Air Pollution Effects & Control

Air pollution effects:

On living and nonliving beings

Exposure to air pollution is

associated
with
numerous
effects
on
human
health,
including pulmonary, cardiac,
vascular,
and
neurological
impairments.

The health effects vary greatly

from person to person. High-risk
groups such as the elderly,
infants, pregnant women, and
sufferers from chronic heart and
lung
diseases
are
more
susceptible to air pollution.

Children are at greater risk

because they are generally more
active outdoors and their lungs
are still developing.

Exposure to air pollution can cause both acute

(short-term) and chronic (long-term) health effects.
Acute effects are usually immediate and often
reversible when exposure to the pollutant ends.
Some acute health effects include eye irritation,
headaches, and nausea.
Chronic effects are usually not immediate and tend
not to be reversible when exposure to the pollutant
ends.
Some chronic health effects include decreased
lung capacity and lung cancer resulting from longterm exposure to toxic air pollutants.

Effects on Human respiratory system

Both gaseous and particulate air

pollutants can have negative
effects on the lungs.
Solid particles can settle on the
walls of the trachea, bronchi,
and bronchioles.
Continuous breathing of polluted
air can slow the normal
cleansing action of the lungs and
result in more particles reaching
the lower portions of the lung.
Damage to the lungs from air
pollution can inhibit this process
and contribute to the occurrence
of respiratory diseases such as
bronchitis, emphysema, and
cancer.

Absorption

Adsorption

Oxidation

Reduction

Primary application: inorganic gases

Example: SO2
Mass transfer from gas to liquid
Contaminant is dissolved in liquid
Liquid must be treated

Primary application: organic gases

Example: trichloroethylene
Mass transfer from gas to solid
Contaminant is bound to solid

Adsorbent may be regenerated

Activated carbon
Silica gel
Activated alumina
Zeolites (molecular sieves)

When a gas or vapor is brought into contact with a

solid, part of it is taken up by the solid. The
molecules that disappear from the gas either enter
the inside of the solid, or remain on the outside
attached to the surface. The former phenomenon is
termed absorption (or dissolution) and the latter
adsorption.
The most common industrial adsorbents are
activated carbon, silica gel, and alumina, because
they have enormous surface areas per unit weight.
Activated carbon is the universal standard for
purification and removal of trace organic
contaminants from liquid and vapor streams.

Carbon adsorption systems are either regenerative or nonregenerative.

Regenerative system usually contains more than one carbon
bed. As one bed actively removes pollutants, another bed is
being regenerated for future use.
Non-regenerative systems have thinner beds of activated
carbon. In a non-regenerative adsorber, the spent carbon is
disposed of when it becomes saturated with the pollutant.

Regenerative Carbon
Adsorption System

Non-Regenerative Carbon
Adsorption System

Thermal Oxidation

Catalytic Oxidation

A thermal oxidizer (or thermal oxidiser) is a process unit for air

pollution control in many chemical plants that decomposes
hazardous gases at a high temperature and releases them into the
atmosphere.

Thermal Oxidizers are typically used to destroy Hazardous Air

Pollutants (HAPs) and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from
industrial air streams.

These pollutants are generally hydrocarbon based and when

destroyed via thermal combustion they are chemically changed to

form CO2 and H2O.

Application: organic gases

Autogenous gases = 7 MJ/kg (heat value)

Operating temperatures: 700 - 1300 oC

Efficiency = 95 - 99%

By-products must not be more hazardous

Heat recovery is economical necessity

Catalytic Oxidation
Catalytic oxidation is a relatively recently applied
alternative for the treatment of VOCs in air streams
resulting from remedial operations.
The addition of a catalyst accelerates the rate of
oxidation by adsorbing the oxygen and the
contaminant on the catalyst surface where they react
to form carbon dioxide, water, and hydrochloric gas.
The catalyst enables the oxidation reaction to occur
at much lower temperatures than required by a
conventional thermal oxidation

Application: organic gases

Non-autogenous gases < 7 MJ/kg
Operating temperatures: 250 - 425 oC
Efficiency = 90 - 98%

Catalyst may be poisoned

Heat recovery is not normal

Application: NOx control

Ammonia is reducing agent injected into exhaust

NOx is reduced to N2 in a separate reactor

containing catalyst
Reactions:
4NO + 4NH3 + O2 --> 4N2 + 6H2O
2NO2 + 4NH3 + O2 --> 3N2 + 6H2O

Incineration, also known as combustion, is most used

to control the emissions of organic compounds from
process industries.
This control technique refers to the rapid oxidation of
a substance through the combination of oxygen with a
combustible material in the presence of heat.
When combustion is complete, the gaseous stream is
converted to carbon dioxide and water vapor.
Equipment used to control waste gases by
combustion can be divided in three categories:
Direct combustion or flaring,
Thermal incineration and
Catalytic incineration.

Direct combustor is a device in which air and all

the combustible waste gases react at the burner.
Complete combustion must occur instantaneously
since there is no residence chamber.
A flare can be used to control almost any emission
stream containing volatile organic compounds.
Studies conducted by EPA have shown that the
destruction efficiency of a flare is about 98 percent.

Thermal incinerator general case

Catalytic incinerator

Spray chamber
Cyclone
Bag house
Venturi
Electrostatic Precipitator (ESP)

Condensation is the process of converting a gas or

vapor to liquid. Any gas can be reduced to a liquid
by lowering its temperature and/or increasing its
pressure.

Condensers are typically used as pretreatment

devices. They can be used ahead of absorbers,
adsorbers, and incinerators to reduce the total gas
volume to be treated by more expensive control
equipment. Condensers used for pollution control
are contact condensers and surface condensers.

In a contact condenser,
the gas comes into
contact with cold liquid.
In a surface condenser,
the gas contacts a cooled
surface in which cooled
liquid or gas is circulated,
such as the outside of the
tube.
Removal efficiencies of
condensers
typically
range from 50 percent to
more than 95 percent,
depending on design and
applications.

Contact condenser

Surface condenser

Spray Chamber

Primary collection mechanism:

Inertial impaction of particle into
water droplet
Efficiency:
< 1% for < 1 um diameter
>90% for > 5 um diameter
Pressure drop: 0.5 to 1.5 cm of H2O
Water droplet size range: 50 - 200
um

Applications:
1. Sticky, wet corrosive or liquid
particles
Examples: chrome plating bath
paint booth over spray
2. Explosive or combustible
particles
3. Simultaneous particle/gas
removal

Cyclone

Primary collection mechanism:

Centrifugal force carries particle to
wall

Efficiency:
<50% for <1 um diameter
>95% for >5 um diameter

Pressure drop: 8-12 cm of H2O

Applications:
1. Dry particles
Examples: fly ash pre-cleaner
saw dust
2. Liquid particles
Examples: following venturi

Bag House

Screening

Impaction

Electrostatic

Efficiency:
>99.5% for <1 um diameter
>99.8% for >5 um diameter
Fabric filter materials:
1. Natural fibers (cotton & wool)
Temperature limit: 80 oC
2. Synthetics (acetates, acrylics,
etc.)
Temperature limit: 90 oC
3. Fiberglass
Temperature limit: 260 oC

Bag dimensions:
15 to 30 cm diameter
~10 m in length
Pressure drop: 10-15 cm of H2O
Cleaning:
1. Shaker
2. Reverse air
3. Pulse jet

Applications:
Dry collection
Fly ash
Grain dust
Fertilizer
May be combined with dry adsorption media
to control gaseous emission (e.g. SO2)

Venturi

Primary collection mechanism:

Inertial impaction of particle into water
droplet
Water droplet size: 50 to 100 um

Water drop and collected particle are

removed by cyclone

Efficiency:
>98% for >1 um diameter
>99.9% for > 5 um diameter

Very high pressure drop: 60 to 120 cm of H2O

Liquid/gas ratios: 1.4 - 32 gal/1000 ft3 of gas

Applications:
Phosphoric acid mist
Open hearth steel (metal fume)
Ferro-silicon furnace

Electrostatic Precipitator (ESP)

ESP Tube (a) and Plate (b) collectors

ESP Collection Mechanism

Efficiency:
>95% for >1 um diameter
>99.5% for > 5 um diameter
Pressure drop: 0.5 to 1.5 cm of H2O
Voltage: 20 to 100 kV dc
Plate spacing: 30 cm
Plate dimensions: 10-12 m high x 8-10 m
long
Gas velocity: 1 to 1.5 m/s
Cleaning: rapping plates

Applications (non-explosive):
1. Fly ash
2. Cement dust
3. Iron/steel sinter

Predominant Processes (all non-regenerative):

1. Limestone wet scrubbing
2. Lime wet scrubbing
3. Lime spray drying
Typical scrubbers: venturi, packed bed and
plate towers and spray towers

Spray dryer systems include a spray dryer

absorber and a particle-collection system
(either a bag house or an ESP)
In 1990 the average design efficiency for new
and retrofit systems was 82% and 76%
respectively

Overall reactions:
Limestone: SO2 + CaCO3 --> CaSO3 + CO2

Lime: SO2 + Ca(OH)2 --> CaSO3 + H2O

1992

1996

2000

2010

2005

2014

2017

2020

2022

2024

Emission
EURO1
EURO2
EURO3

Major cities

BS1

Nationwide

BS2

BS1

EURO4

BS3

BS2

EURO5

BS4

EURO6

2013
BS4 OBDII

BS3

BS5

BS4 OBDII

Fuel Consumption
FE Regulation 1

Nationwide for
M1 Vehicles

FE Regulation 2

Safety
Full Frontal

Offset Crash

Side Impact

2026

Fuel Specifications Improvement

Fuel and Emission improvement have gone hand in hand thru series of Emission
legislations in India

National Ambient Air Quality Standards

Concentration in Ambient Air
Pollutant

Sulphur Dioxide (SO2), g/m3

Time Weighted
Average

24 hours**

Industrial,
Residential, Rural
and Other Areas

Ecologically Sensitive
Area (notified by
Central Government)

50-80

20 -80

Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), g/m3 24 hours**

40- 80

30 -80

Particulate Matter (size less

than 10 m) or PM10 g/m3

24 hours**

60 -100

60 -100

Particulate Matter (size less

than 2.5 m) or PM2.5g/m3

24 hours**

40- 60

40 -60

Ozone (O3) g/m3

8 hours*

100 -180

100 -180

Lead (Pb) g/m3

24 hours**

0.50 -1.0

0.50 -1.0

Carbon Monoxide (CO) mg/m3 8 hours*

02- 04

02- 04

Ammonia (NH3) g/m3

24 hours**

100- 400

100- 400

Benzene (C6H6) g/m3

Annual*

Benzo(a)Pyrene (BaP)Annual*
particulate phase only, ng/m3

Arsenic(As), ng/m3

Annual*

60

Nickel (Ni), ng/m3

Annual*

20

20

National Ambient Air Quality Standards, as of 2009

Concentration in Ambient Air
Pollutant

SO2, g/m3
NO2, g/m3
PM10, g/m3
PM2.5, g/m3
O3, g/m3

Ecologically
Industrial,
Sensitive Area
Residential,
(notified by
Rural and Other
Central
Area
Government)

50
80
40
80
60

100
40
60
100
180

20
80
30
80

60
100
40
60
100
180

Methods of Measurement
Improved West and Gaeke
Ultraviolet fluorescence
Modified Jacob & Hochheiser
(Na-Arsenite)
Chemiluminescence
Gravimetric
TOEM
Beta attenuation
Gravimetric
TOEM
Beta attenuation
UV photometric
Chemiluminescence
Chemical Method

National Ambient Air Quality Standards, as of 2009

Concentration in Ambient Air
Pollutant

Lead (Pb),
g/m3
CO, mg/m3

Ecologically
Industrial,
Sensitive Area
Residential,
(notified by
Rural and Other
Central
Area
Government)

0.50

0.50

2
4

Ammonia (NH3) 100

g/m3
400

100
400

Benzene

Methods of Measurement
AAS/ICP method after
sampling on EMP 2000 or
equivalent filter paper
ED-XRF using Teflon filter
Non Dispersive Infra Red
(NDIR) spectrosopy
Chemiluminescence
Indophenol blue method
Gas chromatography based on
continuous analyzer
Adsorption and Desorption
followed by GC analysis

National Ambient Air Quality Standards, as of 2009

Concentration in Ambient Air
Pollutant

Benzopyrene (BaP)
- particulate
1
phase only,
ng/m3
Arsenic (As),
ng/m3

Ecologically
Industrial,
Sensitive Area
Residential,
(notified by
Rural and
Central
Other Area
Government)

Methods of Measurement

Solvent extraction followed by

HPLC/GC analysis

Nickel (Ni), ng/m3 20

*

6
20

AAS/ICP method after

sampling on EMP 2000 or
equivalent filter paper
AAS/ICP method after
sampling on EMP 2000 or
equivalent filter paper

Annual arithmetic mean of minimum 104 measurements in a year at a particular site taken twice a
week 24 hourly at uniform intervals.
** 24 hourly or 8 hourly or 1 hourly monitored values, as applicable, shall be compiled with 98% of
the time in a year. 2% of the time, theymay exceed the limits but not on two consecutive days of
monitoring.
Note - Whenever and wherever monitoring results on two consecutive days of monitoring exceed
the limits specified above for the respective category, it shall be considered adequate reason to
institute regular or continuous monitoring and further investigation.

Water Quality Criteria

Designated-Best-Use

Drinking Water Source without

conventional treatment but after
disinfection

Outdoor bathing (Organised)

Drinking water source after

conventional treatment and
disinfection
Propagation of Wild life and
Fisheries

Irrigation, Industrial Cooling,

Controlled Waste disposal
Most Probable Number (MPN)

Class of
water

Criteria
Total Coliforms Organism MPN/100ml shall be 50 or less
pH between 6.5 and 8.5
Dissolved Oxygen 6mg/l or more
Biochemical Oxygen Demand 5 days 20C 2mg/l or less

Total Coliforms Organism MPN/100ml shall be 500 or

less pH between 6.5 and 8.5 Dissolved Oxygen 5mg/l or
more
Biochemical Oxygen Demand 5 days 20C 3mg/l or less

Total Coliforms Organism MPN/100ml shall be 5000 or

less pH between 6 to 9 Dissolved Oxygen 4mg/l or more
Biochemical Oxygen Demand 5 days 20C 3mg/l or less

pH between 6.5 to 8.5 Dissolved Oxygen 4mg/l or more

Free Ammonia (as N) 1.2 mg/l or less

Below-E

pH betwwn 6.0 to 8.5

Electrical Conductivity at 25C micro mhos/cm Max.2250
Sodium absorption Ratio Max. 26
Boron Max. 2mg/l
Not Meeting A, B, C, D & E Criteria