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<p>During an epidemic outbreak, hospital waste generation increases rapidly, requiring an efficient and well-structured waste management system. This study proposes a novel two-phase robust multi-objective mathematical model to address the hospital waste management challenges in this era. In the first phase, the model handles the routing of vehicles for waste collection and the on-site treatment of highly hazardous waste using mobile waste treatment vehicles. The second phase focuses on off-site waste management using various methods such as autoclaving, incineration, recycling, and landfilling, taking into account both cost and environmental impacts. The model is applied to a case study, showing that as the epidemic worsens and COVID-19-related waste increases, the required time for waste collection, transportation, and on-site treatment also rises. Although more waste is autoclaved on-site, reduced hospital capacity for non-COVID patients leads to a decline in other waste types, thus lowering off-site treatment costs. However, this also results in more landfilling, less recycling, and higher environmental impact. The findings emphasize the importance of improving waste separation to increase recyclables and reduce environmental concerns. Additionally, detailed analysis of time, cost, and carbon emissions offers practical insights for better hospital waste management under epidemic conditions.</p>

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A two-phase mathematical model for hospital waste management during an epidemic outbreak under uncertainty

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年2月19日

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  • Zahra Mohtashami,
  • Kourosh Eshghi,
  • Majid Khedmati

摘要

During an epidemic outbreak, hospital waste generation increases rapidly, requiring an efficient and well-structured waste management system. This study proposes a novel two-phase robust multi-objective mathematical model to address the hospital waste management challenges in this era. In the first phase, the model handles the routing of vehicles for waste collection and the on-site treatment of highly hazardous waste using mobile waste treatment vehicles. The second phase focuses on off-site waste management using various methods such as autoclaving, incineration, recycling, and landfilling, taking into account both cost and environmental impacts. The model is applied to a case study, showing that as the epidemic worsens and COVID-19-related waste increases, the required time for waste collection, transportation, and on-site treatment also rises. Although more waste is autoclaved on-site, reduced hospital capacity for non-COVID patients leads to a decline in other waste types, thus lowering off-site treatment costs. However, this also results in more landfilling, less recycling, and higher environmental impact. The findings emphasize the importance of improving waste separation to increase recyclables and reduce environmental concerns. Additionally, detailed analysis of time, cost, and carbon emissions offers practical insights for better hospital waste management under epidemic conditions.