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Determination of Optimum Dose of Adsorbent for PCDD/F removal in the flue

gas of a Medical Waste Incineration Plant

Article  in  Chemical Engineering Research and Design · October 2015

DOI: 10.1016/j.cherd.2015.10.010

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 chemical engineering research and design 1 0 4 ( 2 0 1 5 ) 695–702

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Chemical Engineering Research and Design

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cherd

Determination of optimum dose of adsorbent for

PCDD/F removal in the flue gas of a medical waste
incineration plant

Gulten Gunes a,∗ , Arslan Saral b , Şenol Yıldız c , S. Levent Kuzu b

a Bartın University, Department of Environmental Engineering, Kutlubey-Yazicilar Campus, Bartın, Turkey
b Yildiz Technical University, Department of Environmental Engineering, Davutpasa Campus, Esenler,
Istanbul 34220, Turkey
c Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Environmental Protection and Waste Materials Valuation Industry

and Trade Co. (ISTAC), Piyalepasa Bulvari, No:74 Ferikoy, Istanbul, Turkey

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: In this study, congener profile and gas/particle partitioning of PCDD/F compounds was
Received 2 September 2015 investigated and the optimum adsorbent (activated lignite) injection dose for the control
Received in revised form 29 of dioxins and furans was determined in a medical waste incineration plant.
September 2015 99% of the congeners was found to be in particle phase in the flue gas. Especially, congeners
Accepted 7 October 2015 with higher chlorine substitution were dominant. Samples were taken at two different
Available online 23 October 2015 points, one in the upstream of activated lignite injection and the other is in the stack.
At the first sampling point, particle phase concentration was found to be between 29 and
Keywords: 282 ng N m−3 (1–21 ng I-TEQ N m−3 ) and gas phase concentration ranged between 0.3 and
Dioxin/furan 4 ng N m−3 (0.1–0.2 ng I-TEQ N m−3 ). Emission limit of 0.1 ng I-TEQ N m−3 was not exceeded
Medical waste at the stack where concentrations ranged from 2.5 to 5.52 ng N m−3 (0.0 to 0.2 ng I-TEQ N m−3 )
Incineration and 0.03 to 0.2 ng N m−3 (0–0 ng I-TEQ N m−3 ) for particle and gas phases, respectively.
Dioxin removal Optimum activated lignite dosage was determined to be 0.5 kg h−1 . Adsorption on acti-
Activated carbon vated lignite is considered as removal mechanisms of gas phase PCDD/Fs in flue gas. In
addition to as 99% of these compounds are present in particle phase, they are captured by
the bag filter.
© 2015 The Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction PCDD/F emission control is achieved in two stages in waste

PCDD/Fs and PCBs constitute the most important group of
the persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and they occur dur-
ing thermal decomposition of wastes containing chlorine
in medical waste incineration plants. There are three main
mechanisms for PCDD/F formation in combustion processes
which are (i) pyrosynthesis (formation in gas phase at high
temperatures), (ii) precursor formation and (iii) de novo syn-
thesis (Gullett et al., 2001).
incineration plants. In the first stage, formation of these com-
pounds are minimized or precluded by residence time and
temperature control of waste gas. Generated compounds are
removed by appropriate control system in the second stage.
For effective emission control, reformation of PCDD/Fs should
be prevented in the post combustion zone or in the air pollu-
tion control equipment. In order not to exceed the limit value
of 0.1 ng I-TEQ N m−3 , waste incineration plants should be
equipped with suitable control system. Widely used methods

∗
Corresponding author. Tel.: +90 03782949179.
E-mail addresses: ggunes@bartin.edu.tr (G. Gunes), saral@yildiz.edu.tr (A. Saral), syildiz@istac.com.tr (Ş. Yıldız), skuzu@yildiz.edu.tr
(S.L. Kuzu).
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cherd.2015.10.010
0263-8762/© 2015 The Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
696 chemical engineering research and design 1 0 4 ( 2 0 1 5 ) 695–702

are: (i) activated carbon adsorption, (ii) catalytic destruction Table 1 – Operating conditions of the incineration plant.
processes based on catalysts.
Parameter Value
In waste incineration plants, SVOCs (PCDD/Fs, PCBs, PAHs,
−1
etc.) are generated when poor combustion conditions prevail. Capacity 24 t day
SVOC removal without activated carbon injection is linked to Rotary kiln temperature 900–950 ◦ C
particle-related mechanisms such as condensation, agglomer- Temperature of secondary ∼1200 ◦ C
combustion chamber
ation, adsorption and physical separation of particles (Cudahy
Air pollution control equipments Dry scrubber + bag
and Helsel, 2000). Particle phase PCDD/Fs can be removed by filter
particulate matter controlling system such as bag filter (BF) Filter number 210
whereas gas-phase PCDD/Fs in the flue gas may pass through Total filter surface area 337 m2
the BF. Therefore, gas-phase PCDD/Fs must be removed by Lime Ca(OH)2 injection rate 29 kg sa−1
adsorption on carbon-based adsorbents or catalytic destruc- Gas flow rate 12,000 N m3 h−1
Stach height 50 m
tion. In the activated carbon injection system, removal of
Stack diameter 60 cm
PCDD/F compounds can be achieved either through filtration
Temperature of first sampling 395 ◦ C
of PCDD/F which are on particles or absorption of gas phase point 100 ◦ C
compounds on the particles, consequently their removal on Temperature of second sampling
filter with particles. Catalytic filter is multifunctional. Catalytic point
filters consist of a GORE-TEX® membrane that is laminated to
a catalytically active felt. Particles are captured on the mem-
medical waste incineration plant. Gas/particle partitioning
brane and dioxin/furans are catalytically destroyed within the
and congener profiles were reported and dominant formation
felt. The catalyst membrane provides the oxidation of dioxins
mechanisms were presumed. Additionally, optimum adsor-
and furans to form CO2 , H2 O, and HCl, while the gas passes
bent dosage rate was determined via studying four different
through the felt.
feeding rates.
The removal efficiency of PCDD/F compounds is not always
consistent in activated carbon injection methods. This situa-
tion is explained by different vapor pressures of congeners 2. Material and method
and different adsorption capacity of activated carbon used
(Chang et al., 2002). Less chlorinated congeners tend to exist 2.1. Plant description
in gas phase due to their high vapor pressures and they are
more easily adsorbed by activated carbon while high chlori- Plant flow diagram and sampling points are shown in
nated congeners tend to be present in particle phase (fly ash, Figs. 1 and 2. Operating conditions of the medical incinera-
lime particles etc.) because of their lower vapor pressures. tion plant were shown in Table 1. Wastes are combusted at
Therefore, effective particle control equipment capable of 900–1100 ◦ C in a rotary kiln in order to reduce their mass and
removing fine particles (<1 ␮m), should be used to ensure volume. In the secondary combustion chamber, undecom-
high removal efficiency of PCDD/F compounds (Chang et al., posed waste gases are combusted at 1200 ◦ C for a residence
2002). time of 1.5 s for their final destruction. Effluent from secondary
Adsorbent injection rate is one of the most important combustion chamber is passed through boiler and spray tower,
parameters in the activated carbon injection system. Abad then introduced to lime reactor. Lime reactor and bag house
et al. (2003) stated that 92–96% removal efficiency was are the air pollution control units in the plant. SO2 , HF and
achieved when 100 mg N m−3 activated carbon injection rate HCl are captured by powdered Ca(OH)2 injection. PCDD/F com-
was applied. Everaert et al. (2003) expressed that 93.3–94.4% pounds are captured by activated lignite injection. Properties
removal efficiency was achieved at 50–100 mg N m−3 acti- of activated lignite used in the incineration plant were shown
vated carbon injection rate and no significant change in in Table 2. Reaction products and particles are separated from
removal efficiency was observed at injection rates higher than the gas stream in the filtration unit. First sampling point is in
200 mg N m−3 . Chang and Lin (2001) reported 80–98% PCDD/F the upstream of lime reactor and the second is at the stack.
removal efficiency by 45–70 mg N m−3 activated carbon injec-
tion. Kim et al. (2007) reported removal efficiency of over 98%
Table 2 – Properties of activated lignite.
when 50 mg N m−3 activated carbon is injected in a munici-
pal solid waste incineration plant where dual bag filter are in Parameter Value

operation. But it was also stated that 200 mg N m−3 injection Water content 0.5%
is necessary if single filter is used for treatment (Kim et al., Ash content 9.0%
2007). Volatile compounds 3.0%
The main aim of activated carbon injection technology is Carbon 87.5%
Total sulfur content 0.5%
to ensure maximum removal efficiency at minimum feed rate.
Injection rate 3 kg h−1
Removal efficiency of fine particles (0.1–1 ␮m) via air pollu-
Density 0.55 g cm−3
tion control equipment is lower than that of coarse particles Surface area 300 m2 g−1
(Chi et al., 2005). Most PCDD/F compounds are adsorbed to Form Powdered
fine particles (<2 ␮m). The reason behind this fact is their rel- dp > 125 ␮m 0.5%
atively large surface area (Chang and Lee, 1998). This issue 90–125 ␮m 1.5%
leads to lower PCDD/F removal than expected. Also, PCDD/F 63–90 ␮m 5%
32–63 ␮m 30%
compounds adsorbed onto particles (mean diameter 0.8 ␮m)
<32 ␮m 63%
can escape from bag filter along with attached particles.
In this study, both formed and removed concentra- dp : Activated lignite particle diameter.
tion values of PCDD/F compounds were investigated in a
 chemical engineering research and design 1 0 4 ( 2 0 1 5 ) 695–702 697

Fig. 1 – Plant flow diagram (1) Rotary kiln (2) Primary combustion chamber (3) Secondary combustion chamber (4) Boiler (5)
Cooler (6) Activated lignite injection unit (7) Lime reactor (8) Bag filter (9) Activated lignite silo (10) Lime silo (11) stack.

2.2. Sampling and analysis
Sampling was conducted according to EN 13284-1. Samp-
ling method was filter/condenser method. Zambelli 2000010
Bareggio was used as sampling device. Waste gas stream was
sampled isokinetically from the duct.
PCDD/Fs both in gas and particle phases are collected dur-
ing the sampling campaign. The main collecting parts are
spiked with 13 C12 -labelled PCDD/Fs before sampling to deter-
mine the sampling recovery rate of congeners. Extraction is
mandatory to isolate PCDD/Fs from sample medium, con-
sequently collect them in an appropriate solvent volume.
Soxhlet extraction was carried out for filters and adsorbents.
Samples were extracted 24 h with toluene. These extracts were
then transferred to n-hexane and rotary concentrated prior
to clean-up process. Sample clean-up is usually carried out
by multi-column chromatographic techniques such as multi-
layer column liquid chromatography utilizing silica, column
adsorption chromatography utilizing activated carbon, col-
umn liquid chromatography on alumina of different activity
grades and acidity/basicity. The main goal of cleaning the
raw sample extracts is to remove sample matrix components
which may overload the separation method and disturb the
quantification or otherwise severely impact the performance
of identification and quantification method. High resolu-
tion gas chromatography/high resolution mass spectrometry
(HRGC/HRMS) (Micromass Autospec) was used for seperation
and detection, combined with isotope dilution of samples at
different stages for quantification of PCDD/Fs from emission
samples.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Removal efficiency of PCDD/F compounds
Adsorbent injection system is used to control the gas phase
PCDD/F compounds while bag filter is used to collect par-
ticle phase PCDD/F compounds. Therefore, detection of
gas/particle ratio is necessary in the determination of opti-
mum adsorbent dose.
In this study, four different adsorbent dosages were applied
for the investigation of optimum dose together with one samp-
ling having no adsorption injection in order to determine the
amount of uncontrolled concentration of PCDD/Fs. Measure-
ment results are shown in Table 3. PCDD/F concentrations was
ranged between 31 and 286 ng N m−3 . Particle and gas phase

Fig. 2 – Sampling points (a) First sampling point (b) Second sampling point.
698 chemical engineering research and design 1 0 4 ( 2 0 1 5 ) 695–702

concentrations ranged between 29 and 282 ng N m−3 and 0.3 to

Sampling point 2 (ng

4 ng N m−3 , respectively. Ratio of particle phase PCDD/F con-

I-TEQ Nm−3 )
centration to total concentration was found to be 99%. I-TEQ

0
0
0
0
G
concentration ranged between 1.1 and 21 ng. I-TEQ N m−3 and
ratio of particle phase to total amount was again 99%. Accord-
ing to these results, particle phase formation mechanisms
were considered to be the principal formation mechanisms in

0.1
0.1
0.1
P

0
this incinerator. The ratio of PCDD and PCDF congeners to total
concentration was calculated to be 35% and 65% at the first
Sampling point 1 (ng

sampling point, while 20% and 80% at the second sampling

0.1
0.1
0.1
0.2
point.
I-TEQ Nm−3 )

PCDD/F compounds are generally formed by precursor and

de novo synthesis reactions within post-combustion zone.
Their formation rates are functions of O2 , CO, SO2 , Cl2 content
0.94

of flue gas, temperature profile and metals, carbon content of

0.7
21

12
P

fly ash (Dickson et al., 1992; Stieglitz et al., 1993; Gullett and

Lemieux, 1994; Addink and Olie, 1995a,b; Stieglitz, 1998; Chang
Total efficiency

and Huang, 2000). Generated gaseous precursor compounds

99
82
87
98

(chlorophenol, chlorobenzene, PCBs), between 300 and 600 ◦ C

(%)

condense on fly ash surface. This situation makes up the pre-

cursor formation (Nakahata and Mulholland, 2000). De novo
synthesis reactions occur through 250–400 ◦ C and high molec-
ular weighted PCDF congeners are dominant (Hagenmaier
95
95
96
80
G

et al., 1987; Yamamoto et al., 1989; Suzuki et al., 2004). Accord-

Efficiency (%)

ing to these results, it is assumed that de novo synthesis

mechanism is dominant in this plant.
In a study, conducted in Korea, 50 different incinerators
99
81
87
98

were evaluated. PCDD/F concentrations were reported to be

P

in the range of 0.05 to 609.27 ng I-TEQ N m−3 . Concentration

at medical waste incineration plants were found to be 50 ng
I-TEQ N m−3 (Choi et al., 2008). In Japan, concentrations in the
0.11
0.04
0.06
Sampling point 2

0.2

incinerators of different design parameters were reported as

G
(ng Nm−3 )

ranging from 5.93 to 67.52 ng I-TEQ N m−3 (Liu et al., 2006).

In this study, PCDD/F concentrations were ranged from 1.1
to 21 ng I-TEQ N m−3 . Finally, it was assumed that chlorine
3.15
5.52
3.86

content of combusted waste, type of rotary kiln, operating

2.5
P

conditions, types and locations of air pollution control equip-

ment are all important factors in the formation and control of
PCDD/F compounds.
4.0
2.0
1.0
0.3
Sampling point 1

G
(ng Nm−3 )

3.2. Congener profiles

Table 3 – PCDD/F concentration values at sampling points.

Congener profiles of PCDD/F compounds for gas and parti-

282
29
30
151
P

cle phases at first and second sampling points were shown

in Fig. 3. Concentrations of highly chlorinated congeners were
detected to be higher than that of low chlorinated congeners.
Concentration
(mg m−3 )

Most abundant congeners in the gas phase were found to

85
66
197
332

be OCDD (23%), OCDF (22%), 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-HpCDF (10%) and

Adsorbent

1,2,3,4,6,7,8-HpCDD (9%). On the other hand, the most domi-

nant congeners in the particle phase were detected to be OCDF
(16%), OCDD (15%), 1,2,3,4,7,8-HxCDF (11%) and 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-
Feed rate
(kg h−1 )

1.62
2.54

HpCDD (10%). Similar congener profiles were reported for

0.6
0.5

municipal and industrial incinerators by Chi et al. (2006), for

other municipal waste incinerators by Kim et al. (2007) and
Ni et al. (2009), and for medical waste incinerator by Cleverly
Flow rate of flue

et al. (1997).
gas (Nm3 h−1 )

2,3,7,8-TCDD and 2,3,4,6,7,8-HxCDF from low chlorinated

congeners were detected to be the least contributors to the
7090
7628
8210
7641

total concentration. Percentages of 2,3,7,8-TCDD in gas and

particle phases were found to be 0.1% and 0.34%, respectively.
These results are in the range of 0.1% to 1% which was reported
by Cleverly et al. (1997) for combustion sources. Removal effi-
No

1
2
3
4

ciency of congeners varied from 60% to 99% for gas phase and
 chemical engineering research and design 1 0 4 ( 2 0 1 5 ) 695–702
Fig. 3 – Flue gas congener profiles for particle and gas phases.
from 80% to 100% for particle phase (Fig. 4). The congener
having the highest removal efficiency in gas phase was 2,3,7,8-
TCDD by 99% while 2,3,7,8-TCDF revealed the lowest removal
efficiency as 60% (Fig. 3).
Lower chlorinated congeners, when compared to higher
chlorinated ones, have higher vapor pressures. So, they tend
to go into gas phase and hence, have higher possibility of
adsorption on activated carbon (Chi et al., 2006; Inoue and
Kawamoto, 2005; Chang and Lin, 2001). On the other hand,
higher chlorinated congeners tend to be present in particle
phase due to their lower vapor pressures. These congeners
are separated from gas stream after their adsorption onto acti-
vated carbon particles or their association with lime particles,
consequently, filtration of the particles through bag house fil-
ter.
In this study, lowest removal efficiencies for gas phase
were found to be 60% and 80% for 2,3,7,8-TCDF and 1,2,3,7,8-
PeCDD, respectively. Highest removal efficiency was 99% for
699
2,3,7,8-TCDD. Removal efficiencies for the rest of congeners
were ranged between 95% and 98%. The lowest removal
efficiency for particle phase was found to be 80% for 2,3,7,8-
TCDF while the highest removal efficiency found to be 100%
for 2,3,7,8-TCDD, 1,2,3,7,8-PeCDD and 1,2,3,7,8-PeCDF. Parti-
cle phase removal efficiencies for the rest of congeners were
observed to range from 97% to 99%.
As a result, physicochemical properties of congeners such
as size and molecular weight affect the gas/particle partition-
ing and removal mechanisms. For example, it is reported that
VOCs smaller than PCDD/F congeners can inhibit activated
carbon adsorption of PCDD/F compounds (Chang et al., 2009).
3.3. Gas/particle partitioning
Inlet particle and gas phase concentrations were 123 ng N m−3
and 1.8 ng N m−3 , respectively. At this sampling point, 98.6%
of the concentration was on particle phase. This much high
700 chemical engineering research and design 1 0 4 ( 2 0 1 5 ) 695–702
Fig. 4 – Removal efficiencies of congeners for gas and particle phases.
contribution from particle phase could be explained by (i) de
novo synthesis reactions and (ii) binding of high molecular
weight congeners to fly ash particles. No particulate control
equipment was installed upstream of this sampling point.
Thus, PCDD/Fs are formed via de novo synthesis reactions
at temperature conditions between 250 and 400 ◦ C on the
surface of fly ash particles and in the presence of metal cat-
alysts. That’s why high contribution from particles occurred
to the total concentration. At the first sampling point, waste
gas temperature was 122 ◦ C, however, it was between 270 ◦ C
and 300 ◦ C upstream of the boiler. This range was appropriate
for de novo synthesis reactions. In addition, concentration of
PCDDs was 44 ng N m−3 and that of PCDFs was 81 ng N m−3 at
the first sampling point. Relatively higher formation of PCDF
congeners than PCDDs (Suzuki et al., 2004) and higher PCDF
concentration than PCDDs (Chi et al., 2005) suggest that de
novo synthesis reactions are the primary formation mech-
anism in this plant. Another reason could be that, PCDD/F
compounds which were not destructed within secondary
combustion chamber and were carried by gas stream towards
the stack may adsorb onto particles in between boiler and
lime reactor at temperatures of 300–120 ◦ C. Additionally, high
molecular weight congeners seem to be dominant according
to the detected congener profiles. These congeners have ten-
dency to deposit on particle surfaces due to their low vapor
pressures. Moreover, high molecular weight congeners gen-
erated at gaseous phase in combustion zone are thought to
associate with fly ash particles.
Vapor pressure is the most important parameter affect-
ing gas/particle partitioning of PCDD/F congeners and it is
proportional to temperature (Inoue and Kawamoto, 2005).
Therefore, congeners could be adsorbed onto particle surfaces
due to decreasing vapor pressure, especially in the cold regions
beyond the combustion zone.
At the second sampling point, gas phase concentration was
3% of the total amount. Ratio of the particle phase decreased,
conversely, gas phase concentration increased. Consequently,
particle phase congeners were assumed to be controlled better
than gas phase congeners.
The ratios of PCDD and PCDF congeners in the total particle
concentration were detected to be 34% and 66%, respectively
(Table 4).
3.4. Effect of feed rate of activated carbon
Applied adsorbent amount and achieved removal efficiencies
were given in Table 3. 97% and 98% of removal efficiencies
were achieved during 66 mg m−3 and 85 mg m−3 of injection
rates, respectively. Despite 2 to 3 times increase in activated
carbon feed rate, the removal efficiency was not changed. 97%
and 77% removal efficiencies were achieved for 197 mg m−3
and 332 mg m−3 feed rates of activated lignite, respectively.
Excessive use of activated lignite can cause leaks of fine
particles through bag filter due to increased pressure drop.
Kim et al. (2007) reported optimum dosage feed rate as 150
to 300 mg N m3 for single bag filter system. However, high
removal efficiencies for lower feed rates were acquired in this
study.
As to conclude, optimum activated carbon injection rate
for PCDD/F removal was found to be 66 mg N m−3 . Several
researchers have reported similar results so far. Some of them
are summarized as follow.
Kim et al. (2007) expressed removal efficiency increase
for single bag filter unit up 150 mg N m−3 injection rate and
no significant difference was observed between 150 and
300 mg N m−3 injection rate. However, removal efficiency was
decreased for injection rates higher than 300 mg N m−3 . Abad
et al. (2003) stated 92–96% removal efficiency for 100 mg N m−3
activated carbon injection rate. Everaert et al. (2003) stated
that 93.9–99.4% removal efficiency was achieved for injection
rates of 50 to 100 mg N m−3 . It was also reported that no effi-
ciency difference was detected for injection rate higher than
200 mg N m−3 . In another study, 80 to 98% removal efficiency
 chemical engineering research and design 1 0 4 ( 2 0 1 5 ) 695–702 701

Table 4 – Gas/particle partitioning of PCDD/F congener.

Congener Sampling point 1 Sampling point 2

P (%) G (%) Total (%) P (%) G (%) Total (%)

2,3,7,8-TCDD 424 0.3 2 0.1 425 0.34 0.5 0.01 0.02 0.0 0.5 0.0
1,2,3,7,8-PcDD 2087 2 11 1 2097 2 5.5 0.15 2.27 2 8 0.2
1,2,3,4,7,8-HxCDD 1962 2 11 1 1973 2 15.9 0.42 0.32 0 16 0.4
1,2,3,6,7,8-HxCDD 2627 2 16 1 2643 2 28.7 1 0.53 1 29 1
1,2,3,7,8,9-HxCDD 5250 4 31 2 5281 4 50.6 1 0.87 1 51 1
1,2,3,4,6,7,8,-HpCDD 12,052 10 158 9 12,210 10 308.3 8 7.34 7 316 8
OCDD 18,958 15 410 23 19,368 16 351.5 9 14.78 15 366 10
PCDD 43,359 35 639 36 43,998 35 761.0 20 26.13 26 787 20
2,3,7,8-TCDF 7493 6 85 5 7578 6 1522 41 34.11 35 1556 40
1,2,3,7,8-PeCDF 4022 3 36 2 4057 3 11.6 0.3 0.54 1 12 0.3
2,3,4,7,8-PeCDF 5590 5 44 2 5634 5 28.8 1 0.75 1 30 1
1,2,3,4,7,8-HxCDF 13,385 11 148 8 13,533 11 242.7 6 3.60 4 246 6
1,2,3,6,7,8-HxCDF 8463 7 99 6 8562 7 120.9 3 2.39 2 123 3
1,2,3,7,8,9-HxCDF 8695 7 100 6 8795 7 206.8 6 3.36 3 210 5
2,3,4,6,7,8-HxCDF 684 1 7 0.4 691 1 6.5 0 0.14 0 7 0.2
1,2,3,4,6,7,8-HpCDF 5828 5 184 10 6012 5 147.7 4 6.47 7 154 4
1,2,3,4,7,8,9-HpCDF 6269 5 71 4 6341 5 157.1 4 3.57 4 161 4
OCDF 19,263 16 385 21 19,648 16 549.3 15 17.58 18 567 15
PCDF 79,692 65 1159 64 80,851 65 2993 80 72.51 74 3066 80

Total (pg Nm−3 ) 12,3051 100 1798 100 12,4849 100 3754 100 98.64 100 3853 100
Total (ng Nm−3 ) 123 2 125 3.8 0.1 4

was acquired for 45 to 70 mg N m−3 injection rate (Chang and
Lin, 2001).
Several parameters such as waste composition, incinerator
process conditions, type of air pollution control equipment
affect PCDD/F compounds. Therefore, optimum adsorbent
dosage must be determined by process-specific measure-
ments at the existing operating conditions. Additionally,
excessive use of adsorbent leads to increased operating and
handling costs due to removal of waste adsorbent because of
the toxicity of PCDD/Fs.
4. Conclusions
In this study, formation and gas/particle partitioning of
PCDD/F compounds in a medical waste incineration plant
were investigated. The amount of optimum adsorbent injec-
tion was determined for emission control. 99% of the
compounds were detected in particle phase whereas 1% was
in gaseous phase. Average concentrations of PCDDs and PCDFs
were observed to be 38 and 72 ng N m−3 , respectively.
When process temperature profile is considered, it can be
inferred from the results that de novo synthesis reactions are
the principal formation mechanism within incinerator. In the
second sampling point, gas phase fraction was observed to
increase against particle phase leading to higher removal rates
of PCDD/F compounds in the particle phase.
97% removal efficiency for gas phase was achieved at
66 mg m−3 injection rate and no efficiency difference was
observed at 197 mg m−3 injection rate. Moreover, the removal
efficiency decreased at 332 mg m−3 injection rate. It was
reported that low chlorinated congeners are adsorbed stronger
than high chlorinated congeners (Smolka and Schmidt, 1997).
However, removal efficiency of 2,3,7,8-TCDD was detected to
be the lowest in this study at gaseous phase among the other
congeners.
Filtration unit has 99% particle removal efficiency. So that,
bag house filtration is considered as the primary removal
mechanism of PCDD/F compounds. For that reason, bag house
should always be operated at optimum conditions. Also,
adsorption of gas phase PCDD/F compounds in the filter cake
layer may be another important removal mechanism. In this
study, adsorbent feed rates lower than 0.5 kg h−1 were not
studied due to the inability of the injection system.
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