United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Environmental Engineering
and Technology
Washington DC 20460
Research and Development
EPA-600/S8-83-010 July 1983
Project Summary
Synthetic Fuel Pollution Control
Technical Manuals
Gregory G. Ondich, D. Bruce Henschel, William J. Rhodes, and Edward R Bates
EPA's Office of Research and De-
velopment has prepared six technical
handbooks on synfuels, entitled Pollu-
tion Control Technical Manuals.
These manuals are designed to help
government officials granting permits
to build synfuel facilities, synfuel pro-
cess developers, and other interested
parties. They provide technical data on
waste streams from synfuel facilities
and technologies capable of controlling
them. Process technologies covered in
the manuals include coal gasification,
coal liquefaction by direct and indirect
processing, and the extraction of oil
from shale. The manuals offer no
regulatory guidance, allowing the in-
dustry flexibility in deciding how to
best comply with environmental regu-
lations.
This Project Summary was develop-
ed by EPA's Office of Environmental
Engineering and Technology, Washing-
ton, DC, to announce key findings of
the research project that is fully doc-
umented in separate reports of similar
title (see Project Report ordering in-
formation at back).
Overview
With careful planning, the Nation should
be able to achieve its dual goals of pro-
ducing more energy and protecting the
environment One element of this effort is
the development of a synthetic fuels in-
dustry. If the planning process is to evolve
successfully, however, information needs
to be gathered and made available to
permit officials, developers, and others
involved with the energy industry. The
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), in keeping with the Congressional
intent in legislation governing environ-
mental activities, is working closely with
the Department of Energy, the Synthetic
Fuels Corporation, representatives of the
synthetic fuels industry, and state govern-
ments to develop the kind of information
that would ensure that these national
goals can be met
EPA wants to help see that the potential
environmental concerns raised by this
new industry are reduced in as thorough
and cost effective manner as possible. One
of the efforts to accomplish this is the
preparation of the synthetic fuel Pollution
Control Technical Manuals (PCTMs) by
EPA's Office of Research and Develop-
ment For the past several years this Office
has been characterizing the waste streams
from various synfuels processes to deter-
mine which pollution control technologies
can be applied to U.S. synfuels plants. A
significant product of these studies is this
series of PCTMs which provides technical
data for government permitting officials,
designers of synfuel processes, and other
interested parties. The PCTMs contain no
legally binding requirements, no policy or
technological recommendations, and noth-
ing that would relieve a facility from com-
plying with existing or future environmen-
tal regulations or permit requirements.
PCTMs for Coal and Oil Shale
Fuels
Synthetic fuels are generally understood
to include liquid, gaseous, and solid fuels
produced by converting coal, oil shale, tar
sands, and various forms of biomass. Only
coal and oil-shale resources are consid-
ered in the PCTMs. Environmental prob-
lems resulting from synthetic fuels pro-
duction addressed in the PCTMs from
these two resources include: waste orig-
inating from shale mining* and feedstock
transport multipollutant waste streams
•Coal mining waste problems are not addressed in the
PCTMs
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from the conversion processes, large scale
waste handling and disposal needs, and a
broad range of other environmental con-
siderations posed by diverse geographic
plant sitings.
The PCTMs cover a range of alternative
fuel processes including coal gasification,
coal liquefaction by direct and indirect
processing, and the extraction of oil from
shale. Both the coal and oil-shale PCTMs
are based on specific conversion pro-
cesses; the oil-shale manuals are also site
specific. A single PCTM appendix volume
describes the operation and application of
approximately 50 pollution control pro-
cesses and/or systems.
Process Technologies Covered
by PCTMs
Each PCTM covers a process for con-
verting coal or oil shale to synfuels. It
examines the waste streams from that
process and presents the available meth-
ods for controlling that waste. Although
the six process technologies covered in
the PCTMs are not exhaustive, they do
span a wide range of waste streams and
possible controls for these streams and
are broadly representative of a number of
plants currently being planned and under
construction. The six process technologies
are:
Lurgi-Based Indirect Coal Liquefac-
tion and High-Btu Gasification. The
dry ash Lurgi gasifier was developed
by Lurgi Kohle and Mineralotechnik
GmbH, West Germany, to generate a
synthesis process feed gas. Product-
synthesis technologies used in the
Lurgi process include: methanation
to produce substitute natural gas
(SNG), methanol synthesis, Mobil
M-gasoline synthesis from methanol,
and Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. The
three coal feeds considered in the
PCTM include Illinois No. 6 bitumi-
nous; Montana-Rosebud subbitum-
inous; and Dunn County, North
Dakota, lignite.
Koppers-Totzek(K-T)-Based Indirect
Coal Liquefaction. The K-T gasifica-
tion technology is licensed by Krupp
Koppers, GmbH, Essen, West Ger-
many (Gesellschaft fur Kohle-Tech-
nologie for licensing within the U.S.).
The manual examines the same three
product-synthesis technologies for
liquid products as the Lurgi PCTM:
Fischer-Tropsch liquids, methanol,
and Mobil M-gasoline. A single-coal
feed (Illinois No. 6 bituminous) is
considered throughout the manual,
although there is some discussion of
the impacts of alternative coal feeds.
Exxon Donor Solvent (EDS) Direct
Coal Liquefaction. The Exxon Re-
search and Engineering Company
has developed a direct coal lique-
faction technology. To illustrate the
effect of process design on possible
discharge and controls, this manual
considers two configurations of the
EDS process (and briefly discusses a
third). It also examines a single-feed
coal (Illinois No. 6 bituminous), al-
though it briefly discusses some
effects of other coal types.
Lurgi-Ruhrgas Oil Shale Retorting
Process with Open Pit Mining. Lurgi
Kohle and Mineralotechnik GmbH,
West Germany, developed this re-
torting technology for use with west-
ern U.S. oil shales. This manual
represents a commercial-scale Lurgi
oil shale plant design, coupled with
an open pit mine, proposed by Rio
Blanco Oil Shale Company for use in
the development of their federal oil
shale lease in western Colorado.
Modified In Situ Oil Shale Retorting
Combined with Lurgi Surface Re-
torting. The Lurgi surface retorting
technology was developed by Lurgi
Kohle and Mineralotechnik GmbH,
West Germany, and the Modified In
Situ retorting technology was devel-
oped by Occidental Oil Shale, Inc.
This manual describes applying this
combination of technologies as pro-
posed by Occidental and Tenneco
Shale Oil Company for developing
their federal oil-shale lease Tract C-b
in western Colorado.
• TOSCO II Oil Shale Retorting with
Underground Mining. The Oil Shale
Corporation (a subsidiary of the
TOSCO Corporation) developed this
retorting technology. The TOSCO II
oil shale facility described in this
manual is the plant design proposed
by Colony Development Corporation
(joint venture of the TOSCO Corpora-
tion and Exxon Company, USA) for
commercial development of its oil
shale resources in western Colorado.
The plant was to combine the TOSCO
II retorting technology with under-
ground room and pillar mining.
Process Technology Features
Tables 1 and 2 present the major fea-
tures of the process technologies used
for converting coal and oil shale to syn-
fuels. The coal gasification and lique-
faction PCTMs are prepared on a base-
plant concept and the oil shale PCTMs
Table 1. Major Plant Complex Features of the Coal PCTMs
PCTMs
Feature
Exxon
Donor
Solvent
Lurgi
Koppers-Totzek
COAL TYPE
Illinois No. 6 (bituminous)
Montana Rosebud (subbituminous)
Dunn County, ND (lignite)
CONVERSION
Coal to Product
Temperature (°Cj
Pressure, MPa
Shift Conversion
PROCESSING
Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis
Substitute Natural Gas
Methanol Synthesis
Mobil M-Gasoline Synthesis
Product Separation and Upgrading
POLLUTION CONTROL
Gas Cleanup
Process Water Cleanup
By-Product Recovery
WASTE DISPOSAL
Discharge to Surface Waters
Discharge to Surface Impoundments
Discharge to Deep Well Injection
Surface Landfill
direct
450
14
indirect
700
2.7
x
x
X
X
X
X
indirect
1430
atmospheric
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
X
X
X
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Table 2. Major Plant Complex Features of the Oil Shale PCTMs
PCTMs
Feature
Modified
TOSCO II In-Situ Lurgi
Lurgi-Open Pit
MINING
Underground
Room and Pillar
Underground MIS
Open Pit
RETORTING
Aboveground
Underground
Direct-Heated
Indirect-Heated
Solid-to- Solid
Heat Transfer
Gas-to-Solid
Heat Transfer
PROCESSING
High Btu Off-gas
Low Btu Off-gas
Oil Fractionation
Oil Upgrading
Gas Upgrading (for sale)
POLLUTION CONTROL
Retort Gas Cleanup
Process Water Cleanup
Excess Water Discharge
By-Product Recovery
WASTE DISPOSAL
Surface Landfill
MIS Retort Abandonment
Open Pit Backfill
are keyed to developer-proposed designs.
Although the oil shale designs may not
fully reflect plants to be built in the future,
the basic information in the manuals
should generally still be applicable.
The PCTMs are organized similarly, de-
scribing the process technology, present-
ing the materia1 and flow balances, charac-
terizing the waste streams, and offering
examples of technologies for controlling
multimedia pollution. The examples are
control technology applications both for
individual process units and integrated
control systems. They are taken in part
from permit applications and therefore
reflect specific plants. These examples are
presented for illustrative purposes only,
and are not intended to convey an EPA
endorsement or recommendation. The
selection of control technologies for appli-
cation to specific plants is the exclusive
function of the plant designers and per-
mitters who have the flexibility to evaluate
and concur on the most effective ap-
proaches. Throughout the manuals the
emphasis is primarily on those features
which are unique to synthetic fuels con-
version processes.
Three significant points need to be kept
in mind when using the data presented in
the PCTMs:
• No fully integrated, well-controlled
commercial plants of the type dis-
cussed in the PCTMs have been
constructed to date. Thus, in using
the data base presented, readers are
cautioned to take careful note of the
documented limitations. Further, en-
gineering assumptions were made
to resolve apparent differences in
data obtained from test facilities
having widely differing feedstocks,
design, operational characteristics,
and site specific constraints.
• The PCTMs do not attempt to address
all of the issues that will be important
in selecting and designing environ-
mental control systems for new syn-
fuels facilities. Since the PCTMs
focus on streams that tend to be
unique to synfuels facilities, waste
streams similar to those routinely
encountered in other industries for
which regulatory precedents already
exist are recognized but not treated
in depth. Further, the PCTMs focus
primarily on controls for point sources
of pollution - not on the ambient
impacts of the waste streams - and
do not address issues related to
worker's health and safety, noise,
and socioeconomic or ecological
impacts.
• Cost estimates for all control tech-
nologies were based on published
data and vendor-supplied estimates.
These data were extrapolated to
1980 to provide a consistent basis
for comparing the costs of alternate
controls. Although the cost estima-
tion techniques used in the coal and
oil shale manuals are somewhat dif-
ferent the differences should not
affect the reader's understanding of
the relative cost of controls for each
fuel resource.
Despite these limitations the PCTMs
should be very helpful to the synfuels
industry as they attempt to avoid costly
retrofits by carefully designing their pro-
cess technologies, understanding the
waste streams created, optimizing their
product outputs, and monitoring plant
operations. The EPA is confident that
environmentally acceptable U.S. synthetic
fuels plants can be built in a timely manner
and will work toward this goal. One of our
efforts toward accomplishing this goal is
the publication of these PCTMs.
Monitoring Reference Manual
While the PCTMs address the problems
of controlling wastes from synthetic fuels
plants, they do not address the issue of
environmental monitoring. This issue is of
particular interest to those plants which
receive financial support through the U.S.
Synthetic Fuels Corporation (SFC). Section
131 (e) of the Energy Security Act of 1980
(P.L. 96-294) states "Any contract for
financial assistance shall require the de-
velopment of a plan, acceptable to the
Board of Directors, for monitoring of en-
vironmental and health related emissions
from the construction and operation of the
synthetic fuel project Such plan shall be
developed by the recipient of financial
assistance after consultation with the
Administrator of the Environmental Pro-
tection Agency, the Secretary of Energy,
and appropriate agencies."
Therefore, as a complement to the
PCTMs, EPA is also developing a Moni-
toring Reference Manual. This manual will
discuss the pollutants that are expected to
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be produced by a wide range of tech-
nologies and will outline various methods
for monitoring them. Like the PCTMs, it
will contain no new requirements of any
kind, and should be useful to all those who
are interested in designing cost-effective
approaches for environmental protection.
Final drafts should be ready in late spring,
1983, and publication is expected later in
the year.
This Project Summary summarizes seven reports and was prepared by EPA
authors Gregory G. Ondich. Office of Environmental Engineering and
Technology. Washington, DC 20460; D. Bruce Henschel and William J.
Rhodes. Industrial Environmental Research Laboratory, Research Triangle
Park. NC 27711; Edward R. Bates, Industrial Environmental Research
Laboratory, Cincinnati. OH 45268.
The seven reports are as follows:
"Pollution Control Technical Manual: TOSCO II Oil Shale Retorting with
Underground Mining." (Order No. PB 83-200 212; Cost: $32.50)
"Pollution Control Technical Manual: Modified In Situ Oil Shale Retorting
Combined with Lurgi Surface Retorting." (Order No. PB 83-200 121; Cost:
$32.50)
"Pollution Control Technical Manual: Lurgi Oil Shale Retorting with Open Pit
Mining."(Order No. PB 83-200 204; Cost: $28.00)
"Pollution Control Technical Manual for Lurgi-Based Indirect Coal Liquefac-
tion andSNG," (Order No. PB 83-214 478; Cost: $46.00)
"Pollution Control Technical Manual for Exxon Donor Solvent Direct Coal
Liquefaction," (Order No. PB 83-214 486; Cost: $41.50)
"Pollution Control Technical Manual for Koppers- Totzek Based Indirect Coat
Liquefaction."(Order No. PB 83-214 502; Cost: $35.50)
"Control Technology Appendices for Pollution Control Technical Manuals."
(Order No. PB 83-214 734; Cost: $52.00)
The above reports are available only from:
National Technical Information Service
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield. VA 22161
Telephone: 703-487-4650
The EPA authors can be contacted at their respective laboratories listed below:
Office of Environmental Engineering and Technology
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Washington. DC 20460
Industrial Environmental Research Laboratory
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
Industrial Environmental Research Laboratory
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Cincinnati, OH 45268
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Center for Environmental Research
Information
Cincinnati OH 45268
Postage and
Fees Paid
Environmental
Protection
Agency
EPA 335
Official Business
Penalty for Private Use $300
0000329
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