ABSTRACT
Chapter 8 discusses the basics of thermal oxidizers (TOs) including some of the important system building blocks. This chapter discusses some of the speci…c equipment used in TOs. Regardless of the speci…c design, most thermal oxidation systems consist of some or all of the following components:
•A device and method to supply oxygen to the process to initiate and sustain oxidation using burner or catalyst
•A vessel (combustion chamber/TO) to provide the residence time required for oxidation of the hydrocarbons
• A heat recovery (heat exchanger or boiler) and/or †ue gas conditioning system
•Emission control equipment (…lters, scrubbers, etc.) to treat the †ue gas prior to discharge to the atmosphere
• An elevated exhaust point (stack) through which the †ue gas can be dispersed into the atmosphere
•Control hardware and logic to automatically maintain and monitor the various process parameters to ensure safe operation
All TO systems require some sort of control, if only a †ame failure switch to ensure waste and fuel shutoff for safety reasons. Controls can be classi…ed into †ame safeguard and process control functions (see Volume 2, Chapter 2, for a discussion of combustion controls).
