Dust abatement plant for waste treatment and management

Waste management is one of the fields where emissions are most problematic. Although odorigenic emissions are considered more critical usually, dust emissions represent an equally significant challenge.

In fact, several types of dust may be generated during waste treatment, depending mainly on the type of waste and processes used for treatment. Some of the most common dusts include:

• organic dusts: resulting from the decomposition of organic materials in waste, such as paper, cardboard, food, etc.
• inorganic dust: resulting from the fragmentation of inorganic materials such as glass, plastics, metals, etc.
• combustion dust: generated during the burning of waste as part of incineration or pyrolysis processes.
• dust from abrasion: from the friction and crushing of materials during waste shredding, separation and handling operations.
• dust from chemical processes: generated during the application of chemical processes for waste treatment, such as the neutralization of harmful substances.

These dusts may contain a variety of compounds, including organic materials, inorganics, heavy metals, toxic and carcinogenic compounds. It is therefore very important to manage these dusts properly, in order to avoid negative impacts on human health and the environment, as we did in the case of a company in Central Italy that specializes in the collection, transportation, treatment, recovery and disposal of various types of waste. 

The activities of this company take place in 3 plants where to perform waste collection, storage and treatment.
They first decided to treat only 2 plants.

The emission problem was caused by the unloading and handling of some types of waste that generated a significant critical amount of dust emissions.

We told the client to install misting systems that could provide a variable flow rate at a constant pressure, in order to feed several independent nozzle lines.
This was possible due to a control panel that allows starting the system and energizing the relevant solenoid valve, so that each line may be controlled by a suitable validation system. Depending on which lines to activate, the system delivers the required flow rate, keeping the pressure on the line constant at all times.

Specifically, we installed in the first shed an HPS Midi Var system with 4 solenoid valves to manage 4 overhead lines with a total of 150 nozzles.
In the second shed, we installed two HPS midi var systems with 3 solenoid valves each to manage 30 and 90 nozzles respectively divided into 6 overhead lines. 

Subsequently, the client decided us to proceed with dust containment in the third shed as well, where, in view of the size of the area subject to the criticality, we proposed a pole-mounted La.BioFog 400 system with a special structure to anchor it to the columns

As a result of the installation of these systems, our client was able to achieve waste dust emission abatement efficiency of more than 60%.

The key to success in this case was in particular the use of misting systems capable of supporting a variable flow rate while ensuring constant pressure. This made it possible to optimize plant management by activating lines according to actual needs.

The client confirmed that being able to manage the plant in such a way, by activating the solenoid valve to have each line specifically controlled, in order to deliver the required flow rate, was exactly what he needed to solve his dust abatement problem.