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U.S. EPA Superfund Innovative Technology Evaluation (SITE) Program
Debris Washing System (DWS)
EPA’s National Risk Management Research Laboratory
IT Corporation

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Debris Washing System (DWS), EPA’s National Risk Management Research Laboratory ,IT Corporation (204KB)


Abstract

This technology has been developed for on-site decontamination of metallic and masonry debris at CERCLA sites. The full scale DWS consists of dual 4,000 gallon spray-wash chambers connected to detergent solution and rinse water holding tanks. The debris is placed in one of the spray-wash chambers; 8,000 to 10,000 gallons of recycled, purified (charcoal or ion-exchange) water is used for the decontamination process. The entire system can be placed on three 48-foot flatbed semi-trailers and readily transported from site to site. The DWS can be applied to debris like scrap metal, masonry, stones or other solids, contaminated with hazardous chemicals such as pesticides, dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), or metals. This technology was modified based on two pilot tests; a full-scale field test was then conducted in August 1990, at the Shaver’s Farm Superfund site in Walker County, Georgia. The contaminants of concern, benzonitrile and Dicamba on the surface of 55-gallon drums, were reduced from the average pretreatment concentrations of 4,556 and 23 µg/100 cm2 to 10 and 1µg/cm2, respectively.

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Posted October 1, 1999

 

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