Quantification and elimination of substituted synthetic phenols and volatile organic compounds in the wastewater treatment plant during the production of industrial scale polypropylene

Abstract

[EN] Substituted synthetic phenols and VOC as industrial waste in water and gases from a polypropylene (PP) production plant were the focus of this research. The scope of the study included two levels of the process which were: extrusion and desorber. A total of 264 samples were taken of the liquid and gas affluent and effluent. Waste water and residual gases were collected during the processing of 6 grades of PP with melt flow index of 25, 20, 15, 10, 2 and 1. The monitoring programs were carried out over the course of a year and the samples were taken at different times in order to evaluate the stability and magnitude of a possible environmental impact of the process. Five phenols were identified in the wastewater and a total of 41 VOCs were found in the gas sample. The selection of these phenols was based principally on their high consumption given the need to improve the thermo-oxidative properties of the PP. For the study of the VOC, a new methodology was developed permitting simultaneous analysis by GC-MS/PDHID/FID combining 7 valves, 8 columns and 3 detectors. In the past the wastewaters were treated with solid phase extraction cartridges and the substituted phenols were analyzed by HPLC with DAD.