Project Synopsis
Provide independent engineering review and technical support to a catalyst manufacturer for SARA Title III reporting.
Project Summary
CATALYST MANUFACTURER SARA TITLE III (EPCRA) TRI REPORTING ASSISTANCE
The client owns and operates a facility that manufactures catalytic inserts for automotive and industrial emission control applications. The production lines include a final drying and calcining step in which a nitrate based slurry washcoat, containing aluminum oxide, rare earth oxides, and precious metals, is fixed to a substrate and passed through a dryer and a high temperature (calcining) oven. Emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) result from the drying and calcining process. The production lines are equipped with pollution control systems for abatement of the NOx. The major unit operations in the pollution control system include a packed bed scrubber that uses caustic (NaOH) and sodium sulfite (Na2SO3) for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) scrubbing, a heat recovery and combustion unit, a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) unit that uses ammonia injection to react with the NOx, and an ammonia scrubber to absorb ammonia carryover from the SCR. The client contracted with Process Engineering Associates, LLC (PROCESS) to evaluate their calculations for the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) Section 313 Toxics Release Inventory (TRI, Form R) reporting required by EPA.
Specific project tasks included the following:
- Review of EPCRA regulatory reporting requirements.
- Review and recommendation of corrections to calculations for determining which of the EPA designated toxic chemicals listed under EPCRA Section 313 had met the threshold reporting limits for manufacturing, processing, or use.
- Review and recommendation of corrections to calculations for determining releases and transfers to various facilities and environmental media of those TRI chemicals which have exceeded the threshold quantities. Perform mass balance to account for the TRI chemicals used, manufactured, released, and transferred.
Input provided by PROCESS eliminated the unnecessary reporting of one TRI chemical and correction of quantities reported for nitrate compounds, nitric acid, and chlorine dioxide.
Industry Type
- Catalyst Manufacturing
Utilized Skills
- Regulatory compliance support