Hazardous Waste Combustion Studies

Fused silica flow reactor instrumentation is available in our Thermal Decomposition Laboratory to evaluate the combustion characteristics of organic mixtures. Thermal treatment is often the method of choice for completely and permanently destroying halogenated organic compounds and mixtures.

Chlorine, fluorine and organic compounds containing these halogens are important industrial products in the U.S. and other industrialized countries. Fluorocarbons and chlorocarbons are widely used as solvents in syntheses, as cleaning agents, as starting materials, and in polymer, pesticide, and other product manufacturing applications. These materials are emitted from both municipal and hazardous waste incinerators, as well as in manufacturing processes related to the above industrial applications and are often persistent in the troposphere. 

Combustion analyses include determination of the extent of conversion to end products (ranging from 99.9 to 99.9999%) and the identification and quantification of major reaction by-products. We routinely use gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) to determine the extent of conversion.  Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) allows us to identify and quantify a majority of reaction by-products.

A summary of our combustion research, including our thermal stability-based ranking of hazardous organic compounds, can be found in our Hazardous Waste Combustion Archive.

Selected Publications

S. S Sidhu, B. Gullett, R. Striebich, J. Klosterman, J. Contreras, and M. DeVito, "Endocrine Disrupting Chemical Emissions from Combustion Sources: Diesel Particulate Emissions and Domestic Waste Open Burn Emissions," Atmospheric Environment, 39, 801, 2005.

P. H. Taylor and D. Lenoir, “Chloroaromatic Formation in Incineration Processes,” Science of the Total Environment, 269, 1, 2001.

B. Dellinger and P. H. Taylor, “Chemical Aspects of the Combustion of Hazardous Wastes,” Central European Journal of Public Health, 6, 79, 1998.

W. A. Rubey, R. C. Striebich, J. Bush, P. W. Centers, and R. L. Wright, “Neurotoxin Formation from Pilot-Scale Incineration of Synthetic Ester Turbine Lubricants with a Triaryl Phosphate Additive," Archives of Toxicology, 70, 508, 1996.

B. Dellinger, P. H. Taylor, and C. C. Lee, "Full-Scale Evaluation of the Thermal Stability-Based Hazardous Organic Waste Incinerability Ranking," Air & Waste Management Association Journal, 43, 203, 1993.

G. J. Carroll, R. C. Thurnau, J. W. Lee, L. R. Waterland, B. Dellinger, and P. H. Taylor, "Pilot-Scale Evaluation of an Incinerability Ranking System for Hazardous Organic Compounds," Air & Waste Management Association Journal, 42, 1430, 1992.

P. H. Taylor, B. Dellinger, and C. C. Lee, "Development of a Thermal Stability-Based Index of Hazardous Organic Compound Incinerability," Environmental Science & Technology, 24, 316, 1990.

P. H. Taylor and J. F. Chadbourne, "Sulfur Hexafluoride as a Surrogate for Monitoring Hazardous Waste Incinerator Performance," Journal of the Air Pollution Control Association, 37, 729, 1987.

B. Dellinger, M. D. Graham, and D. A. Tirey, "Predicting Emissions from the Thermal Processing of Hazardous Wastes," Hazardous Waste & Hazardous Materials, 3, 293, 1986.

B. Dellinger, W. A. Rubey, D. L. Hall, and J. L. Graham, "Incinerability of Hazardous Wastes," Hazardous Waste & Hazardous Materials, 3, 139, 1986.