EXPERIENCE IN OPERATION OF A ULTRAVIOLET-OZONE
(ULTROX®) PILOT PLANT FOR DESTROYING POLYCHLORINATED
BIPHENYLS IN INDUSTRIAL WASTE INFLUENT
Ruth K. Arisman. Manager
Environmental Planning and Safety
Richard C. Musick, Manager
Analytical Chemistry
General Electric Company
Hudson Falls, New York 12839
Jack D. Zeff, President
Thomas C. Crase, Chemist
Westgate Research Corporation
West Los Angeles, California 90025
INTRODUCTION
Whde PCB's are no longer manufactured or used in any manufacturing process in this
country, the possibility of PCB's reaching waterways from residuals present in manufacturing facdities which formerly used PCB's necessitates the development of water treatment
systems capable of PCB destruction to acceptable concentration levels in industrial effluents.
Under EPA Grant No. 5804901010, A ULTROX® (UV-ozone) pilot plant was set up at
General Electric Company's Capacitor Products Department Facilities in Hudson Falls, NY'
to demonstrate the efficiency of PCB's from industrial effluent. PCB's have not been used in
the Hudson Falls/Fort Edward facilities since July 1977; however, residual PCB concentrations in the untreated effluent range from 5 to 40 mg/1 making it a good example of an
industrial effluent containing residual PCB.
PILOT PLANT TESTING
On-site plant testing commenced September 16, 1978 and continued untd November 3rd.
A total of 37 tests were conducted in that period by Westgate Research personnel with the
assistance of GE supervisory and analytical staff. The main function of these tests was to
define accurate design parameters, capital costs for an automatic 50,000 GPD ULTROX
treatment system for destruction of PCB's to a level of < 1 /jg/1 from the GE industrial
effluent. In addition, aquatic toxicology studies were conducted.
The resulting computer assisted optimization and engineering analyses predicted the
minimum operating and maintenance and capital costs for an automated 150,000 GPD
plant. Also derived are budgetary purchase prices and design specifications for a 40,000 GPD
automated ULTROX treatment plant.
The portable, skid-mounted pdot plant used in the optimization experiments at Hudson
Falls has a 75 gadon wet volume and is 28 in. wide by 45 in. long by 54 in. high (see
Figure 1), and is fabricated from 304 stainless steel, passivated and electropolished to reduce
chemical attack and to increase UV reflectivity. The reactor can accomodate up to thirty
40-watt G36T6L, low pressure UV lamps. Ozone is diffused from the base through porous
ceramic spargers.
The pdot plant was set up on a cement pad which extends over one of the effluent
holding basins at the General Electric Capacitor Products Department facdities in Hudson
Falls, NY. A drain in this pad empties directly into the basin; therefore any spdls of treated
or untreated effluent water were easdy contained.
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