This document was developed for the Proposed Mandatory GHG Reporting Rule.
For the final document, please visit the final Mandatory Reporting of
Greenhouse Gases Rule.
Adipic Acid Production 4>EPA
United States
Proposed Rule: Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Environmental Protection
Under the proposed Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) rule, owners or
operators of facilities that contain adipic acid production (as defined below) would report
emissions from adipic acid production processes and all other source categories located at the
facility for which methods are defined in the rule. Owners or operators would collect emission
data; calculate GHG emissions; and follow the specified procedures for quality assurance,
missing data, recordkeeping, and reporting.
How Is This Source Category Defined?
Under the proposal, the adipic acid production source category consists of all processes that use oxidation
to produce adipic acid.
What GHGs Would Be Reported?
The proposal calls for adipic acid production facilities to report nitrous oxide (N2O) process emissions
from adipic acid production.
In addition, each facility would report GHG emissions for other source categories for which calculation
methods are provided in the rule. For example, facilities would report carbon dioxide (CO2), N2O, and
methane (CH4) emissions from each stationary combustion unit on site by following the requirements of
40 CFRpart 98, subpart C (General Stationary Fuel Combustion Sources). Please refer to the relevant
information sheet for a summary of the proposal for calculating and reporting emissions from any other
source categories at the facility.
How Would GHG Emissions Be Calculated?
Under the proposal, N2O process emissions from adipic acid production would be calculated by
multiplying a facility-specific emission factor by the annual adipic acid production level. The facility-
specific emission factor would be determined by an annual performance test to measure N2O emissions
from the waste gas stream of each oxidation process and the production rate recorded during the test.
When N2O abatement devices (such as nonselective catalytic reduction) are used, the N2O process
emissions would be adjusted for the amount of N2O removed using a destruction factor for the control
device and the percent of time the control device operated. The destruction factor is the destruction
efficiency specified by the abatement device manufacturer.
What Information Would Be Reported?
In addition to the information required by the General Provisions at 40 CFR 98.3(c), the proposal calls for
an adipic acid production facility to report the following information at the facility level:
• Annual N2O emissions
March 2009 1 EPA-430-F-09-038
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This document was developed for the Proposed Mandatory GHG Reporting Rule.
For the final document, please visit the final Mandatory Reporting of
Greenhouse Gases Rule.
• Annual adipic acid production capacity
• Annual adipic acid production
• Number of operating hours in the calendar year
• The site-specific emission factor
• Type of abatement device used and its destruction efficiency
• The percent of time the abatement device operated during the calendar year
For More Information
This series of information sheets is intended to assist reporting facilities/owners in understanding key
provisions of the proposed rule. However, these information sheets are not intended to be a substitution
for the rule. Visit EPA's Web site (www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ghgrulemaking.html) for more
information, including the proposed preamble and rule and additional information sheets on specific
industries, or go to to access the rulemaking docket (EPA-HQ OAR-2008-0508).
For questions that cannot be answered through the Web site or docket, call 1-877-GHG-l 188.
March 2009 2 EPA-430-F-09-038
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