A bench-scde study was conducted to assess the feasibility of bioremediating phthalate contaminated soil from a polyvinyl chloride manufacturing operation in New Jersey. 14 bench-scale slurry reactor study which utilized I4C-labeled bis- (2-ethylhexyl) INTRODUCTIONPeriodic flooding of a separator pit at a northern New Jersey manufacturing site engaged in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) compounding and garden hose and PVC pellet manufacturing caused bis-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (BEHP, also known as di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate or DEHP) to be spread over the ground surface and contaminate the soils. Analysis of soil samples at the site for baselneutral extractable fractions (baselneutrals) and total petroleum hydroca.rbons (TPH) indicated the presence of phthalates (specifically BEHP) in the range of 10 to 25,000 mg/kg and TPH in the range of 10 to 2,000 mg/kg. The estimated volume of contaminated soil to be remediated was approximately 2,300 cubic meters. Groundwater testing for volatile organics, base/neutrals, and petroleum hydrocarbons show only limited contamination with no volatiles and low levels of BEHP and TPH present. There was no evidence of PCB or pesticide contamination at the site. A preliminary cost analysis suggested that on-site bioremediation in slurry reactors would be 1.5 to 2 times more cost effective than excavation and that the cost for incineration would be prohibitive. The study described herein was conducted because of concerns raised by the regulatory agency that BEHP was nonbiodegradable in soils contaminated with both BEHP and TPH and because data were needed to prepare a preliminary design for the periodically operated Soil SlurrySequencing Batch Reactor (SS-SBR) system. Results obtained from a literature review suggested that BEHP may be recalcitrant under anaerobic conditions but that it was biologically degradable in aerobic systems [I, 2 , 3 , 4, 51. While the results from the aerobic studies strongly suggested that a microbial consortium capable of degrading BEHP would develop in soil slurry reactors, no direct evidence was found in the literature.
High-temperature incineration is a potentially attractive method for disposing of substantial quantities of burnable hazardous waste materials, particularly if the recovery and use ofthe resultant heat energy is incorporated into the incineration system. The technology for effectively incinerating a broad range of combustible waste materials and for controlling the emission of gaseous and particulate byprodncts has been demonstrated [I-41. Further, ifan incineration system is properly designed, sited, and operated, waste incineration can be conducted with minimal adverse environmental effects.In order to assess the potential air-quality effects of a hazardous-waste incineration system, operated in conformance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Incinerator Regulations [5], an atmosphericdispersion modeling analysis has been performed. The emission characteristics of a commercial-scale wasteincineration system were used in this analysis. The basic underlying premise of the study was that the system operation would comply with the current RCRA regulations governing the minimum waste organic constituent destruction and removal efficiency, the hydrogen chloride (HCI) emission-control efficiency, and the maximum allowable particulate-emission level. In addition to providing background information on the magnitudes of expected air-quality impacts, the results of this analysis can lie used as a preliminary screening tool for siting incineration systems and for evaluating potential waste streams of commercial-scale hazardous-waste incineration systems. INCINERATION SYSTEMThe system analyzed represented the state-of-the-art in waste-incineration technology. The system consisted ofan incinerator, capable of burning solid or liquid waste, followed by a flue-gas cleaning system for the removal of gaseous and particulate exhaust-gas contaminants. The design heat input ofthe system was 78 gigajoules per hour(74 million Btu per hour). This heat input corresponded to a waste feed rate of approximately 5,130 kilograms per hour (1 1,300 pounds per hour), based on a waste-heat content of approximately 15,235 joules per gram (6,550 Btu per pound). These are average, design values; the precise waste feed rate would depend on the nature and heat content of the specific waste material burned.At design conditions, the volumetric flue-gas rate would be 1,930 actual cubic meters per minute (68,300 actual cubic feet per minute) at a temperature of 88°C (190°F). The corresponding standard dry-gas volumetric flow rate corrected to a carbon dioxide concentration of 12 percent would be 458.3 dry standard cubic meters per minute (16,190 dry standard cubic feet per minute at 70°F). After passing through the flue-as cleaning system, the stack, 1.8 meters in diameter.stack gas is emitted to the atmosp a ere from a 36-meter high EMISSIONSIn conformance with the RCRA Incinerator Regulations, only those waste materials for which the incineration system had a demonstrated destruction and removal efficiency (DRE) of at least 99.99 pe...
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