Mitigation Options of Atmospheric Hg Emissions in China

As the Minamata Convention on Mercury comes into effect, controlling atmospheric mercury (Hg) emissions has become a compulsory goal. This study determined the mitigation options for the five Convention specified sources by considering their reduction potential of Hg emissions and the impact of future technology changes on emitted Hg forms and cross-media releases. Hg emissions will be reduced from 371 t in 2015 to 242 t in 2020 mainly by applying multipollutant control measures. Hg emissions will be reduced to 71 t in 2030 mainly with alternative measures and specific Hg removal measures (SMR). Alternative measures are effective for the studied sources except waste incineration (WI). SMR is preferentially recommended in cement clinker production due to the benefit of sectoral emissions and local deposition. Stringent requirements of Hg emission control will promote the use of SMR in WI. In case of nonferrous metal smelting (NFMS), only 8.7 t of Hg emissions will be reduced by SMR. However, the cobenefit of Hg reduction in sulfuric acid and local deposition will increase the relevance. On the contrary, applying SMR in coal-fired power plants (CFPPs) and coal-fired industrial boilers (CFIBs) requires comprehensive evaluation in terms of cost benefit and cross-media effect.