Waste Reduction in Process Streams

¶ … Streams Waste minimization and reuse is an important component of operations in hydraulic fracking given the economic liability and safety issues associated with creating waste. Process streams, which entail the use of chemicals and detergents to clean water and gas streams before returning them to the process is an example of a technique for minimizing and reusing waste. Generally, the process of distilling crude oil entails treating ammonia bearing water before it is discharged into open sources of water like rivers and bays.

Given the significance of this treatment to the health and safety of workers and the environment, identifying a suitable means for waste minimization and reuse is crucial though complex and expensive. In this case process streams would be the most suitable option since it would help clean waste water and gas streams before they are taken back to the process. The reduction of wastes in process streams is increasingly important because these measures help in dealing with the major causes of the wastes.

Actually, lessening hazards through altering processes that create wastes generates several positive outcomes including lessening management costs, enhancing efficiency, and increasing profitability and competitiveness of a company ("Reducing Hazardous Wastes in Your Business," 2008). Through process streams, the company specifically focuses on reusing water or gas resources to recover valuable resources that help in waste minimization. Techniques for Reducing Hazards in Process Streams For a company seeking to reduce hazards in process streams, there are several techniques to consider for this process.

The first technique is scrubbing, which involves transferring mass from the gas stage into a liquid phase in order to eliminate waste material from the gas stream before returning it to the process. However, the effectiveness of this method requires the waste material to be soluble in liquid and selection of suitable scrubbing liquid. Some of the most common materials to be removed through scrubbing include ammonia, chlorine, nitrogen oxide, sulphur, halogen, and phosphorous.

Scrubbing is an effective means of removing hazard in the process streams since it not only enables elimination of several contaminants but also provide a means for control of particle emission and gas cooling. This process is carried out through creating contact between a waste gas stream and a scrubbing liquid with high solubility for waste contaminants in the water or gas stream. As the scrubbing liquid comes into intimate contact with the water or gas, it removes the contaminant or waste.

The second technique of reducing the hazard in the process streams is cleaning through treatment systems and/or chemicals. Ideally, process streams utilize chemical and detergents to clean waste water and gas streams. One of the most common types of chemicals utilized for cleaning waste is Diethanolamine (DEA). The chemical captures Hydrogen Sulfide and converts it to a safe gas and stabilizes back to Diethanolamine. Notably, DEA is continuously regenerating and rarely discharged.

According to Hocking (2012), this method is effective especially when removing waste in water or gas streams that involve the use of Diethanolamine (p.438). Nonetheless, the use of the chemical results in recovery and reuse of components of numerous refinery liquid waste streams. The third means of removing the hazard from process streams is recycling effluent streams, which basically involves gathering, separating, and recovering useful or valuable resources that may not be suitable for direct reuse or are likely to be disposed as waste.

Recycling of effluent streams is an important component of waste minimization and reuse since waste streams of many industrial and commercial establishments comprise high percentages of homogenous recoverable resources. Therefore, recycling can help in recovery of this significant amount of resources that could be easily disposed as well as eliminate hazards. The technique involves treatment to eliminate solids and potentially harmful chemicals before the effluent streams are reused. Moreover, the effluent stream is constantly evaluated to examine the existence of any harmful chemicals and treated to eliminate them.

In essence, recycling of effluent streams involves wastewater treatment through physic-chemical or biological treatment procedures. In some cases, the effluent stream is further treated by activating the process of carbon absorption or other advanced methods in order to the treated effluent stream to be reused or recycled (Manivanan, 2006, p.106). Identifying the Most Suitable Process Since there are various techniques and technologies that can be utilized to remove hazards from process streams as part of waste minimization and reuse, it is important for the company to identify the most suitable process.

There are various factors.