Thermal Oxidizers
Thermal oxidizers reduce air pollution by heating contaminated air until it reaches temperatures high enough to break down the hazardous compounds, leaving carbon dioxide and water vapor as byproducts. Many industrial processes result in the production of air pollutants such as volatile organic compounds, hydrocarbon, solvent fumes and halogenated and hazardous air pollutants. As these pollutants can cause serious environmental and biological damage, it is vital that they be managed and disposed of properly. Thermal oxidizers offer such a means of disposal and are used in several industries including polymer and resin manufacturing, food processing, printing, pharmaceuticals, painting, roofing manufacture and many more. Thermal oxidizers are a large piece of equipment and are therefore most widely used in industrial settings that yield high emissions.
Regenerative, recuperative, and direct fire are the three most common types of thermal oxidizer. The type of oxidizer chosen depends upon the amount of pollutants in the contaminated air, the volume and the desired destruction efficiency rate. All thermal oxidizers function in much the same way. Tainted air is forced through a heated tube which slowly increases the temperature until the impurities are broken down. The purified air is then exhausted into the atmosphere. This particular type of pollution control equipment can also serve as a heat recovery system. Before being expelled, the decontaminated air can be run over heat transfer beds recuperating up to 95% of the heat energy used in the oxidation process thereby saving energy and cutting costs.