Topic

28
 Table of Contents
Topic
28 Topic 28: Environmental
Chemistry

Basic Concepts

Additional Concepts
Topic
28 Earth’s Atmosphere
• To the best of our knowledge, Earth is the
only planet capable of supporting life as we
know it.
• One glance at the
photo of Earth helps
explain why. See
those wispy clouds?
Topic
28 Earth’s Atmosphere
• They are part of a protective envelope, the
atmosphere, that blankets Earth and plays a
key role in
maintaining life.
Topic
28 A Balanced Atmosphere

• The atmosphere extends from Earth’s surface

to hundreds of kilometers into space.
• A largely gaseous zone, the atmosphere
contains the air we breathe, the clouds
overhead, and the all-important substances
that protect Earth and its inhabitants from the
Sun’s most powerful radiation.
Topic
28 A Balanced Atmosphere
• Chemical reactions that occur in the
atmosphere help maintain a balance among
the different atmospheric gases, but human
activities, such as burning fossil fuels, can
change this balance.
Topic
28 A Balanced Atmosphere
• Earth’s atmosphere has five layers that vary in
composition, temperature, altitude, and
pressure.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere

• Earth’s atmosphere is divided into five layers

based on altitude and temperature variation.

• The lowest layer—the troposphere—

extends from Earth’s surface to a height of
approximately 15 km.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere
• Temperatures in the troposphere generally
decrease with increasing altitude, reaching
a minimum of –58°C at 12 km.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere
• Rain, snow, wind, and
other weather phenomena
occur in this layer.

• We live our entire lives

within the troposphere.
Only astronauts in
spacecraft go beyond
its reach.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere

• Above the troposphere, temperatures

increase with altitude, reaching a maximum
of nearly 2°C at about 50 km.

• This region of the atmosphere is called the

stratosphere.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere

• The stratosphere contains a layer of ozone,

a gas that helps shield Earth’s surface from
the Sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation.

• Ozone protects Earth by absorbing solar

radiation, which raises the temperature of
the stratosphere in the process.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere

• Beyond the stratosphere lie the mesosphere

and the thermosphere.

• Temperatures in the mesosphere decrease

with altitude because there is little ozone in
the air to absorb solar radiation.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere
• The thermosphere is a region of rapidly
increasing temperatures.
• This is because the relatively few gas
molecules in this region have extremely high
kinetic energies.
• At an altitude of about 200 km, temperatures
can reach 1000°C.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere

• The outermost layer of the atmosphere is the

exosphere.

• Extending from about 500 km outward, the

exosphere marks the transition from Earth’s
atmosphere to outer space.
Topic
28 Structure of Earth’s Atmosphere
• There is no clear boundary between the two,
however. There are simply fewer and fewer
molecules of gas at increasingly higher
altitudes.

• Eventually, there are so few molecules that,

for all practical purposes, Earth’s atmosphere
has ended.
Topic
28 Composition of Earth’s Atmosphere
• Just as the temperature of the atmosphere
varies by altitude, so does its composition.
• Roughly 75% of the mass of all atmospheric
gases is found in the troposphere.
• Nitrogen and oxygen make up the vast
majority of these gases. However, there are a
number of minor components.
Topic
28 Composition of Earth’s Atmosphere
• In addition to gases, the troposphere contains
solids in the form of dust, salts, and ice.
• Dust—tiny particles from
Earth’s surface, ash, soot,
and plant pollen—enters
the atmosphere when it is
lifted from Earth’s surface
and carried by wind.
Topic
28 Composition of Earth’s Atmosphere

• Salts are picked up from ocean spray.

• Ice is present in the form of snowflakes and

hailstones.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Outer Atmosphere

• Earth is constantly being bombarded with

radiation and high-energy particles from
outer space.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Outer Atmosphere

• The short-wavelength, high-energy ultraviolet

(UV) radiation is the most damaging to living
things.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Outer Atmosphere
• Because this radiation is capable of breaking
the bonds in DNA molecules, it can cause
cancer and genetic mutations.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Outer Atmosphere

• Life as we know it is possible primarily

because two processes, which occur in the
thermosphere and the exosphere, shield us
from most of this radiation.
Topic
28 Photodissociation

• Photodissociation is a process in which high-

energy ultraviolet solar radiation is absorbed
by molecules, causing their chemical bonds
to break.
Topic
28 Photodissociation

• In the upper atmosphere, the photodissociation

of oxygen absorbs much of the high-energy
UV radiation and produces atomic oxygen.

• The amount of atomic oxygen in the

atmosphere increases with increasing altitude.
Topic
28 Photoionization

• The second process that absorbs high-energy

solar radiation is photoionization, which
occurs when a molecule or atom absorbs
sufficient energy to remove an electron.

• Molecular nitrogen and oxygen, as well as

atomic oxygen, undergo photoionization in
the upper atmosphere.
Topic
28 Photoionization

• Note that a positively charged particle is

produced for every negatively charged
electron in the atmosphere, so neutrality
of charge is maintained.
Topic
28 Photoionization

• Ultraviolet radiation with the very highest

energy is absorbed during photo-dissociation
and photoionization in the upper atmosphere.
• Because most of this harmful radiation does
not reach Earth’s surface, life can exist.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Stratosphere
• In addition to light gases, the upper
atmosphere—more specifically, the
stratosphere—contains a substance
called ozone.
Topic
28 Formation of ozone
• Although the UV radiation with the
very highest energy has been absorbed
by photoionization reactions in the
outer atmosphere, much of the UV
radiation that has sufficient energy to
cause photodissociation still reaches
the stratosphere.
Topic
28 Formation of ozone
• In the stratosphere, these ultraviolet waves
are absorbed by O2 molecules, which are
more plentiful here than in the upper
atmosphere.
Topic
28 Formation of ozone
• The O2 molecules are split into two atoms
of oxygen.
• These highly reactive atoms immediately
collide with other O2 molecules, forming
ozone (O3).
• The O3 molecule that forms is highly unstable
because its bonds contain excess energy that
was gained from the UV radiation.
Topic
28 Formation of ozone
• To achieve stability, the energized O3
molecule must lose this excess energy by
colliding with another atom or molecule, as
molecule X, and transferring energy to it.

• Usually, N2 or O2 molecules are most

abundant and serve as energy-absorbing
molecules for the reaction.
Topic
28 Formation of ozone
• Ozone molecules are formed in the
stratosphere.
• An oxygen molecule
forms two oxygen atoms
by photodissociation.
• An oxygen atom
combines with an
oxygen molecule to
form an energized
ozone molecule (O3*).
Topic
28 Formation of ozone
• The energized ozone molecule collides with
molecule X. Excess energy is transferred to X,
producing ozone and an energized X
molecule (X*).
• The oxygen molecule
that forms when ozone
photodissociates is
available to start the
ozone cycle anew.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Troposphere—
Photochemical smog
• In large cities such as Los Angeles, Denver,
and Mexico City, a hazy, brown blanket of
smog is created when sunlight reacts with
pollutants in the air.
• Because the smog forms with the aid of
light, it is called photochemical smog.
• The smog-producing pollutants enter the
troposphere when fossil fuels such as coal,
natural gas, and gasoline are burned.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Troposphere—
Photochemical smog
• The burning of fossil fuels in internal
combustion engines causes nitrogen and
oxygen to react, forming nitrogen oxides
such as NO and NO2.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Troposphere—
Photochemical smog
• The NO2, in turn, photodissociates in the
presence of high energy UV that penetrates
through the upper atmosphere to form
atomic oxygen, which combines with O2 to
form ozone.
Topic
28 Chemistry in the Troposphere—
Photochemical smog

• You have learned in that the ozone in the

stratosphere protects you from ultraviolet
radiation.

• In the troposphere, ozone can irritate your

eyes and lungs and increase your
susceptibility to asthma and pneumonia.
Topic
28 Acid rain
• Sulfur-containing compounds are normally
present in small quantities in the troposphere.

• However, human activities have greatly

increased the concentration of these
compounds in the air.

• Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is the most harmful of

the sulfur-containing compounds.
Topic
28 Acid rain

• Most of the sulfur dioxide in the troposphere

is produced when coal and oil that contain
high concentrations of sulfur are burned in
power plants.

• The sulfur dioxide that forms is oxidized to

sulfur trioxide (SO3) when it combines with
either O2 or O3 in the atmosphere.
Topic
28 Acid rain
• When SO3 reacts with moisture in the air,
sulfuric acid is formed.

• Acidic air pollution is created also when

nitrogen oxides from car exhausts combine
with atmospheric moisture to form nitric acid.
• In either case, when this acidic moisture
falls to Earth as rain or snow, it is known
as acid rain.
Topic
28

Additional Concepts
Topic
28 Cycles in the Environment
• Did you know that the atoms of carbon,
nitrogen, and other elements in your body
are far older than you?
• In fact, they’ve been around since before life
began on Earth.
• The amount of matter on Earth never changes.
• As a result, it must be recycled constantly.
• You learned about the water cycle earlier. A
number of elements cycle through the
environment in similar, distinct pathways.
Topic
28 The Carbon Cycle
• Carbon dioxide (CO2) constitutes only about
0.03% of Earth’s atmosphere.
• However, it plays a vital role in maintaining
life on Earth.
• There is a fine balance in nature between the
processes that produce carbon dioxide and
those that consume it.
• You have learned that green plants, algae,
and some bacteria remove carbon dioxide
from the atmosphere during photosynthesis.
Topic
28 The Carbon Cycle
• Photosynthesis produces carbon-containing
carbohydrates, which animals ingest when
they eat plants and other animals.
• Both plants and animals convert the
carbohydrates to CO2, which is released
into the atmosphere as a waste product of
cellular respiration.
• Once in the atmosphere, the CO2 can be used
again by plants.
Topic
28 The Carbon Cycle
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance
• To understand the effect of human activities
on the carbon cycle, it is first necessary to
explore a phenomenon known as the
greenhouse effect.
• The greenhouse effect is the natural
warming of Earth’s surface that occurs when
certain gases in the atmosphere absorb some
of the solar energy that is converted to heat
and reflected from Earth’s surface.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance
• About 25% of the sunlight that strikes Earth’s
atmosphere is reflected back into space.
• Most of the
remaining 75%
is absorbed by
atmospheric
gases and Earth
in the form of
heat.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance
• Sunlight reaches Earth and is converted to
heat, but the heat can’t easily escape
through the "greenhouse gases" to travel
back into space.
• Instead, the heat is absorbed by molecules
of greenhouse gases and transferred to the
atmosphere, where it warms Earth’s surface.
• Without the greenhouse effect, the surface
of our planet would be too cold to sustain
life as we know it.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance
• Carbon dioxide is a major greenhouse gas.
• Most CO2 occurs naturally. But, when we
burn fossil fuels, huge quantities of CO2—
more than 5 billion metric tons a year—are
added to the atmosphere.
• Moreover, the amount of CO2 that is removed
from the atmosphere by photosynthesis is
being reduced by the continued destruction of
vast forested areas, particularly rain forests.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance
• As a result of these activities, the level of
atmospheric CO2
has been increasing
slowly over the past
300 years.
• The rate of increase
is accelerating.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance

• Increases in greenhouse gases such as CO2

lead to corresponding increases in the
greenhouse effect.

• Some scientists have predicted that these

increases will cause global temperatures to
rise, a condition known as global
warming.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance
• Scientists don’t agree on the causes or the
consequences of global warming, but they
do know that average global temperatures
are increasing slightly—about 0.5°C over
the past 100 years.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance
• While scientists continue to study and
debate the issue of global warming, most
concede that it has the potential to change
Earth’s climate and that tampering with the
climate could be dangerous.
Topic
28 Upsetting the balance

• Thus, a drastic reduction in the use of fossil

fuels is considered by many to be essential
to slow and eventually stop global warming.

• For this reason, alternative energy resources

such as solar power are now important areas
of scientific research.
Topic
28 The Nitrogen Cycle

• Nitrogen is an essential component of many

substances that make up living organisms.

• It is a key element in protein molecules,

nucleic acids, and ATP.

• Like other elements, the supply of nitrogen

on Earth is fixed, it must be recycled.
Topic
28 The Nitrogen Cycle

• Although nitrogen makes up 78% of Earth’s

atmosphere, most living things can’t use
nitrogen in its gaseous state.

• It must be fixed, or converted to a useful

form, by a process called nitrogen fixation.
Topic
28 The Nitrogen Cycle
Topic
28 The Nitrogen Cycle
• Two primary routes for nitrogen fixation
exist in nature.
• In the atmosphere, lightning combines N2
and O2 to form NO.

• Once NO is formed, it is oxidized to NO2.

Topic
28 The Nitrogen Cycle
• In the atmosphere, rain converts NO2 to
HNO3, which then falls to Earth as
aqueous NO3–.

• Nitrogen fixation is also accomplished by

nitrogen-fixing bacteria, which live in the
soil and on the roots of certain legumes
such as peas, beans, peanuts, and alfalfa.
• In this process, N2 is first reduced to NH3
and NH4+, then oxidized to NO3–.
Topic
28 The Nitrogen Cycle

• Plants absorb nitrate ions through their

roots and use them to synthesize complex
nitrogen compounds.

• Because animals can’t synthesize these

complex molecules, they must get them by
eating plants or other animals.
Topic
28 The Nitrogen Cycle

• Nitrogen compounds that are unused by the

animals’ bodies are excreted as waste.

• Soil microorganisms convert this waste to

N2 and nitrogen is recycled back into the
environment.
• Exposure to air pollution is
associated with numerous
effects on human health,
including pulmonary, cardiac,
vascular, and neurological
impairments.

• The health effects vary greatly

from person to person. High-
risk groups such as the elderly,
infants, pregnant women, and
sufferers from chronic heart and
lung diseases are more
susceptible to air pollution.
• Children are at greater risk
because they are generally
more active outdoors and their
lungs are still developing.
 Exposure to air pollution can cause both acute (short-
term) and chronic (long-term) health effects.

Acute effects are usually immediate and often reversible

when exposure to the pollutant ends. Some acute health
effects include eye irritation, headaches, and nausea.

Chronic effects are usually not immediate and tend not to be

reversible when exposure to the pollutant ends.
Some chronic health effects include decreased lung
capacity and lung cancer resulting from long-term
exposure to toxic air pollutants.
Human Health Effects (...continued)
Table 1: Sources, Health and Welfare Effects for Criteria Pollutants.
Pollutant
Carbon
Human Health Effects (...continued)
Description
Colorless, odorless
Sources
Motor vehicle exhaust,
Health Effects
Headaches, reduced mental
Welfare Effects
Contribute to the formation of
Monoxide gas indoor sources include alertness, heart attack, smog.
(CO) kerosene or wood burning cardiovascular diseases,
stoves. impaired fetal development,
death.

Sulfur Dioxide Colorless gas that Coal-fired power plants, Eye irritation, wheezing, chest Contribute to the formation of
(SO2) dissolves in water petroleum refineries, tightness, shortness of breath, acid rain, visibility impairment,
vapor to form acid, manufacture of sulfuric acid lung damage. plant and water damage,
and interact with other and smelting of ores aesthetic damage.
gases and particles in containing sulfur.
the air.

Nitrogen Reddish brown, highly Motor vehicles, electric Susceptibility to respiratory Contribute to the formation of
Dioxide (NO2) reactive gas. utilities, and other industrial, infections, irritation of the lung smog, acid rain, water quality
commercial, and residential and respiratory symptoms deterioration, global warming,
sources that burn fuels. (e.g., cough, chest pain, and visibility impairment.
difficulty breathing).

Ozone (O3) Gaseous pollutant Vehicle exhaust and certain Eye and throat irritation, Plant and ecosystem damage.
when it is formed in other fumes. Formed from coughing, respiratory tract
the troposphere. other air pollutants in the problems, asthma, lung
presence of sunlight. damage.

Lead (Pb) Metallic element Metal refineries, lead Anemia, high blood pressure, Affects animals and plants,
smelters, battery brain and kidney damage, affects aquatic ecosystems.
manufacturers, iron and neurological disorders, cancer,
steel producers. lowered IQ.

Particulate Very small particles of Diesel engines, power Eye irritation, asthma, Visibility impairment,
Matter (PM) soot, dust, or other plants, industries, bronchitis, lung damage, atmospheric deposition,
matter, including tiny windblown dust, wood cancer, heavy metal aesthetic damage.
droplets of liquids. stoves. poisoning, cardiovascular
effects.
 Table-2: Sources, Effects of Air Pollutants on Vegetables
Pollutants Sources Effects on Vegetables

Aldehydes Human Health Effects (...continued)

Photochemical reactions The upper portions of Alfalfa etc. will be affected to Narcosis if
250 ppm of aldehydes is present for 2 hrs duration.

Ozone (O3) Photochemical reaction of hydrocarbon All ages of tobacco leaves, beans, grapes, pine, pumpkins and
and nitrogen oxides from fuel combustion, potato are affected. Fleck, stipple, bleaching, bleached
refuse burning, and evaporation from spotting, pigmentation, growth suppression, and early
petroleum products. abscission are the effects.
Peroxy Acetyl The sources of PAN are the same as Young spongy cells of plants are affected if 0.01 ppm of PAN
Nitrate (PAN) ozone is present in the ambient air for more than 6 hrs.

Nitrogen dioxide High temperature combustion of coal, oil, Irregular, white or brown collapsed lesion on intercostals
(NO2) gas, and gasoline in power plants and tissue and near leaf margin. Suppressed growth is observed in
internal combustion engines. many plants.

Ammonia & Sulfur Thermal power plants, oil and petroleum Bleached spots, bleached areas between veins, bleached
dioxide refineries. margins, chlorosis, growth suppression, early abscission, and
reduction in yield and tissue collapse occur.

Chlorine (Cl2) Leaks in chlorine storage tanks,
hydrochloric acid mists.
Hydrogen fluoride, Phosphate rock processing, aluminum
Silicon industry, and ceramic works and
tetrafluoride fiberglass manufacturing.
Pesticides & Agricultural operations
Herbicides
Particulates Cement industries, thermal power plants,
blasting, crushing and processing
industries.
Mercury (Hg) Processing of mercury containing ores,
burning of coal and oil.
If 0.10 ppm is present for at least 2 hrs, the epidermis and
mesophyll of plants will be affected.
Epidermis and mesophyll of grapes, large seed fruits, pines
and fluorosis in animals occur if 0.001 ppm of HF is present
for 5 weeks.
Defoliation, dwarfing, curling, twisting, growth reduction and
killing of plants may occur.
Affects quality of plants, reduces vigor & hardness and
interferences with photosynthesis due to plugging leaf
stomata and blocking of light.
Greenhouse crops, and floral parts of all vegetations are
affected; abscission and growth reduction occur in most of
the plants.
 Source Control Technology
• Air quality management sets the tools to control air pollutant
emissions.

• Control measurements describes the equipment, processes

or actions used to reduce air pollution.

• The extent of pollution reduction varies among technologies

and measures.

• The selection of control technologies depends on

environmental, engineering, economic factors and pollutant
type.
 Settling Chambers
• Settling chambers use the force of gravity to remove solid
particles.
• The gas stream enters a chamber where the velocity of the
gas is reduced. Large particles drop out of the gas and are
recollected in hoppers. Because settling chambers are
effective in removing only larger particles, they are used in
conjunction with a more efficient control device.
 Cyclones
The general principle of inertia separation is
that the particulate-laden gas is forced to
change direction. As gas changes direction,
the inertia of the particles causes them to
continue in the original direction and be
separated from the gas stream.
The walls of the cyclone narrow toward the
bottom of the unit, allowing the particles to be
collected in a hopper.
The cleaner air leaves the cyclone through
the top of the chamber, flowing upward in a
spiral vortex, formed within a downward
moving spiral.
Cyclones are efficient in removing large
particles but are not as efficient with smaller
particles. For this reason, they are used with
other particulate control devices.
 Venturi Scrubbers

Venturi scrubbers use a liquid

stream to remove solid
particles.

In the venturi scrubber, gas

laden with particulate matter
passes through a short tube
with flared ends and a
constricted middle.

This constriction causes the

gas stream to speed up when
the pressure is increased.
 Venturi Scrubbers
The difference in velocity and
pressure resulting from the
constriction causes the particles
and water to mix and combine.
The reduced velocity at the
expanded section of the throat
allows the droplets of water
containing the particles to drop out
of the gas stream.
Venturi scrubbers are effective in
removing small particles, with
removal efficiencies of up to 99
percent.
One drawback of this device,
h o w e v e r, i s t h e p r o d u c t i o n o f
wastewater.
 Fabric Filters

Fabric filters, or baghouses, remove dust from a

gas stream by passing the stream through a porous
fabric.
The fabric filter is efficient at removing fine particles
and can exceed efficiencies of 99 percent in most
applications.
 Fabric Filters

The selection of the fiber material and fabric

construction is important to baghouse performance.
The fiber material from which the fabric is made
must have adequate strength characteristics at the
maximum gas temperature expected and adequate
chemical compatibility with both the gas and the
collected dust.
One disadvantage of the fabric filter is that high-
temperature gases often have to be cooled before
contacting the filter medium.
 Electrostatic Precipitators
An ESP is a particle control
device that uses electrical
forces to move the particles
out of the flowing gas stream
and onto collector plates.
The ESP places electrical
charges on the particles,
causing them to be attracted
to oppositely charged metal
plates located in the
precipitator.
Control of Gaseous Pollutants from Stationary Sources

The most common method for controlling gaseous

pollutants is the addition of add-on control devices to
recover or destroy a pollutant.

There are four commonly used control technologies for

gaseous pollutants:
Absorption,
Adsorption,
Condensation, and
Incineration (combustion)
Absorption
The removal of one or more selected
components from a gas mixture by
absorption is probably the most
important operation in the control of
gaseous pollutant emissions.

Absorption is a process in which a

gaseous pollutant is dissolved in a liquid.

Water is t he mos t c ommonl y us ed

absorbent liquid.

As the gas stream passes through the

liquid, the liquid absorbs the gas, in
much the same way that sugar is
absorbed in a glass of water when
stirred.
Typical Packed Column Diagram
Absorption
Absorbers are often referred to as
scrubbers, and there are various types
of absorption equipment.
The principal types of gas absorption
equipment include spray towers, packed
columns, spray chambers, and venturi
scrubbers.
In general, absorbers can achieve
removal efficiencies grater than 95
percent. One potential problem with
absorption is the generation of waste-
water, which converts an air pollution
problem to a water pollution problem.

Typical Packed Column Diagram

Adsorption

When a gas or vapor is brought into contact with a solid, part of it is

taken up by the solid. The molecules that disappear from the gas either
enter the inside of the solid, or remain on the outside attached to the
surface. The former phenomenon is termed absorption (or dissolution)
and the latter adsorption.

The most common industrial adsorbents are activated carbon, silica gel,
and alumina, because they have enormous surface areas per unit
weight.

Activated carbon is the universal standard for purification and removal of

trace organic contaminants from liquid and vapor streams.
Adsorption

Carbon adsorption systems are either regenerative or non-regenerative.

Regenerative system usually contains more than one carbon bed. As one
bed actively removes pollutants, another bed is being regenerated for
future use.
Non-regenerative systems have thinner beds of activated carbon. In a
non-regenerative adsorber, the spent carbon is disposed of when it becomes
saturated with the pollutant.

Regenerative Carbon Non-Regenerative Carbon

Adsorption System Adsorption System
Condensation

Condensation is the process of converting a gas or vapor to

liquid. Any gas can be reduced to a liquid by lowering its
temperature and/or increasing its pressure.
Condensers are typically used as pretreatment devices.
They can be used ahead of absorbers, adsorbers, and
incinerators to reduce the total gas volume to be treated by
more expensive control equipment. Condensers used for
pollution control are contact condensers and surface
condensers.
Condensation

In a contact condenser, the

gas comes into contact with
cold liquid.

In a surface condenser, the

gas contacts a cooled
surface in which cooled
liquid or gas is circulated, Contact condenser
such as the outside of the
tube.
Removal efficiencies of
condensers typically range
from 50 percent to more than
95 percent, depending on
design and applications.

Surface condenser
Incineration

Incineration, also known as combustion, is most used to

control the emissions of organic compounds from process
industries.
This control technique refers to the rapid oxidation of a
substance through the combination of oxygen with a
combustible material in the presence of heat.
When combustion is complete, the gaseous stream is
converted to carbon dioxide and water vapor.
Equipment used to control waste gases by combustion
can be divided in three categories:
Direct combustion or flaring,
Thermal incineration and
Catalytic incineration.
Direct Combustor

Direct combustor is a device in which air and all the

combustible waste gases react at the burner. Complete
combustion must occur instantaneously since there is no
residence chamber.

A flare can be used to control almost any emission stream

containing volatile organic compounds. Studies conducted
by EPA have shown that the destruction efficiency of a
flare is about 98 percent.
Thermal Incinerator

In thermal incinerators the combustible waste gases

pass over or around a burner flame into a residence
chamber where oxidation of the waste gases is completed.

Thermal incinerators can destroy gaseous pollutants at

efficiencies of greater than 99 percent when operated
correctly.

Thermal incinerator general case

Catalytic Incinerator

Catalytic incinerators are very similar to thermal

incinerators. The main difference is that after passing
through the flame area, the gases pass over a catalyst
b e d .

A catalyst promotes oxidation at lower temperatures,

thereby reducing fuel costs. Destruction efficiencies
greater than 95 percent are possible using a catalytic
incinerator.

Catalytic Incinerator
References

E n v i r o n m e n t a l C h e m i s t r y ,
http://www.jfkcougars.org/ourpages/auto/2007/6/5/
1181092084348/28%20Environmental%20Chemi
stry.ppt

Air Pollution Effects and Control,

https://nptel.ac.in/courses/105102089/