&EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Research and Development
(RD-681)
EPA/600/R-93/035
March 1993
Office of
Environmental Engineering
and Technology
Demonstration
Annual Report
Innovative Technologies Progress
FY1991 -FY1992
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OEETD Mission
Our mission is to advance the understanding, development, and
application of engineering approaches to solve or prevent environmental
problems that threaten human health and the environment. To achieve mis,
we carry out a balanced program of independent research directed toward
solving current and anticipated environmental problems. We also provide
technical support for the development and implementation of regulatory
and other programs to prevent or minimize environmental pollution. Our
research is implemented through the efforts of a highly qualified,
multidisciplinary staff of scientists and engineers at our research
laboratories, supplemented by extramural research conducted by
contractors and research conducted by academic institutions under
EPA-funded grants and cooperative agreements.
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EPA/600/R-93/035
March 1993
Of
Environmental Engineering
and Technology
Demonstration
Annual Report
Innovative Technologies Progress
FY1991 -FY1992
£% '
"Engineering for Uim environment"
£9 Printed on Recycled Paper
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FOREWORD
I am pleased to present our Second Annual Report. The researchers, engineers, and staff of
OEETD have fulfilled an ambitious agenda in another productive year. New technologies
were developed, demonstrated, and evaluated, and new management systems deployed.
Increasingly, the professional staff has been called upon to provide technical support and
assistance to Agency, State, local, and private sector decision makers. We made a difference.
Next year will be a challenging year. Budgets are off in a number of areas, and related hiring
freezes are beginning to have a serious impact on staffing. These are, however, exciting
times. There is a new Administration, and there is renewed interest in advancing the cause of
environmental protection. There is clearly a gathering interest in innovative technology as the
one means of enhancing environmental protection while at the same time improving the
competitiveness of the American economy. I am confident that we, the people of OEETD,
will be in the vanguard of a new focus on environmental technology.
Alfred W. Lindsey
February 1993
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 1
INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Air Toxics/VOCs 3
Corona Destruction Process 3
Controlling Air Emissions of VOCs 4
Improved Woodstove Design 5
Contaminated Soil Treatment 7
Detoxifying Chlorinated Wastes , 7
The Mobile Volume Reduction Unit : 8
Fungal Treatment Technology , 10
Drinking Water 10
Corrosion Inhibitors to Reduce Lead Leaching 10
Choleras Agent Research 11
Global Climate Change 12
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,. 12
Fuzzy Logic Control of AC Induction Motors 13
Fuel Cell Energy Recovery System 14
New Chemicals and Systems to Replace Ozone-Depleting Compounds 14
Hydrocarb-Methanol Production from Biomass 16
Hazardous Waste Management 18
Development and Testing of "Incinerability Index" 18
Destruction of Organic Pollutants by Titanium Dioxide Photocatalysis 19
Innovative Packaging Container for Rotary Kilns 20
Database System for Water Quality Management and Modeling 21
Indoor Air Quality 22
Indoor Air Computer Model 22
Indoor Biocontaminant Control 23
Predicting the Behavior of Indoor Sinks 25
Municipal Solid Waste 26
Mercury Emissions from Municipal Waste Combustors 26
Sorbent Injection for Chlorinated Organic Removal/Elimination 27
Pollution Prevention 28
Dry Ice Particle Blasting for Lead Paint Removal 28
Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse ..29
Radon Mitigation 31
Radon Mitigation Research in Schools . . 31
SO2/NOX Control 33
Commercial Development of the ADVACATE Process 33
LIMB Demonstrations 34
Reburning for NOX Control 35
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
International Activities 37
Regional Support 38
Cooperative Research Programs with Industry 42
Outreach Programs 47
Technology Transfer 50
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
Awards .52
List of Acronyms 53
List of Units 55
Technical Assistance Directory 56
MISSION STATEMENT Inside Front Cover
ORGANIZATIONAL CHART Inside Back Cover
ii
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INTRODUCTION
1
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Office of Environmental Engineering
and Technology Demonstration
"Engineering for the Environment"
In FY 1991 and FY 1992, the Office of Environmental
Engineering and Technology Demonstration (OEETD)
focused on research efforts that led to the development
of major innovative technological breakthroughs. We
achieved this utilizing a highly qualified, multi-
disciplinary staff of scientists and engineers at our
research laboratories. OEETD's in-house research
program is supplemented by extramural research
conducted at contractor's facilities or academic institu-
tions through contracts, EPA-funded grants, and coop-
erative agreements.
For this year's report, we are highlighting our
increased emphasis on innovative, high-risk, proof-of-
concept research and development.
While our total research program covers a broad
spectrum of activities, OEETD applied over $5.6
million in FY 1991 and FY 1992 to fund innovative
technology concepts at early stages of development.
Much of this work was done in-house.
The Office of Research and Development (ORD) has
changed considerably. Within the Agency, increased
emphasis has been placed on sound science as the
primary focus for decision making. We have also
developed an improved research issue-based planning
process which is being implemented in FY 1993.
OEETD is a leader in working with the private sector
to find solutions to environmental problems. The
Federal Technology Transfer Act (FTTA) allows EPA
to pursue beneficial agreements with the private sec-
tor, and important products are already beginning to
result from these relationships. In 1991 and 1992,
seven Cooperative Research and Development
Agreements (CRADAs) and two exclusive licensing
agreements were signed. Nine patents were issued in
1991, and two were issued in 1992. Nine patent
applications and one invention disclosure were filed in
1992. There are presently eight CRADAs under
negotiation.
In FY 1992, OEETD continued efforts toward realizing
the goals described in its strategy. Last year, OEETD
added a goal to increase interaction with the private
sector on cooperative research of mutual interest.
Examples of our cooperative research efforts are
included throughout this report.
We have initiated a broad program to develop new
technologies and to evaluate the effectiveness and cost
of existing technologies. As a result, mere have been
many accomplishments in technology development
and application, An improved woodstove was
developed, which achieves up to 95 percent reduction
of participate emissions without catalysts. New
chemicals have been identified for refrigeration and
space cooling systems to replace ozone-depleting
compounds. A new EPA process has been developed
and patented that detoxifies chlorinated organics in
contaminated soils. EPA's Incineration Research
Facility (ERF) is being utilized to resolve hazardous
waste combustion issues and to assist the EPA Region-
al Offices in conducting treatability tests on hazardous
wastes being considered for incineration at Superfund
sites.
Quality science has become a cornerstone to EPA's
success for implementing its Congressional mandates.
We initiated some highly successful research programs
and further strengthened our commitment to advance
the understanding, development, and application of
engineering approaches to solve or prevent environ-
mental problems that threaten human health and the
environment.
Our success is based on OEETD's commitment to
increase our environmental awareness, to anticipate
potential problems, and to identify innovative
solutions. This year's report will showcase our efforts
in meeting our mission and goals.
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Office of Environmental Engineering
and Technology Demonstration
"Engineering for the Environment"
The OEETD Organization
Headquarters *
OEETD Headquarters (HQ) is responsible Jor overall management and administration of all
OEETD programs, pr developing new programs, and for managing HQ programs, 'There are few
components that comprise OE ETD HQ; the Program development Staff and the Program
Management Staff. * , ' , "^ ' "
'• „ ,/' •• , , ' ' , m
Air and Energy Engineering faseardt tifamatory (AEB8L)
Located in Research Tmngte P
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Air Toxics/VOCs
CORONA DESTRUCTION PROCESS
The research effort in corona destruction of volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) and air toxics has shown
significant promise for providing a valuable contri-
bution to critical EPA and national goals of reducing
the health effects associated with exposures to
hazardous air pollutants. The corona destruction
technology could be especially useful in future years
in helping industry meet the residual risk require-
ments of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments
(CAAA).
The emerging concern for excessive concentrations of
ambient ozone, for which many VOCs are precursors,
the need to develop technology to control low-
concentration streams, and the economic advantages of
operating at ambient temperature provided impetus
for EPA's Air and Energy Engineering Research
Laboratory (AEERL) to conduct research on high-
intensity corona reactor devices. The purpose of this
work is to develop an industrial-scale corona reactor
capable of efficiently and cost-effectively destroying
VOCs and air toxics at ambient temperature and
pressure.
AEERL investigated the viability of corona destruction
as an effective control device for VOCs. The initial
tests were run with toluene and were very successful.
The next phase of the research program involved
developing the destruction mechanism and prediction
theory for destroying other hydrocarbons. An under-
standing of the reaction mechanisms, both chemical
and electrical, is necessary before design of larger
systems can be undertaken. Thus, the destruction
efficiency and ionization potential were examined for "
eight compounds to determine whether any statistical
correlations exist. The compounds tested were tolu-
ene, benzene, hexane, hexene, cydohexane, methylene
chloride, methyl ethyl ketone, and methane.
Preliminary results indicate that a relationship exists
between ionization potential and ease of destruction
for VOCs; the lower the ionization potential, the more
easily the compounds are destroyed.
Corona destruction has several advantages over
conventional control devices. The compounds that we
have tested have been oxidized to carbon dioxide
(CO2), carbon monoxide, and water, plus, in the case
of chlorinated compounds, chlorine and hydrochloric
acid. The exhaust streams have been analyzed
thoroughly, and no intermediate compounds have
been found. Since the contaminants are destroyed, the
problem of disposing of collected toxins is avoided.
The corona destruction reactor uses high dielectric,
barium titanate pellets in a packed bed across which a
high alternating current (AC) voltage is applied. The
microelectric fields developed in the interstitial spaces
between the pellets form & multiplicity of corona sites
that generate electrons—initiating the reactions that
lead to destruction of the challenge gas species. This
technique has the potential to generate very energetic
electrons without wasting power. Another advantage
is that the corona process operates at ambient
temperature—eliminating the need to heat the
contaminated air stream (a requirement of catalytic
and thermal destruction processes).
The corona destruction process has been used to
control very low concentrations of the contaminant in
air streams. Experiments with contaminant streams,
using 10 ppmv single-component VOCs in air, demon-
strated the process' ability to destroy the contaminant
beyond the analytical detection limit of our equipment.
Corona destruction may be an alternative control
device for low-concentration streams where conven-
tional control devices such as catalytic incineration
and carbon adsorption have either economical or
technical disadvantages.
Based on the electrical requirements, the annual
operating costs of corona destruction would be
competitive with the costs of catalytic incineration and
thermal incineration when used for concentrations
below 250 ppmv. By modifying the waveform and
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Scmi-Pilot-Scale Corona Reactor
varying the voltage frequency, the electrical require-
ments are substantially reduced, and thus the corona
process is much more attractive. For this reason,
corona destruction may be well suited to destroying
the organic compounds in the outlet stream from air
stripping of soil or water, printing, painting and
coating, and pharmaceutical processing.
One of our current research objectives is to test the
corona reactor on a larger scale. Experiments are
currently under way to prove the feasibility of the
packed-bed reactor on a 20-50 cfm (0.57-1.42 m3/min)
stream. These experiments will determine the
optimum range of residence times and face velocities,
in turn defining the optimum dimensions of a larger
scale reactor. Several reactor configurations are being
evaluated for power consumption and destruction
efficiency of various organic contaminants to
determine optimum operating and design conditions.
A patent for the corona process has been filed.
CONTROLLING AIR EMISSIONS OF VOCs
The Risk Reduction Engineering Laboratory (RREL) in
cooperation with the University of Cincinnati, has
developed a gas-phase biofilter that rapidly and effi-
ciently removes volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
from air or nitrogen. VOC air emissions pose poten-
tial health risks. Dominant VOC sources include
direct industrial and commercial releases;
contaminated drinking water, groundwater, and
wastewater; and releases from Superfund and
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
sites.
Current commercial control technology includes two
treatment approaches: (1) isolating VOCs by adsorp-
tion on solids such as activated carbon, then destroy-
ing thermally, and (2) destroying VOCs biologically in
conventional air biofilters. Adsorption is expensive,
and conventional air biofilters using peat or soil media
have low rates of VOC removal, Thus, they have not
penetrated major markets.
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Treated Air/Nitrogen
• Microorganisms
Immobilized on
Support Pellets
Periodic Addition
of Fresh Nutrients
Flowmeter
Air/Nitrogen
.Contaminated with
VOCs
Nutrient Pump
Storage
Tank
Gas-Phase Biofilter Process
The new filter uses pelletized activated carbon or
porous-ceramic sorbents as support media, and recir-
culated nutrient liquid, to produce efficient biodegra-
dation. The combined sorption-biodegradation process
in the biofilter has achieved rapid (2 to 10 minutes)
aerobic biodegradation of the tested VOCs (520 ppm
of toluene, 140 ppm of methylene chloride, and 25
ppm of trichloroethylene). Anaerobic degradation of
contaminated nitrogen (used to strip contaminated
wastewater or groundwater) also is efficient for the
same three chemicals.
The improved biofilter concept features the use of
niches (specific regions) in the biofilter where specific
microorganisms, adapted under controlled operating
conditions, efficiently degrade specific VOCs. The
coinventors of the new biofilter found that the biomass
on the filter achieved high cell density and rapid
degradation rates.
A patent application for the improved biofilter has
been filed, and technology transfer discussions are
under way with private sector and several government
agencies.
Research results thus far on five VOCs—toluene,
methylene chloride, trichloroethylene, chlorobenzene,
and ethylbenzene—are showing high levels of
destruction on extruded, porous-ceramic-media filters.
Research is also under way to develop the science and
engineering of the microbiological niches, the
sorption/biodegradation process, the biodegradation
kinetics, and the use of immobilized, selected
degraders that offer potential for treating most VOCs.
IMPROVED WOODSTOVE DESIGN
Long-term laboratory tests conducted by AEERL
researchers have proven the effectiveness of a new
woodstove technology that achieves up to 95 percent
reduction of particulate emissions. The technology
was developed in the AEERL woodstove laboratory by
modifying an existing woodstove design to include a
small natural gas or propane-fueled pilot flame to
sustain secondary combustion under a wide range of
fuel-loading conditions.
The products of incomplete combustion (smoke, vola-
tile hydrocarbons, and carbon monoxide) released
from the wood in the lower combustion zone pass
through the upper combustion zone where they are
destroyed. During FY 1991 and FY 1992, AEERL
researchers conducted extensive AEERL laboratory
testing of the modified stove. These results were used
to develop an optimal design for prototype stoves,
which are expected to be built and placed in the field
in the winter of 1993-94.
Current emissions from woodstoves in the United
States total almost 1 million tons/year. According to
an EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards
(OAQPS) report, these emissions are the third leading
cause of cancer among area sources and the fifth lead-
ing cause of cancer among all sources. EPA-certified
woodstoves reduce emissions by about two-thirds (22
g/hr to 7 g/hr); however, our field tests show that
many of these stoves degrade rapidly, and emissions
approach uncontrolled levels within 2 to 3 years. The
EPA-improved stove utilizes a pilot light to ignite
gases in the secondary chamber. AEERL laboratory
results indicate that the new woodstove has a
particulate emission rate as low as 0.2 g/hr. At the
same time, carbon monoxide emissions are reduced by
over 50 percent, from more than 100 g/hr to less than
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Woodstove Test System
Exhaust
ORD/AEERL
Woodstove Test System
Improved Woodstove Design
50 g/hr. The improved technology has the potential
to reduce particulate emissions to 1 g/hr or less and
thus reverse the upward trend in mass emissions from
woodstoves. In addition, based on limited testing, the
design appears resistant to degradation.
Estimates suggest that the improved woodstove will
add about $50 to the cost of the stove. Monthly costs
for natural gas are expected to be $7; propane costs are
$14 per month. These additional costs will be offset
by the reduction in wood usfe due to the increased
efficiency of the stove. This technology makes wood,
a renewable resource, a more viable alternative for
home heating. Over the next 10 years, the improved
woodstove technology could replace existing con-
ventional woodstoves at a rate of approximately
200,000 per year, given current federal and state
regulations. This replacement rate could be greatly
accelerated once the regulators, industry, and
consumers realize the capabilities of the improved
woodstove technology.
The Federal Technology Transfer Act (FTTA) has
provided a mechanism for cooperative efforts between
government and private industry that can lead to the
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
commercialization of government-developed technol-
ogies. Our intention to enter into a Cooperative
Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) and
to grant an exclusive license for the technology to
Aladdin Steel, Inc.., was announced in the Federal
Register.
A CRADA was negotiated with Aladdin to refine the
technology, to build prototype stoves, and to test the
prototype stoves in field applications (residences) and
laboratories at EPA and Aladdin. The exclusive
license negotiations will soon be completed with
Aladdin to manufacture and rapidly commercialize the
improved technology. The exclusive license will
require Aladdin to sublicense the'improved technology
to other stove manufacturers.
Contaminated Soil
Treatment
DETOXIFYING CHLORINATED WASTES
RREL researchers have been working on detoxifying
chlorinated organics for more than 10 years. They
focused their efforts on contaminated soils and devel-
oped several chemical treatment processes that are
described as Base-Catalyzed Decomposition (BCD)
processes. Unlike the earlier versions that use poly-
ethylene glycol (PEG), the latest version of this
technology uses no PEG and represents new chemistry
for dechlorination. This new mechanism is a break-
through in treatment technology and provides a clean
and inexpensive reaction.
Many chlorinated organic products of commerce are
toxic, and because of past industrial practices these
compounds are found at toxic levels in the environ-
ment. Whereas pollution prevention measures will
greatly diminish chances of future contamination, cost-
effective and efficient treatment technologies are badly
needed to remove risk to public health and ecosystems
from exposure to these compounds. Incineration is an
option, but it is very expensive for most applications
and does not enjoy public support.
An estimated 1 billion tons of soil in the United States
are contaminated with chlorinated organic compounds.
Of these toxic compounds, the most frequently found
are polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), used for a
dielectric in transformers, and pentachlorophenol
(PCP), used as a wood-preserving substance. Sedi-
ments in lakes, harbors, and rivers all across the
country are also contaminated with chlorinated
organic wastes.
FLOWCHART:
Chemicals
Excavation
\
Screening
and
Grinding
Contaminated Soil
Clean Soil
Relumed to Site
Base-Catalyzed Decomposition Process How Chart
Many obsolete pesticide formulations, such as the
materials previously stored in Byers Warehouse in
St. Joseph, MO, contain toxic chlorinated organics and
must be disposed of in an environmentally acceptable
manner.
Unlike incineration, the BCD process offers lower cost
decontamination, reduced air pollution risk, and
greater public acceptance. The process embodies the
following steps: mixing the chemicals with the con-
taminated matrix (such as excavated soil or sediment,
or liquids, containing these toxic compounds) and
heating the mixture at 340°C for several hours. The
off-gases are treated before being released to the atmo-
sphere. The treated residue in the reactor is nonhaz-
ardous and can be either disposed of according to
standard methods or further processed to separate
components for reuse.
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
In 1991, the process was field-tested by the Navy
when it was employed to decontaminate PCB-
contaminated soil at a site in Stockton, CA. Process
evaluation was conducted at that time under EPA's
Superfund Innovative Technology Evaluation (SITE)
Program. In late 1992, the Navy was setting up a
1 ton/hr BCD system to treat approximately 5,000 tons
of PCB-contaminated soil on Guam.
The BCD process also was used to destroy PCP and
PCP-contaminated laboratory waste generated at the
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Idaho Falls facility
in 1992. PCP levels were reduced by over 70 percent
to less than 1 ppb; dioxins were also reduced to less
than 1 ppb. Since the applicability of the process was
positively demonstrated, it is being considered for use
in destroying small quantities of waste herbicide
located in EPA Region 6.
Licensing agreements are being pursued for commercial
use of tfie BCD technology. Agreements are under
development in Australia and Spain, and strong
interest has been shown by several U.S. companies.
THE MOBILE VOLUME
REDUCTION UNIT
RREL achieved a significant advance in soil-washing
technology for Superfund sites in 1992 with the fabri-
cation and subsequent field demonstration of the
mobile Volume Reduction Unit (VRU).
The VRU is a versatile apparatus for classifying (sort-
ing) the components of soil by particle size and wash-
ing contaminants from the larger particles during the
process. The apparatus comprises several pilot-scale
subsystems that are sized to handle a nominal 100
pounds of soil per hour. Each subsystem can readily
be duplicated at much larger scale, so full-scale
systems capable of classifying more than 10 tons per
hour can easily be fabricated.
The subsystems of the VRU include the following:
1. A vibrating screen for separating the coarsest
components of the feed soil.
2. A screw feeder, which meters soil to the washing
systems. The feeder is enclosed in a jacket that can
Technician Working at the Mobile Volume
Reduction Unit
be heated to thermally desorb volatile compounds.
A steam boiler and vapor-phase carbon canisters
complement the heated screw feeder.
3. A ribbon blender, a trommel screen, and two vibrat-
ing screens, which perform most of the soil washing
and particle size separation.
4. A corrugated plate interceptor (CPI) and floccula-
tion tank for removing silts and clays from the
wash water.
5. A hot water heater, tanks, and mixers for preparing
the wash water and additives such as surfactants,
acids, or caustics.
6. Filters, carbon canisters, and miscellaneous tanks for
recycling the wash water.
The VRU was assembled at RREL's Releases Control
Branch (RGB) in Edison, NJ, during 1991 and early
1992. The entire apparatus fits on two flat-bed trailers.
The unit was designed to be an experimental
apparatus. It provides the capability of simulating
bench-scale experiments using actual process
equipment VRU test runs can produce both site-
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
The Mobile Volume Reduction Unit
specific data for evaluating the applicability of soil
washing and research data on material handling,
mixing, and factors that affect aqueous extraction.
The VRU's first field application occurred at the
Escambia Wood-Preserving Site in Pensacola, FL, in
July 1992. The Escambia Site contains more than
184,000 cubic yards of sandy soil contaminated with
pentachlorophenol (PCP) and creosote. The EPA's
Environmental Response Team (ERT) conducted a
bench-scale treatability study of soil washing and
contacted the RGB for a pilot-scale treatability study
using the VRU. A team of ERT, RGB, and contractor
personnel completed 21 test runs in 10 days.
The preliminary test results are highly promising. The
continuous-flow pilot-scale process clearly outper-
formed the batch-type bench-scale processes. On the
bench, PCP was easily removed, but creosotes could
not be reduced below the target levels despite the fact
that a three-stage wash was performed. The VRU,
however, reduced PCP levels from 150 ppm to less
than 5 ppm (target 30 ppm) and reduced total
creosotes from 1,200 ppm to less than 50 ppm (target
100 ppm total creosotes and 50 ppm carcinogenic
creosotes) without Hie need for a second wash stage.
In late September 1992, the VRU was used to conduct
treatability tests for Region 8 at the Sand Creek
Superfund Site in Denver, GO. The Sand Creek Site is
attractive for preliminary VRU testing because the soil
composition is different from the soil tested in
Pensacola, FL. The Sand Creek soil contains pest-
icides, which are considered to be among the more
common contaminants, as well as a greater number of
fine particles than are found at Pensacola. In late
October 1992, a Superfund Innovative Technology
Evaluation (SITE) Demonstration Program of the unit
was planned in Pensacola. There is increasing
demand for the use of the VRU to conduct further
pilot-scale experiments, and discussions have begun
with EPA Region 2 for treatability tests at sites in New
York and New Jersey.
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
FUNGAL TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY
KREL and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
researchers investigated the abilities of lignin-degrad-
ing fungi to detoxify hazardous waste organic com-
pounds. Hazardous wastes generated in the wood-
treating industry are a major problem in the United
States. More than 700 existing wood-treating sites will
eventually require some form of site remediation.
Wood-treating technology has been based on the use
of three kinds of preservatives: creosote, pentachloro-
phenol (PCP), and copper-chromated arsenite. Soils
and surface and subsurface waters have been
contaminated with the toxic metals and organic
chemicals found in the commercial procedures.
The research efforts focused on the treatment of PCP
and other organic chemicals associated with wood
preserving. The development of this field-worthy
technology has proceeded through methodical
investigation of growth requirements of the fungi and
the evaluation of fungal treatment in soil to determine
the conversion of pollutant to nontoxic end products.
Fungal species show a wide versatility in degrading
organic pollutants. The fungi capable of degrading
lignin are among the most competent. They secrete
extracellular enzymes that degrade lignin. For appli-
cations to the detoxification of hazardous wastes, these
lignin-degrading fungi are superior to bacterial
systems because the secreted enzymes are strongly
oxidizing and nonspecific.
Concentrations of PCP found in contaminated soils can
be in percent level concentrations. Few bacteria can
withstand the toxicity associated with these concentra-
tions, but the lignin-degrading fungi are able to
withstand very high concentrations (400 to 900
mg/kg). . ;
Treatability results derived from studies at an .
Oshkosh, WI, site in 1989 showed 80 to 85 percent
depletion of PCP in contaminated soil over a period of
8 weeks. Results of a time-series treatability study
conducted at Brookhaven, MS, confirmed the
Wisconsin results and indicated mat this technology
has great field potential. SITE Demonstration Program
data have shown that PCP was depleted by 80 to 95
percent during 56 days of treatment. Remarkable
removal rates of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
(PAHs), which are components of creosote, were
reported during the same study.
A field-scale demonstration of this fungal treatment
technology was conducted at the Brookhaven Site for 5
months in 1992. Process improvements for the
inoculum preparation and application are expected in
1993. In addition, an application of the fungal technol-
ogy to waste materials such as pesticides, town gas
wastes, and munitions will be conducted in 1993.
Drinking Water
CORROSION INHIBITORS TO REDUCE
LEAD LEACHING
On June 7,1991, EPA promulgated new regulations for
lead and copper in drinking water. These new regula-
tions established a treatment technique requirement in
place of a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL). The
regulations also provided an action level for each
contaminant, which triggers the treatment requirement
by a water utility.
The lead and copper regulations have resulted in an
increased awareness of lead and copper in drinking
water, including exposure to these contaminants in
schools, work places, and other buildings. The drink-
ing water distribution systems in buildings differ from
those in homes by the type and number of water
outlets. Monitoring the drinking water in these facili-
ties has shown frequent high levels of lead and
copper.
Several remedial action programs are available to
reduce the amount of lead and copper in building
systems. The sources of lead can be replaced, for
example, by installation of new lead-free drinking
water fountains. The cost of replacing all the lead
sources is generally prohibitive; therefore, treating the
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
building water supply to reduce the leaching of lead
and copper is a more common solution. However, a
lack of information exists on the effectiveness of
modifying water quality or adding corrosion inhibitors
to building distribution system water to reduce
corrosion by-products.
The lead and copper regulations have identified the
corrosion inhibitors as one of three Best Available -
Technologies (BATs) to reduce corrosion by-products
in water distribution systems. Several types of
corrosion inhibitors are available on the market, but
few data exist to provide guidance on the most
effective type to solve a specific problem. Until more
data are developed, pilot plant studies or on-site
testing programs will be required to select the proper
inhibitor.
Corrosion inhibitors can be divided into two cate-
gories, phosphates and silicates. Each chemical has its
advantages and disadvantages. Selection is based on
several factors including effectiveness, water quality
changes, system operation and maintenance, and costs.
In 1991, a federal agency in the Washington, DC, area
asked REEL for assistance regarding a problem of high
lead levels in the drinking water throughout a new
research facility. Sampling of the water at numerous
locations showed many 250 mL overnight standing
samples to have lead levels in the 100 to 1,000 ug/L
range. The high lead levels were attributed to lead
solder joints thought to be common throughout the
facility.
Following a review of the lead data and several dis-
cussions with the Agency on possible solutions, a
research project was proposed by RREL first to iden-
tify the source(s) of lead, and second to conduct an on-
site corrosion control study to compare the effec-
tiveness of three different corrosion inhibitors. The
three corrosion inhibitors selected for the study were
zinc orthophosphate, calcium orthophosphate, and
sodium silicate.
The study was divided into two phases. Phase I con-
sisted of collecting water samples from two isolated
wings of the facility over a 6-month period during
controlled water usage to determine background lead
levels, the sources of lead, and the effectiveness of
water usage. Phase II consisted of feeding the three
different corrosion inhibitors to three isolated wings of
the facility for about 6 months and monitoring the
lead levels in the drinking water to evaluate and com-
pare the effectiveness of these chemicals for reducing
the lead to acceptable levels.
The results of Phase I showed that the principal
sources of lead were lead solder joints, brass faucets,
and brass valves. Some wetter coolers had elevated
lead levels, and these systems were replaced. Phase I
also showed that general water usage over a 6-month
period reduced the average lead levels to some degree
but not to acceptable levels.
Phase n results showed that all three corrosion inhibi-
tors were capable of reducing lead levels to less than
the EPA levels of 0.015 mg/L in 250 mg/mL of over-
night standing samples. Although copper levels in the
drinking water samples collected during Phase I
occasionally exceeded the EPA level of 1.3 mg/mL, the
test data of Phase n showed that the sodium silicate
was the most effective inhibitor in reducing the copper
levels.
In the study, all three corrosion inhibitors were shown
to be effective. Thus, selection of the inhibitor for use
will be based upon other factors determined by the -
building users. Although the final decision has not
been made, the change in water quality as a result of
chemical addition will likety be the deciding factor,
with the cost of operation of the system being second-
ary. Concern about adding zinc orthophosphate and
sodium silicate to the building water supply was
raised by some of the building users, indicating that
the calcium orthophosphate inhibitor will likely be
selected.
CHOLERAS AGENT RESEARCH
The epidemic of cholera in Peru has prompted
renewed interest in preventive control measures.
RREL involvement and interest grew out of requests
from the Centers for Disease! Control (CDC), Atlanta,
GA, for information concerning heat and chemical
inactivation of the bacterial disease agent, Vibrio
cholerae Ol El Tor.
11
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Heat inactivation studies were done with the Peruvian
outbreak strain of V. cholerae Ol El Tor, two other
strains of V. cholerae Ol El Tor, and an isolate of Esche-
richia. coif. These studies showed that when water,
even turbid water, containing a suspension of each
organism was brought to a rolling boil (99.5°C at 0.25
km elevation) over an open flame for 30 seconds, all
the organisms were inactivated. Thermal death point
studies (temperature required to inactivate an organ-
ism in 10 minutes) showed that all V. cholerae Ol El
Tor strains (1 x 107 CFU/mL) were completely inacti-
vated at 62°C in 10 minutes. As a safety factor, the
recommendation was made to boil water for 1 minute
at lower elevations but up to 3 minutes at higher
elevations where water boils at temperatures lower
than 100°C.
Following the heat inactivation work, studies were
initiated on the disinfection of V. cholerae Ol El Tor
with chlorine as used in drinking water disinfection.
During the initial experiments it was discovered that
the Peruvian outbreak strain that RREL researchers
received from the CDC contained two strains, a
smooth strain and a rough strain (termed rugose). As
work progressed, the smooth strain was found to be
rapidly inactivated by free chlorine; greater than 5
login inactivation occurred within 40 seconds at 0.5
mg/L free chlorine residual. However, the rugose
strain showed only 3 orders of magnitude of inactiva-
tion in 80 seconds. Survival of the rugose strain was
consistently higher than for the smooth strains even at
free chlorine concentrations as high as 2.0 mg/L.
limited studies to assess sensitivity of the rugose
strains of V. cholerae to pH were conducted. Results
from exposure to pH ranging from 2.0 to 7.0, at 37°C,
showed that the organisms were capable of surviving
for at least 30 minutes at pH 5.0 and were not
completely inactivated until after 5 minutes of
exposure at pH 4.0.
The increased survival of the rugose strain is appar-
ently due to large particles of aggregated cells
embedded in a matrix of extracellular material
produced by the bacteria. The extracellular matrix
material binds the cells together; cells in the center of
such particles are provided physical protection from
exposure to chlorine, and the chlorine reacts with the
matrix material before reaching many of the cells.
Work with the smooth strains of V. cholerae Ol El Tor
has shown that the change to the rugose form can
occur rather easily. This suggests that it may be a
genetically controlled response to adverse environmen-
tal conditions and that it could be a way for the organ-
ism to survive in the environment.
An expert in enteric bacterial toxins and virulence at
the University of Maryland School of Medicine,
Baltimore, examined the rugose strains of V. cholerae
Ol El Tor with which the researchers were working.
In animal model and cell tissue experiments, he found
that the rugose strains were just as virulent as the
smooth V. cholerae Ol El Tor. This is in contrast to
rough strains that were shown to be avirulent.
\
In addition to the possibility that the rugose strains
survive better in the environment, V. cholerae Ol El
Tor has been shown to enter a viable but noncultur-
able state in tropical and semitropical environmental
waters. Specific conditions that promote the change
from viable and culturable to viable but nonculturable
are unknown, as are the conditions that favor the
reverse. V. cholerae Ol El Tor also has been shown to
be associated with aquatic plants in tropical and sub-
tropical environmental waters. These observations
suggest that all these mechanisms may contribute to
the endemic nature of cholera once an epidemic out-
break occurs. Poor sanitation and hygiene also make a
major contribution to epidemic spread of the disease.
Global Climate
Change
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
One of AEEEL's most noteworthy achievements in the
global emissions area over the last 2 years has been
the development of a user-friendly, personal computer-
based software package called the Global Emissions
Database (GloED), which is capable of storing and
retrieving, by country, emission factors and activity
factors for greenhouse gases.
12
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
The international community, particularly third-world
countries, is relying on the United States and other
industrialized nations to take the lead in developing
estimates of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.
AEERL is contributing substantially to this effort
through development of GloED. Data can be selected
from databases resident within GloED or can be added
by the user. The data are used to construct emissions
scenarios for the countries and sources selected.
References are linked to the data to assure dear data
pedigree. The scenarios can be displayed on colorful
thematic global maps or other graphic outputs such as
bar or pie charts. In addition, data files can be
exported to Lotus 1-2-3, dBase, or ASCII files, and
graphics can be saved as ".PCX" files or hard copy can
be generated by a printer. The software is currently
being tested, and data are being added.
GloED was presented at a workshop of the Intergov-
ernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in Decem-
ber 1991 and was very well received. Because of this
and favorable reviews by the Organization for Eco-
nomic Cooperation and Development (OECD), there is
a high probability that GloED will be endorsed by the
IPCC for use by all researchers to develop quality-
assured, country-spedfic emissions inventories.
This model is being used to develop more reliable
estimates for landfill methane. Cooperative efforts are
now under way with the IPCC to develop a better
understanding of the contribution of landfills to global
methane. The methodology developed by AEERL to
estimate methane emissions from buried waste is
being considered by the IPCC as the official methodol-
ogy for developing global inventories. Recent esti-
mates by AEERL for the United States indicate that
landfills contribute approximately 10 ± 3 Tg of
methane per year.
FUZZY LOGIC CONTROL OF AC
INDUCTION MOTORS
Fuzzy logic is the use of mathematical principles of
approximate reasoning to resolve complex program-
ming problems. AEERL scientists have developed an
innovative application of fuzzy logic to alternating
current (AC) electric motors. Fuzzy logic control
principles are utilized to enhance the efficiency of
adjustable speed drives (ASD), which are currently
operated at less man rated speeds and loads. A
computer simulation of the first version of an energy
optimizer based on fuzzy logic for ASD AC motors
has been tested. According to these initial results,
efficiency improvements could range from approxi-
mately 0.2 to 14 percent depending on the motor
application examined. In a collective sense, AEERL
estimates this could consistently improve motor
operational efficiency by increments of 1 to 4 percent.
With these potential effidency enhancements,
conservative estimates for CC»2 reduced and energy
saved per year are over 40 million tons and 40 billion
kWh, respectively. The addition of a fuzzy logic
energy optimizer microchip to a 100 hp motor and
ASD should result in energy savings amounting to a
cost payback within 3 to 5 months.
Electric motors use more than 60 percent of the electri-
cal power generated in the United States. There are
approximately 1 billion motors in the country, using
over 1,700 billion kWh per year. Over 140 million new
motors are sold each year. Each 1 percent improve-
ment in motor effidency could result per year in 17
billion kWh of electrical energy saved; over $1 billion
in energy costs saved; an equivalent of 6 to 10 million
tons of uncombusted coal; and approximately 15 to 20
million tons less CO2 released into the atmosphere.
FUZZY LOGIC MOTOR CONTROL
FOR IMPROVED ENERGY EFFICIENCY
FUZZY
LOGIC
ADJUSTABLE
SPEED
DRIVE
MOTOR
LOAD
Schematic of Fuzzy Logic Control
AC induction motors have Wgh reliability and low
cost and therefore perform more than 80 percent of the
motor tasks in the United States. Their speed of oper-
ation is determined by the frequency of the input
power, and their effidency is low when operating at
part load. To control the speed of an AC induction
motor and thereby match motor speed to load require-
ments, an ASD is required. While ASDs can minimize
13
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
power losses, they do not optimize operations for
maximum efficiency.
The goals of this AEERL program are (1) to utilize the
inherent capabilities of fuzzy logic in an integrated,
intelligent, energy optimizer in conjunction with an
ASD to improve the energy or power efficiency of
electric motors, primarily AC induction motors, and
(2) to concurrently meet the demands of the process
equipment and load operations that are driven by the
motors. Fuzzy logic has the proven ability to repre-
sent complex, ill-defined systems that are difficult or
impractical to model and control by conventional
methods. In addition, fuzzy logic is a form of artificial
intelligence that can be implemented in an integrated
electronic circuit device or microchip. This ability is
especially important in the case of the modification, or
retrofitting, of existing electric motors, since micro-
chips can be readily added through an add-on circuit
board to existing ASD drives and require little addi-
tional electric power for their operation.
The AEERL program is currently divided into four
parts: computer simulation, laboratory testing of
prototype hardware devices, microchip fabrication,
and field testing in an industrial setting.
FUEL CELL ENERGY RECOVERY
SYSTEM
AEERL initiated a unique project in FY1991 to
control methane, a potent greenhouse gas, from
landfills using a commercial fuel cell power plant.
The initial design of the process, which uses the
landfill gas as fuel for the fuel cell power plant, has
been completed, and the gas pretreatment system
is under construction. This is the world's first
commercial-scale demonstration to control methane
landfill emissions using a fuel cell energy recovery
system. Collected landfill gas treated to remove trace
impurities is fed into the fuel cell power plant In the
fuel cell, the methane is broken down into a hydrogen-
rich fuel stream. The hydrogen is then electro-
chemically combined with oxygen from the air to
produce electrical power, water, and useful heat.
Because the primary energy conversion process of the
fuel cell does not require burning of the fuel or
rotating or reciprocating equipment, fuel cell power
plant efficiency is high (40 percent fuel to electricity
and 85 percent fuel to electricity eind useful heat).
The fuel cell is also environmentally benign,
with undesirable emissions essentially negligible.
Additionally, it has the lowest ratio of CC>2 emitted to
useful energy produced (overall) of any fossil-fueled
system.
The project is divided into three phases and is
designed to demonstrate that fuel cell technology is
technically, economically, and environmentally feasible
for methane control and energy recovery. Work was
initiated cooperatively with International Fuel Cells,
Inc. (IFC), in January 1991. Phase I, a conceptual
design, cost, and evaluation study, addresses the
issues associated with using landfill gas as the
feedstock for fuel cell operation. Phase n of the
program includes the design, construction, and testing
of the landfill gas pretreatment module. Its objective
will be to determine the effectiveness of the pre-
treatment system design for removing critical fuel cell
catalyst poisons such as sulfur and halides. Phase n
activities began in September 1991, and a pretreatment
system has been designed. Construction of the system
is under way. Phase HI of this program will be a
demonstration of the fuel cell concept. A 200 kW fuel
cell system will operate at Penrose Station, an existing
landfill gas-to-energy facility owned by Pacific Energy
in Sun Valley, CA. Phase III activities are scheduled
to begin in June 1993. The environmental impact from
commercial application of the fuel cell concept to the
potential landfill methane market could be significant.
Analysis shows that the fuel cell can be designed to
eliminate the methane and nonmethane organic
compounds from landfill gas streams. With the fuel
cell system, significant amounts of CC>2 and SC>2 will
also be reduced because of the fuel cell energy
generation. Using an 80 percent rapacity factor for the
fuel cell, and offsetting emissions from electric utility
power generation using a coal-fired plant, it can be
shown that approximately 10 billion kWh of electricity
per year could be produced.
NEW CHEMICALS AND SYSTEMS
TO REPLACE
OZONE-DEPLETING COMPOUNDS
AEERL has established a state-of-the-art refrigeration
research facility that will aid national and inter-
national efforts to identify and eventually commercial-
14
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
ize alternative refrigerants for ozone-depleting chloro-
fluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons
(HCFCs). Over the last 2 years, emphasis has been on
initial evaluation of 11 new chemicals identified by
AEERL in a joint project with the Electric Power
Research Institute (EPRI). Preliminary data indicate
that several of these compounds could be used as
permanent replacements for some critical refrigeration
end products including commercial chillers, home
refrigerator freezers, and supermarket refrigeration
systems. The refrigeration research facility is an
integral part of a larger program under way at AEERL
to mitigate the serious environmental problem of
stratospheric ozone depletion—a problem brought
about by five decades of atmospheric emissions of
long-lived, chlorine- or bromine-containing
compounds.
The new facility includes a refrigeration applications
laboratory and refrigerant property/materials compati-
bility laboratory. Equipment for the refrigeration
applications laboratory includes a compressor
calorimeter, an oil-free compressor, two environmental
chambers, a motor vehicle air-conditioning rig,
refrigerator/freezers, and a supermarket case. The
refrigerant/materials compatibility properties
laboratory contains equipment and analytical
instrumentation for determining refrigerant
flammability, lubricant/refrigerant miscibility, and
materials compatibility. This laboratory provides
information concerning lubricant selection and
potential incompatibilities of alternative coolants
with refrigeration system construction materials.
Initial data collected on the thermophysical properties
of a larger set of potential new chemicals were input
into computer programs for predicting chemical
performance in refrigeration systems. Based on
program results, the 11 chemicals were selected for
more detailed evaluation. The following types of
experiments are now under way to ascertain the
viability of these chemicals and other industry- or
government-proposed alternatives:
• In the refrigeration applications laboratory, a
calorimeter is available for testing hermetic
compressors of up to 1,000 W. This calorimeter is
used to determine the performance of compressors
in conjunction with alternative refrigerants. It can
also test chemical mixtures as potential refrigerants.
AEERL Engineers Testing Refrigeration Equipment
• Two room-sized, well-insulated, temperature- and
humidity-controlled environmental chambers pro-
vide a means of obtaining performance data on
such refrigeration equipment as refrigerator/
freezers and stand-alone supermarket cases. Tests
are being conducted using alternative refrigerants in
conventional refrigeration equipment and in modi-
fied or prototype systems;.
• A motor vehicle air-conditioner iest rig is used to
evaluate refrigerant/lubricant retrofit alternatives
for systems that were designed for CFC-12/mineral
oil. The test rig is used to perform dynamic tests
that simulate the pull-down and cycling operation
of motor vehicle air conditioners, and the test rig
can also be used to measure refrigeration capacity
and efficiency at steady-state conditions.
Results produced by the laboratory have sparked
considerable interest in the 11 new AEERL chemicals
both from refrigeration equipment manufacturers and
from chemical producers. Approximately 20 articles
15
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
on this project have appeared in journals, national
newspapers, and trade association magazines. Four
peer-reviewed journal articles have been accepted for
publication or published to date. A fifth article has
been submitted for publication in a refereed journal,
summarizing test results on hydrofluorocarbon
(HFC)-245ca, an attractive new alternative to replace
CFC-11 in large centrifugal chillers. Until now, the
only alternative to CFC-11 in this application was
HCFC-123, a chemical also slated for eventual
phaseout from the marketplace.
Equipment in the Refrigeration Applications
Laboratory
AEERL is also engaged in evaluating several new
chemicals as possible replacements for ozone-
destroying compounds (halons) used as fire
extinguishants. This work is a cooperative project
with oil and gas producers on the Alaskan North
Slope who are major users of the halons. All research
is being closely coordinated with the efforts of private
industry with the objective of encouraging the private
sector to assist in further development of any new
chemicals or technologies showing substantial promise.
HYDROCARB-METHANOL
PRODUCTION FROM BIOMASS
Based on the importance of clean alternative fuels for
reducing dependence on petroleum and stabilizing
greenhouse gas emissions, AEERL has completed an
evaluation of Hydrocarb technology. This technology
produces methanol, an alternative transportation fuel,
from woody biomass and natural gas co-feedstocks.
Renewable energy sources such as biomass are re-
quired if climate change induced by greenhouse gas
is to be mitigated. The three-step operation involves
hydrogasification with gas recycle, methane pyrolysis,
and methane synthesis.
Because of methanol's potential role in reducing ozone
and other urban air pollution problems, the South
Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) of
California is seeking new technologies for domestic
methanol production. A joint proposal submitted by
AEERL and the Acurex Corporation to demonstrate
the Hydrocarb process was accepted for cofunding by
the SCAQMD. Design studies were begun in FY 1992
for a pilot plant to produce 110 gal/day of methanol.
AEERL committed funds in August for its construc-
tion. The principal objective of this 3-year demon-
stration project is to establish the technical feasibility
of an integrated Hydrocarb system to produce metha-
nol from woody biomass and natural gas co-feed-
stocks.
Key advantages of the system are that it uses domestic
resources to produce methanol at a cost not signifi-
cantly greater than gasoline and produces six times
more fuel energy from a given amount of biomass
than conventional alcohol fuel production processes.
This greater fuel production capability will directly
influence greenhouse gas emissions because the
amount of petroleum fuels that can be displaced will
substantially increase, and the amount of CO2 reduced
per unit input of biomass will be maximized. The
results of AEERL's assessments of the Hydrocarb
process were reported at the First International
Conference on Carbon Dioxide Removal, held in
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in March 1992.
Process simulation studies and economic analyses
carried out by AEERL indicate that methanol may be
produced by the Hydrocarb process at a cost of
16
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
$0.51/gal when the process is configured for zero CC>2
emission. When the process is configured for the
minimum production cost of $0.46/gal, the net CC>2
emission increases, but emissions are 71 percent less
than the emissions that would be generated by using
gasoline. Compared with other processes that could
produce biogenic alcohol fuels, the production cost per
unit of fuel energy is 75 to 150 percent greater than
the cost estimated for Hydrocarb. The most important
advantage, however, is the amount of fuel energy that
can be produced from domestic resources. The
conventional process for producing methanol from
natural gas by steam reforming yields, for example,
0.78 mol of methanol per mol of natural gas, whereas
Hydrocarb can increase this yield by 175 percent due
to the leveraging effect of the biomass co-feedstock.
These considerations are therefore of paramount im-
portance to the problem of displacing the maximum
amount of petroleum fuel with a dean alternative
produced from domestic resources.
The global warming problem is forcing industrial
nations to consider and compare costs for all options
for reducing CC>2 emissions. Most technologies apply
only to large stationary sources, such as power plants,
which account for only 30 percent of the total U.S.
emissions. U.S. annual consumption of 110 billion
gallons of petroleum fuel accounts for 24 percent of
the nation's CC>2 emissions. In more than 100 U.S.
cities, other emissions from auto exhaust are largely
responsible for noncompliance with ozone standards.
There are no practical, short-term options for mobile
CC>2 sources other than the substitution of biogenic
fuels for petroleum. Since transportation accounts for
a major portion of total CO2 emissions, it would be
appropriate to include the transportation sector in any
comprehensive stabilization strategy.
There is an economic as well as an environmental
incentive for replacing gasoline with Hydrocarb meth-
anol. The effective cost of CC>2 emission reduction in
the production of Hydrocarb methanol for zero net
CO2 emissions is $20.50 per metric ton. There is an
actual cost reduction to $17.20/ton in the Hydrocarb
process configured for minimum methanol production.
These estimates compare with other technological
options that are estimated to cost $15 to $100/ton for
controlling CC>2 from major stationary sources.
The Hydrocarb process can, in theory, utilize any
carbonaceous feedstock. Thus, a secondary objective
of the pilot plant studies is to examine the ability of
the process to utilize various urban wastes as potential
feedstocks. Such materials include residential/
commercial yard waste, sewage sludge and sewage
digester gas, and organic landfill wastes (which
compose nearly half of landfill materials). These
options would not only recover valuable liquid
transportation fuel from those wastes, but also would
greatly reduce the quantities that must be disposed.
In the case of sewage sludge, which may soon be
classified as a hazardous waste, this demonstration is
expected to have particularly significant environmental
and economic implications.
Coal or
Bioinass Methane
Mathanol
Methanol
Synthesis
260°C
50x105 Pa
(50 atm.)
Hydro-
gastflcatlon
Reactor
800°C
50x105 Pa
(50 atm.)
Pyrolysls
Reactor
1100°C
50x105 Pa
(50 atm.)
Carbon
Schematic of the Hydrocarb Process
17
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Hazardous Waste
Management
DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING
OF "INCINERABILITY INDEX"
The concept of using surrogates in hazardous waste
incineration combustion systems involves identifying
an easily detected organic compound (or compounds)
that is more difficult to thermally destroy than other
hazardous compounds in the waste feed mixture. It is
then assumed that, if the destruction efficiency for this
compound is known for a given facility, all other
compounds in the waste will be destroyed to at least
that degree. Therefore, this concept requires the
development of an intinerability ranking of com-
pounds or principal organic hazardous constituents
(POHCs).
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
permit guidance for selecting POHCs in wastes actu-
ally employs this approach along with other consider-
ations. It is recommended that the choice of a group
of POHCs be based on a variety of considerations
including incinerability, concentration in the feed, and
compound structure. Identifying compound inciner-
ability has proven difficult, however, and sometimes
unreliable. RREL originally suggested the use of
compound heat of combustion (AHc) as a ranking of
compound incinerability. This ranking method has
received considerable criticism, and alternative
methods, some of which also have been criticized,
have been proposed. These ranking approaches have
been reviewed and compared; they include auto
ignition temperature, theoretical flame mode kinetics,
experimental flame failure modes, ignition delay time,
and gas-phase (nonflame) thermal stability. The
rankings of compounds by each of these indices were
compared with their observed incinerability in actual
waste incineration tests in 10 pilot- and field-scale
units. Each index failed to adequately predict field
results except for the nonflame thermal stability
method. This RREL-developed method, based on
experimentally determined thermal stability for
mixtures of compounds under low oxygen concentra-
tion conditions, showed a statistically significant
correlation for the compounds evaluated.
The "Thermal Stability at Low Oxygen" (TSLoO2)
concept appears to be promising, and the rankings for
approximately half of the Appendix VIII organic com-
pounds have been determined experimentally. Rank-
ings for the balance of the Appendix Vffl organic
compounds have been estimated based on reaction
kinetic theory and available literature data. In recent
tests, carried out at both pilot- and full-scale levels, the
TSLoO2 (or "pyrolytic") Incinerability Ranking Index
was investigated. Only a limited amount of data
could be obtained (given RREL's funding limitations).
Consequently, definitive statistical comparison was
difficult. Nevertheless, an analysis of those data (as
contrasted to the data gathered at bench-scale on the
roughly 160 compounds mentioned above) led to the
following general conclusions:
1. The pyrolytic-based TSLoO2 ranking of POHC
incinerability yielded statistically significant
correlations at the 97.5 and 90 percent confidence
level for each test series at the pilot- and full-scale
facilities, respectively. In contrast, the AHc Index
achieved statistically significant correlations at the
90 percent confidence level in only two of six test
series.
2. Some differences between predicted and observed
results using the TSLoO2 ranking were likely due to
the formation of products of incomplete combustion
(PICs). Other discrepancies were particularly
notable for benzene in die pilot-scale tests and for
toluene in the full-scale tests, both of which were
considerably more destructible (or "fragile") than
predicted. These results disagree with typical
observations for other field studies.
3. The full-scale tests consistently showed sulfur hexa-
fluoride to be significantly more "stable" (resistant
to destruction) than the other POHCs, supporting
its potential use as an incinerability surrogate or as
an indicator of incinerator performance.
18
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
DESTRUCTION OF ORGANIC POLLUTANTS
BY TITANIUM DIOXIDE PHOTOCATALYSIS
RREL is actively investigating an advanced oxidation
process for the destruction (decomposition) of organic
pollutants in water and air streams. The principal
objective is the optimization of a titanium dioxide-
(TiO^-based photocatalytic technology that, in com-
bination with ultraviolet radiation, produces highly
reactive hydroxyl radicals. Once formed in situ, the
hydroxyl radical has been shown to cause the rapid
destruction of a wide array of chemical compounds
known to be present in both groundwater and surface
water. Trichloroethylene, a major National Priority
List (NPL) site contaminant, is readily converted to
completely harmless by-products. Many other
chlorinated organics can be dehalogenated by me
process (rendering them less toxic), and certain prob-
lematic inorganic contaminants (e.g., cyanide) are
oxidized to innocuous forms.
A novel aspect of the technology is the incorporation
of a TK>2 semiconductor material embedded in a
fiberglass mesh that lines a photolytic reactor. This
material behaves as a catalyst for the oxidation process
and greatly enhances the formation of hydroxyl radi-
cals, resulting in much greater process efficiency
throughout. Under optimal conditions, this enhanced
oxidation mechanism results in complete mineraliza-
tion of substrate organic contaminants. As such, the
process is an "ultimate disposal" method that leaves
behind only water, QI^, and some benign halide slats.
Although commonly driven by artificial light
(ultraviolet bulbs), effective use of solar radiation as
the sole energy source for the process has been
demonstrated by several groups outside EPA.
Unlike most alternative pollution abatement technolo-
gies, TiO2 photocatalysis operates at ambient tempera-
tures and pressure. From an engineering perspective,
TiO2-based systems are much less complicated to
assemble and maintain relative to any other system of
comparable performance.
The TiO2/hydroxyl radical advanced oxidation pro-
cess has a variety of pollution prevention applications
including the following:
• The manufacture of Ultra Pure Water for the semi-
conductor, nuclear, and pharmaceutical industries
without the use of other process chemicals like
ozone, chlorine, or permanganate.
• The purification and disinfection of drinking water
without the production of disinfection by-products
(e.g., chloroform).
• The purification of plant processing water at the
source (e.g., metals recovery, trichloroethylene
removal, destruction of chlorinated organics gener-
ated from pulp/paper bleaching operations).
Industrial benefits of an ultimate disposal technology
like Ti©2 photocatalysis follow:
• The destruction of water and airborne organic con-
taminants on-site, which eliminates the cost and risk
associated with the collection, transportation, and
long-term disposal of such compounds.
• A user-friendly technology that operates on
demand, is low-profile, quiet, and uses readily
available components and skills for operation (i.e.,
amenable to small community system require-
ments).
Titanium dioxide photocatalysis promises to be an
exceptional technology for the treatment of air emis-
sions from a variety of sources including wastewater
treatment plants, air stripping towers, incinerator
offgas, municipal landfill sites, carbon regeneration
facilities, dry cleaning facilities, freon-based processes,
spray booths, degreasing facilities, soil venting
processes, and organic chemical manufacturing plants.
Complete destruction of tri- and tetrachloroethylene in
air reactors has been demonstrated. The vapor phase
reactions are even more efficient than the correspond-
ing aqueous phase processes for some compounds.
A critical process parameter in TiO2 photocatalysis is
detection and measurement of the primary oxidant,
the hydroxyl radical. In FY 1992, RREL developed the
chemistry and analytical procedures necessary for
positive identification and quantitation of hydroxyl
radical. It is hoped mat a pilot-/ field-scale process
monitor/analyzer, based on our bench-scale measure-
ment principles, can be assembled for general use by
other investigators. This hypothetical monitor also
would be extremely useful \\n other measurements of
hydroxyl radical unrelated to TiO2 (e.g., ozone sys-
19
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
terns that produce small quantities ofhydroxyl radi-
cal, the study of upper atmospheric chemistry, and
virtually all other "advanced oxidation processes" of
record).
Also in FY 1992, RREL conducted preliminary experi-
ments on the use of TiC>2 photooxidation to disinfect •
water as an alternative to the use of existing oxidants
such as chlorine. Experiments were performed on
pure cultures of E. colt in tap water to evaluate the
TiC>2 reactor's bacterial inactivation capabilities. In
water devoid of significant amounts of inorganic
radical scavengers, rapid cell death was observed.
RREL is presently expanding its investigation of the
efficacy of hydroxyl radical-mediated disinfection with
a highly colored surface water from a local pond. This
pond water contains significant amounts of algae and
a total organic carbon level of approximately 20 mg/L.
Preliminary results suggest that similar bacterial inacti-
vation can be achieved (measuring heterotrophic plate
count IHPC] and total coliforms) when a slight
amount (e.g., 3 mM) of hydrogen peroxide is added to
the reservoir. After a brief exposure time in the TiC>2
reactor, all visible (green) color is removed, and both
HFC and total coliform counts are below detection
limits.
RREL also is investigating novel photochemical reactor
designs that will optimize hydroxyl radical formation.
Reactor geometry modeling and prototype construc-
tion are required. Stainless steel currently is the pre-
ferred reactor fabrication material, although lighter,
more easily assembled and inexpensive materials and
components would be highly desirable. Studies of
various "front-end" technologies are necessary to deter-
mine how much pretreatment of heavily contaminated
water streams is required for effective photocatalytic
oxidation in the final reactor stage. Off-the-shelf tech-
nologies will be evaluated first for this purpose (e.g.,
miorofiltration systems).
Process efficiency measurements and sensors will be
required very soon. On-line water/air quality moni-
toring systems for low-molecular-weight, highly water-
soluble organic compounds need development and
testing at the field-scale level. Rapid microbial
screening techniques need to be developed to monitor
the bacterial quality (safety) of water treated for
human consumption. A nearrreal-time bacterial
enumeration technique like epifluorescent microscopy
may be necessary in situations where access to
sophisticated laboratory measurements and expertise
is unavailable.
Under competitive cooperative agreement CR-818210
through the Superfund Innovative Technology
Evaluation Program, RREL will conduct TK^ research
with private-sector firms. One such firm is Nutech
Environmental, London, Ontario, Canada.
In addition, 11 other organizations have been in con-
tact with RREL to seek opportunities for collaborative
research. In the majority of cases, their involvement
with TiO2 is very recent (i.e., within the last 3 years).
The interest of these organizations is an indicator of
the rapidly accelerating emphasis in TiO2 photo-
catalysis.
INNOVATIVE PACKAGING CONTAINER
FOR ROTARY KILNS
AEERL researchers have developed a new packaging
process for contained liquid hazardous wastes that are
batch charged into rotary kiln incinerators. Testing of
the preliminary prototype design was completed in
1991 and indicated that a 60 to 70 percent reduction in
transient emissions could be achieved by using this
container. These encouraging results have resulted in
a patent application entitled "Method of Reducing
Transient Emissions from Rotary Kiln Incinerators
and Container for Attaining Same." AEERL is cur-
rently looking for industrial collaboration for scale-up
and full-scale testing.
One advantage that rotary kilns have over other incin-
eration system designs is their ability to accept diverse
waste streams including solids. Rotary kiln incinera-
tors typically operate in a mode whereby containers of
nonpumpable wastes such as solids, sludges, and
"containerized" liquids or sorbents are batch fed into
the combustion chamber. However, when wastes are
introduced in this manner, transient phenomena in-
volving heat transfer into and waste mass transfer out
of the waste charge, promote the rapid release of
waste vapor into the kiln (gas-phase) environment.
This rapid release causes depletion and displacement
of the excess oxygen available for combustion and
results in a "puff" of undestroyed principal organic
20
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
hazardous constituents (POHCs), products of incom-
plete combustion (PICs), and organic participate mat-
ter (soot). These transient excursions often limit rotary
kiln feed rates and have been a source of problems for
operators and regulators.
To Blower and Stack
Main
Burner
Rotary Leaf
Spring Seal
Basket
Boilers
Ramrod
Sample Port
* 1 m *
Rotary Kiln Incinerator Simulator
The innovative packaging concept retards the rate of
waste mass transfer into the gas phase by placing an
insert into each waste drum so as to form multiple
chambers within the single container. The insert is
designed to promote sequential rather than simulta-
neous rupture of each chamber. The result is a series
of small transient events spread out over a period of
time, rather than a single, large transient event. Since
each chamber contains a smaller quantity of waste
material (compared with the whole container), the
available kiln oxygen is better able to keep up with
the waste release rate. Experimental results, from a
250,000 Btu/hr laboratory scale rotary kiln simulator
and 1-quart charges of surrogate hazardous waste with
and without cardboard inserts, indicate a 50 to 75
percent decrease in puff magnitude when the insert is
used. Puff magnitude is characterized as a weighted
sum of the integrated carbon monoxide, total hydro-
carbon, and soot concentrations measured during
the puff.
DATABASE SYSTEM FOR WATER
QUALITY MANAGEMENT AND MODELING
The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission
(ORSANCO) is an interstate agency that coordinates
pollution control and abatement activities for the inter-
state waters of the Ohio River Basin. As part of a
cooperative agreement with the RREL, ORSANCO is
developing a Geographic Information System (GIS)
database for the Ohio River Basin and is utilizing this
database in conjunction with mathematical models for
management of water quality in the basin.
GIS is a computer technology capable of analyzing and
mapping spatial data in a variety of formats. The GIS
developed for the Ohio River Basin is capable of dis-
playing water quality monitoring information, the
movement of spills along (the river, discharges in
excess of permitted limits, and locations capable of
generating large quantities of hazardous substances.
The ORSANCO GIS project is unique in providing an
operational tool, based on GIS technology, to a water
quality management agency involved in day-to-day
pollution control and abatement activities. It is one of
a handful of efforts to date that takes GIS beyond the
realm of simply drawing maps of prerecorded spatial
data. The ORSANCO GIS project breaks new ground
in demonstrating how the power of GIS can be
extended by coupling it to advanced modeling and
analytical tools. The ORSANCO GIS will be used by
Commission staff to characterize water quality within
the basin and to assist in spill management. The
system can also serve EPA Regional Emergency
Response teams and local emergency planning
committees in activities related to managing toxic
releases.
There are three primary components of the ORSANCO
GIS Project: the GIS, a series of interacting stream
flow and water quality models, and a relational
database management system.
• The pure GIS portion of the project uses
ARC/INFO software to develop two levels of
spatial representation of the Ohio River Basin: an
overview geographic database of the full Ohio River
Basin and a detailed spatial database of the Ohio
River mainstem. The broader database contains
political boundaries, stream network delineation,
21
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
historical stream flow events, and facility locations.
The detailed database for the mainstem contains
refined river boundary representation as well as
detailed facility information. Together the
databases allow one to visualize stream network
patterns, political boundaries, and locations of
dams, water intakes, wastewater dischargers, and
points of toxic emissions. The ARC/INFO software
by itself is capable of routing contaminant spills
through the stream system for prerecorded stream
flow scenarios.
The interacting stream flow and water quality
model consists of a spill modeling package that
provides real-time predictions of the rate at which
accidental chemical releases will spread and
propagate down the mainstem of the Ohio River.
The system is set up so that novice users can model
a variety of spill scenarios and provide appropriate
warnings to facilities with water intakes in the path
of the spill. The package uses EPA's Water Quality
Analysis Simulation Program, version 4 (WASP4)
water quality model to track contaminant concen-
trations through 197 one-dimensional river seg-
ments over time. Five-day-ahead flow forecasts
into all segments can be downloaded via phone
connection to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
and can be used as inputs to the spill model. The
position, elapsed time, and concentration of the
spilled chemical can be reported in a variety of
formats. Eventually the spill model will be
integrated into the GIS so that a user can define the
nature of the spill (e.g., facility, chemical, amount)
from the GIS and view the time history of plume
movement on a map of the Ohio River.
The relational database management system uses
PARADOX software on a personal computer. This
database contains information on dischargers, water
intakes, dams, water quality monitoring stations,
environmentally sensitive areas, river access points,
and locations with spill response capabilities. Dis-
charger information can be routinely downloaded
from EPA's Permit Compliance System (PCS) and
Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) system. The database
will eventually be integrated with the GIS so that
spatial displays and relationships between these
data can be generated.
Indoor Air
Quality
INDOOR AIR COMPUTER MODEL
Over the last 2 years, researchers at AEERL have
substantially upgraded a computer model that
analyzes individual exposure to indoor pollutant
sources. The current version of the computer model is
the only indoor air quality (IAQ) model that combines
ease of use with the results of the latest research on
IAQ sources, sinks (i.e., materials that adsorb indoor
pollutants), air movement, and IAQ control. The
model allows addition of new source and sink
information as it becomes available.
The effects of indoor air pollutants depend on the
concentrations of the pollutants and the exposure of
individuals to the pollutants. Air pollutant concentra-
tions;are determined by complex interactions of
sources, sinks, in-building air movement, and indoor-
outdoor air exchange. Sources may be located in
rooms; in the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning
(HVAC) system; or outdoors. There may be sinks in
the same locations. Individual exposure to indoor
pollutants is determined by the indoor pollutant
concentrations and individual activity patterns.
Analysis of the effects of indoor pollutants must
account for these complex interactions to ensure that
the analysis is done under realistic conditions.
AEERL's computer model allows analysis of these
complex interactions.
The IAQ modeling program was initiated to integrate
the various aspects of IAQ research. The initial model
was developed as an in-house tool to identify missing
links in the overall research program, demonstrating,
for example, the need for research on indoor sinks.
Because of its usefulness in the in-house program, the
model was rewritten to make it easier to use and then
was made available to the public, The first published
version of the model allowed prediction of indoor
pollutant concentrations based on source date derived
from chamber tests. The model was revised to include
prediction of individual exposure, based on individual
activity patterns, as well as pollutant concentrations.
22
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
The revised model also allowed evaluation of the
effects of in-duct and in-room air cleaners on IAQ and
individual exposure. The model continues to be used
in-house for integrating various parts of the IAQ
program. It also has become useful for much of the
IAQ community in evaluating sources. Recent
modeling research has concentrated on developing the
model as a means for evaluating IAQ control options.
1000
I
E
too
10
CO
li"-1
3
0.1
I S •
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 U 16 18 20
Time (days)
— Den predicted —Bedroom predicted —Closet predicted
• Den measured * Bedroom measured A Closet measured
Indoor Air Computer Model Printout
The most extensive use of the model has been to eval-
uate the usefulness of emission data from chamber
studies. These evaluations compare the predicted
pollutant versus time concentration profiles with those
measured in an IAQ test house. The experiments
cover a wide range of source types including a long-
term steady-state source, moth cakes; a very short
duration source, aerosol spot remover; a slowly decay-
ing source, dry-cleaned clothing; and several wet
sources. The results of these comparisons appeared in
a paper, "Comparison of Data from an IAQ Test
House with Predictions of an IAQ Computer Model"
published in the peer-reviewed journal, Indoor Air:
International Journal of Indoor Air Quality and Climate.
The comparisons reported in this article show that the
model predictions are in excellent agreement with the
measurements.
The model has been used to support EPA program
offices in a study of perchloroethylene emissions from
dry cleaners requested by the Office of Pollution Pre-
vention and Toxics (OPPT). Research on mercury (Hg)
in paint, conducted for OPPT showed that cumulative
exposure to Hg lasted for several years and could be
relatively high. The model! has been used in coopera-
tive research programs outside of EPA in a research
program in Denmark to analyze data from a major
study of air quality in apartments. The model also
was used by the state of Washington to help select
materials for three new office buildings being built for
the state. Many private companies are using the
model to analyze the effects of their products on IAQ.
Well over 200 copies of the most recent version of the
model have been distributed to users all over the
world. Significant feedback has been received from
about 20 of these users, most of whom are evaluating
the impact of various sources on IAQ. The basic IAQ
model will be modified to incorporate economic
analysis of IAQ control options and to improve its
usefulness as a design tool.
INDOOR BIOCONTAMINANT CONTROL
In response to increasing awareness and complaints
about indoor air biocontaminants, AEERL initiated a
program to study how and where microbials grow and
disperse throughout a building. Biological contamina-
tion is now recognized as a significant source of in-
door air pollution in commercial buildings, offices,
schools, and residential environments. The presence
of bacteria, fungal spores, and dust mite feces in
indoor air can cause significant health problems and
induce symptoms such as allergies, asthma, and
hypersensitivity. As many as 45 to 50 percent of
"problem" buildings are estimated to have significant
biocontamination.
AEERL's goal is to characterize these biological con-
taminants and provide guidance on methods to
prevent their formation or to control them once they
are formed. AEERL already has made progress in
characterizing the interactions between indoor air
biocontaminants and environmental factors (i.e.,
temperature, humidity, light intensity, air turbulence,
and nutrient supply), and substrate conditions (i.e.,
moisture content, surface roughness, porosity, and
dust accumulation). The first experiments are
investigating the effect of relative humidity on the
23
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
growth of a fungus called Penidllium aragmense.
Penidllium is a fungus commonly found in the indoor
air of "problem" buildings.
Microbial Test Chamber
At present, little systematic research has been done
that could clear up confusion and controversies about
the sources and causes of biocontamination. There is
also a need for standardized test methods so that the
effectiveness of control techniques can be objectively
evaluated. Lowering indoor relative humidity is the
most commonly suggested technique for reducing the
growth of fungi, molds, and mildew. However, the
exact role of relative humidity on fungi growth is still
unknown. There are also reports that serious indoor
air pollution by fungi has been found in houses with
very low relative humidity.
The specific objectives of the AEERL Biocontaminant
Research Program are to accomplish the following:
I. Generate scientific data that can be used by EPA
and other organizations for developing indoor bio-
contaminant-related guidelines, protocols, and stan-
dards.
2. Develop engineering solutions for effective preven-
tion and mitigation of indoor air biocontamination.
3. Establish standard test methods to evaluate the
effectiveness of various prevention and mitigation
techniques.
Laboratory experiments are now under way to investi-
gate the indoor ecology of biocontaminants. Due to
the pioneering nature of the research, development of
a new experimental method was necessary to isolate
and identify the critical parameters that promote or
discourage impregnation, germination, growth, disper-
sion, and death of indoor biocontaminants. The new
method combines static-chamber testing procedures
and microbiological techniques to provide a controlled
environment to study the ability oif microorganisms to
grow on a variety of building materials. The small
static chambers (32x39x51 cm) used for this are modi-
fied acrylic-walled desiccators containing saturated salt
solutions to maintain a constant relative humidity
(ranging from 33 to 97 percent). Ceiling tile was the
building material (substrate) in the initial Penidllium
relative humidity tests. Ceiling tile samples were
sterilized and inoculated with spores of P. aragonense.
The inoculated ceiling tiles were placed inside the
chambers, and the growth of P. aragonense was mea-
sured by culture plate incubation of Penidllium extrac-
ted from the ceiling tiles.
Experiments simulated some of the microenvironments
encountered in buildings. The three microenviron-
ments that have been tested are (1) material moisture
at or near equilibrium with indoor air relative humid-
ity, (2) catastrophic material-wetting events (i.e., flood,
spill, or leaking water pipe) with little ventilation, and
(3) catastrophic material-wetting situations where there
is some ventilation. These data indicate that moisture
content of the tiles is the major determining factor for
microbial growth. A moisture content of approxi-
mately 6 percent will permit the growth of P. aragon-
ense in the ceiling tile, while a moisture content of
3 percent will not. It may be possible to limit or at
least slow down the growth of P. aragonense if the
moisture content can be kept below 3 percent. When
there is a catastrophic material-wetting event, venti-
lation may reduce the potential of P. aragonense
germination by accelerating the drying process. When
the wetted material is dried quickly and thoroughly,
the growth of fungi on the ceiling can be avoided.
24
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Experiments continue to evaluate the ability of
building materials, both new and aged, dean and
dirty, smooth and porous, to support the microbial
growth under different environmental conditions. In
addition to a variety of materials (i.e., carpet, insula-
tion, wallboard, and duct lining) used in buildings and
various environmental conditions, different organisms
(i.e., Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Alternaria, and Actino-
myces) will be investigated singly and in combination
since that is how they occur in nature.
A database will be established from the experimental
results generated. The database will provide impor-
tant information that will help the Agency provide
guidance to the public for control of indoor air
biocontamination. The experimental method
developed will be submitted to the American Society
for Testing Materials (ASTM) for adoption as a
standard procedure for evaluating the effectiveness of
prevention and mitigation techniques. The results will
be very useful for building designers, owners,
managers, and maintenance personnel for selection of
building materials and control of the indoor
environment.
PREDICTING THE BEHAVIOR OF
INDOOR SINKS
Over the last 2 years, AEERL's indoor air source
characterization program has been internationally
recognized for major advances in evaluating and
quantifying the impact of sinks—indoor surfaces that
adsorb and re-emit indoor contaminants—on the
indoor environment. To date, the major contributions
of the research are (1) development of a useful
quantitative model of sink: behavior based on
fundamental mass transfer data and experimental
data, (2) development of experimental methods for
evaluating indoor sinks, (3) quantification of sink
effects in an indoor environment, and (4) incorporation
of sink effects into an indoor air quality (IAQ) model.
These contributions extend the state of the art beyond
the purely empirical approaches previously published.
These results provide researchers with a foundation
for future research on sinks and provide practitioners
with guidance for analyzing the role of sinks in indoor
environments. The significance of the research is
exemplified by its publication in the inaugural issue of
Indoor Air. International Journal of Indoor Air Quality
and Climate.
CHAMBER
Mass(x) R(t)
to Chamber
Chamber Cone. = C
Chamber Volume = V
Sink Area = A
Mass/area in sink = M
•I t'
SINK
N
•Exit(y)
Chamber Mass Balance:
VdC/dt = dx/dt - dy/dt - AdM/dt
dM/dt = kgC - kjM
VdC/dt = R(t) - NCV - kaCA + kjMA
Test Chamber Schematic With Sink
25
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
This is the only peer-reviewed technical publication
devoted solely to IAQ.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are ubiquitous in
indoor environments. They arise from a variety of
materials and products used indoors. The interaction
of these indoor air pollutants with interior surfaces
(i.e., sinks) is a well-known but poorly understood
phenomenon. When VOCs are emitted from various
sources, indoor concentrations are high, and indoor
sinks adsorb the pollutants. As the source emissions
decrease over time, the indoor concentrations also
decrease. However, re-emission of the VOCs from the
sinks reduces their rate of decay. Thus re-emission
from indoor sinks causes exposure to higher concen-
trations of VOCs than would occur in the absence of
sinks.
Research is being conducted in small environmental
test chambers and an IAQ test house to develop data
for predicting sink behavior. Experiments are deter-
mining the magnitude and rate of adsorption and
desorption of VOCs for materials commonly found
indoors, including carpet, painted wallboard, ceiling
tile, window glass, upholstery, and heating/air-condi-
tioning duct liner. Data on two organic compounds
have been collected: tetrachloroethylene (a common
cleaning solvent) and ethylbenzene (a common constit-
uent of petroleum-based solvents widely used in con-
sumer products). Theoretical models based on
classical mass transfer theory are being adapted to
predict VOC adsorption and desorption rates for
indoor sinks. The rate constants for these models are
calculated using the experimental data from small
chamber experiments.
This research is intended to provide a quantitative
theoretical and experimental description of the interac-
tion between sink materials and indoor organic
vapors. It couples classical adsorption theory with ex-
perimental data and has resulted in the first published
quantitative results on the magnitude and rates of
adsorption/desorption for VOCs and indoor surfaces.
The practical application of the results is demonstrated
in an IAQ model to predict concentration versus time
of total vapor-phase organics in a full-scale (IAQ test
house) indoor environment. The predicted results
then are compared with data from a test house. This
dose coupling of fundamental mass transfer theory,
laboratory experiments, IAQ model, and test house
experiment forms the foundation for additional
research on the effects of sinks on IAQ.
Municipal Solid
Waste
MERCURY EMISSIONS FROM
MUNICIPAL WASTE COMBUSTORS
Two AEERL field tests determined that activated
carbon injection is an effective technique to control
mercury (Hg) emissions from municipal waste combus-
tors (MWCs). Results from these tests were used by
EPA's Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards
(OAQPS) as the basis for the Hg emission levels in
their proposed standards (now undergoing Office of
Management and Budget [OMB] review) for MWC
facilities required by Section 129 of the 1990 Clean Air
Act Amendments. AEERL researchers were in a
unique position to support development of these
standards. They anticipated that control of Hg
emissions would become an environmental problem
and began to evaluate methods of controlling Hg
emissions in 1987. These evaluations have included
technical discussions with researchers and plant visits
in Europe and the United States, performance of field
test projects on Hg emission control techniques, and
laboratory research to investigate -the mechanisms of
Hg control in flue gas cleaning systems.
The first field test was conducted in 1991 at the Ogden
Martin Systems of Stanislaus, Inc. (OMSS), facility near
Crows Landing, CA. These tests were conducted on a
400 ton/day mass burn waterwall combustor equipped
with a selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR)
nitrogen oxides (NOX) control system and a spray
dryer/fabric filter (SD/FF) system. The second project
was conducted in 1992 at the Foster Wheeler Energy
Corp., Camden County Resource Recovery Facility
(CCRRF). The tests at CCRRF involved two 350
ton/day mass burn combustors equipped with spray
dryer absorber/electrostatic precipitator (SD/ESP)
systems.
Results of the OMSS tests showed that activated
carbon addition was effective in improving Hg
26
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
removal in SD/ESP systems. Mercury removal
increased with increasing carbon feed rate; it improved
from about 30 percent without carbon addition to over
90 percent at the highest carbon feed rate tested.
When carbon feed rates were greater than 70 mg/
dscm of flue gas, stack Hg concentrations were less
than 100 ug/dscm. Neither the manner in which
carbon was fed into the flue gas (dry versus slurry)
nor moderate changes in fabric filter inlet temperature
significantly affected Hg emissions.
Results of the CCRRF tests showed that activated
carbon addition was effective in controlling Hg emis-
sions in SD/ESP systems. Mercury removal increased
from about 40 percent without carbon addition to
more than 90 percent at the highest carbon feed rates.
However, to achieve comparable performance levels,
carbon feed rate requirements per cubic meter of flue
gas are two to four times as high as those for SD/FF
systems. Dry sorbent feed provided better perform-
ance than slurry feed conditions, and there was a
moderate loss in Hg removal efficiencies when the ESP
inlet temperature was increased from 270°F to 350°F.
Chlorinated dibenzodioxins/chlorinated dibenzofurans
(CDDs/CDFs) emission removal efficiencies in the
SD/ESP were approximately 80 percent without
carbon addition and more than 95 percent at the
highest carbon feed rates.
Data collected from earlier MWC field tests showed
that Hg emissions are highly variable. Stack emissions
of Hg may range from less than 10 to more than
1,500 ug/dscm. This variation is due to changes in
the Hg' content of wastes being burned and variations
in the design and operation of the combustion and
flue gas cleaning technologies employed. Tests of
recently built MWCs, with the best available flue gas
cleaning equipment (SD and FF), have indicated Hg
removals ranging from 0 to over 95 percent. MWCs
equipped with SD and ESP systems show similar
trends. Field tests by EPA and other organizations
show that the effectiveness of SD/FF or SD/ESP
systems in removing Hg from flue gas depends on the
type of combustion technology employed. There is
also a difference in performance between the
combustors of different manufacturers using the same
technology. Modern mass burn waterwall (energy
recovery) MWCs equipped with SD/FF systems
exhibit Hg removal efficiencies ranging from 0 to 50
percent while similarly equipped refuse-derived fuel
(RDF) spreader stoker combustors exhibit removal
efficiencies in excess of 95 percent. These facts and
other evidence led to postulation that the performance
of SD/FF and other flue gas cleaning equipment in
collecting Hg depends on the amount and type of
carbon in fly ash. Mercury can be adsorbed onto the
carbon in fly ash, and fly ash can be readily collected
in particulate control devices such as FFs and ESPs.
The carbon in MWC fly ash can range from less than
1 to more than 5 or 6 percent. Modern mass bum
MWCs, which burn bulk wastes on a grate system,
generate fly ash mat has lower carbon content than
RDF spreader stokers, which burn shredded waste in
semisuspension. (About 40 percent of RDF is burned
in suspension and 60 percent is burned on a traveling
grate.) While the Hg collection efficiency of SD/FF
mass bum MWCs would improve if carbon content of
fly ash were greater, it is not desirable to modify the
combustion process to increase the carbon content of
the fly ash, because it would decrease combustion
efficiency and more than likely lead to higher furnace
emission of dioxins and other trace organics.
However, tests in Europe have indicated that injection
of additives such as activated carbon into the flue gas
at the entrance to SD/FF and SD/ESP systems can be
used to control Hg emissions. The degree of control
was found to depend primarily on the amount of
carbon and the flue gas temperature. Tests also indi-
cated that activated carbon augments control of
CDD/CDF emissions in SD/FF and SD/ESP systems.
SORBENT INJECTION FOR CHLORINATED
ORGANIC REMOVAL/ELIMINATION
An innovative process called Sorbent Injection for
Chlorinated Organic Removal/Elimination (SICORE)
prevents chlorinated dioxin and furan formation dur-
ing waste combustion. AEERL has completed proof-
of-concept testing on a pilot-scale furnace. In this
process, the sorbent reacts with and ties up the chlo-
rine precursor that is necessary for subsequent
dioxin/furan formation in the cooler sections of the
combustor. Based on initieil promising results, efforts
are now under way to license the patented technology
to a commercial partner interested in a demonstration
project.
27
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Stack
Ca(OH)2
Injection Location Convective
\ Section
M
Participate
Collection
£
Waste H I
Mixing
Pit
J LJLJLJX
g£2 Product Removal
Ash Pit
Schematic of the SICORE Process
This technology could have a significant impact on our
ability to control formation of dioxins/furans and
other organic toxics resulting from combustion
systems. It is immediately applicable to waste
combustion systems and will likely be important in
future multipollutant strategies for other industries. It
is relatively simple to apply and therefore is less costly
than alternative technologies, which simply collect and
dispose of the dioxin/furan. It avoids the cost of a
large spray-dryer facility for dioxin/furan collection.
This preventive process will considerably reduce ash
toxicity problems.
AEERL's research into understanding how dioxins and
furans are formed, and therefore how to prevent them
from forming, has led to seven refereed journal papers
and symposia presentations in the past 4 years, one
issued patent, and one patent application. Recent
pilot-scale results have confirmed the theory behind^
the technology, which previously had only been
inferred from a combination of bench-scale results.
This research has made significant contributions
toward understanding what combustion and flue gas
conditions are required to prevent dioxin/furan
formation. Bench- and pilot-scale research on dioxin
formation and prevention is continuing at AEERL's in-
house laboratories. The current focus of mis work is
to understand the controlling parameters of dioxin/
furan formation in combustion systems.
SICORE is significant since it prevents formation of
chlorinated dioxins and furans at low cost, easing ash
toxicity concerns and disposal problems. It will elimi-
nate or reduce the need for downstream, end-of-pipe
control devices. Research to develop the technology
has been supported solely by AEERL. However, the
likely signing of an industrial/commercial license will
leverage industrial and EPA funds.
Pollution Prevention
DRY ICE PARTICLE BLASTING FOR
LEAD PAINT REMOVAL
"Lead is the 'number one environmental poison for
children." —Testimony given by Dr. James O. Mason,
Assistant Secretary for Health, Department of Health and
28
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Human Services, to the Subcommittee on Toxic Substances
Environmental Oversight, Research and Development/
Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
(February 21,1991).
Flaking lead-based paint is a major source of lead
exposure for children. Fifty-seven million housing
units, which represent 74 percent of all privately
owned and occupied housing units in the United
States, are contaminated with lead-based paint inside
or outside the structure, at or above the action level
threshold established by the Lead-Based Paint Poison-
ing Prevention Act.
Based on Department of Housing and Urban Develop-
ment (HUD) projections, removal would cost about
$10,000 per unit for priority sites, which is equivalent
to $38 billion (1990 dollars) overall cost. At the
present industry capacity of $2 billion per year, it
would take 20 years to achieve abatement of all
priority sites.
The dry ice particle blasting technology for removal of
paint from military aircraft was developed by Cold Jet,
Inc., for the Air Force. The process has been tested at
full scale and is undergoing approval for full-scale use
on both military and civilian aircraft. This technology
potentially offers significant cost savings and a much
more rapid abatement schedule if successfully devel-
oped for implementation at a significant scale for lead
paint abatement.
A preliminary evaluation has shown that a very small
amount of fine lead-bearing aerosol results when lead
paint is removed from wood. Also, the quantities of
CC>2 injected into small areas encountered in normal
residential units may also pose worker exposure prob-
lems. An air extraction and cleaning system will lae
developed by RREL in collaboration with Cold Jet,
Inc., to capture and remove the CC>2 and paint chips
from the work area as they are emitted from the sur-
face being cleaned. This approach will ensure a
cleaner working environment and a reduction of
suspended respirable particulate aerosol formed by
traditional methods.
The process uses frozen CC>2 pellets as a paint strip-
ping medium. First, the CC>2 is frozen into small
pellets and then projected onto the target surface at
high velocity, removing contaminants, residues, and
paint. The dry ice pellets then simply sublimate,
leaving only the removed substance for disposal.
This technology offers the potential for
• Replacement of organic chemical strippers re-
sponsible for ozone layer depletion and volatile
organic compound (VOC) releases that contribute
to photochemical pollution and ozone non-
attainment in ambient air.
• Replacement of orgemic chemical strippers, which
contribute to total toxic organic load of waste
rinsewaters, and replacement of inorganic chemical
strippers, which contribute to pH and corrosivity
problems in waste rinsewaters.
• Volume reduction of contaminated rinsewater
when compared to chemical stripping of aircraft.
• Elimination of worker exposure to chemical fumes
from organic strippers and to caustic chemicals
used in inorganic strippers.
Despite its substantial potential, the Cold Jet process
should not yet be considered fully developed for lead
abatement in residential units. Soft woods and some
building materials are damaged by the high-speed
blast, and bulky equipment is required for its use.
Cleanup of the removed paint chips, although less of a
problem than with most other methods, still requires
special care. Worker exposure to high concentrations
of CC>2 is a concern. Cold Jet and RREL are collabo-
rating to transform the present process into a system
suitable for residential lead paint abatement. Cold Jet
is currently conducting research into several areas:
nozzle design, application technique, use of smaller-
sized pellets, and use of auxiliary operations such as
high-intensity flash lamps to increase thermal stress.
POLLUTION PREVENTION INFORMATION
CLEARINGHOUSE
The Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse
(PPIC) fosters the growth of pollution prevention (P2)
programs in government and industry by networking
technical and programmatic information. Its com-
ponents are a hardcopy repository, hotline services,
outreach function, and an electronic communication
29
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
network known as the Pollution Prevention Infor-
mation Exchange System (PIES). PPIC is jointly
funded by ORD's OEETD and the Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics' (OPPT) Pollution Prevention
Division (PPD). FY 1992 was a year of evaluation,
transition, planning, refocusing, and expansion in
some areas for PPIC. Recommendations from evalu-
ation included establishing more visible feedback
mechanisms, increasing case study and source re-
duction holdings, and improving access to repository
holdings. Several administrative changes were made
including shifting the hotline and repository functions
to PPD. A formal Advisory Committee was estab-
lished under the National Advisory Council for
Environmental Policy and Technology (NACEPT) with
representation from industries, state agencies, aca-
demia, and federal agencies.
A total of 5,977 information requests were received in
Ft 1992. An average of 1,600 individual documents
each month were sent out in response to information
requests. The largest number of users were from the
industrial sector representing 25 percent, followed by
private consultants, EPA staff, and state agencies.
Other users were from other federal agencies, aca-
demia, local governments, and international organ-
izations. Repository holdings exceeded 2,300 hardcopy
references by year's end. The PIES system has shown
a continuous increase with 4,982 registered users by
the end of FY 1992. The PIES is now receiving an
average of 70 online calls per day from federal
agencies, state agencies, universities, industry, public
interest groups, and international organizations.
PIES hardware and software improvements included
upgrade of the message center capabilities, improve-
ment of search strategies on the case study database,
and creation of new mini-exchanges. Hardware
modifications were made to connect PIES to the EPA
X.25 telecommunications network allowing improved
access for EPA Regions and Laboratories. Also, PIES
routings were designed to allow user access through
Internet.
PPIC produced and disseminated die Pollution
Prevention Training Opportunities Guide, a new PIES
User's Guide, and a four-page PIES Quick Reference
Guide. During the year, PPIC participated in more
than 30 conferences and training sessions. Several
"train-the-trainer" sessions were implemented in an
effort to initiate state and regional networking
activities. OEETD has been organizing an approach
with the Department of Defense (DOD) and the
Department of Energy (DOE) to expand the PIES
network to establish and link stand-alone nodes within
these agencies. Several mechanisms are still under
review. These include a Memorandum of Under-
standing (MOU) with DOD known as Toxics
Reduction in the Military (TRIM) and a joint research
proposal with DOD and DOE under the Strategic
Environmental Research and Development Program
(SERDP). If awarded, the SERDP project would
centralize federal P2 information, including case study
and process modification information, solvent
alternative options, alternatives to ozone-depleting
substances, lists of experts, and ongoing research.
Other DOD/DOE databases would be added to the
PIES umbrella, such as the Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory (INEL) Solvent Substitute Handbook.
ORD is working with EPA Program Offices (Office of
Enforcement [OE], Office of Air and Radiation [OAR],
Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics [OPPT],
Office of Water [OW], Office of Solid Waste [OSW]) to
design PIES mechanisms to fit their P2 implementation
needs.
A new database and mini-exchange were developed
for the OE to track enforcement settlements that
included P2 options to mitigate penalties. This data-
base currently contains 80 summaries of enforcement
settlement agreements which include the implemen-
tation of unrelated supplemental environmental
conditions such as source reduction, restoration,
auditing, and public awareness projects.
ORD will assist OAR in designing a database to reflect
approved substitutes evaluated under the Significant
New Alternatives Program (SNAP). OAR has commit-
ted to using PIES to assist in SNAP technical outreach
under the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments.
OPPT has established a mini-exchange on PIES
dedicated to information concerning the 33/50
Program—a voluntary P2 program aimed at reducing
toxic release of 17 chemicals 33 percent by 1992 and 50
percent by 1995. The 33/50 mini-exchange tracks the
progress of more than 1,000 companies now
participating in this program.
30
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
OW has assisted in expanding the case study and pub-
lications databases on PIES and has used PIES case
studies in compiling an International Case Study Com-
pendium. ORD is in the process of establishing a
publicly owned treatment works (POTW) mini-
exchange on PIES to be managed by OW.
OSW has established a mini-exchange to assist in
regional communication and implementation of their
internal Waste Information Management System
(WTMS).
OEETD is continuing to work jointly with the New
England Waste Management Officials Association to
add two databases on the Region 1 and 2 Northeast
States P2 Roundtable mini-exchange on PIES. These
databases included expert contact lists for Regions 1
and 2 with government, industry, and academia P2 '
experts and the Northeast document distribution list
which currently holds 385 documents.
OEETD continued its international networking through
a cooperative agreement with the United Nations
Environment Program (UNEP). The International
Cleaner Production Information Clearinghouse (ICPIC)
was previously established as a sister system to PIES.
More detailed information is available in the
Crosscutting Issues section of this report.
Radon Mitigation
RADON MITIGATION RESEARCH IN
•••—-•••:- SCHOOLS
Over the last 2 years, AEEKL researchers have ,
conducted a variety of demonstrations in schools
across the country and have made major scientific
contributions that will help mitigators and local
officials decide how best to reduce radon exposure in
school buildings. The main beneficiaries of this miti-
gation research are school facility managers and re-
gional, state, and local officials who have received
extensive technical guidance. This has been accom-
plished through cooperative research projects, technol-
ogy transfer, and assistance to the Regional Radon
Training Centers. The primary benefit of all these
efforts is that school children will be exposed to lower
levels of radon. A secondary benefit for schools that
use their heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning
(HVAC) system to control radon is that indoor air
quality will be improved.
The radon research program in schools was initiated
in-house in late 1987. The initial focus was to apply
radon reduction techniques that had been successful in
residences to school buildings. Early projects re-
searched the applicability of active soil depressuri-
zation (ASD) to radon mitigation in schools. An ASD
system creates a low-pressure zone beneath the slab by
using a powered fan to exhaust radon-containing soil
gas from under the slab and foundation. The low-
pressure field beneath the slab prevents soil gas from
entering the building. The effectiveness of an ASD
system in reducing radon levels in a given building
depends on the ability of the negative pressure field to
extend to all potential radon entry routes through the
slab. The better the unobstructed communication
between all areas of me subslab, the more effective the
ASD system.
Since 1990, the focus of the school mitigation program
has shifted toward investigation of radon reduction
using the school's HVAC system. This has increased
the complexity of the work, since so many factors
affect HVAC system operation and building condi-
tions. In view of this complexity, it soon became
apparent that the most effective approach to evaluat-
ing HVAC control of radon was to provide the build-
ing with a continuous data logging system. This
greatly improved AEERL's understanding of building
dynamics and the effects of various radon mitigation
techniques.
Current research is focused on identifying and testing
HVAC systems that can be used for long-term radon
control. Results of other recently completed projects
include characterization of the U.S. school building
population, the long-term effectiveness and durability
of ASD systems, radon mitigation in crawl space of
schools, and the costs of conducting radon diagnostics
arid mitigation in schools. Results from school
mitigation research over Ihe past 2 years indicate the
following.
31
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Subslab Suction Pit Form with Plywood
ASD has been very effective in reducing radon
levels to below the EPA action level of 4 pCi/L.
The success of ASD is critically dependent on the
presence of (1) crashed aggregate under the slab
and (2) minimal barriers to subslab pressure field
communication (i.e., subslab foundation walls). In
cases where these criteria were met, both in new
and existing schools, and in other large buildings,
ASD has been capable of reducing indoor radon
levels to below 1 pCi/L. In schools with aggregate
and subslab barriers, it has been found that a
suction pit must be installed in each area that is
surrounded by subslab barriers in order to achieve
levels below 1 pCi/L. For schools constructed
without aggregate or with low permeability
subslab materials, ASD has been effective in
reducing radon levels to between 2 and 4 pCi/L.
Under these conditions, more suction pits and the
use of a high suction fan are often required.
Whereas ASD is the most effective system demon-
strated to date, it can become too costly and
impractical for existing school buildings that have
extremely poor subslab communication. For these
buildings, alternative radon mitigation techniques
must be developed that are effective at reducing
indoor radon levels and are inexpensive to install
and operate.
Increasing the ASD suction pit size to about 1 foot
deep by 3 feet in diameter improves the subslab
pressure field extension.
Follow-up radon measurements indicate that long-
term radon levels in most of the schools with ASD
systems are below 2 pCi/L. There have been
occasional problems with ASD fan failure;
however, the alarm system alerts building
occupants to fan failure.
ASD installation costs by a radon mitigation
contractor average $0.50 per square foot. Costs
would be lower in schools with very good subslab
communication and no subslab barriers. Costs
would be higher in schools with poor subslab
communication, barriers to communication, and
building code complications.
HVAC systems that consistently deliver condi-
tioned outdoor air can be used to reduce elevated
radon levels if the systems are properly operated
and maintained. Many HVAC systems (such as
unit ventilators) are much less effective in reducing
radon levels during extremely cold weather. The
long-term effectiveness of HVAC systems for
radon controls has not been demonstrated.
32
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
• The use of building exhaust fans may increase or
decrease radon levels depending on the building
leakage distribution.
• Comparisons of ASD and HVAC control in the
same school indicate that ASD and HVAC control
together achieve the lowest radon level. This is
followed by ASD, HVAC, and no control.
• Submembrane depressurization is the most effec-
tive mitigation technique in schools constructed
over crawl spaces. Crawl-space depressurization is
also effective in reducing radon levels in the
school; however, radon levels in the crawl space
increase significantly.
Based on this research, we currently recommend that
school facility managers consider both approaches to
radon reduction—ASD and HVAC control—together
with sealing of major radon entry routes.
SO2/NOX Control
COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE
ADVACATE PROCESS
AEERL made major strides toward commercialization
of the advanced silicate (ADVACATE [ADVAnced
SiliCATEJ) process during FY1991 and FY1992,
including completing bench-scale testing, initiating an
integrated 10 MWe pilot plant evaluation at the
Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) Shawnee pilot
plant facility, and completing negotiations to license
the technology to ABB-FLAKT. ADVACATE utilizes a
unique high-surface-area calcium silicate sorbent
generated by the reaction of lime and fly ash to
ADVACATE Flowsheet
Stack
Disposal
Schematic of the ADVACATE process
33
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
adsorb sulfur dioxide (SO2) in an existing flue gas
duct. This represents a major breakthrough in SO2
control technology because it offers high SO2 removal
through wet scrubbing but yields a dry product and
requires minimal equipment retrofit, as offered by in-
duct and in-fumace sorbent injection technologies.
Our major research partners are the University of
Texas—fundamental chemistry; Acurex Corpora-
tion—pilot plant operation; TVA—operation of 10
MWe prototype; and Electric Power Research Institute
(EPRD/Radian—field data analysis.
The ADVACATE process for SO2 control was co-
developed by AEERL/EPA and the University of
Texas. Four patents have been issued (1990-92), and
two additional patents will be issued shortly. In a
1991 EPRI study, the ADVACATE process had the
lowest capital cost ($85/kW) and annualized operating
cost (0.7<£/kWh) of any SO2 control process capable of
90 percent SC>2 removal. The ADVACATE process
was selected by the Department of Defense (DOD) for
installation at a DOD site under the Strategic Environ-
mental Research and Development Program (SERDP)
in 1992. AEERL is cooperating with TVA, EPRI, and
ABB-FLAKT on the integrated pilot demonstration.
During 1992, the 10 MWe prototype ADVACATE
system was built and operations commenced at TVA's
Shawnee pilot plant facility. The goal of the pilot test
is to provide the basis for a commercial design of the
ADVACATE process that is suited to Phase I and n
retrofits of utility boilers under the 1990 Clean Air Act
Amendments (CAAA). The initial test phase was
completed in September 1992. During 1993, inter-
mittent operation at Shawnee will help develop design
data for an ADVACATE system to be installed in
1993-94 at a DOD facility. This effort is partially
supported by SERDP funding. ADVACATE testing is
also under way at Southern Research Institute (3RD to
determine NOX removal capability. The greatest
potential impact of ADVACATE in the near-term is for
cost-effective SC>2 emission reduction under the
CAAA. Based on EPRI costs, if only 10 percent of the
Phase H utility units selected ADVACATE, the annual
savings would reach $1.2 billion by 1999.
LIMB DEMONSTRATIONS
The field-testing phase of the Limestone Injection with
Multistage Burners (LIMB) demonstration at Virginia
Power's Yorktown Unit 2 was initiated in April 1992.
The Yorktown boiler design represents roughly 50
percent of coal-fired utility boilers in service in the
United States. The demonstration is being conducted
cooperatively with the private sector, which will
greatly enhance subsequent industry acceptance of the
technology. Utility companies are expected to draw
upon the results of this large-scale demonstration as
they develop their compliance strategies to meet the
mandated emission reductions required by Title IV of
the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA). This
program builds on AEERL's previous demonstration
of the LIMB technology at Ohio Edison's 104 MW
Edgewater plant. The Edgewater boiler design
represents the other 50 percent of U.S. coal-fired utility
boilers.
LIMB is a technology for simultaneous control of NOX
and SO2 from coal-fired utility boilers. Nitrogen oxide
and sulfur dioxide are the major precursors in the
formation of acid precipitation, which is a global
problem. The LIMB process uses low NOX burners for
reducing NOX emissions by up to 50 percent and
employs furnace sorbent injection for reducing SO2
emissions by 50 percent or more. A commercial
calcium hydroxide is the most commonly used sorbent
and is injected directly into the boiler furnace for
reaction with the SO2 formed during the combustion
of coal. The resultant calcium sulfate that is formed is
collected in the power plant's particulate collection
device along with the normal fly ash from coal
combustion. An improvement in the efficiency of SO2
capture was achieved by adding small amounts (about
1 percent by weight) of calcium lignosulfonate to the
calcium hydroxide. Sulfur dioxide reductions of up to
72 percent have been shown under optimum
conditions of sorbent injection. AEERL has an
especially active role in the research, development, and
demonstration of the LIMB process, with early
research dating back to 1981. U.S. patents have been
issued on the calcium lignosulfonate-modified calcium
34
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Cleaned Gases
Storage Silo
Hydrated Ume
Solids Pump
Air Btower
Hydrated Ume Pulverizer FDFan TBoaomAsh
Pulverizer*!
I Pug Mill [
To Disposal
Waler
Process Chemistry
• 2 CaSO4
^o-a
SO2 Control for Coal-Fired Boilers—LIMB Schematic
hydroxide, and foreign patents are pending. The
patents have been licensed on an exclusive basis to the
Centime Corporation. The final report on an EPA
cosponsored demonstration of the technology at Ohio
Edison's 104 MW Edgewater plant was recently
completed. This demonstration program showed 507
removals of 55 to 72 percent depending on sorbent
type (commercial or with additive) and extent of flue
gas conditioning with humidification. The program
demonstrated that despite the threefold increase in
particulate loading, the electrostatic pretipitator could
perform to original levels with only a modest amount
of flue gas humidification necessary. The low NOX
burners performed to their goal, and long-term
operation showed a reduction of over 40 percent from
the levels experienced with the original burners. A
variety of technical and operational issues including
waste disposal were addressed and resolved during
the Edgewater LIMB demonstration.
LIMB technology is generally applicable to all major
coal-fired boiler designs. The technology offers the
advantages of relatively easy retrofit and low space
requirements. Recent cost analyses have been
conducted by the Electric Power Research Institute
(EPRI), EPA, and Babcock & Wilcox Company to
validate the cost-effectiveness of LIMB technology.
These studies indicate that LIMB, relative to
conventional wet scrubbing of flue gases (flue gas
desulfurization [FGD]) arid at equivalent SO2 removal
levels, has a capital cost about one-third that of FGD
and has a competitive operating cost that can be 50 to
75 percent less than FGD,. These are important
considerations for utilities in their selection of control
technologies for meeting Phase I and n emission limits
specified in the CAAA.
Results and progress from several sorbent injection
programs were presented at the 1991 Joint SO2 Con-
trol Symposium in December 1991 in Washington, DC.
The symposium was jointly sponsored by EPA, the
Department of Energy (DOE), and EPRI. Results from
the ongoing Yorktown demonstration are expected to
be presented at the next Joint Symposium in Boston,
MA, in August 1993.
REBURNING FOR NOX CONTROL
In mid-1992, AEERL completed the field-testing phase
of a full-scale rebuming demonstration for NOX con-
trol at a 108 MWe cyclone, coal-fired boiler, owned
and operated by Ohio Edison in Niles, OH. The dem-
onstration was cosponsored by the Department of
Energy (DOE), the Gas Research Institute (GRI), the
Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), the Ohio Coal
35
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INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES PROGRESS
Development Office, and East Ohio Natural Gas, and
was performed by ABB Combustion Engineering.
Another rebuming demonstration is also under way
with the Ukraine and Russia on a 300 MW wet-bottom
coal-fired boiler located in Ladyzhin, Ukraine. EPA
contracted with ABB Combustion Engineering to
provide a design, and the Ukrainians have installed
the system.
Rebuming is a relatively new technology that involves
injection of a second fuel above the primary flame
zone of a boiler. The rebum zone is operated in a
reducing mode to allow NOX formed in the primary
zone to be reduced to nitrogen and water vapor,
which occur naturally in the atmosphere. Rebuming
has been researched by EPA, both in-house and under
contract, since 1980. After performing bench- and
pilot-scale tests, EPA requested others to join in co-
sponsorship of a cyclone and a wet-bottom boiler
demonstration of the technology.
Rebuming can be used on any boiler design. It can be
used in combination with low NOX burners on wall-
fired and tangentially fired boilers to achieve even
lower NOX levels than possible with low NOX burners
alone. Rebuming can have an especially significant
impact on cyclone and wet-bottom boiler NOX emis-
sions. Other low NOX combustion modification tech-
nologies, such as low NOX burners, are not applicable
to these designs. The alternative is more costly flue
gas treatment. The original goal of 50 percent NOX
reduction was achieved at Niles by injecting natural
gas into the rebum zone without using flue gas
redrculation (FGR). Eliminating FGR reduced sig-
nificantly the capital cost of the rebum system. Even
though it may not be possible to eliminate FGR from
all boiler designs using rebuming technology, this
demonstration shows that FGR may not be needed on
cyclone boilers. Since rebuming is the only known
cost-effective approach for reducing cyclone boiler
NOX emissions, the final report summarizing the field
testing will be used by the Office of Air and Radiation
1 to support development of NOX emissions standards
for cyclone boilers that must be issued in 1997.
A team of engineers from EPA and ABB Combustion
Engineering visited the Ukrainian plant in September
1992 to initiate start-up of the reburn system. Tests
will be conducted for the next 12 months. If the dem-
onstration is successful, rebuming may be applied to
boilers of similar design throughout the Ukraine and
Russia to reduce NOX emissions. EPA plans future
work on advanced reburn technologies, initially to be
performed in-house, with potential for cooperative
sponsorship by other organizations, such as
Consolidated Natural Gas (CNG), Carnegie-Mellon
University, ESA, Inc., the University of Arizona, and
ABB Combustion Engineering. Advanced reburn
technologies are thought to have potential for improv-
ing NOX reductions to 75 or 80 percent. EPA also will
evaluate the effect of rebuming on other emissions,
such as air toxics, organics, carbon monoxide, and
particulates.
Burnout
Zone
Completion —7*
Air
Cyclones
Coal 80%
Rebuming
Fuel Ports
Gas 20%
Main Combustion Zone
Rebuming Process Schematic
36
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CROSSCWTING ISSUES
1
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
International
Activities
OEETD and its two research laboratories are actively
involved in international activities in several areas.
These activities include bilateral agreements with
foreign countries, U.S. representation in international
organizations, participation in international scientific
meetings, and technical assistance to underdeveloped
countries. Specific activities and accomplishments are
given below.
• Russian/Ukrainian Reburn Demonstration
Shows Promise for NOX Control.
A team of five engineers and scientists from AEERL
and ABB Combustion Engineering visited the
Ladyzhin Power Station in the Ukraine in late
September 1992. They helped start the newly
installed reburn system, which was designed by
ABB Combustion Engineering under EPA contract
Initial tests on the 300 MW coal-fired, wet-bottom
boiler showed that the natural gas rebum system
worked extremely well. Baseline NOX levels of
1300-1500 mg/Nm3 were reduced to 500-600
mg/Nm3 when the reburn system was used,
providing a NOX reduction of approximately 60
percent. Parametric tests will continue through
January 1993. Power plant personnel were very
pleased with the rebum system and the initial test
results. If the reburn system continues to perform
as well, this technology may be installed on as
many as 80 additional boilers in the Ukraine plus
others in Russia. Anatoly Gritsenko, First Deputy,
Ministry of Power and Electrification of the
Ukraine, announced the promising results on
national radio, after meeting with the U.S.
delegation.
• AEERL Personnel Co-Author NATO Book.
Three AEERL staff members have been asked to
author two chapters of a North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) book, Atmospheric Methane:
Its Sources, Sinks, Distributions and. Role in Global
Climate Change. It will be edited by M.A.K. Kahlil,
a world-renowned global climate change researcher.
The book is expected to be the authoritative source
of latest and most credible data and information
regarding global methane emissions. The AEERL
researchers will write chapters on global waste
management that will identify methane emission
data and provide information on global waste man-
agement trends, and industrial methane sources,
including deep and surface coal mining, oil and
natural gas production, transmission and dis-
tribution facilities, and combustion sources. The
book will be distributed extensively throughout the
world.
REEL Researchers Conduct International
Research on Soil and Sediment Treatment.
Joint projects are ongoing with the Warren Springs
Laboratory and Davy Research and Development,
Ltd., iri1 England on treatment of contaminated soils
and sediments. Also, agreements are being
developed with commercial firms in Australia and
Spain for use of RREL's patented Base-Catalyzed
Decomposition (BCD) process, which has been
shown effective in treating chlorinated wastes,
including soils and sediments.
CFC Destruction Technologies Evaluated for
UNEP.
The United Nations Environment Program's
(UNEFs) "Ad Hoc Technical Advisory Committee
on Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) Destruction
Technologies" held its third and final meeting in
Singapore in February 1992, where six thermal
oxidation processes were recommended for ODS
destruction. Robert E. Hall of AEERL represented
the United States on the committee and also served
as chairman of the Technologies Subcommittee.
Previously, the Committee had met in August 1992
in Nairobi, Kenya, and in November 1992 in
Frankfurt, Germany. In all, 11 countries
participated and 5 others observed. At the final
meeting in Singapore, six thermal oxidation
processes for ODS destruction were recommended
for approval by parties to the Montreal Protocol. A
final report draft was reviewed by the Cqmmittee
and Subcommittee chairmen at a meeting in
Research Triangle Park,, NC, in March 1992. The
draft was finalized and sent to UNEP in early May
37
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
and distributed to parties of the Montreal
Protocol by the end of May 1992.
UNEP Continues Work with ICPIC.
The Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse
(PPIC) continued its work to extrapolate the
Pollution Prevention Information Exchange System
(PIES) into the global arena under a cooperative
agreement with UNEP. The International Cleaner
Production Information Clearinghouse (ICPIC) was
previously established as a sister system to PIES.
Over 43 nations are now participating through
UNEP working groups in adding their pollution
prevention experience to the network. FY 1992
accomplishments include the following:
- Umbrella. The PIES/ICPIC Electronic Umbrella
Network was established. The umbrella allows
access to ICPIC and OzonAction by dialing one
telephone number. The umbrella can be
expanded to accommodate other nodes. Work
was initiated to establish additional nodes with
Canada, French-speaking countries through the
Agence de Cooperation Culturelle et Technique,
the Nordic Council of Ministers, and the Bra-
zilian Confederation of Industries.
- OzonAction. Under an interagency agreement,
a second international network, known as
OzonAction, has been established by EPA under
assistance to UNEP. OzonAction is an addition
to the PIES network. UNEP was required and
funded by the Interim Multilateral Ozone Fund
(IMOF) to establish an international clearing-
house of technical information on ODS
alternatives. OzonAction was designed to
specifically relay information on ODS alternatives
to government and industry to assist in meeting
the phase-outs required under the Montreal
Protocol. OzonAction conveys an array of
technical information and identifies experts on
ODS alternatives within five industry sectors:
halons, refrigerants, aerosols, solvents, and
foams. National PPIC/PIES users benefit from
access to the OzonAction network due to
availability of over 250 ODS technical and
programmatic publications, identification of more
than 200 ODS experts, 80 country phase-out
programs, over 500 industry case studies, and an
array of physical/chemical information on ODS
alternative.
OZONET. UNEP and EPA entered into an
agreement with the Industry Cooperative for
Ozone Layer Protection (ICOLP) to convey
through OzonAction a series of solvent
substitutes related databases designed by ICOLP.
This series of databases known as OZONET is
now available within the solvents section of the
OzonAction network.
Agenda 21. The international acceptance and
use of the ICPIC network culminated in Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil, this year with the global support
of ICPIC in "Agenda 21" of the United Nations
Declaration of Environment and Development.
Agenda 21 is the conceptual plan for achieving
the "declarations" signed by the 143 participating
countries at the Rio conference. Agenda 21
promotes the exchange of information on cleaner
production and specifically calls for extension
and strengthening of national and regional
information collection/dissemination
clearinghouses by networking with UNEFs
ICPIC system.
Regional Support
EPA's Regions are responsible for specific regulatory
programs. OEETD conducts the research necessary to
support both performance- and technology-based
standards and to identify the Best Demonstrated
Available Technology (BOAT) for controlling or
preventing specific environmental problems. OEETD
provides the engineering and scientific expertise and
training to assist the Regions in meeting their
responsibilities.
• RREL START Program.
The Superfund Technical Assistance Response Team
(START) Program is designed to provide site-
specific, long-term consultation to the Remedial
Project Managers (RPMs) for most complex and
38
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
complicated contaminated sites. The Regions and
RREL identify sites that are considered to be the
most critical and to present the greatest challenges,
and these sites are placed in the START Program.
This permits RREL to most effectively apply the
limited START resources. The START Program
utilizes in-house technology teams and all other
resources available within the EPA and other
federal Agencies, and/or extramural expertise to
focus on the most effective and efficient remediation
techniques possible for a contaminated site.
Immediately after a site has been accepted into the
START Program, RREL assigns a project
coordinator to the site. This project coordinator,
known as the START Team Leader, works closely
with the RPM to ensure that the most expert
technical assistance available is consulted
throughout the remedial process. This coordinated
effort between the START Program and the Regions
ensures that the latest engineering techniques and
most innovative technologies available will be
considered for site remediations. Working together,
the START Program and the Region form a team
that can effectively select and implement site
remediation technologies that are appropriate,
effective, cost efficient, and capable of meeting the
cleanup goals set by the Region.
The START Program provided assistance to 59 sites
during FY 1992 (Figure 1); this represents full
utilization of the available program capacity for the
year. The comprehensive assistance provided by
START in FY 1992 encompasses every phase of the
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Com-
pensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) process.
START conducted 96 site-specific actions on
Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS)
and 34 site-specific actions on Remedial
Design/Remedial Action (RD/RA) in FY 1992. The
ratio of RI/FS to RD/RA actions is expected to
decrease as more sites are carried to the RD/RA
phase in FY 1993.
The START Program handles a broad range of site
types and contaminants. Problems of site
remediation design are further complicated by the
variety of matrices and geologic formations in
which contaminants are found.
FIGURE 1
SITE-SPECIFIC TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
PROVIDED BY START
Number of Sites
1968
1990 1991
• Fiscal Year
1982
Table 1 - Innovative Technologies
Investigated in START Program
Technology
S\S of Organics
Solvent Extraction
Thermal Desorption
Soil Vapor Extraction
Biological
Soil Washing
Chemical Dehalogenation
Secondary Lead Smelter
In Situ Vacuum Extraction
Constructed Wetlands
TOTAL
# Sites
24
11
17
9
16
7
3
2
1
3
93
39
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
Many of the sites handled by the Branch's START
Program were chosen by the Regions because of
their complex contaminated matrix. As a result,
innovative technologies are frequently considered
for remediation. The frequency with which
innovative technologies are being considered is
presented in Table 1 (see previous page).
START conducted 23 special investigations in FY
1992 covering a wide range of topics. START
special investigations are focused, in-depth evalu-
ations of site-specific engineering and technical
problems. These studies are undertaken by the
START Program on topics that are critical to site
' remediation but for which the expertise was not
available from Alternative Remedial Contracting
Strategy (ARCS) contractors within existing time
constraints. Results of these studies are generally
provided to the Regions in the form of detailed
reports, which as enforcement actions are usually
considered confidential.
The EPA Regional personnel have been faced with
the task of selecting from a wide range of remedial
technologies available for contaminated sites. RREL
has developed a series of screening tests mat will
give the Regions a preliminary assessment of the
appropriateness of a given technology for reme-
diating a contaminated site. START has presently
developed nine technology tests that can be used on
a routine basis, independent of the specific site
situation. These screening tests or protocols are
Biotreatability, Alkaline Polyethylene Glycol
Treatment, Solidification/Stabilization (S/S),
Thermal Desorption, Soil Washing, Soil Flushing,
Soil Vapor Extraction, Solvent Extraction, and
Incineration.
Over the course of FY 1992, RREL provided 27
screening level tests to meet Regional Office needs.
These tests saved considerable time and resources
for the Regional Offices by eliminating from further
consideration and testing those technologies that
would not likely work and allowing the feasibility
study process to focus on those technologies that
had a reasonable chance to successfully remediate
the site.
Assistance Provided to Region 3 in Evaluating
Permits.
AEERL initiated a project to assist Region 3 (and
other Regional Offices) in evaluating permits for
coal-fired power plants. The primary goal of the
project is to revise the current version of EPA's
Integrated Air Pollution Control System (IAPCS)
cost model to more accurately predict the cost of
installing and using some of the more effective NOX
control technologies for coal-fired boilers including
selective catalytic reduction (SCR), selective non-
catalytic reduction (SNCR), and low-NOx
combustion. Since the law requires the regulators
to consider cost in their determination of the Best
Available Control Technology (BACT), it is
desirable for them to have a standard by which cost
can be evaluated. A revised, updated model based
on currently installed, or under construction,
technology will serve that purpose.
Pilot-Scale Treatability Testing for Region 2.
RREL assisted Region 2 in planning and overseeing
a pilot-scale treatability test for the King of Prussia,
NJ, Site, which is contaminated with sludge
material high in chromium, copper, and nickel. The
Record of Decision (ROD) specified volume
reduction and soil washing. One hundred sixty
tons of New Jersey soil were shipped to The
Netherlands for demonstration.
Technical Support for Clean Air Act (CAA)
Enforcement Results in Largest Air Settlement
in the History of Region 8.
EPA Region 8 requested assistance from AEERL to
determine if the Public Service Company of
Colorado (PSCC) practiced good air pollution
engineering at its Comanche Unit 2. Comanche
Unit 2 must comply with New Source Performance
Standards (NSPS) of the CAA and has experienced
particulate emission problems since the mid-1970's.
PSCC dealt with the problems by periodically
shutting down the unit and cleaning the hot side
electrostatic precipitators (ESP) used to control
particulate emissions. Significant amounts of
40
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
particulate matter are emitted during the cleaning
operation, and PSCC was repeatedly cited for
violating the NSPS opacity standard. AEERL
reviewed PSCC's in-house reports on the problems
at Comanche and conducted a site visit with
personnel from Region 8. As a result of AEERL's
evaluation, Region 8 referred the case to the U.S.
Department of Justice, and a complaint seeking over
$1.5 million was filed against PSCC in January 1992.
Negotiations between PSCC and EPA recently have
resulted in a settlement, with PSCC agreeing to pay
$600,000. This is the largest air settlement in the
history of Region 8.
Florida Radon Research.
The Florida Radon Research Program (FRRP) and
AEERL completed a second year of cooperative
effort. FRRP is a $1,348 million joint effort between
the Florida Department of Community Affairs and
AEERL—AEERL consults and assists in managing
the state-supported radon research program. The
goals of FRRP are to provide the technical basis for
effective, practical, and enforceable new con-
struction standards and to advance the under-
standing of radon generation, transport, entry, and
distribution in buildings. Fundamental mathe-
matical models are used to design, evaluate, and
interpret the results of radon control experiments
and demonstrations. Results ultimately will assist
decision makers in determining cost-effective radon
control strategies. FRRP objectives for FY 1992
included the following: (1) establishing a radon
potential mapping basis for the state of Florida,
(2) determining the effectiveness of fill materials
and concrete slabs as construction barriers to radon,
(3) establishing radon-resistant construction criteria
for houses with crawl spaces, and (4) continuing
demonstration of the effectiveness of the current
new construction standards.
RRP.L Provides the Regions Incineration
Treatability Testing for Superfund Sites.
EPA owns and operates an experimental rotary kiln
incinerator that is located in Jefferson, AR. The
Incineration Research Facility (IRF) is dedicated to
helping EPA solve the difficult questions
surrounding hazardous waste combustion.
The remediation of many of the Nation's Superfund
sites has fallen to the EPA Regional Offices. The
ROD database lists 187 sites or Operation Units on
the National Priority list (NPL) that have used
incineration or are slated to use incineration as the
clean-up technology. Considering that many sites
could contain large volumes of soil and debris
contaminated with organics and metals, the scope
of the problem being addressed by incineration is
enormous. The question of incineration effect-
iveness also has been raised by both the public and
the government relative to this massive incineration
effort. The IRF has aided the Regional Offices with
technical advice on many occasions and also has
completed a series of nine incineration treatability
studies on soil from specific Superfund sites.
Technical information collected under known test
conditions was used to determine that incineration
was an appropriate remediation technology for each
site and to provide input for the remedial design.
A brief description of each site and specific problem
is listed below:
- Baird & McGuire (NPL-14)—pesticides and
metals.
- Vertac (NPL-18)—dioxin destruction.
- New Bedford Harbor (NPL-81)—polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs) and metals.
- Scientific Chem Products (NPL-101)—PCBs,
metals.
- Bofors Nobel—azo dye intermediates, metals.
- Purity Oil Sales—organic destruction, lead.
- McColl (NPL-419)—organic' destruction, sulfur.
- Drake Chemical (NPL-501)—organic destruction,
metals.
- Chemical Insectiade Corp. (NPL-Gr-11)—organic
destruction, high arsenic concentrations.
In all of the incineration tests that have been
completed, testing has showri that all of the organic
contaminants (PCBs, polycyclic aromatic
41
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
hydrocarbons, insecticides, even dioxin) can be
effectively incinerated to federal emission speci-
fications. The other area of concern was the
trace metals that could cause health/ecological
problems if significant amounts were released as a
result of incineration. Arsenic was one of the most
common environmental elements of concern, and
IRFs treatability tests have shown that this metal
will predominantly remain in the ash and not be
volatilized under the proper incineration conditions.
Cooperative Research
Programs With
Industry
OEETD and industry have joined together to generate
innovative technologies to address past, present, and
emerging environmental problems while accomplish-
ing mutual goals. The use of Cooperative Research
and Development Agreements (CRADAs) is a bene-
fidal, cost-effective, and efficient means for each to
concentrate on their respective areas of expertise.
Toward this end, OEETD has been active in develop-
ing and expanding a full array of activities that are
designed to implement research and commerciali-
zation efforts in collaboration with U.S. industry. This
includes cooperative activities with other government
agencies, nonprofit organizations, and the private
sector that foster commercialization of environmental
technologies and benefit the economy.
The Federal Technology Transfer Agreement (FTTA) of
1986, P.L. 99-502, created the CRADA mechanism to
enable OEETD and appropriate private companies to
jointly conduct research and to commercialize the
resulting technology. CRADAs—important tools for
the OEETD laboratories—have proven to be an
excellent mechanism.
• Improved Woodstove Technology.
A CRADA for an Improved Woodstove Technology
was signed by AEERL and Aladdin Steel Products,
Inc., of Colville, WA, in September 1992. Under the
CRADA, Aladdin agreed to build 25 prototype
stoves in the fall of 1992. These prototypes will be
installed in typical homes and tested during the
winter of 1993-1994 for emissions control
performance, efficiency, durability, and consumer
satisfaction. Additional prototypes will be built and
submitted to independent laboratories for safety
testing (by Underwriter's Laboratories [UL]
procedures) and EPA certification. It is anticipated
that the improved woodstove will be available in
retail stores by the summer of 1994.
NETAC.
In 1988, the EPA set out to create a new mechanism
that would allow environmental technology
developers and users to gain Agency assistance
without concern about government intervention or
disclosure of proprietary information. The result
was the National Environmental Technology
Applications Corporation (NETAC), a unique
nonprofit organization formed through a
cooperative agreement with the University of
Pittsburgh Trust Today, NETAC has emerged as
the country's leading environmental technology
support center. Through its diverse activities, it has
provided the EPA with an effective means for
carrying out Agency goals for technology transfer
and quality public service.
NETAC is dedicated to accelerating the develop-
ment and commercialization of priority environ-
mental technologies for national and international
markets and to identifying promising environ-
mental technology solutions. Through a strategic
mix of business, technical, regulatory, and
marketing services, the company serves public and
private sector clients ranging from small entre-
preneurs to Fortune 500 firms to state and local
agencies. In its first 4 years, NETAC has worked in
30 states and 10 countries, gaining national and
international recognition for its accomplishments.
NETAC's success in developing creative strategies
to speed the commercialization process has had -
positive impacts both here in the United States and
in other countries. Realizing the timeliness of the
NETAC concept. Environment Canada now plans to
replicate the company at three sites. In cooperation
with Environment Canada, OEETD has been an
42
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
active member of the development and manage-
ment oversight team for these Canadian centers.
NETAC's environmental technology specialization
also neatly dovetails with needs at other U.S.
government agencies such as the Department of
Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Agency for International
Development. Here, NETAC's expertise is being
applied to projects including development of a
model to encourage private investment in tech-
nologies to meet DOE environmental needs and
promotion of international transfer of U.S. tech-
nologies that can meet environmental needs
worldwide.
SITE.
RREL's Superfund Innovative Technology Evalu-
ation (SITE) Program was developed to assist
industry in evaluating hazardous waste cleanup
technologies. SITE consists of an Emerging
Technology, a Demonstration, and a Monitoring
and Measurement Technology Program. The
Emerging Technologies Program provides a
framework for encouraging innovative technologies
that are not quite ready for commercialization.
Twenty-one Emerging Technology projects were
completed, however, not all reports have been
finalized. The Demonstration Program was more
active in FY 1992 than any other year in completing
demonstrations. Innovative Treatment Technologies
demonstrations were completed for 15 projects.
Fifty-nine total demonstrations have been
completed or are ongoing: 41 from the Demon-
stration Program, 14 from the Monitoring and
Measurement Program, and 4 ongoing in the field.
Remediation Technology Development Forum.
In June 1992, industrial, government, and public
representatives met with EPA Administrator
William Reilly and other EPA officials to identify
what government and industry could do to improve
and develop the environmental technologies needed
to address the Nation's hazardous waste cleanup
problems. Several areas were identified as
opportunities for collaborative industry/govern-
ment research efforts through research consortia.
To implement the recommendations from this
meeting, OEETD and the Technology Innovation
Office of the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency
Response established the Remediation Technology
Development Forum (RTDF) and convened a
meeting in September 1992 to more specifically
identify areas of mutual interest and to develop the
action team concept. The RTDF subsequently estab-
lished a steering committee and an action com-
mittee addressing in situ cleanup technologies and
site characterizations as initial priorities. These
groups will foster public and private sector
partnerships to undertake research, development,
demonstration, and evaluation efforts needed to
achieve common cleanup goals.
In a December 1992 meeting of the In Situ Action
Group, several specific research areas were
identified as mutual priorities and a "champion"
appointed for each to further expose and develop
cooperative efforts. In addition, a proposal
developed by the Midwest Hazardous Substances
Research Center was discussed to establish a test
facility dedicated to the field evaluation of
bioremediation treatment technologies at the
Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Michigan. This facility
would be available for use by industry for eval-
uating technologies that they have developed, as
well as for joint research activities with government
agencies.
The action committee on site characterization is
considering a consortium of federal agencies and
industry to accelerate and reduce the cost of the site
characterization. A partnership among the
Department of Defense (DOD), DOE, EPA, and
industry could potentially be formed to collaborate
on the identification, development, and evaluation
of innovative monitoring, measurement, and site
characterization technologies. At the present time,
the feasibility of such a partnership is being
investigated.
Bioremediation Action Committee.
The Bioremediation Action Committee (BAC) is a
partnership of experts from government, industry,
academia, and the public dedicated to expanding
the use of bioremediation in the treatment, control,
and prevention of environmental cdhtaminatibh.
Chaired by ORD/OEETD, the BAC provides a pro-
active forum to facilitate the advancement of both
43
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
the science and practical field application of
bioremediation. The BAG advances the develop-
ment of bioremediation through a variety of
functions including the following:
- Coordinating activities across organizations.
- Transferring information.
- Identifying priorities.
- Conducting projects to address needs.
During the past year the BAC
- Developed "Interim Guidelines for Preparing
Bioremediation Spill Response Plans," and
distributed the guidelines to response officials
through the National and Regional Response
Teams.
- Completed the "EPA Region 6 Bioremediation
Spill Response Plan," a contingency plan for
evaluating, implementing, and monitoring
bioremediation in response to oil spills along the
Gulf of Mexico.
- Developed a set of protocols for testing the
effectiveness of oil spill bioremediation products
for use on open water, beaches, and marshes.
- Published a report on "States' Use of
Bioremediation: Advantages, Constraints, and
Strategies."
- Published "Bioremediation Case Studies," a
compendium of private sector bioremediation
activities.
- Developed a database on bioremediation
including over 150 sites where progress toward
use is being monitored and updated.
- Sponsored a workshop with EPA, state environ-
mental officials, and petroleum industry
representatives to discuss the use of biore-
mediation for underground storage tanks and
other petroleum-contaminated cleanups.
- Published a report on "High Priority Research on
Bioremediation."
- Convened a 2-day meeting between industry and
academia to discuss bioremediation education
interfaces and to identify knowledge, skills, and
abilities needed at different education/training
levels.
- Identified pollution prevention case studies on
the biological destruction of methylene chloride
and phenols in a production process to prevent
release.
Committee on Industry and Technology.
In FY 1992, OEETD continued to provide Agency
representation for the Committee on Industry and
Technology (CIT)—one of seven permanent commit-
tees established by the White House's Federal
Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and
Technology (FCCSET). The CIT addresses signifi-
cant national policy matters that cut across Agency
boundaries and provides a formal mechanism for
interagency science policy coordination and
exchange of information. The CIT was the only
permanent committee of FCCSET specifically
chartered to enhance the development and applica-
tion of technology by U.S. industry in order to
stimulate economic growth and competitiveness.
The main purpose of the CIT is to advise and assist
FCCSET in issues critical to examining, monitoring,
encouraging, and increasing the effectiveness of
federal policies, programs, and initiatives in
industrial competitiveness and technological
leadership. Improving materials and advancing
manufacturing techniques are two of the CIT's
major concerns.
44
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
Materials and manufacturing initiatives and
research are conducted by OEETLYs two labo-
ratories: RREL and AEERL. The EPA programs
focus primarily on developing tools and materials
needed to produce environmentally benign
products and processes through the use of CRADAs
and licensing agreements with private corporations or
academic institutions. Success stories have involved
saving the ozone layer by developing and/or testing
new refrigerants and by reducing air pollution through
the use of recycled wastes.
** ' "-" ^ PATENTS ISSUED * *V W8L • - ":,,. „ ' ,
Electroprecipitator with Alternating Charging and Short
Collector Sections
Base-Catalyzed Decomposition (BCD) Process for Treating
Halogenated Organics (three separate patents issued during
FY 1991 and FY 1992).
Norman Plaks, Leslie Sparks
Charles Rogers, Albert Kernel,
Harold Sparks
AEERL
RREL
. ~»- ""'< • >ATEHT AmiCATlOHS - FV W2" * r ,„ '
Method of Reducing Transient Emissions from Rotary Kiln
Incinerators and Container for Attaining Same
Single Chamber Wood Stove Including Gaseous
Hydrocarbon Supply
Corona Destruction of Volatile Organic Compounds and
Toxics Corona System for Controlling Emissions of Organic
Pollutants
Anaerobic Contact Stabilization Process
Biofiltration Process
Lignosulfonate-Modified Calcium Hydroxide for SO2
Control During Furnace Injection
Refrigerant Compositions and Processes for Using Same
Enhancement of Electrostatic Precipitation with
Electrostatically Augmented Fabric Filtration
Use of Fuzzy Logic for Integrated Intelligent Control for
Improved Energy Efficiency for Motor and Process
Operation to Reduce the Emissions of CO2
Paul Lemieux, William Linak,
William Lowans
Robert McCrillis, Nelson Butts,
Wade Ponder, James Abbott
James Abbott, Wade Ponder,
Geddes Ramsey, Ceirlos Nunez
D. Fred Bishop
D. Fred Bishop
David Kirchgessner
Jane Bare, Cynthia Gage, James
Register, N. Dean Smith
Norman Plaks, Charles Sedman
-.'-...-- - .•«.-•« • -~ ~~- •••","•-• ' •
Ronald Spiegel, P. Jeffrey Chappell
AEERL
AEERL
AEERL
RREL
RREL
AEERL
AEERL
AEERL
AEERL
> ' IISmBMIlOH DISCLOSURE - JFV 1992 ? ' ,, ,
Aerobic Fluidized Bed Reactor
Steve Safferman
RREL
45
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
Federal Technology Transfer Act (FTTA)
CRADAs in place;
• Chapman, Inc., is using EPA's mobile in situ
soil containment technology far treating'
hazardous wastes under an agreement with
REEL.
• Drysdale and Associates, Inc., and RREL are
developing and evaluating automatic sensors
and data acquisition equipment for drinking
water treatment plants.
• An agreement has been completed with >
Vulcan Iron Works, Inc., and REEL to use
EPA's mobile incinerator for destruction of
hazardous wastes.
• An agreement has been concluded with
Aladdin Steel, Inc., to refine gas-augmented
woodstoves, to build prototype stoves, and to
test the stoves in field applications and at the
AEERL in-house laboratory.
• Nalco Fuel Tech has a proprietary process for
control of SO2 and NOX by injection of a
sorbent/urea solution slurry. Under 1he
agreement, AEERL has used in-house facili:
ties to evaluate SC>2 and NOX control poten-
tial. ;
» The Water Quality Association, and EREL
have agreed to conduct evaluations of ion-
exchange softening systems and their effect
on corrosiveness, which could result in in-
creased levels of lead, copper, and' other
heavy metals in tap water.*
• Cold Jet, Inc., and REEL are evaluating dry'
ice particle blasting and.other abatement
processes for the removal of lead paint.
CRADAs under negotiation; 8
Licenses issued:
» A license has been granted to Genlime to
' commercialize fee calcium lignasuifonate-
modified"sorbent for the Limestone Injection
with' Multistage Burners (LIMB) Process,
They plan to promote for AEERL the
"' technology as one option being considered
' for $O2 conn"0* under Phase ! of Title IV of
the "1990 Clean Air Act Amendments
(CAAA).
» University of Texas, as patent coholder with
AEERt, has licensed, the advanced silicate
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
Outreach Programs
OEETD offers assistance in areas where expertise is
not otherwise available. This outreach function
advertises the capabilities of OEETD to provide
assistance where it is needed. OEETD has developed
a number of highly successful outreach activities that
serve the industrial technology developer and user
alike.
» The Alternative Treatment Technology Information
Center (ATTIC) first became operational in May
1989 under OEETD management, and after under-
going major improvements, its use has increased
significantly. It is an information retrieval network
and computer-assisted database system that
provides technology information to environmental
decision makers in the private sector. Management
of the ATTIC system was transferred to RREL from
OEETD Headquarters (HQ) in November 1991.
Efforts in 1992 were focused on obtaining and
analyzing user needs in order to achieve the goal of
improving ATTIC's content and user friendliness.
Responses to questionnaires distributed to select
members of the previously established ATTIC
Management Committee on these two subjects were
received from EPA and state environmental
personnel, remediation contractors, and the
Hazardous Waste Action Coalition. Plans for (1)
redesigning the ATTIC system to improve its user
friendliness and (2) systematically acquiring
information to assure that ATTIC contains the
current information on alternative treatment
technologies were developed for implementation in
1993. Interim measures for improving the system
were implemented during 1992. Improvements to
bulletin board and ATTIC Database commands
were made for clarification purposes. All Super-
fund Innovative Technology Evaluation (SITE)
Program documents and RREL Superfund Technical
Support Program documents, such as the
Engineering Bulletins, are included in the system.
The ATTIC Database contains approximately 2,20p
entries, 600 of which were added in 1992. There
were approximately 10,200 on-line calls to the
system in 1992. ATTIC has more than 2,000
registered users, 55 percent of whom are in the
private sector.
• OEETD also manages and implements the Pollution
Prevention Information Clearinghouse (PPIC),
which includes the Pollution Prevention Information
Exchange System (PIES). Industry is an important
contributor to and recipient of PPIC/PIES infor-
mation. There also is an international version of
PPIC, called the International Cleaner Production
Information Clearinghouse, which also is targeted to
the private sector.
• OEETD directly supports an important segment of
EPA's six university-affiliated hazardous waste
centers. These centers study all aspects of the
manufacture, use, transport, and disposal of waste
products to help industry develop and demonstrate
innovative treatment technologies.
• In an effort to further its Equal Employment
Opportunity (EEO) objectives, OEETD HQ has
written guidelines on forming partnerships between
minority and majority academic institutions. The
guidelines are the result of an outreach program
established in 1992 between the University of
Central Florida and the Historically Black Colleges
and Universities (HBCUs) in the state of Florida
and surrounding states. The guidelines will be
distributed to our laboratories and research centers
for their use. In addition, OEETD HQ has initiated
development of a minority engineering program in
an effort to develop closer relationships with
minority groups. The program will include
working with HBCUs, secondary schools, industry,
and other business organizations.
• The Control Technology Center (CTC) has com-
pleted its sixth year of successful operation in
providing technical assistance to state, local, and
federal air pollution control agencies. The 1990
Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) expanded the
Control Technpjpgy Center's role to include pro-
viding technical assistance to the private sector,
thus increasing the CTC's clientele. Titles m and V
of the CAAA require EPA to provide technical
assistance to. tlie new sfefg s.maU ^siness te^nical
assistance programs when they become operational
and to the private sector. The CTC began
47
-------
CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
providing limited technical support to nongovern-
mental clients in January 1991 to comply with the
mandate of the CAAA.
The CTC also was selected at that time to become
the focal point of the Federal Small Business
Assistance Program (SBAP). The Federal SBAP is a
coordinated effort among several existing EPA
technical service centers, with the CTC serving as
the Agency's contact point for general small busi-
ness assistance questions on the subject of air pollu-
tion control technology. The Agency's assistance
centers associated with this program include the
CTC, the Emission Measureme,nt Technical
Information Center (EMTIC), the Chemical
Emergency Preparedness and Prevention Office
(Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-
Know Information Hotline), PPIC, and the EPA
Small Business Ombudsman Hotline. The federal
assistance program is expected to fill the technical
void in many state programs until the states de-
velop a full range of expertise. The CTC assisted in
development of guidelines for groups to use in the
preparation of Small Business Enabling documents.
These documents explain new emission standards
in layman's terms. The CTC/SBAP reviews these
documents, coordinates their review with the EPA
Small Business Ombudsman in EPA Headquarters
and with other federal officials, and organizes the
distribution of the final documents.
The CTC operates a telephone hotline service
staffed by technical experts from the sponsoring
organizations. The Hotline permits immediate
response to most simple technical assistance
requests. During FY 1992, the Hotline recorded
1,309 calls from state and local agencies, EPA
Regional Offices, and other foreign and domestic
governmental agencies. The Hotline received an
additional 1/441 private sector calls during FY 1992.
The total calls received from all sources was 2,750—
a 33 percent increase over FY 1991. This increase in
calls resulted primarily from an increase in calls
from nongovernmental entities rather than from
governmental organizations, the original client of
the CTC. As in FY 1991, the major topic of the
Hotline inquiries was volatile organic compounds
(VOCs) and related topics, representing 25 percent
of all requests.
The CTC Bulletin Board System (BBS) completed its
first full year of service in FY 1992. The BBS may
be accessed 24 hours per day by anyone with a
personal computer equipped with a modem and
appropriate software. Users can make hotline-type
requests and access or download CTC-generated
documents and software via the BBS. During the
first full year of operation, the BBS proved to be a
valuable asset to the CTC program. Non-CTC users
accessed the CTC BBS 4,440 times during FY 1992.
These interactions included over 1,400 downloads of
over 30 software programs, documents, and other
available items.
The CTC initiated 17 administrative, technical guid-
ance, and engineering assistance projects during FY
1992. Many of these projects resulted from Hotline
calls and written requests for technical assistance
and are usually long term (taking up to 1 year to
complete) and applicable to a broad client base.
Finally, as part of its technology transfer effort, the
CTC distributed more than 5,899 reports docu-
menting the results of CTC-sponsored projects.
The CTC conducted several outreach activities
during FY 1992. More than 3,800 copies of CTC's
bulletin, The CTC News, were mailed to CTC clients
each quarter in FY 1992. This publication informs
readers of the assistance, expertise, and technical
information available through the CTC.
The newly created Global Greenhouse Gases Tech-
nology Transfer Center (GGGTTC) is a new tech-
nical support program that was added to the CTC
during FY 1992. The GGGTTC is designed to
provide technology transfer regarding greenhouse
gas emissions. This assistance includes charac-
terizing global emissions from anthropogenic
sources and ascertaining available prevention,
mitigation, and control technologies/strategies for
major sources of greenhouse gases. Information is
available for methane emissions from landfills and
other waste management facilities and the natural
gas and coal mining industries. In addition,
information is available on biomass utilization for
energy generation and production of liquid fuel.
48
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
€TC AOWITY - FY
Activity
FY1991
FY1992
Increase (%)
Hotline Calls, Government
1,296
1,309
Hotline Calls, Nongovernment
772
1,4-41
87
Total Hotline Calls
1,068
2,750
33
RACT/BACT/LAER Clearinghouse (RBLC)
1,400
1,917
37
CTC Bulletin Board System (BBS)
866
4,440
413
Total CTC Accesses
6,402
Number of CTC Documents Mailed
4,000
9,107
•••
5,899
42
47
Number of The CTC News mailed per ^quarter
2,600
3,800
46
arc
No cost assistance to staff of state and local agencies and
EPA Regional Offices on air pollution control technology
issues.
CTC BBS: Call (919) 541-5742 for 1200/2400/9600 baud
modem, to access the CTC BBS. iSet communications
parameters to 8 data bits, N parity, and 1 stop bit. You may
leave HOTLINE requests, order documents, suggest projects,
and download software. The BBS is part of the Office of Air
Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS) Technology Transfer
Network (TTN).
CTC HOTLINE: Call (919) 541-0800 to access EPA
expert staff for consultations, references to pertinent
literature, or to access EPA technical data and analyses.
No question is too simple!
GLOBAL GREENHOUSE GASES TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER CENTER (GGGTTC): Call the CTC HOTLINE to
access GGGTTC information on greenhouse gas emissions,
prevention, mitigation, and control strategies.
ENGINEERING ASSISTANCE: If you need in-depth
assistance concerning a specific control technology
problem, call the HOTLINE or write the CTC. EPA staff
and contractors:are~available for short-term projects such
as review of proposed or existing control technology
applications. Projects are subject to CTC Steering
Committee approval.
RACT/BACT/LAER CLEARINGHOUSE (RBLC): The
Clearinghouse provides summary information for control
technology determinations made by permitting agencies. The
BACT/LAER determinations^Infpirmation System (BUS), the
database portion of the Clearinghouse, is available on the
OAQPS TTN. (See CTC BBS for more information.)
TECHNICAL GUIDANCE: If the CTC receives a
number of similar HOTLINE calls or a joint request
from a group of agencies, the CTC Steering Committee
may undertake broad, long-term projects of national or
regional interest. The result may be a control
technology document, microcomputer software, or
seminars and workshops.
FEDERAL SMALL BUSINESS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
(FSBAP): Call the HOTLINE to access the ESBAP. The CTC,is
the focal point for coordinatibh of efforts among the four EPA
centers participating in the program. The federal program is
intended to support state small business assistance programs, as
required by the Clean Air Act.
49
-------
CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
Technology Transfer
OEETD disseminates its research products to the
public and private sector through symposia,
workshops and publications. Some examples follow:
• Biofiltration for VOC Control Report.
AEERL prepared a report entitled "An Assessment
of Biofiltration for VOC Control—Design, Theory,
Applications, Costs, and Issues." The report
assesses the viability of biofiltration for controlling
volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in gaseous air
streams. The report will allow AEERL to provide
sound, technical input to ORD research programs in
that area. Biofiltration has been in use in European
countries for years for wastewater treatment and
odor control. Germany and The Netherlands have
accepted and are using the technology as an air
pollution control technique. In the past, bio-
filtration for controlling gaseous air streams has not
been used extensively in North America because of
a lack of regulatory programs and little govern-
mental support in the research and development
area. Now it is being evaluated to determine its
viability as an air pollution control technique on
this continent.
OJRD Attends Third United States/Japan
Workshop on Sewage Treatment Technology.
A paper entitled, "New EPA Process Design Manual
for Nitrogen Control," was presented at the work-
shop sponsored under the U.S./Japan Environ-
mental Cooperative Agreement. The paper
discussed changes in nitrogen control since 1975. In
1991 the Japanese Public Works Research Institute
(PWRI) supported 26 projects dealing with infra-
structure, advanced wastewater treatment, sludge
processing and water quality; in 1992 the Japan
Sewage Works Agency (JSWA) had 17 projects
dealing with small treatment plants, wastewater
reuse, sludge handling, and treatment technology.
Development of a Facility Pollution
Prevention Guide.
The Guide has been completed and approximately
5,000 copies have been distributed. All facilities ,
regulated under the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (RCRA) are required to have a
pollution prevention (P2) plan. The Guide addresses
the basic steps involved in developing a P2
program. It is intended to help small- to medium-
sized production facilities develop broad-based,
multimedia P2 programs and to help them meet
RCRA requirements. It describes how to identify,
assess, and implement opportunities for preventing
pollution and how to stimulate the ongoing search
for such opportunities. Facilities adopting this
approach can expect to find that they reduce both
their operating costs and their potential liabilities,
as well as help to preserve the environment. The
Guide can be applied to all businesses or organ-
izations such as government agencies and is
especially helpful to industries regulated under
RCRA. In many instances prevention costs are
outweighed by savings from reduced waste
treatment and disposal, reduced liability, and
reduced raw material purchases.
Pollution prevention is an ongoing process. As new
and better methods and technologies are identified,
tried, and adopted, industry is in a prime position
for cooperative efforts to evaluate and demonstrate
the cost and benefits of P2. Implementation of
schemes that work precludes the need for more
restrictive regulatory action. In addition, testing of
the Guide is being planned by the Office of Solid
Waste (OSW). There is an opportunity for
companies to be involved in the testing and any
revisions that result. For further information
contact Lisa M. Brown, Pollution Prevention
Research Branch, Waste Minimization, Destruction,
and Disposal Research Division, Risk Reduction
Engineering Laboratory, EPA, 26 W. Martin Luther
King Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45268, Phone: (513)
569-7634, FAX: (513) 569-7549.
50
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CROSSCUTTING ISSUES
AEERL PUBLICATIONS
Reports published and sent to NTIS
Peer-reviewed journal articles approved
Peer-reviewed journal articles published
Papers presented (symposia, etc.)
Book chapters
FY1991
36
26
14
76
1
FY1992
60
25
21
98
1
RREL PUBLICATIONS
Journal articles
Published papers
Project reports
Project summaries
Research briefs
Bulletins
Proceedings
Book chapters
FY1991
97
131
75
38
11
11
1
7
FY1992
54
92
92
52
24
19
4
3
51
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SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
-------
AWARDS
Bronze Medals
• For outstanding pioneering effort to develop
universally accepted, extremely useful measures of
water quality, namely, total organic halide. Ronald
C. Dressman—RREL
• For distinguished service in promoting the
development and commercialization of innovative
environmental technologies through the President's
National Technology Initiative. Annette
Gatchett—RREL
• For remarkable achievement in the Byers
Warehouse T/Silvex removal action. Donald
Oberacker and Joyce Perdek—RREL
• For exemplary performance in completing an
Agency goal of establishing New Source
Performance Standards and emission guidelines to
control toxic air emissions from municipai waste
combustors. Theodore G. Bma and James D.
Kilgroe—AEERL
• For exhibiting a high degree of initiative and
original thought in successfully issuing the Section
507 Small Business Assistance Guidelines. Charles
H. Darvin—AEERL
Scientific and Technological Achievement Awards
(STAA)
• Modeling Ihactivation in Giardia lamblia. Robert M.
Clark—RREL
• Mouse—A Computerized Uncertainty Analysis
System. Albert J. Klee—RREL
• Evaluating the Costs of Packed-Tower Aeration and
GAC for Controlling Selected Organics. Jeffrey Q.
Adams, Robert M. Clark—RREL
• Evaluation of BAT for VOCs in Drinking Water.
Jeffrey Q. Adams, Robert M. Clark—RREL
• Recovery of 3-Chloro-4(dichloromethyl)-5-hydroxy-
2(5H)-furanone from Water Samples on XAD Resins
and the Effect of Chlorine on Its Mutagenicity.
Kathleen M. Schenck, John R. Meier, H. Paul
Ringhand, and Frederick C. Kopfler—RREL
• The Interaction of Vapor Phase Organic Compounds
with Indoor Sinks. Bruce A. Tichenor and Leslie
Sparks—AEERL
• Minimization of Transient Emissions from Rotary
Kiln Incinerators. Paul Lemieux and William
Linak—AEERL
Honorable Mention-STAA Awards
» Reduction in Bacterial Densities of Wastewater
Solids by Three Secondary Treatment Processes.
Joseph B. Farrell, B. Vincent Salotto, Albert D.
Venosa—RREL
• Characterizing Surface Waters that May not Require
Filtration. Edwin E. Geldreich, James A. Goodrich,
Robert M. Clark—RREL
• Concerns with Using Chlorine Dioxide Disinfection
in the USA. Benjamin W. Lykins, Jr., James A.
Goodrich, John C. Hoff—RREL
EPA Science Achievement Award (Engineering)
• For significant research into understanding the
mechanisms of formation and prevention of chlori-
nated dioxins and furans in waste combustion
systems. Brian K. Gullett—AEERL
Administrator's Award for Excellence
• Patricia E. Sharpe—AEERL
Special Award
• ORD's BCD Process Wins R&D Magazine's R&D 100
Award. Each year R&D Magazine selects the 100 ,
most technologically significant products of that
year and awards to the developers the prestigious
"R&D 100 Award." One winning product was
ORD's "Base-Catalyzed Decomposition (BCD)
Process," a novel method for dechlorinating
hazardous chlorinated wastes. The three
researchers who developed this process were
honored in September 1992 in Chicago's Museum of
Science and Industry. Charles Rogers, Albert
Komel, Harold Sparks—RREL
52
-------
LIST OF ACRONYMS
AC alternating current EPA
ADVACATE Advanced Silicate Process EPRI
AEERL Air and Energy Engineering ERT
Research Laboratory
ARCS Alternative Remedial Contracting ESP
Strategy FCCSET
ASD active soil depressurization
ASD adjustable speed drive
ASTM American Society for Testing FGD
Materials FGR
ATTIC Alternative Treatment Technology FRRP
Information Center FTTA
BAG Bioremediation Action Committee FY
BACT Best Available Control Technology GAC
BAT Best Available Treatment GGGTTC
BBS Bulletin Board System
BCD Base-Catalyzed Decomposition GIS
BDAT Best Demonstrated Available GloED
Technology GRI
BLIS BACT/LAER determinations HBCUs
Information System
CAAA Clean Air Act Amendments (1990) HCFC
CCRRF Camden County Resource Recovery HFC
Facility Hg
CDC Centers for Disease Control HPC
CDD chlorinated dibenzodioxin HQ
CDF chlorinated dibenzofuran HUD
CERCLA Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and HVAC
Liability Act
CFC chlorofluorocarbons IAPCS
CIT Committee on Industry and
Technology IAQ
CO2 carbon dioxide ICOLP
CPI corrugated plate interceptor
CRADA Cooperative Research and Develop- ICPIC
ment Agreement
CTC Control Technology Center
DOD Department of Defense IMOF
DOE Department of Energy INEL
EEO Equal Employment Opportunity
EMTIC Emission Measurement Technical IPCC
Information Center
Environmental Protection Agency
Electric Power Research Institute
Environmental Response Team
(EPA)
electrostatic pretipitator
Federal Coordinating Council for
Science!, Engineering, and
Technology
flue gas desulfurization
flue gas recirculation
Florida Radon Research Program
Federal: Technology Transfer Act
fiscal year
granular activated carbon
Global Greenhouse Gases
Technology Transfer Center
Geographic Information System
Global Emissions Database
Gas Research Institute
Historically Black Colleges and
Universities
hydrocMorofluorocarbon
hydrofluorocarbon
mercury
heterotrophic plate count
Headquarters (EPA) "
Department of Housing and Urban
Development
heating, ventilation, and air condi-
tioning
Integrated Air Pollution Control
System
indoor air quality
Industry Cooperative for Ozone
Layer Protection
The International Cleaner
Production Information
Clearinghouse
Interim Multilateral Ozone Fund
Idaho National Engineering
Laboratory
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change
53
-------
LIST OF ACRONYMS
ERF Incineration Research Facility PCBs
JSWA Japan Sewage Works Agency ' PC
LAER Lowest Achievable Emission Rate PCP
LIMB Limestone Injection with Multistage PCS
Burners
MCL Maximum Contaminant Level PEG
MOU Memorandum of Understanding PICs
MSW municipal solid waste PIES
MWC municipal waste combustor
MWI medical waste incineration POHCs
NAAQS National Ambient Air Quality Stan-
dard . POTW
NACEPT National Advisory Committee for PPD
Environmental Policy and PPIC
Technology
NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization PSCC
NETAC National Environmental Technology
Applications Corporation PWRI
NOX nitrogen oxides RACT
NPL National Priority List
NSPS New Source Performance Standards RBLC
NTIS National Technical Information RGB
Service RCRA
OAQPS Office of Air Quality Planning and
Standards RDF
OAR Office of Air and Radiation RD/RA
ODS ozone-depleting substances RI/FS
OE Office of Enforcement
OECD Organization of Economic Coopera- ROD
tion and Development RPMs
OEETD Office of Environmental Engineering RREL
and Technology Demonstration
OMB Office of Management and Budget RTDF
OPPT Office of Pollution Prevention and
Toxics SBAP
ORD • Office of Research and Development SCAQMD
ORSANCO Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation
Commission SCR
OSW Office of Solid Waste SD/ESP
OSWER Office of Solid Waste and
Emergency Response SD/FF
OW Office of Water SERDP
P2 pollution prevention
PAHs polycydic aromatic hydrocarbons
polychlorinated biphenyls
personal computer
pentachlorophenol
Permit Compliance System
[database]
polyethylene glycol
products of incomplete combustion
Pollution Prevention Information
Exchange System
principal organic hazardous
constituents
publicly owned treatment works
Pollution Prevention Division
Pollution Prevention Information
Clearinghouse
Public Service Company of
Colorado
Public Works Research Institute
Reasonably Available Control
Technology
RACT/BACT/LAER Clearinghouse
Releases Control Branch
Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act
refuse-derived fuel
Remedial Design/Remedial Action
Remedial Investigation/Feasibility
Study
Record of Decision
Remedial Project Managers
Risk Reduction Engineering Labora-
tory
Remediation Technology
Development Forum
Small Business Assistance Program
South Coast Air Quality
Management District
selective catalytic reduction
spray dryer absorber/electrostatic
precipitator
spray dryer/fabric filter
Strategic Environmental Research
and Development Program
54
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LIST OF ACRONYMS
SICORE
SITE
SNAP
SNCR
S02
sox
SRI
S/S
STAA
START
TiO,
Sorbent Injection for Chlorinated
Organic Removal/Elimination
Superfund Innovative Technology
Evaluation
Significant New Alternatives
Program
selective non-catalytic reduction
sulfur dioxide
sulfur oxides
Southern Research Institute
solidification/stabilization
Scientific and Technological
Achievement Awards
Superfund Technical Assistance
Response Team
titanium dioxide
TRI Toxic Release Inventory [database]
TRIM Toxics Reduction in the Military
TSCA Toxic Substances Control Act
TSLoO2 Thermal Stability at Low Oxygen
TTN Technology Transfer Network
TVA Tennessee Valley Authority
UL Underwriters' Laboratories
UNEP United Nations Environment
Program
USDA U.S. Depairtment of Agriculture
VOC volatile organic compound
VRU Volume Reduction Unit
WASP4 Water Quality Analysis Simulation
Program, version 4
WIMS Waste Information Management
System
LIST OF UNITS
Btu/hr British thermal units/hour
cfm cubic feet per minute
CFU/mL colony-forming unit/milliliter
g/hr grams per hour
hp horsepower
km kilometer
kWh kilowatt hours
kW kilowatt
ug/dscm microgram/dry standard cubic
meter
mg/kg milligram/killigram
mg/L milligram/liter
mg/mL milligram/milliliter
mg/Nm3 milligram/newton x meter3
mol mole
mM millimolar
MWe megawatt electron
MW megawatt
pCi/L picocuries per liter
ppb parts per billion
ppm parts per million
PPMV parts per million volume
Tg teragrams
• W watt
55
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TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE DIRECTORY
Office of Environmental Engineering and Technology Demonstration
Alfred W. Lindsey, Director
202/260-2600
E-Mail: Lindsey.Alfred
FAX: 202/260-3861
401 M Street, SW
Mailcode: RD-681
Washington, DC 20460
Staff Contact
Alfred W. Lindsey
Marshall Dick
Alfred Galli
Curtis Harlin
Bala Krishnan
Richard Nalesnik
Don Tang
Stephen Lingle
Michael Mastracci
Telephone
202/260-2600
202/260-2580
202/260-2583
202/260-5748
202/260-2583
202/260-2583
202/260-2583
202/260-4073
202/260-8933
Gregory Ondich
202/260-5753
Area of Expertise
Alternative and Innovative Treatment Technologies
Radon; indoor air; global climate; stratospheric ozone; air
toxics; air pollution; toxic substances; asbestos; pesticides
Committee on Industry and Technology/Federal
Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and
Technology; energy; OEETD budget responsibility
Alternative Treatment Technology Information Center
Hazardous waste; municipal solid waste; pollution preven-
tion
Superfund alternative treatment technologies; innovative
technology evaluation; technical assistance response team;
underground storage tanks; medical waste
Drinking water; municipal wastewater; stormwater and
combined sewer overflow; constructed wetlands; sludge;
quality assurance
Bioremediation; Alaska bioremediation project; biotech-
nology; municipal solid waste
Commercialization of environmental technologies:
- National Environmental Technology Applications Cor-
poration
- Department of Energy/Department of Defense
coordination
OEETD program development; pesticides disposal methods;
pulp, paper, and paperboard wastes and treatment;
municipal solid wastes; dioxins/furans sources and disposal;
hazardous waste treatment
56
-------
Staff Contact
Kurt Jakobson
Paul Shapiro
Myles Morse
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE DIRECTORY
Telephone
202/260-0594
202/260-4969
202/260-3161
Area of Expertise
Oil spills
Pollution prevention
Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse; International
Cleaner Production Information Clearinghouse; international
cleaner production; technical information transfer; data
networking
Air and Energy Engineering Research Laboratory
Frank T. Princiotta, Director
919/541-2821
E-Mail: Princiotta.F
FAX: 919/541-5227
Maildrop: 60
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
Staff Contact
Frank Princiotta
Blair Martin
Everett Plyler
Robert Hall
Michael Osborne
Timothy Dyess
Telephone
919/541-2821
919/541-7504
919/541-2918
919/541-2477
919/541-4113
919/541-2802
Area of Expertise
Air and energy environmental assessment and control tech-
nology development
Combustion, incineration, furnace injection for sulfur oxides
control
Combustion modification control technology; fundamental
hazardous waste incineration research; municipal waste
combustion; radon control; indoor air quality
Combustion modification control technology including re-
burning; fundamental hazardous waste incineration research;
municipal waste combustion
Indoor air pollutant source/emissions characterization; air
cleaners and other indoor air quality (IAQ) mitigation ap-
proaches; IAQ modeling
Radon mitigation techniques for new and existing houses,
schools, and other structures; fundamental studies of radon
source potentials, entry, accumulation, and removal mecha-
nisms
57
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TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE DIRECTORY
Staff Contact
Charles Sedman
Telephone
919/541-7700
Dennis Drehmel
Michael Maxwell
Larry Jones
Wade Ponder
William Rhodes
CTC Hotline
919/541-7505
919/541-3091
919/541-7716
919/541-2818
919/541-2853
919/541-0800
Area of Expertise
Limestone Injection with Multistage Burners (LIMB)
development; low NOX burners; fundamental sorbent
reactivity/kinetics studies; flue gas cleaning technologies;
NOX selective catalytic reduction; LIMB demonstrations
(wall-fired and tangentially fired)
FLAKT, Inc.—Development of absorbents for air pollution
control technology
Control technologies/pollution prevention approaches for
volatile organic compounds (VOCs), greenhouse gases, and
ozone-depleting compounds; emissions models and estima-
tion methodologies
Emissions characterization and mitigation for greenhouse
gases (methane, CC^, etc.)
Emission estimation methodologies and projection models;
field validation of improved methods
VOC controls; Control Technology Center; pollution preven-
tion approaches for VOC area sources; woodstoves; coke
oven controls
Substitutes for chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochloro-
fluorocarbons, and other ozone-depleting compounds;
CFC/halon recycling and destruction approaches; alternative
refrigerants and modified refrigerator designs
Extensive information on existing control technologies appli-
cable to a variety of air pollution sources
58
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TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE DIRECTORY
Risk Reduction Engineering Laboratory
E. Timothy Oppelt, Director
Staff Contact
E. Timothy Oppelt
John Convery
Robert Clark
Thomas Sorg
Donald Reasoner
Ronald Dressman
Benjamin Lykins
Marvin Gardels
Richard Miltner
Keith Carswell
Edwin Geldreich
Michael Schock
Kim Fox
Carol Ann Fronk
Robert Olexsey
John Farlow
Steven James
Benjamin Blariey
Donald Banning
513/569-7418
E-Mail: Oppelt.E.Timothy
FAX: 513/569-7680
Telephone
513/569-7418
513/569-7418
513/569-7201
513/569-7370
513/569-7234
513/569-7342
513/569-7460
513/569-7217
513/569-7403
513/569-7389
513/569-7232
513/569-7412
513/569-7820
513/569-7592
513/569-7861
201/321-6635
513/569-7696
513/569-7406
513/569-7875
26 W. Martin Luther King Drive
Mailcode: 235
Cincinnati, OH 45268
Area of Expertise
Hazardous waste management
Municipal wastewater treatment
Drinking water treatment
Drinking water inorganics control; radionudides
Drinking water microbiological treatment
Organics control; disinfection by-products
Drinking water field evaluations; costs
Corrosion
Activated carbon adsorption
Ozone; granular activated carbon
Drinking water management
Corrosion
Filtration
Membrane technology
Superfund engineering technology
Superfund releases control (Edison, NJ, site)
Innovative technology evaluation; demonstrations
Superfund technical assistance
Superfund containment technology
59
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TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE DIRECTORY
Staff Contact
Frank Freestone
Paul dePercin
Naomi Barkley
Subhas Sikdar
Alden Christiansen
Carl Brunner
Roger Wilmoth
Fred Bishop
John Burdde
Richard Dobbs
Clyde Dempsey
Harry Freeman
James Bridges
Robert Landreth
Carlton Wiles
George Huffman
Michael Roulier
Telephone
201/321-6632
513/569-7797
513/569-7854
513/569-7528
513/569-7997
513/569-7655
513/569-7509
513/569-7629
513/569-7506
513/569-7649
513/569-7504
513/569-7529
513/569-7683
513/569-7871
513/569-7795
513/569-7431
513/569-7796
Area of Expertise
Superfund on-site technology (Edison, NJ, site)
Fugitive dust control
Containment technology—plume management
Water and hazardous waste research
Hazardous waste alternative technologies
Municipal wastewater treatment
Toxic control; asbestos
Municipal wastewater toxics control; pilot plants
Biotechnology
Fate and treatability of toxics
Thermal treatment/destruction
Pollution prevention; waste minimization
Waste minimization in federal facilities
Landfill design and operation
Stabilization; municipal solid waste
Thermal destruction; combustion
In situ treatment of soils
-&U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1994 - 550-001/80336
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OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATION
Office of Program
Operations
Valdis R. Kukainis
Director
Alfred W. Lindsey
Office Director
Stephen A. Lingle
Deputy Office Director
Program
Development Staff
Gregory G. Ondich
Director
Risk Reduction
Engineering Laboratory
E. Timothy Oppelt, Director
John J. Convery, Deputy
I
Drinking Water
Research Division
Robert M. Clark,
Director
Superfund Technology
Demonstration Division
Robert A. Olexsey, Director
Water & Hazardous Waste
Treatment Division
Subhas K. Sikdar, Director
Waste Minimization,
Destruction & Disposal
Research Division
Clyde Dempsey
Acting Director
Program
Management Staff
Alfred A. Galli
Director
Stephen T. Jackson, Deputy
Air & Energy Engineering
Research Laboratory
Frank T. Princiotta, Director
G. Blair Martin, Deputy
1
Global Emissions &
Control Division
Dennis C. Drehmel, Director
R.P. Hangebrauck, Deputy
1
Pollution Control Division
Everett L. Plyler, Director
W. Gene Tucker, Deputy
Program Operations
Office
Martha A. Daniel
Director
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