Recover VOCs via adsorption on activated carbon

Journal Article · Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 1993 · Chemical Engineering Progress; (United States)

OSTI ID:6124569

Ruhl, M J ^[1]

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1. Dedert Corp., Olympia Falls, IL (United States). Solvent Recovery Div.

One of the most effective methods of controlling emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is also one of the most economical--adsorption, usually using activated carbon as the adsorbent. This process is cost-effective because it is typically able to recover many VOCs for reuse. A particularly common application of carbon adsorption for VOC control is solvent recovery. In general, solvent recovery via carbon adsorption is a logical consideration for any industrial process exhausting sizable quantities of valuable solvent (subject, of course, to the solvent's suitability for adsorption by activated carbon, as discussed later). The most commonly recovered solvents include toluene; heptane; hexane; carbon tetrachloride; acetone; ethyl acetate; methyl ethyl ketone(MEK); naphthalene; and methylene chloride. Many other solvents are also suitable for recovery by carbon adsorption. A recent CEP article discussed the basics of carbon adsorption and application of the technology to water and wastewater treatment. This article takes an in-depth look at the use of activated carbon adsorption of the control of airborne VOC emissions and solvent recovery. It outlines how to decide if carbon adsorption is suitable for an application and then explains how to implement the technology.

• OSTI ID: 6124569
• Journal Information: Chemical Engineering Progress; (United States), Vol. 89:7; ISSN 0360-7275
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ADSORPTION
ACTIVATED CARBON
AIR POLLUTION ABATEMENT
MATERIALS RECOVERY
POLLUTION CONTROL EQUIPMENT
SCRUBBERS
STEAM STRIPPING
VOLATILE MATTER
ADSORBENTS
CARBON
ELEMENTS
EQUIPMENT
MANAGEMENT
MATTER
NONMETALS
POLLUTION ABATEMENT
PROCESSING
SORPTION
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WATER TREATMENT
540120* - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)