Performance of Electrostatic Precipitators

Abstract

The large majority of municipal refuse incinerators utilize electrostatic precipitators for control of particulate emission. Precipitator performance is determined by the detailed chemical and physical properties of the fly ash and the gas in which it is suspended. Variations in the composition of the refuse burnt, of seasonal or other nature, as well as variations in the operation of the incinerator installation have a pronounced effect on precipitator exit emissions. Large temporal variations in the particulate emissions, not related to normally registered variations in refuse composition and plant operation, occur, as illustrated by measurements at a large Danish incinerator plant. Such variations, resulting from the variability of the process parameters, should be taken into account for the sizing and design of precipitators for new incinerator installations, and also when evaluating emission data from existing incinerator plants.