Innovative reclamation technologies are transforming how oil refineries handle materials that would otherwise be disposed of or incinerated on-site. Thermal Desorption Units (TDU) are now widely used in various industries to dry contaminated material and evaporate impurities by heating it to a high enough temperature for a long enough time. Thermal desorption is a physical separation process that is triggered by heat. Contaminants are evaporated from a solid matrix and transferred to a gas stream, where they may be controlled more easily. Before choosing a thermal desorption technology to remediate a site, several factors must be examined, including regulatory instructions for adopting a thermal desorption treatment technology, as well as the technology’s performance, limitations, and cost.
You can read further down below the pieces of information that you might need about Thermal Desorption Units as well as their purpose.
What Is Thermal Desorption And How Does It Work?
Thermal desorption is a reclamation method for extracting hydrocarbons from a variety of materials. This technique, which is non-contact and non-incineration, employs high heat to reclaim oil and other materials. Organic compounds, such as oil-bearing material from refineries, are often processed via thermal desorption. When heat is applied to contaminated material with low boiling temperatures, the contaminated material is pushed to transform into a vapor, which can then be collected and treated in an off-gas treatment unit. The wastes are removed, allowing hazardous material to be repurposed without risk of contamination.
Thermal Desorption Unit Purpose
Contaminated material is subjected to heat indirectly in Thermal Desorption Units by coming into touch with a slowly revolving drum that is exposed to heat on the outer shell. The vaporized pollutants in the sludge are separated from the solids in the sludge, resulting in an end product that can be readily and cost-effectively disposed of. The pretreatment and material handling system, the desorption unit, and the post-treatment system for both the gas pollutants and the leftover soil are the three sections of a typical thermal desorption system.
Why Consider Thermal Desorption Unit?
Organics from refining wastes, coal tar wastes, waste from wood treatment, and paint wastes are all good candidates for thermal desorption. Solvents, pesticides, PCBs, dioxins, and fuel oils can all be extracted from polluted soil. The necessary equipment can treat up to ten tons of contaminated soil every hour. Finally, the desorber uses less energy than conventional treatment procedures due to its lower temperatures.
Will Thermal Desorption Unit Works At Any Site?
Most metals are resistant to thermal desorption, however, mercury can be extracted using this method. Other metals will prefer to remain in the soil and will not evaporate quickly enough to be removed from it. Moreover, collecting vaporized metals may make off gas treatment more difficult. Before the soil is processed, a judgment about metals must be made. Thermal desorption is ineffective in treating all types of soil. If the soil is wet, the pollutants will evaporate along with the water. To evaporate all of the pollutants in moist soil, more fuel would be required. Thermal desorption is also more difficult to treat in soils with a lot of silt and clay.