Incineration
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Description
Incineration is a vast subject covering the deliberate combustion of materials, under a very wide range of conditions. As a general rule, incineration is discouraged, except in equipment specifically designed to reduce nuisances. Even the keen gardener lighting a bonfire may create a pollution that is harmful. At the other end of the scale, it is obvious that burning old tyres creates horrendous quantities of acrid, thick smoke.
Detailed description
Probably the most important thing regarding incineration is the fact that it is a conversion of chemical energy to thermal energy. Any incineration that wastes the thermal energy is a waste of money. For this reason, using proper incinerators is always preferable. This is especially important in these days of high fuel costs.
Concerning household garbage, a specific article deals with this.
Garden waste would appear to be a minor problem until one thinks about the number of gardens producing waste. It is easy to imagine the gardener sweeping up the leaves in the autumn and just setting fire to them. Much better, would be simply to put the leaves on the compost heap and leave them to rot down along with the grass cuttings, lettuce leaves etc. This way, he would have a valuable fertiliser after a few months, which would cost him nothing. However, he may also have some twigs and branches after pruning his fruit trees and these would take too long to decompose in the compost heap. If he has the means to chop these finely they can be composted; if not, some municipalities have large compost heaps that can accept woody material, while others may have proper incinerators capable of extracting the thermal energy from the combustion.
Nearly all liquid waste which is combustible may be added to the fuel used in the manufacture of cement. This has no impact on the quality of the final product and most cement works have at least some facilities to ensure that the emissions are kept within reasonable limits. It is never wise to add, say, mineral oil or used vegetable oil to domestic heating oil partially because the burner would not be able to obtain the optimal conditions for combustion, partially because the constructional materials used in household furnaces may corrode because of the additives in the oil and, most importantly, domestic chimneys are not equipped with any means to reduce pollution.
What is required to prevent incineration from causing a nuisance? Generally speaking, the very least is to prevent the emissions of sooty particles, which may cause an aerosol to form. In addition, if the products being burnt are likely to produce any toxic gases, these must be eliminated. This implies that the incinerator should be equipped with an electrostatic precipitator and a scrubber. The waste materials from these two items must be handled correctly before disposal. How this is done depends on the nature of the material is removed from the combustion gases.
