ABSTRACT
Petrochemicals include a wide variety of compounds which are listed in several international standard industrial classifications including: industrial gases, cyclic intermediates, dyes, organic pigments and crudes, organic chemicals, inorganic chemicals derived from petroleum plastic materials, insecticides and agricultural fertilizers. Air pollutants produced by petrochemical manufacturing practices include sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, particulate matter, odors and a wide variety of toxic and nontoxic hydrocarbons. The main difference between air emissions from petrochemical plants and other industrial processes is the emission of a wide variety of hydrocarbon compounds. The unit processes capable of treating petrochemical manufacturing plant wastewaters are as varied as the unit processes used in the manufacturing plants themselves. The petrochemical industry lends itself to controlling pollution through process improvement rather than pollution abatement. Many wastes generated by the petrochemical industry must be considered hazardous wastes. Hazardous waste management in the petrochemical industry is a very complex problem.
