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DESTRUCTION EFFICIENCY OF MICROBIOLOGICAL ORGANISMS IN MEDICAL WASTE INCINERATORS: A REVIEW OF AVAILABLE DATA
Citation:
WOOD, JOE, P. M. LEMIEUX, AND C. W. LEE. DESTRUCTION EFFICIENCY OF MICROBIOLOGICAL ORGANISMS IN MEDICAL WASTE INCINERATORS: A REVIEW OF AVAILABLE DATA. In Proceedings, 23rd Annual International Conference on Incineration & Thermal Treatment Technologies, Phoenix, AZ, May 10 - 14, 2004. Air & Waste Management Association, Pittsburgh, PA, 011, (2004).
Impact/Purpose:
After a building has undergone decontamination activities following a biological attack (e.g., anthrax), many of the interior building materials will need to be disposed. And although itis likely that these materials will have been completely decontaminated, the possibility exists that trace bio-contaminants will remain. Incineration may be the best option for disposal of such building materials to completely destroy all potentially remaining trace bio-contaminants. In the early 1990s, the US EPA conducted microbial survivability tests at several medical waste incinerators (MWI); these data have now been examined to verify microbiological destruction performance. Microorganisms were spiked into the waste feed and in test pipes, and subsequently analyzed for viability in the ash, emissions, and pipes using draft EPA test methods. The results showed that for some of the MWI, complete destruction of the bacterial spores was not obtained; possible reasons include lack of sufficient air pollution controls or insufficient chamber temperature and gas residence time.
Description:
symposium paper