Processes

Incineration

Many developed countries - including Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada - use high-temperature incineration to destroy hazardous organic waste.  It is a safe and effective means to destroying hazardous wastes such as oils, solvents and PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls).

In this process, combustible organic waste materials in solid, liquid or sludge form are destroyed in incinerators that reach temperatures up to 1300° Celsius.

The process in enhanced by high-performance flue gas cleaning systems that removes particulates and toxins from combustion gases, and neutralizes acid gases.

Incineration reduces waste into less hazardous compounds or harmless ash.  Canada's leading high-temperature incineration is the Swan Hills Treatment Centre, which operates a world class rotary kiln that can destroy up to 35,000 tonnes of hazardous organic per year.  The destruction and removal efficiency rate of this facility exceeds the licensed requirement for DRE of 99.9999% for organic materials, typically operating at a DRE level of 99.999999%

Click here for   Rotary Kiln Process Flow.
 

Physical/Chemical Treatment

The Physical/Chemical Treatment Facility plays a key role in processing hazardous liquid inorganic wastes.  General facility processes include neutralization, oxidization/reduction, and precipitation.

In neutralization, or pH control, reagent acids or bases (often waste materials themselves) are added to a waste stream to create neutral salt solutions.

With chemical oxidation/reduction techniques, appropriate oxidizing and reducing agents are added to a waste stream to convert hazardous components into less toxic substances.

Precipitation, a common result of the neutralizing process, can be expedited by using chemical flocculation techniques to separate solids from the liquid component of a solution.

Materials produced during these processes may be sent to a filter press that further separates solids from liquids.  The liquid is also sampled and analyzed to ensure that it is acceptable for injection into a naturally occurring brine formation 1800 meters below ground level, far below the sources of consumable water supplies.  If it does not meet stringent criteria prior to disposal, the water undergoes further treatment.

Click here for   Physical/Chemical Treatment Process Flow