tower for fine droplet separation.

• Activated carbon adsorption unit for heavy metals and dioxins/furans.

• Baghouse filter for particulate matter (dust ≤ 10 mg/m³).

• Chemical dosing system for precise neutralization.

Emission limits achieved:

• CO ≤ 50 mg/m³

• Total Organic Carbon ≤ 10 mg/m³

• HCl ≤ 10 mg/m³, HF ≤ 1 mg/m³, SO₂ ≤ 50 mg/m³, NOx ≤ 200 mg/m³

• Dioxins/Furans ≤ 0.1 ng I-TEQ/Nm³

Supporting Infrastructure

• Fuel tank: 200 liters with pumps, filters, flame arrestors, leak detection, and safety valves.

• Diesel-fired burners from Italy for reliable ignition and efficiency.

• Chimney height ≥ 3 m (stainless steel or CS), equipped with sampling ports for compliance monitoring.

• Ash handling system with extraction doors and trolley for safe disposal.

Strategic Importance for Mauritania

By adopting HICLOVER’s incinerator systems, Mauritania can ensure:

• Compliance with international emission standards, safeguarding communities and the environment.

• Reliable and scalable medical waste treatment capacity for hospitals, vaccination campaigns, and regional clinics.

• Reduced dependence on unsafe open burning, a common but high-risk practice.

• Enhanced operator safety through automated controls, PPE kits, and robust insulation.

• A long-term sustainable solution with two years of spare parts supply and training for local operators.

Conclusion

For Mauritania, the deployment of modern double-chamber, EU-compliant incinerators represents a turning point in healthcare waste management. HICLOVER’s systems are specifically engineered to meet these requirements, combining high combustion performance with advanced emission control and safe, user-friendly operation. This positions Mauritania to protect public health, comply with international obligations, and build resilient waste management capacity for years to come.

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HICLOVER PLC controlled incinerator for african hospitals

Medical Waste Management and Incinerator Use in Burundi

Burundi, a small East African country with a population of around 13 million, faces challenges in safely managing healthcare waste. Its healthcare system includes:

• A network of national hospitals, district hospitals, and local health centers

• Growing numbers of NGO-supported clinics, especially in rural and border areas

Most health facilities generate infectious waste: used syringes, dressings, laboratory waste, and small amounts of pathological and pharmaceutical waste.

Waste Treatment Practices

Historically, many facilities relied on:

• Simple single-chamber brick incinerators, often locally built

• Open pit burning or burial behind facilities, which pose public health and environmental risks

• Occasional transport of limited quantities of hazardous waste to centralized sites in larger towns

Such methods often fail to reach the high temperatures (≥850°C) needed to safely destroy pathogens and reduce harmful emissions.

Introduction of Modern Incinerators

In the past decade, improvements have come through:

• International donor-funded projects (e.g., WHO, UNICEF, Gavi, and the Global Fund) supporting installation of safer, dual-chamber incinerators

• Procurement of small to medium-capacity diesel-fired incinerators, often 10C50 kg/hour, suitable for hospitals and district health centers

• Some incinerators installed as part of maternal and child health and vaccination programs to handle increased volumes of sharps and used PPE

Examples of Facilities Using Incinerators

While detailed national lists are limited, known sites include:

• Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire de Kamenge (CHUK) in Bujumbura, the capital: reported to operate a higher-capacity dual-chamber incinerator serving the hospital and surrounding facilities

• Ngozi Regional Hospital and Gitega Regional Hospital: have small diesel-fired incinerators, partly funded by donor programs

• Selected district hospitals and communal health centers equipped with smaller, locally built brick incinerators or imported compact incinerators

NGO-supported field hospitals and refugee health posts, particularly near the Tanzania border, have also deployed containerized mobile incinerators to manage periodic spikes in medical waste.

Technical and Environmental Trends

• Shift from single-chamber to dual-chamber units: better pathogen destruction and fewer visible emissions

• Growing demand for compact, containerized incinerators: suitable for remote rural areas where waste transport is not practical

• Consideration of wet scrubber systems or chimney extensions to reduce particulate emissions, especially in urban hospitals

• Emphasis on operator training and maintenance support, often bundled with equipment purchases to ensure long-term usability

Remaining Challenges

• Limited budget allocation by public health authorities means continued dependence on donor-funded procurement

• Many rural health centers still rely on low-efficiency incinerators or uncontrolled burning

• A need to update national guidelines and enforce standards on temperature monitoring and emission controls

Burundi is gradually improving medical waste treatment by installing modern, dual-chamber incinerators, especially in key hospitals and through donor-supported programs. Compact, mobile, and containerized models―such as those offered by HICLOVER―are particularly suited for Burundi’s mix of small rural facilities and larger district hospitals, offering safe and practical solutions where infrastructure is limited.

For technical details, tailored proposals, or examples of compact incinerators ideal for Burundi’s health sector, visit:
www.hiclover.com
or contact: sales@hiclover.com