University of Applied Sciences and Technology of Tehran Municipality Urban Development Policy Making 3092-653X 2 2 2025 05 10 Multi-Criteria Decision Making for Selecting the Optimal Urban Waste Management Method Using Analytic Hierarchy Process Multi-Criteria Decision Making for Selecting the Optimal Urban Waste Management Method Using Analytic Hierarchy Process 173 188 219425 10.22034/judpm.2025.513772.1026 FA Asma Fayazi Undergraduate student, Department of Renewable Energy Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran Reza Fallah Master of Science student, Department of Energy Conversion Engineering, Faculty of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran Sara Mahmoodian Younesi Phd student, Department of Renewable Energy Engineering, Faculty of Energy, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran Majid Zandi Associate Professor, Department of Renewable Energy Engineering, Faculty of Energy, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran Journal Article 2025 02 01 Municipal solid waste management has become one of the major challenges in modern cities due to the rapid increase in waste generation and the limitation of natural resources. Selecting an optimal waste management method requires the consideration of environmental, economic, technical, and social criteria to not only minimize negative environmental impacts but also make the best use of available resources. In this study, various waste management methods including pyrolysis, recycling, composting, anaerobic digestion, incineration, and refuse-derived fuel were evaluated and prioritized using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The evaluation criteria included investment cost, environmental pollution, resource availability, required technical expertise, social acceptance, energy consumption, and process efficiency. The weights of criteria and alternatives were determined based on expert opinions. Criteria where lower values indicate higher desirability were inverted within the software to ensure consistency in the evaluation. The results of this study indicate that sustainable and cost-effective methods such as recycling (score: 0.0982) and anaerobic digestion (score: 0.0879), due to their ability to generate valuable products, reduce pollution, and offer economic benefits, are more suitable for urban waste management compared to costly and polluting methods such as incineration and pyrolysis. Furthermore, the findings suggest that combining different methods and adopting integrated approaches can enhance the effectiveness of waste management systems and contribute to achieving sustainability goals. Municipal solid waste management has become one of the major challenges in modern cities due to the rapid increase in waste generation and the limitation of natural resources. Selecting an optimal waste management method requires the consideration of environmental, economic, technical, and social criteria to not only minimize negative environmental impacts but also make the best use of available resources. In this study, various waste management methods including pyrolysis, recycling, composting, anaerobic digestion, incineration, and refuse-derived fuel were evaluated and prioritized using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The evaluation criteria included investment cost, environmental pollution, resource availability, required technical expertise, social acceptance, energy consumption, and process efficiency. The weights of criteria and alternatives were determined based on expert opinions. Criteria where lower values indicate higher desirability were inverted within the software to ensure consistency in the evaluation. The results of this study indicate that sustainable and cost-effective methods such as recycling (score: 0.0982) and anaerobic digestion (score: 0.0879), due to their ability to generate valuable products, reduce pollution, and offer economic benefits, are more suitable for urban waste management compared to costly and polluting methods such as incineration and pyrolysis. Furthermore, the findings suggest that combining different methods and adopting integrated approaches can enhance the effectiveness of waste management systems and contribute to achieving sustainability goals. https://www.judpm.ir/article_219425_76f7ba7628624abad55ee8f56c645395.pdf