Dioxin emissions after installation of a polishing wet scrubber in a hazardous waste incineration facility

Dioxin levels measured after wet scrubbing systems have been found to be higher than levels measured before the scrubber. It is believed that there is an adsorption of PCDD/Fs on plastic materials in the scrubber. The PCDD/F levels after a polishing wet scrubber were followed continuously for 18 months using long-time sampling equipment at a hazardous waste incineration facility in Sweden. Each sampling period lasted two weeks. It was found that the levels during and shortly after start-up periods were elevated. The decline was very slowly, which supports a memory effect in the scrubber. Further, a multivariate model showed that the relation between different homologues changed over time, which is in agreement with a desorption model, taking into account the vapour pressures for different congeners. (C) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.