PROCESS
MEASUREMENTS
REVIEW
INDUSTRIAL
ENVIRONMENTAL
RESEARCH
LABORATORY
f/EPA
Volume 1, Number 3
Research Triangle Park, N.C. 27711
Winter Edition, 1979
SYNTHETIC FOSSIL
FUEL TECHNOLOGIES
SYMPOSIUM HELD
The Symposium on Potential Health and Envi-
ronmental Effects of Synthetic Fossil Fuel Technol-
ogies was held September 25-28 in Gatlinburg, '1
nessee. The symposium was sponsored by the DC
partment of Energy, hosted by Oak Ridge National
Laboratory, and organized by the symposium com-
mittee consisting of K. E. Cowser, C. R. Richmond,
J. L. Epler, R. B. Gammage, C. W. Gehrs, M. R.
Guerin, and J. R. Hightower. The purpose of the
meeting was to "bring together various disciplines
and institutions concerned with the development of
environmentally acceptable synthetic fossil fuel
technologies" and to "illustrate the current state of
knowledge concerning potential health and environ-
mental effects of these technologies." Twenty-nine
papers were presented in five sessions entitled,
"Technology and Control," "Chemical Charact-
tion in Problem Identification," "Biological Effc
Studies," "Environmental Fate and Ecological Ef-
fects," and "Occupational Health Control Technol-
ogy."
The overall conclusion reached by many of the
attendees was that massive amounts of chemical,
biological, and process data are becoming available
before the means to fully utilize the data have hi
completely developed. Of the 200 attendees, many
agreed that one of the highest priorities must be
assigned to improving methods of interpretation
and utilization of data. The proceedings of the
meeting are expected to be published early in 1979.
ISSUANCE OF
REVISED LEVEL 1
METHODS MANUAL
Level 1 Environmental Assessment (EA) stud-
ies are designed as a comprehensive, predictive sur-
vey of the potential health and environmental im
pact from various industrial and energy generating
activities. A revised sampling and analytical meth
ods manual has been published and is available for
future EA studies. This manual incorpor,*
changes from the EA experience gained over the
last 2 years with the original methodology selected
by EPA/IERL-RTP's Process Measurements Branch
(PMB) for this data collection. It also incorpora
many of the technological advances in both sampling
and analytical capabilities that will facilitate and/or
improve data gathered for these studies. New tech-
niques include acceptance of ion chromatography for
inorganic analysis, the addition of total chromato-
graphable organics to the organic analytical scheme,
and new sampling capabilities with the Fugitive Air
Sampling Train (FAST) System. Copies of IERL-
RTP Procedures Manual: Level 1 Environmental
Assessment, (Second Edition) EPA-600/7-78-201,
October 1978, may be obtained from IERL-RTP un-
til the local supply is exhausted. Prepaid copies may
be obtained from the National Technical Informa-
tion Service. Springfield, VA 22161.
i in the
meni
and (Kiliri. ronmcntal I'r*
lent ion <>f trade n;r
tion for ' 'A.
The mailing list of the Process Meas-
urements Review now contains in excess
of 900 names. Additionally, the PMR is
distributed at national, regional, and local
conferences and symposiums. We feel
that our readers would like to be kept in-
formed of activities in the field of meas-
urements, and request that readers sub-
mit articles of interest to the Task Officer
or the Editor.
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
BIOASSAY TESTING
IN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT
The assessment of potentially harmful biolog-
ical effects caused by industrial and energy waste
streams is the object of lERL-RTP's biological test-
ing program. These biological tests have been cho-
sen to conform to the three-phased approach for per-
forming environmental source assessment.
The first level in the phased approach. Level 1,
provides preliminary screening information for the
assessment. The chemical and biological tests at this
level identify problem areas and indicate potential
need for further analysis. Some effluent streams
may be entirely eliminated from further sampling
and analysis on the basis of these results while
others will become candidates for further study.
Level 1 is extremely important in the phased ap-
proach because it is the first step in focusing
. available resources (both manpower and dollars) on
emissions with a high potential for causing health or
ecological effects. Level 1 tests must, therefore, pro-
vide a means of rapidly screening a large number of
waste streams and must be able to prioritize these
streams according to the relative need for .more ex-
tensive analysis at the next level.
Level 2 biological analyses are used to extend
the data gathered at Level 1 to confirm and expand
knowledge of the effluent stream. Level 2 results
should provide enough information to satisfy control
technology definitions and meet regulatory require-
ments. The Level 2 results may indicate probable
cause of a given problem and, in some cases, define
the exact cause.
Level 3 biological tests utilize Level 2 or better
sampling and analysis methodology to monitor the
specific problems identified in Level 2 so that toxic
or inhibitory components in a stream can be deter-
mined exactly as a function of time and process
variation for control device development. At Level 3
chronic, sublethal effects constituting partial or
complete assessment of risk may also be performed.
To ensure that an adequate and acceptable bat-
tery of tests is used at each of these three levels, a
subcommittee on biological analysis was formed to
support lERL-RTP's Environmental Assessment
Steering Committee. This subcommittee is made up
of senior EPA biologists with expertise in health,
aquatic, and terrestrial bioassays. Their responsi-
bilities include providing technical advice to IERL-
RTP on bioassays, recommending specific bioassays
for each level of testing, and reviewing periodically
lERL-RTP's bioassay program. From inputs and re-
views by the subcommittee, the Steering Commit-
tee, and recognized experts, IERL-RTP has estab-
lished a matrix of procedures for biological testing
at Level 1. These procedures have been published as
the IERL-RTP Procedures Manual: Level 1 Envi-
ronmental Assessment, Biological Tests for Pilot
Studies (EPA-600/7-77-043, PB 268484). The tests in
this manual can be divided into three groups accord-
ing to the biological response provided by each test
organism. The subgroup representing health effects
tests is composed of a mutagenicity test (using four
strains of Salmonella typhimurium), three eytotoxic-
ity tests (using rabbit alveolar macrophage, WI-38
mammalian cells, or Chinese hamster ovary cells),
and a rodent acute toxicity test. The aquatic eco-
logical subgroup contains biological tests of marine
and freshwater origin. A vertebrate (fish), an in-
vertebrate (daphnia or shrimp), and an algal test are
used in this subgroup. The terrestrial ecological
subgroup contains two bioassays. The first, the
stress ethylene assay, is performed on gas samples
and uses soybean plants as the test organism. The
second, the soil microcosm assay, measures re-
sponse of intact soil cores to effluent samples.
Following the issuance of the bioassay pro-
cedures in 1977, they were evaluated in three pilot
studies involving textile waste water after secon-
dary treatment, fluidized-bed combustion emissions,
and coal gasification emissions. The Level 1
chemical sampling and analysis procedures manual
was used as guidance for sampling and chemical
analyses, and the Level 1 biological procedures
manual was used as guidance for the biological
analyses. The results of these pilot studies revealed
the applicability of the procedures, allowed
prioritization of the relative hazard of each effluent
stream, and identified areas in the procedures that
required additional development. Following are
data from these pilot studies, given as examples of
the data generated by the biological analyses at
Level 1.
The results from the pilot study conducted on
textile effluent samples were typical of the output
that can be expected from Level 1 biological tests.
Level 1 biological data in its final form was reported
at four levels of response —high, medium, low, or
nondetectable (N). Table 1 illustrates the data aris-
ing from Level 1 biological tests on FBC samples.
(continued on p. 4)
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
Table 1. FBC Bioassay Data
Salmonella Rodent Algal Fish
Sample Mutagenicity RAM WI-38 CHO Toxicity
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Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
(continued from p. 2)
Where blanks occur in the table the tests were not
performed because of nonapplicability or lack of
sample material.
The chemical test results can also be utilized in
ranking streams as having low or high priority for
further testing. Health and ecologically related
emission goals for a number of compounds and chem-
ical categories were developed by IERL-RTP. In cal-
culating the relative hazard of a stream based on
chemical analysis, the concentration of each chem-
ical in the stream is divided by its emission goal
level. The resulting ratios are totaled to give an
estimate of the toxicity of the stream (preliminary
degree of hazard or PDOH). That is, the higher the
preliminary degree of hazard the more hazardous
the stream. These calculated preliminary degree of
hazard values are shown for the samples in Figure 1
along with bioassay results.
The Level 1 biological and chemical analyses
must always be considered when making decisions
to conduct further analysis. In analyzing the three
textile plants' effluents shown in Figure 1, it can be
seen that Plant X was the least toxic, both in bio-
assay and in PDOH calculations. Plant N gave posi-
tive responses on all the aquatic tests and on two
cytotoxicity tests. Plant N also had the highest
calculated ecological PDOH value; therefore, Plant
N would rank high on a list of effluents needing ter-
tiary treatment before discharge and also meriting
Level 2 testing. The Plant W responses were gen-
erally intermediate between those of Plants N and
X.
In the pilot study of a coal gasifier, the Level 1
biological tests were used to rank the various ef-
fluent streams—gaseous, liquid, and solid —from
one commercial gasifier as to their toxicity and need
for control. The pilot study of a pressurized
fluidized-bed combustor, likewise, ranked the var-
ious multimedia effluents from a single system as to
their relative toxicity. Recommendations for further
testing and need for control technology could be
made from the Level 1 data in both of these cases.
The current success of the biological program
at Level 1 on complex environmental samples has
resulted from the experience gained performing
these three pilot studies and on additional studies
conducted under other IERL-RTP contracts. The
program is continuing and a revised Level 1 proce-
dures manual will be issued in mid-1979. This
manual will contain improvements in test applica-
tion and data interpretation resulting from the pilot
study experience.
Ray Merrill
EPA/IERL-RTP
ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATOR FILTER
FOR SAMPLING SYSTEMS
Filters used to collect fine particles in source
sampling trains are troublesome in several ways. A
large pump is usually required to pull the sample
gas through a high efficiency filter. Also, many tests
are terminated prematurely because of the large
pressure drop that results as a dust cake builds up
on the filter. This problem is especially severe when
the test objective is to collect a large sample of sub-
micron particles, because the porosity of the filter
material is less than the porosity of large particles.
Contamination of a sample with filter material or
physical removal of the dust from the filter can also
be problems.
Under EPA Contract 68-02-2131, Southern Re-
search Institute has recently completed a develop-
ment and testing program on an electrostatic pre-
cipitator (ESP) backup filter for sampling systems.
Potential advantages of the ESP are its low pres-
sure drop, high capacity, and sample noneontamina-
tion. Potential disadvantages are poor collection ef-
ficiency due to back corona and/or lack of particle
adhesivity.
Figure 2 is a photograph of the ESP and high
voltage power supply package. The ESP filter was
designed to be operated at a nominal sample flow
rate of 185 ALPM, at a temperature of 205° C, and
to achieve near 100 percent collection of submicron
particles. Since it is possible that there will be a
need to operate this device in situ, a secondary
requirement was that the collector pass through a
10.2-cm (4-inch) diameter pipe nipple. Furthermore,
the system was designed to be convenient to
operate and clean up after sampling, and to require
a minimum of operator training or attention.
The ESP collector is of a cylindrical geometry
with the collection electrodes arranged concentrical-
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
Figure 2. ESP and high voltage power supply.
ly to allow a large surface area to be contained
within a relatively short outer cylinder. Disc and
needle discharge electrodes were designed and
fabricated, but only the disc-cylinder geometry was
evaluated during this development program. The
system is mechanically rugged and the collection
electrode geometry is such that the gas flow is
laminar at the design flow rate. The prototype ESP
collector was fabricated from glass-filled Teflon and
type 316 stainless steel.
The power supply package for the ESP collec-
tor has been designed to provide adequate safety
and minimal maintenance. All operating parameters
have been pre-set in order to provide simple field
operation. The front panel controls consist of a
power switch, operating/fault displays, and screw-
driver adjustments for collector and ionizer volt-
ages. The ionizer current is a constant 15 jiA to 1 mA
and the collector voltage is an adjustable 1.8 kV to
3.0 kV. When set to 200/xA and 2 kV on the collector
(both well below breakdown values), the instrument
requires no further adjustments for proper opera-
tion.
A report describing the development and test-
ing of this ESP filter has been written by P. Vann
Bush and Wallace B. Smith of Southern Research
Institute. It is entitled "An Electrostatic Precipita-
tor Backup for Sampling Systems." (See Recent
EPA Publications of Interest on p. 10 of this issue.)
Kenneth M. Gushing
Southern Research Institute
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
NEW FIVE-STAGE
CYCLONE PARTICLE SAMPLER DEVELOPED
The majority of measurements to determine
the particle-size distribution in process streams are
made with cascade impactors. Impactors, however,
have several limitations:
• The stage capacity to retain particulate is
low and operation requires skilled personnel
and significant trial and error effort to obtain
accurate values.
• When the mass concentration is high, sam-
pling times may be undesirably short.
• Impaetors are used with lightweight collec-
tion substrates that can be unstable in mass
when exposed to certain process streams.
• There is not enough mass collected for chem-
ical analysis of the particles in each size frac-
tion.
• Particle bounce and reentrainment cause an
unpredictable, but significant error in the
stage and backup filter catches.
A series of small cyclones with progressively
decreasing cut points will perform similarly to
impactors, but without many of these associated
problems. Cyclones, however, also have limitations
to their applicability:
• There is no general theory to describe the
performance of small cyclones under field
test conditions; thus, they require empirical
calibration.
• Sampling times may be undesirably long at
sources where the mass concentration is low.
Under EPA Contract 68-02-2131, Southern Re-
search Institute has developed, fabricated, and eval-
uated a sampling system containing five small cy-
clones and a backup filter in series. The cyclones
were calibrated using monodisperse aerosols over
ranges in temperature, flow rate, and particle densi-
ty similar to those expected for field sampling. In
Figure 3. The EPA/SoRI five-stage cyclone system.
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
I «
Ol
0.1
• CYCLONE I
* CYCLONE II
• CYCLONE III
» CYCLONE IV
• CYCLONE V
PARTICLE DIAMETER.
Figure 4. Collection efficiency of the EPA/SoRI
cyclones at a flow rate of 28.3 1/min,
a temperature of 25° C, and a particle
density of .1.00 g/cm3.
addition to demonstrating the utility of cyclones for
in situ particle-size analysis, it was intended that
the experimental data supplement data already
available to serve as the basis for the development
of a more accurate theory of cyclone performance.
Figure 3 shows the Five-Stage Cyclone Sam-
pler. One prototype system was made of aluminum,
with silicone rubber 0-rings. A second prototype
system was made of titanium with metal 0-rings.
The system was designed to operate instack at a
sample flow rate of 28.31/min, and is compact enough
to fit through a 10-cm diameter port. Two special
systems have also been fabricated of Hastelloy-X for
operation in high temperature/pressure process
streams.
The objective of this development program was
to obtain five cut points equally spaced on a logarith-
mic scale within the range of 0.1 to 10 /on. Since no
theory is sufficiently accurate to serve as a basis for
small cyclone design, the individual cyclones of the
system were designed empirically. The dimensions
were selected to be identical or related to those of
cyclones that had been previously evaluated in SoRI
laboratories. Combinations of three different flow
rates, temperatures, and particle densities were in-
corporated during the extensive calibration pro-
gram. Some of the calibration data are shown in
Figure 4.
A report describing this cyclone program has
been written by R. Ray Wilson, Jr. and Wallace B.
Smith of Southern Research Institute. It is entitled
"Development and Laboratory Evaluation of a Five-
Stage Cyclone System" (EPA-600/7-78-008, PB 279
084, January 1978).
Kenneth M. dishing
Southern Research Institute
LASER DIAGNOSIS OF PRACTICAL
COMBUSTION PROCESSES
With the advent of lasers, light scattering and
wave mixing spectroscopic techniques are assuming
an ever increasing role in a broad spectrum of phys-
ical investigations. Laser spectroscopic techniques
are particularly well suited to the diagnostic prob-
ing of hostile, yet sensitive, combustion processes.
These techniques are nonperturbing, remote, in
situ, spatially precise, temporally fast, and capable
of withstanding very high temperatures. Sponta-
neous Raman scattering, the inelastic scattering of
light quanta, has received much attention for flame
diagnosis. However, due to its extremely weak sig-
nal character, its use is generally restricted to prob-
ing relatively clean flames. As soot particle levels in-
crease, laser-induced interferences can mask detec-
tion of the Raman signals, often by several orders of
magnitude. With increasing emphasis being placed
on alternative and generally less clean fuels,
stronger diagnostic techniques need to be developed
and refined.
Presently, under EPA sponsorship, the United
Technologies Research Center is developing both
Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy (CARS)
and saturated laser fluorescence for practical com-
bustion diagnostics. These techniques are actually
complementary in that CARS is capable of thermo
metry and major species concentration measure-
ments while saturated fluorescence is used to detect
flame radicals at very low concentrations.
CARS is a nonlinear, light wave mixing tech-
nique wherein two laser beams are mixed to gener-
ate a coherent (laser-like) signal beam. When the fre-
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
quency difference of the interacting laser beams is
resonant with a Raman active molecular vibration,
the CARS signal is resonantly enhanced. In typical
pulsed CARS situations, nitrogen signals in room air
are readily detectable. By analyzing the spectral
distribution of the CARS signal, thermometry can
be performed. Species concentration measurements
are derived from absolute intensity determinations.
CARS thermometry has already been demonstrated
in highly sooting flames. In 1979 the technique will
be subjected to feasibility testing in research scale
combustors.
In saturated laser fluorescence, a tunable dye
laser is used to excite a molecule via absorption of
the laser radiation. While excited, the molecule can
spontaneously emit radiation (fluorescence), can emit
stimulation radiation, or can be deactivated by colli-
sion. This collisional deactivation (or quenching) has
long been a problem in fluorescence work. It dimin-
ishes the fluorescence efficiency and complicates ex-
traction of meaningful information from the fluores-
cence. In a relatively new approach, very high inten-
sity laser sources are used to saturate the absorbing
transition. When this occurs, quenching becomes
negligible, and therefore insignificant in the data
reduction process. This technique has been applied
to measurements of C2, CH, and CN concentrations
in flames with a fair amount of success. Potentially,
it is applicable to other molecular species such as
OH, NH, and NO, and is currently under intense in-
vestigations in a number of laboratories.
A document (EPA-600/7-78-104) describing this
investigation of these techniques has been published
and is available from NTIS. Please see the Recent
EPA Publications of Interest section of this PMR
edition.
Alan C. Eckbreth
United Technologies
Research Center
FUGITIVE ASSESSMENT SAMPLING TRAIN (FASTI
Airborne fugitive emissions are those air pollu-
tants (generated by activities at industrial sites)
that are transmitted into the ambient atmosphere
without first passing through some stack, duct, or
pipe designed to direct or control their flow. These
types of emissions make up a large part of the total
pollution problem. Their generally diffuse nature
and the absence of any restrictions to their dis-
persion preclude the use of standard stack sampling
methods in the quantitation of their release into the
environment.
Efforts by TRC (The Research Corporation) of
New England under EPA Contract 68-02-2133 to de-
velop the required Fugitive Assessment Sampling
Train (FAST) have resulted in the fabrication of a
prototype system currently in calibration testing at
Southern Research Institute. The FAST utilizes an
existing cyclone separator design and a glass fiber
filter to collect a 500-milligram particulate matter
sample from the atmosphere near an industrial
source in an 8-hour sampling period. The cyclone
provides a D^ for the respirable (2- to 3-micrometer)
fraction of the particulate matter, with the balance
of the sample being collected on a 930-cm 2 (1-ft 2)
filter. A canister of XAD-2 absorbent resin is used to
collect a smaller sample of the heavier organics from
the particle-free sample stream after the filter. This
sample is subsequently extracted and analyzed.
The cyclone, filter, and resin canister are con-
tained in a single module about 76 cm (2Vz feet)
square by 183 cm (6 feet) high in the prototype ver-
sion. They are loosely packaged to permit ready ac-
cess for calibration, testing, and modification. A sec-
ond smaller module, mounted on a hand dolly, con-
tains the Roots lobe-type vacuum blower that pro-
vides the driving potential for the 5.24-m3/min
(185-ft3/min) sampling stream. The Cast oilless
vacuum pump that provides the 0.14-m3/min
(5-ft /min) hydrocarbon sampling stream is also con-
tained in the second module along with the electric
motors for each pump. This modularized packaging
provides portability to the system and permits its
arrangement to prevent any recycling of the ex-
haust streams into the sampling inlet.
A field test of the system is planned at some
suitable industrial source of particulate matter and
hydrocarbons. This test will take place after the
calibration tests and upon completion of any nec-
essary modifications.
Henry Kolnsberg
The Research Corporation
of New England
8
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
SASS USERS SURVEY
In April 1978 Acurex Corporation was awarded
an EPA contract (68-02-2678) to evaluate and pos-
sibly redesign the Source Assessment Sampling
System (SASS) train. One of the first activities of
this contract was a survey of all SASS users. The
primary purposes of this survey were to identify
users problems with the SASS, to provide an initial
estimate of the effort required to solve the iden-
tified problems, and to provide a basis for directing
further efforts in modification or redesign of the ex-
isting subsystems and/or components.
Each user was informed of the nature of the
survey. They were specifically instructed to provide
comments on problems encountered while using the
system, modifications they may have made to the
system, and suggestions for modification of the train
to improve performance, ease of operation, cost, etc.
The majority of comments received, itemized in
Table 2, were in the areas of sealing, assembly, and
Table 2. Summary of Main Comments*
of SASS Users
Number of
Comment Comments
The cyclones are difficult to seal. 9
The cyclones are difficult to assemble. 6
There is not enough room in the oven to
work on the cyclones and filter. 6
The cyclone and filter flange clamp breaks,
doesn't tighten enough to seal, or is
difficult to remove. 6
The cyclone body and flanges are too
lightweight and are subject to damage. 5
The impinger bottles are difficult to seal. 5
The cyclone and filter fittings gall. 4
The impingers need a check valve to
prevent backflow during power outages. 4
The organic module is very difficult to
clean. 4
The organic module is difficult to seal. 4
The organic module corrodes, primarily at
the gas inlet. 4
The various thermocouples are unreliable
and fragile. 4
The timer units of 1/10 minutes are
inconvenient; minutes and seconds
would be better. 4
* Listed here are those comments made by four or more users. A
complete list of user comments, along with suggested modifications
for each problem, is presented in a report submitted to the Process
Measurements Branch, IERL-RTP, in October 1978. Information is
available from W. B. Kuykendal, Project Officer (919) 541-2557.
cleaning. With regard to sealing, difficulty was
described in achieving the required leak rate within
the system, particularly the cyclones. There was
also discussion concerning assembly-related diffi-
culty in assembling several components, again,
particularly the cyclones. Finally, the comment con-
cerning cleaning reported difficulty in cleaning the
system (particularly the organic module) prior to
each test.
It is obvious from the volume of comments re-
ceived concerning the cyclone/filter/oven assembly
that it is the area that needs the most attention.
Redesign of the cyclones with heavier bodies and
flanges and provision of a cyclone assembly jig all
appear to be needed.
Design of an optional organic module using only
borosilicate glass and fully fluorinated Teflon is now
underway. This design will address all comments
made in the users survey, but is specifically aimed
at overcoming the corrosion and sample contamina-
tion problems observed during sampling of effluents
with high chloride levels.
When asked their overall opinion of the suit-
ability of the current SASS design for Level 1 sam-
pling, most users surveyed made the following com-
ments:
• The SASS is, because of the nature of the job
it is designed to perform, a complex piece of
test equipment. Its use requires considerable
skill on the part of field crews.
• During the first few tests conducted by a
user, problems were frequent and often led to
test delays. Problems were caused by crew
unfamiliarity with the train, with Level 1
procedures, and with other areas listed in
Table 2.
• After the initial shakedown tests, crew effec-
tiveness increased dramatically and the fre-
quency of test-delaying problems decreased
to relatively infrequent occurrences.
• Modifications to the SASS (as shown in Table
2) to improve sealing, assembly ease, and
cleaning ease are both desirable and, from
the standpoint of increased field efficiency,
cost-effective.
Incorporation of these users comments into sub-
system and component redesigns will enhance the
SASS train as a Level 1 tool.
Hal Williams
Acurex Corporation
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
RECENT EPA PUBLICATIONS OF INTEREST
A. C. Eckbreth, P. A. Bonczyk, and J. A. Shirley.
Investigation of Saturated Laser Fluorescence and
CARS Spectroscopic Techniques for Combustion
Diagnostics, EPA-600/7-78-104, PB 283819 (6/78).
Reported in this document are the results of
comparisons of saturated laser-excited molecular
fluorescence measurements with absorption meas-
urements of CH and CN radicals in atmospheric
pressure and acetylene flames. It was found that the
fluorescence intensity of both radicals could be
saturated with readily achieved levels of laser spec-
tral intensity (from 100,000 to 1,000,000 watt-centi-
meters per square centimeter). The results of coher-
ent Anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy (CARS) ther-
mometry investigations on flame nitrogen in a varie-
ty of flames are also reported. These include investi-
gations conducted in highly sooting propane diffu-
sion flames. CARS species sensitivity is addressed
through an investigation of carbon monoxide detect-
ability.
P. Vann Bush and W. B. Smith.
An Electrostatic Precipitator Backup for Sampling
Systems, EPA-600/7-78-114, PB 283660 (6/78).
This report describes a program to design and
evaluate the performance of an electrostatic collec-
tor used as an alternative to filters in fine particle
collection. Potential advantages of an electrostatic
precipitator are low pressure drop and high capaci-
ty. Potential problems are unreliability and poor col-
lection due to back-corona or lack of particle adhe-
sivity.
K. M. Gushing and W. B. Smith.
Procedures Manual for Fabric Filter Evaluation,
EPA-600/7-78-113, PB 283289 (6/78).
This report describes methods that can be used
in characterizing the performance of fabric filters. It
describes procedures for measuring the particle size
distribution, the particulate matter mass concentra-
tion, and the major gaseous components concentra-
tion in a flue gas mixture. In a concise discussion, an
outline is described for developing a test plan for
the evaluation of a fabric filter installation. A de-
tailed description of the mechanical characteristics
of fabric filters is also presented.
R. F. Gallant, J. W. King, P. L. Levins, and J. F.
Piecewicz.
Characterization of Sorbent Resins for Use in Envi-
ronmental Sampling, EPA-600/7-78-054, PB 284347
(3/78).
This report describes the use of chromato-
graphic techniques to characterize resins used to
trap vapors in environmental sampling schemes. It
describes two such techniques, frontal and elution
analyses. These techniques have been applied to the
characterization of sorbent cartridges'packed with
Tenax-GC and XAD-2 sorbents, two synthetic poly-
meric resins commonly used as sampling media.
Three diverse adsorbate groups, consisting of eight
distinct chemical classes, were studied as potential
pollutants. Elution analysis of these vapors yielded
specific retention volumes that can be directly re-
lated to the breakthrough characteristics of the sor-
bent resins under different sampling conditions. Ad-
sorption coefficients, derived from the specific reten-
tion volumes, yielded the weight capacity of the sor-
bent at challenge concentrations in the Henry's Law
region. Frontal analysis results confirm the elution
data for sorbate uptake of resins. A slight flow rate
dependence for sorbate uptake was noted for XAD-2.
Specific retention volume data extrapolated to am-
bient conditions correlate well with adsorbate boil-
ing point and molecular polarizability. These cor-
relations allow breakthrough and weight capacity to
be estimated for a variety of adsorbate types.
L. Cooper.
Measurement of High-temperature, High-pressure
Processes: Annual Report, EPA-600/7-78-011,
PB 284041 (1/78).
This report reviews the first year's progress in a
3-year program to develop measurement techniques
for high-temperature, high-pressure (HTP) proc-
esses. Several related topics are discussed in detail.
They include: (1) the design, development, and suc-
cessful demonstration of a system for sampling par-
ticulate matter from a pressurized, fluidized-bed
combustor operating at 740° C and 9 atmospheres;
(2) a review of existing measurement methods to de-
termine the best available techniques for measuring
gas flow velocities, pressures, and temperatures in
HTP process streams; (3) a review of various HTP
coal conversion processes; and (4) recommendations
for sampling tars in coal gasification processes.
10
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Process Measurements Review
Volume 1, Number 3, Winter Edition, 1979
J. D. McCain, G. I. Clinard, L. G. Felix, and J. W.
Johnson.
A Data Reduction System for Cascade Impactors,
EPA-600/7-78-132a, PB 283173 (7/78).
J. W. Johnson, G. I. Clinard, L. G. Felix, and J. D.
McCain.
A Computer-based Cascade Impactor Data Reduc-
tion System, EPA-600/7-78-042, PB 285433 (3/78).
B. Miller, G. Lamb, P. Costanza, D. O'Meara, and J.
Dunbar.
Studies of Dust Cake Formation and Structure in
Fabric Filtration, EPA-600/ 7-78-095, PB 283179
(6/78).
J. D. McCain.
Evaluations of Novel Particulate Control Devices,
EPA 600/7-78-093, PB 283973 (6/78).
The Process Measurements Review is prepared by the Research Triangle Institute, P. 0. Box 12194,
Research Triangle Park, N.C. 27709, for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Industrial En-
vironmental Research Laboratory, Process Measurements Branch, Research Triangle Park, N.C.
27711, under EPA Contract No. 68-02-2156. The EPA Task Officer is James A. Dorsey (919-541-2557)
and the RTI Editor is Raymond M. Michie, Jr. (919-541-6492). Comments on this issue and suggestions
for future topics are welcome and may be addressed to either the Task Officer or the Editor.
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11
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