An Overview of Plasma Arc Technology Applied Research Projects for the Vitrification of Hazardous Wastes

Abstract

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) launched a study under the Construction Productivity Advancement Research (CPAR) program to determine the feasibility of using plasma arc technology to destroy asbestos contaminated material (ACM). The U.S. Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories (USACERL) and the Construction Research Center (CRC) at Georgia Institute of Technology are the main partners in the ACM destruction projects. Phase I project results indicated that development of a mobile Plasma Asbestos Pyrolysis System (PAPS) for destroying asbestos and ACM on-site would have a high probability of success. CPAR is a cost-shared research and development (R&D) partnership between USACE laboratories and the U.S. construction industry (e.g., contractors, equipment and material suppliers) to improve construction productivity and competitiveness. The objective of CPAR is to facilitate productivity-improving research, development, and application of advanced technologies through cooperative R&D programs and field demonstrations as a means of technology transfer.

USACERL is exploring other uses for plasma arc technology in destroying hazardous wastes. DOD installations and depots have, for many years, accumulated hazardous wastes that resulted from their unique mission. In some cases, these wastes cannot be disposed in any type of landfill. Therefore, a separate group of plasma projects which apply to unique military hazardous wastes is being conducted for specific types of military wastes. One of these projects involves researching the disposal, gasification, vitrification, and destruction of waste materials and components in an environmentally safe manner using plasma arc technology. Vitrified waste candidates include: incinerator ash, polluted soils, obsolete thermal batteries and smoke signals, proximity fuses, and Army Materiel Command (AMC) production sludge. All the above candidates represent difficult wastes that cannot be treated or disposed of using conventional technologies.

In addition, USACERL is conducting a basic research project with the University of Illinois to study the fate of heavy metals in plasma arc processing. The volatility of some heavy metals (e.g., cadmium) still presents a problem for emission control during vitrification. Understanding and avoiding the potential for heavy metal volatilization with the emission will afford the plasma arc technology far reaching applications for processing other wastes. Finally, USACERL is representing DOD in a joint effort for plasma research between DOD and Department of Energy (DOE) common interest hazardous waste problems. The DOD\DOE project involves developing new technology applications, pushing the state-of-the-art equipment design, and transferring the technology to private sector potential users.