Development of Thixotropic Coatings Using Dimerized Soybean Oil Fatty Acids: The Case of Polyamide of 1,2-Phenylene Diamine

Soybean oil (SBO) was dimerized and the crude dimer acid product reacted with 1,2-phenylene diamine at 210 ± 5 °C under inert atmosphere to obtain fatty polyamide (FPA). The FPA was used to modify a commercial alkyd resin by reacting a mixture of the alkyd resin with 5 wt% of FPA at 120 °C for 80 min under inert atmosphere. The FTIR spectrum of the FPA modified resin showed evidence of higher degree of H-bonding than was found for the unmodified alkyd. White gloss coatings of 15, 20, 25, and 30% solids were formulated from the modified and unmodified resins and examined for performance with respect to: leveling, sag resistance, drying time, pigment settling, skinning tendency and film hardness. Results showed that the unmodified alkyd coatings exhibited good leveling but poor sag resistance at all solid contents. In contrast, FPA modified alkyd coatings combined good leveling with high sag resistance indicating their thixotropic nature. A strong tendency to pigment settling was observed for unmodified alkyd coatings but was not observed in the FPA modified alkyd coatings. The modified alkyd coatings showed skinning while the unmodified alkyd coatings did not skin. A 30% solids coating formulation of the FPA modified resin showed shorter surface dry time but longer hard dry time than the unmodified alkyd resin coating.     

Remediation,land use,and risk at Hanford

U.S. Department of Energy (US DOE) remediation responsibilities include the Hanford site in Washington State. Cleanup is governed by the Tri‐Party Agreement (TPA) between the US DOE as the responsible party and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Washington State Department of Ecology as joint regulators. In 2003, the US DOE desired to implement a “Risk‐Based End State” (RBES) policy at Hanford, with remediation measures driven by acceptable risk standards using exposure scenarios based on the 1999 Hanford Comprehensive Land‐Use Plan. Facing resistance from regulators and stakeholders, the US DOE solicited public input on its policy. This led to a Hanford Site End State Vision in 2005 and a commitment that the TPA would continue to control remediation. This article describes how regulator and public participation modified RBES to an end‐state vision. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Workshop on Primary Sulfate Emissions

This article is a summary report on a workshop, Measurement Technology and Characterization of Primary Sulfur Oxides Emission from Combustion Sources, sponsored by the EPA Environmental Sciences Research Laboratory at Research Triangle Park, NC, held in Southern Pines, NC. The objectives of the workshop were: to review and discuss current measurement methods and problem areas for sulfur oxides emission with attention focused on sulfuric acid, sulfates, and sulfur-bearing particulate matter; to review and discuss emission data from various combustion sources operating under different conditions, which include various pollutant controls, fuel composition, excess boiler oxygen, etc.; to delineate and recommend areas in need of research and development effort. Scientists were invited to present the results of their studies on primary sulfate emissions. The 3-day workshop devoted one day to measurement technology, a second to characterization, and a third to critical assessment of the presented papers and development of summary working group reports on each half-day session of the initial 2 days. Thirty-one papers were presented by 29 participants on measurements and characterization. Four working group reports were developed and summarized in the last day. Highlights of the papers and reports are briefly reviewed. Workshop proceedings are available as an EPA publication.     

experience of the forest products industry in obtaining air quality permits for new and modified sources

A detailed study of the air quality permitting process for 65 different forest products industry projects requiring preconstruction permit approvals from EPA, state, and local air pollution control agencies was conducted. The projects included a wide array of sources including kraft recovery furnaces, lime kilns, fossil fuel and wood residue fired boilers, solid wood products manufacturing facilities, paper coaters, and printing presses. Information concerning the time involved in the permitting process, costs associated with obtaining the permits, use of air quality models and ambient monitoring data, emission control technology determinations, problem areas encountered during the permitting process, perceived benefits and drawbacks of the permitting process, and the effect of permitting requirements on project planning was obtained.

The results indicate that certain permitting requirements such as Best Available Control Technology (BACT) determinations, dispersion modeling results, and use of ambient air quality monitoring data seldom influence the emission limitations ultimately imposed in the final approved permit, with 87% of the final emission limits equivalent to the applicable New Source Performance Standard (NSPS). The 65 permitting case histories also show that obtaining permits for projects subject to Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) requirements takes approximately twice as long and costs twice as much as obtaining permits for projects not subject to PSD requirements.     

Testing and Commercialization of Byproduct Dibasic cids as Buffer Additives for Limestone Flue Gas esulfurization Systems

Pilot plant (0.1 MW) tests and utility boiler full scale demonstration (194 MW) of byproduct organic dibasic acids (DBA) as buffer additives to limestone scrubbers have shown performance improvements equivalent to those achieved by the addition of pure adipic acid. Both SO₂ removal efficiency and limestone utilization increased, and no significant operating problems were observed with three of the four DBA tested. Chemical and biological evaluations of scrubber samples taken during the DBA testing indicated no detectable tOxicity or mutagenicity, and no significant environmental impact is expected as a result of DBA addition. Economic estimates indicate that substitution of DBA for pure adipic acid as a buffer additive will result in additive cost savings of 30 % or greater.     

Association of benzo(a)pyrene with dissolved organic matter: Prediction of Kdom from structural and chemical properties of the organic matter

The affinity of dissolved organic matter (DOM) for binding a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), was measured for 11 surface and ground waters and a commercial humic acid. The hydrophobic-acid (HbA) and hydrophobic-neutral (HbN) compositions of the DOM, solution absorptivity at 270nm (ABS₂₇₀), and DOM molar volumes were determined. Waters enriched in HbA material had a larger molar volume and higher aromatic content (as indicated by the ABS₂₇₀). There was a good correlation between the size and HbA content of the DOM from the different sources and the K_dom for binding BaP. An excellent predictive relationship (r² = 0.9) was demonstrated between the ABS₂₇₀ of a water and the K_dom for binding BaP. Based on these results, it is suggested that binding of BaP to DOM depends not only on the hydrophobicity of DOM, but also on the existence of an open structure within the DOM to provide access of the aqueous solute to hydrophobic domains within the DOM.     

Exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls from an overheated transformer

A Polychlorinated Biphenyl (PCB) containing transformer released approximately 50 gallons of askarel oil. No polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF) or polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDD) were detected in a sample of the askarel (analytical limit of detection of 40 parts per billion per isomer group). Skin irritation, unusual tiredness, and headaches occurred in approximately 20% of the individuals at the scene of the incident. Serum PCB levels, and mean values for blood and urine tests were within normal ranges.     

Characterization of trace organic contaminants in marine sediment from Yeongil Bay, Korea: 2. Dioxin-like and estrogenic activities

This study employed mechanism-specific in vitro bioassays to help characterize the occurrence and distribution of dioxin-like and estrogenic contaminants in sediment from Yeongil Bay, Korea. Approximately 85% of the sediments tested induced significant dioxin-like activity in the H4IIE-luc bioassay, while approximately 50% induced significant estrogenic activity in the MVLN bioassay. Instrumentally-derived estimates of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin and 17beta-estradiol equivalents tended to underestimate the magnitude of response observed in the bioassays, suggesting that compounds detected by chemical analysis did not account for all the activity associated with Yeongil Bay sediments, or that non-additive interactions were occurring. The greatest dioxin-like and estrogenic activity was associated with the mid-polarity Florisil fractions (F2) expected to contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as well as chlorinated dioxins and furans. As in previous studies of Korean coastal sediment, more polar fractions (F3) generated more modest responses both in terms of magnitude and the number of samples responding.