COMPARISON OF EMISSIONS FROM BURNING HAZARDOUS-WASTE IN A DRY-PROCESSCEMENT KILN WITH EMISSIONS FROM BURNING CONVENTIONAL FOSSIL-FUELS

During the past ten years, emissions data have been obtained from a dr y process cement kiln. The kiln has been tested while burning various amounts of hazardous waste solvents. Supplemental fuel in the form of hazardous waste solvents has been used up to 40% of the heat input to the kiln, or up to 140 million Btu/hr of the maximum 351 million Btu/h r heat input rate. Three sets of tests have been performed on this uni t that can be used to compare the emissions from the burning of conven tional fossil fuels only, and approximately 15%, 25% and 40% of the he at input with hazardous waste solvents. The tests were performed in 19 82, 1984 and 1989/1990. As might be expected, burning a solid fuel has the potential for greater organic emissions, or products of incomplet e combustion (PICs) than does the liquid hazardous waste solvents. Add itionally, other impurities such as metals and chlorine content can be controlled more fully in liquid hazardous wastes than in conventional fuels. Full scale data from the kiln indicate that emissions can be r educed when burning a hazardous waste solvent over a conventional soli d fossil fuel. However, these data were not obtained under controlled conditions, which would be as expected for most full scale facilities. These data could be augmented by bench and pilot scale studies that e xamine emissions for various hazardous waste and conventional fuel fee d rates under controlled conditions.