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E. 1. DU FONT DE NEMOURS & COMPANY
IHCOMOOPATCD
P. 0. Box 1Z17
PARKERSBURS. W. VA. zsioi
POLYMER PRODUCTS DEPARTMENT
AR226-2380
CC; A. Wegchelar - Dordrecht E. D. Chanpney - D11070
R. A. Morgan
R. E- Putnam
T. D. Gierke
R. C. Brown
D. A. Erdaan
I. 0.
Garza
H. M. Cooper
File: 8-7, 8-10,, 8-42
November 30, 1981
II TO;
J. H. EAMGEMDAM - PD
WILMINGTOM
FROM:
"^ T. J, "LECK
WASHINGTON LAB]
ANALYSISOF EFFLUENT STREAMS FROM FEP
Because of the need for environmental emissions data for Pro ject 8533, "Dordrecht Copolyroer Finishing Facilities," a program was
initiated to collect and analyze samples from all of the PEP plant
effluent streams. Several additional samples were taken and analyzed so that material balances could be determined. Also, since Project 8533 includes a scrubber for the exhaust from the humid heat treatment oven
it was necessary to assemble a small scrubbing apparatus so that pilot
scale scrubbing of HHT oven exhaust could be done. Scrubber water from this unit was analyzed for chemical composition and was tested for aquatic toxicity at Haskell Laboratory, Harry Cooper of PEP Technical assisted with sample collection in this program.
The aqueous samples tested are listed in Table TJL-1. These samples were analyzed for residual C~8 surfactant, organic and inorganic carbon, total fluoride ion content, and pH. Samples .were collected during production of T-100 FEP at nonaal production rates. The fluoride
ion figures for the first two samples listed (coagulator effluents) are
a factor of 10 higher than is expected for this stream. Repeat samples of coagulator effluent and raw dispersion supernate, which should have the same fluoride content, agree with historical figures of 300 mg/1 fluoride or less. This is pointed out since this data was transmitted to you earlier. The two high fluoride levels should probably be dis
carded. The other analyses on these two samples are consistent with expected values.
Vent samples were collected from the following locations: torus disc dryer exhaust (ahead of the exhaust scrubber), torus disc
There's a world ot things we're doing something about
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J. H. LANGENDAM
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dryer exhaust (after che exhaust scrubber)> Ifl humid heat treatment cooling tower exhaust, and Che ffl humid heat treatment oven exhaust. Samples from each location were analyzed directly by electron capture gas chroiaatography and then by scrubbing the gas samples through water
and analyzing the water for extracted compounds.
The humid heat treatment oven cooling tower exhaust was analyzed only by electron capture GC. The only compound which could be detected
was the 0-8 decomposition product CF-,-S at 3 moles per million.
At the torus disc dryer exhaust we expected to see primarily C-8 surfactant and perhaps some oligoineric dicarboxylic acids which are expected to be formed in the polymerization. -As expected, GC analysis
showed no volatile fluorocarbons. Analysis of water through which exhaust samples were scrubbed gave the results shown in Table TJL-2. The major component was C-8 surfactant. The HF and CO., were just at the detection limits of the methods employed for their anafysis - the figures given are upper limits to the actual levels. Mo oligomers could be
detected in these samples.
Results of the analysis of the humid heat treatment oven
exhaust are shown in Table TJ1-3. The CO,, G-8, HF, and oxalic acid were measured by analyzing water collected frota the pilot scale exhaust scrubber. The other compounds were detected directly by GC.
This daca was taken with the oven operating under normal con ditions as listed here:
Product Oven Feed
Oven Temperature Air Make Up Rate Humidity
FBP T-100
500 Ib/hr
360'C 500 cfm 60 to 65C, wet (about 5% H^O)
bulb
Historical data on the composition of the humid heat treatment oven exhaust is sketchy at best so comparisons with historical data are
difficult. The best historical data are those of J. F. Doughty, collected in 1978. Doughty detected TPE, HfP, F-23, K-125, and PFIB in the oven
exhaust at levels which are comparable to my measurements as listed in Table TJL-^3. This supports the sampling and measurement techniques used
in this project.
By summing all of the components found in the oven exhaust to
get the total exhaust loading of vented volatiles and multiplying this
by the temperature corrected oven exhaust rate one can calculate the rate at which these materials are vented from the system. This exercise
was performed and summarized in Table TJL-3. The resulting material
2
loss rate was racioed to the oven feed-rate, and it was found that about
j^,
0.95% of the oven feed is vented as volatiles. This figure is in very
o
good agreement with measurements of polymer weight loss performed in
^
1979 by R. A. Morgan. Morgan's data shows an average weight loss of
^
1.13% for dried FEP samples in the humid heat treatment process.
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3. H. LANGENDAM
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The pilot scale scrubbing of humid heat treatment oven exhaust wag run at & low rate to be sure that a high scrubbing efficiency was
attained. Altogether 127.4 ft of exhaust air was scrubbed through
60..5 1 of water.
This scrub ratio resulted in a fluorlde level of 16 ttg/1 in the scrubber water. Scrubbing was stopped at this point to keep the fluoride below its aquatic toxic level of 60 mg/1 for fish. The analysis of .the water is shown in Tabia TJL-1 and in the attached Haskell Labora tory report.
The 60 liters of scrubber collected was shipped to Haskall
Laboratory for aquatic bioassay with fathead minnows and water fleas
(Paphnia Magna). These tests show that the full strength scrub water
was toxic, but when diluted about 1:1 with pure water the scrub water was rendered non toxic. The toxicity appears to be a result of the combination of the oxalic acid, hydrogen fluoride and perhaps the low levels of iron and nickel leeched from the sampling line during scrub
bing. From these results it is clear that aqueous scrubbing and dis
charge of a diluted effluent stream to the river can be managed in an
acceptable fashion.
The Haskell Laboratory reports are attached.
TJLECK:ssb Attachments
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