Air Pollution Treatment and Control
nitrogen oxides,
ღ Introduction and Background
 Air Pollution
- One of the biggest threats and
affects everyone
- defined as an alteration of air
quality that can be characterized by
measurements of chemical,
biological or physical pollutants in
the air
- means the undesirable presence of
impurities or the abnormal rise in
the proportion of some
constituents of the atmosphere
 Visible Pollution – visible
 Invisible Pollution – less visible
but can be more deadly
 Local – this concerns the quality of
ambient air within a radius of a few
kilometers.
 Regional – pollution like acid rain,
photochemical reactions and
degradation of water quality at
distances of a few kilometers to a
thousand kilometers.
 Global – depletion of the ozone layer
and global warming caused by the
emission of greenhouse gases, mainly
carbon dioxide (CO2)
 Air Pollutants
- natural and artificial airborne
substances that are introduced into
the environment in a concentration
sufficient to have a measurable
effect in the atmosphere.
 criteria pollutants – used to
determine whether a region is
meeting air quality standards
 hazardous air pollutants/air
toxics – chemical compounds
suspected of causing cancer
and other chronic human
health risks
 Primary Pollutants – directly
cause air pollution;
Environmental Protection
Agency regulates them by
developing human health-
based and/or environmentally-
based criteria (science-based
guidelines) for setting
permissible levels.
 carbon monoxide, lead,
ground-level ozone,
particle pollution
(particulate matter),
and sulfur oxides
 Secondary Pollutants – formed
by the intermingling and
reaction of primary pollutants
 Anthropogenic air pollution sources:
 Combustion of fossil fuels, like
coal and oil for electricity and
road transport, producing air
pollutants like nitrogen and
sulfur dioxide
 Emissions from industries and
factories, releasing large
amount of carbon monoxide,
hydrocarbon, chemicals and
organic compounds into the air
 Agricultural activities, due to
the use of pesticides,
insecticides, and fertilizers that
emit harmful chemicals
 Waste production, mostly
because of methane generation
in landfills
ღ Air Pollution Control
 techniques employed to reduce or
eliminate the emission into the
atmosphere of substances that can
harm the environment or human health
 principal areas of pollution control,
along with wastewater treatment,
solid-waste management, and
hazardous-waste management
 best way to protect air quality: to
reduce the emission of pollutants by
changing to cleaner fuels and
processes; pollutants not eliminated
are collected or trapped by appropriate
air-cleaning devices
 air pollution control technology:
designed to remove particulate and
gaseous pollutants from the emissions
of stationary sources, including power
plants and industrial facilities
 Common Air Pollution Control
1. Renewable fuel and clean energy
production
2. Energy conservation and efficiency
 3. Eco-friendly transportation
4. Green building
ღ Treatment
 The primary focus of air pollution
regulation in industrialized countries
has been on protecting ambient, or
outdoor, air quality. This involves the
control of a small number of specific
“criteria” pollutants known to
contribute to urban smog and chronic
public health problems.
 Since the end of the 20th century, there
also has been a recognition of the
hazardous effects of trace amounts of
many other air pollutants called “air
toxics.” In addition, the long-term and
far-reaching effects of the “greenhouse
gases” on atmospheric chemistry and
climate have been observed.
 Air toxics/toxic air
pollutants/hazardous air pollutants –
pollutants that cause or may cause
cancer or other serious health effects,
such as reproductive effects or birth
defects, or adverse environmental and
ecological effects.
 Examples: dioxin, asbestos,
toluene, pesticides, and metals
(cadmium, mercury, chromium,
and lead compounds)
 The best way to protect air quality is to
reduce the emission of pollutants by
changing to cleaner fuels and
processes. Pollutants not eliminated in
this way must be collected or trapped
by appropriate air-cleaning devices as
they are generated and before they can
escape into the atmosphere. These
devices are described below.
agglomerates that can readily
be removed from the
equipment and disposed of,
usually in a landfill.
 Because each air pollution
control project is unique, it is
usually not possible to decide in
advance what the best type of
particle-collection device (or
combination of devices) will be;
control systems must be
designed on a case-by-case
basis.
 Control of Gases
 Gaseous criteria pollutants,
volatile organic compounds
(VOCs) and other gaseous air
toxics, are controlled by means
of three basic techniques:
1. Absorption
2. Adsorption
3. Incineration/combustion
 can be employed singly
or in combination
 effective against the
major greenhouse
gases
 carbon sequestration – means
of controlling carbon dioxide
levels.

 Control of Particulates
 Airborne particles can be
removed from a polluted
airstream by a variety of
physical processes. Common
types of equipment for
collecting fine particulates
include cyclones, scrubbers,
electrostatic precipitators, and
baghouse filters.
 Once collected, particulates
adhere to each other, forming