DIOXIN ISSUES IN THE THERMAL OXIDATIVE PROCESSING OF MERCURY-CONTAMINATED WASTES

The significance of dioxin formation in the design of an oxidative the rmal process for treating mercury-contaminated natural gas production waste has been assessed. Provision of a quench cooling stage for the f lue gas, in conjunction with either an activated carbon filter or an a fterburner at 1200 degrees C, results in dioxin emission concentration s well below the EC incineration guide value. None of the other proces s products pose any disposal problems on account of dioxins-in fact, d ioxin outputs from the process are substantially less than dioxin inpu t via the feed. This paper provides an example of how the complex anal ytical data relating to dioxins can be fully interpreted and set in co ntext.