Correction...

[asagady@sojourn.com]

  >>Burning 500 million pounds at 99.9999% destruction removal equivalence
  >>(DRE) may release 5,000 pounds of PCBs if the dielectric fluid is one
  >>million parts per million; 3,750 pounds of PCBs released at 750,000 ppm,
  >>and 2,500 pounds PCBs at 500,000 ppm PCBs. Dielectric fluids range from
  >>50% - 100% pure PCBs (or 500,000 - 1,000,000 ppm). We do not need any
  >>more PCBs in the air, water, food chain or ecosystems. Incineration will
  >>certainly release PCBs since it ain't perfect, and the potential is for
  >>far more PCBs to be released than this conservative calculation.
  >>99.99999% is based upon a Trial Burn using a surrogate chlorinated
  >>compound-NOT PCBs-and this is pie in the sky as far as incineration
  >>goes.
  >>
  
  >Why would burning PCB waste with 1 PPM PCB release at 99.9999%
  >theoretical DRE release more PCB than burning the same amount of PCB waste
  >at the same DRE if the waste had 750,000 ppm or 500,000 ppm PCBs
  >for theoretical undestroyed PCBs?
  
  I misread the first statement with respect to the question posed above
  (didn't see the million after the one).     On
  100% PCB waste (1,000,000 ppm PCBs), the theoretical undestroyed/emitted
  PCB emission on burning 500 million pounds at theoretical DRE is a total
  of 50 pounds of PCBs by same methodology in previous message....  not
  5000 pounds as claimed on the web site.
  
  
  500,000,000 pounds =  5  E8 pounds of waste
  
  99.9999% DRE is equivolent to  0.0001% PCB undestroyed/released
  
  0.0001% PCB undestroy/released =  1 E-6 proportion of PCB release during burning
  
  1 ppm PCB content = 1E-6 proportion of PCB in a waste which is 1 PPM PCB
  
  
  
  Therefore, for your  1 PPM PCB waste:
  
  In 500,000,000 pounds of  1 PPM PCB waste
  there is    5 E8  * 1 E-6 total PCBs
  or 500 pounds of PCBs in the waste to be burned.
  
  If these 500 pounds of PCBs are burned with a DRE of 99.9999% then after
  incineration there is     5 E 2   *  1 E-6 or  5 E -4   undestroyed or  
  
  0.0005 pounds of PCB emitted/undestroyed at  99.9999% theoretical DRE
  
  
  
  For your 500,000 ppm PCB waste:
  
  In 500,000,000 pounds of 500,000 ppm PCB waste 
  there is  5 E8  *  5 E 5  * 1 E-6 total PCBs
  or 25 E7 pounds or  250,000,000 pounds of PCB
  
  If these 250,000,000 pounds of PCB are burned with a DRE of 99.9999% then 
  after incineration there is  2.5 E7 * 1 E-6  or    2.5 E 1    or
  
  25 pounds of PCBs emitted/undestroyed at 99.9999% DRE
  
  
  
  The above are theoretical emission rates and do not deal 
  with PICs, PCDD/F, HCL, etc.
  
  Neil Carman's point about fugitive emissions is a good one.
  
  
  
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  Alex J. Sagady & Associates        Email:  asagady@sojourn.com
  Environmental Consulting and Database Systems
  PO Box 39  East Lansing, MI  48826-0039  
  (517) 332-6971 (voice); (517) 332-8987 (fax)