Application Dust Supression System
Dust Supression System
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Increased pollution levels emitted by industry are increasingly under pressure to clean up their act and keep below strict targets set by various government bodies. The mining industry is one such industry feeling the pressure. Ensuring businesses and residents are not unduly inconvenienced by pollutants is a major concern. Razvan Vlad, Ecotech’s Technical Manager in Western Australia says there are 3 main issues associated with onsite dust generation.
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Regular environmental monitoring, where not mandated by regulation, is most certainly acknowledged as good practice. Not only does it create a baseline and a history of pollution levels, but it can also provide evidence of reduced levels over time. Vlad believes it is an important part of the process.
"Dust suppression methods can be quite expensive, so they should be used where it really makes a difference. This is where the monitoring system can help, by identifying the dust sources. The best systems have a very short response time and consider a lot of environmental factors, like wind speed, wind direction and solar radiation to accurately determine where the dust is coming from or even predict where the dust sources are likely to be created. This information can help the site managers decide what is the best dust suppression method, where should it be used and also monitor its efficiency."
Dust/particulates are commonly categorised according to their size and their ability to enter the lungs – the smaller the particulate, the deeper into the lungs it will penetrate. Total Suspended Particulates (TSP) refers to all size particles found in the air. The classification PM10 is particulate matter less than 10 microns in diameter, likewise PM2.5 is particulate matter with a diameter of less than 2.5 microns.
TSP and PM10 particulates come from a variety of sources, such as wind blown dust, sea salt spray, vegetation (i.e. pollens) and man made activities such as mining, quarrying and cement manufacturing. These particulates typically remain in the air from a few hours to several days.
The smaller PM2.5 particulates are most commonly from manufacturing/process industries that use combustion, such as oil refineries, smelting and pulp mills. Residential burning (wood fires) and motor vehicle emissions are other major sources of particulate pollution. These particulates may remain in the air for weeks.
The concentration of dust in the air varies greatly from location to location and depends not only on the source of particulates, but on existing meteorological conditions – such as temperature inversions – which affect concentration levels.
It has been established that the greatest health risk to human results from PM10 and PM2.5 particulates. It is quite common for PM2.5 particulates to enter the lungs and collect in the tiny air sacs, called “alveoli”, where oxygen enters the bloodstream. As a result, the particulates can cause breathing difficulties and sometimes permanent damage. Environmental Protection Agencies around the world place a great emphasis on monitoring these particulates.
Ecotech’s dust monitoring solutions provide data which can be used to distinguish between relatively harmless mineral dusts and soot (large particles which rarely enter the lungs), and more harmful finer particles, which have been proven to cause adverse health effects. These solutions involve outdoor compliance high volume dust samplers, in coordination with outdoor real time particulate monitors
Other links
Ecotech Global website
Nephelometer website
Gas analyzer website
Spanish Website
www.monitoreo-ambiental-analizadores.com
Ecotech Australian website