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ASSESSMENT OF THE USE OF FUGITIVE EMISSION CONTROL DEVICES
Citation:
Daugherty, D. AND D. Coy. ASSESSMENT OF THE USE OF FUGITIVE EMISSION CONTROL DEVICES. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/7-79/045 (NTIS PB292748), 1979.
Description:
The report compares the efficiencies and utility consumptions expected from three fugitive emission control techniques--building evacuation, charged fog sprays, and water sprays with additives--if they were applied in primary lead and copper smelters. Estimates are provided of the reduction of total suspended particulate emissions and the reduction of elemental lead emissions from smelters when fugitive control is applied. Charged fog water sprays are emphasized; they enhance particulate collection by putting an electrostatic charge on fine water droplets. Building enclosure and evacuation is used as a basis with which such water sprays are compared. Available cost and energy consumption data were used to assess the competitiveness of charged fog sprays. Charged fog sprays were found to be less efficient than building evacuation, but also less expensive and less energy intensive by about a factor of 10. Charged fog sprays cannot replace conventional smelter techniques (e.g., secondary hooding or building evacuation) because they are not suitable for the typical large-volume, high-temperature, turbulent air streams. They are better suited for smaller scale, localized emission sources (e.g., conveyor transfer points) which contribute only a fraction of the fugitive particulate emissions.