Emerging Technology Report:
Destruction of Organic Contaminants In Air
Using Advanced Ultraviolet Flashlamps
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Destruction of Organic Contaminants In Air
Using Advanced Ultraviolet Flashlamps (520K)
U.S. EPA Superfund Innovative Technology Evaluation (SITE) Program
Photolytic Oxidation Process
Thermatrix, Inc. (Formerly Purus, Inc.)
ABSTRACT
The photolytic oxidation process indirectly
destroys volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in soils and groundwater. The process
uses a xenon pulsed-plasma flash-lamp that emits short wavelength ultraviolet
(UV) light at very high intensities. The contaminants are collected in the vapor
phase, and the UV treatment converts the VOCs into less hazardous compounds.
Because the contaminants are destroyed in the vapor phase, the process uses
less energy than a system treating dissolved contaminants. The volatilized VOCs
enter the photolysis reactor where a xenon flashlamp generates UV light. The
plasma is produced by pulse discharge of electrical energy across two electrodes
in the lamp. Destruction over 99 percent occurs within seconds. Full-scale testing
was conducted at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Superfund site in
California. Soils at the site had high levels of trichloethene (TCE). The TCE
was quickly destroyed; however, undesirable intermediates including dichloacetyl
chloride (DCAC) were formed. DCAC further oxidizes into dichlorocarbonyl (DCC)
which requires additional treatment.
Back to SITE Home Page
Posted June 22, 1999
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