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United States National Risk ManagementEnvironmental Protection Research LaboratoryAgency Research Triangle Park, NC 27711

Demonstration of a Paint SprayBooth Emission ControlStrategy Using Recirculation/Partitioning and UV/OzonePollutant Emission Control

Project Summary

The report describes in detail thesource testing, construction, and datareduction/analysis activities that com-prise the three phases of a technologydemonstration program. Phase I con-sisted of a detailed baseline evaluationof several paint spray booths operatedat the Barstow (California) Marine CorpsLogistics Base to establish key operat-ing parameters and air toxic emissionprofiles. This information was used to

design a safe recirculation/flow parti-tioning system for the paint booths in-volved in the study to efficiently re-duce the overall exhaust flow rate. Un-der Phase II, the necessary booth con-struction and retrofit modifications weremade, and the air pollution control de-vice was installed. The recirculation/flow partitioning system was tested ex-tensively as part of the Phase III effortto ensure that the booths operated inaccordance with health and safety stan-dards mandated by the OccupationalSafety and Health Administration(OSHA) and the National Fire Protec-

tion Association (NFPA).This Project Summary was developedby EPAs National Risk ManagementResearch Laboratory's Air PollutionPrevention and Control Division, Re-search Triangle Park, NC, to announcekey findings of the research projectthat is fully documented in a separate

report of the same title (see ProjecReport ordering information at back).

IntroductionThe development of energy efficient and

cost-effective strategies for controllingemissions of volatile organic compounds(VOCs) and hazardous air pollutants(HAPs) from painting processes is a keyobjective of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Departmenof Defense (DoD). Both the EPA and theDoD have sponsored extensive researchand development programs that focus onnew approaches and innovative solutionsto reduce the economic and operationaimpacts of controlling low concentrationemissions from these sources.

In 1993, the U.S. Marine Corps (USMCand the EPAs Air Pollution Preventionand Control Division (APPCD) collaboratedin a joint effort under the Strategic Envronmental Research and DevelopmenProgram (SERDP) to develop a comprehensive technology demonstration programthat combined innovative strategies for coseffectively controlling VOC emissions from

USMC paint spray booths. The MarineCorps Logistics Base (MCLB) in BarstowCA, was selected as the host site for thedemonstration. The program involved thedemonstration of a novel spray booth design which results in a significant reduction of exhaust volumes that must betreated.

Research and Development EPA/600/SR-98/016 March 1998

Jacqueline Ayer and David Proffitt

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an innovative air pollution control strategythat relies on ultraviolet (UV) light andozone to remove VOCs and toxic air pol-lutants from the spray booth exhauststream. For the demonstration, two exist-ing spray booths were modified, and onenewly designed and fabricated booth wascompleted using recirculation/flow-partition-

ing. The exhaust streams from thesebooths were discharged to the UV/ozonecontrol .

Program ApproachThe paint spray booth demonstration

program was conducted in three phases.

Phase I - Evaluation of existingBarstow paint spray boothoperations

The first phase of the program com-pleted baseline characterization studies ofthe paint booths targeted for modification.The baseline characterization data were

used to show that the post-modificationbooth environment was not degraded frompre-modification conditions. A second ob-jective was to develop the design param-eters for the booth modifications.

Phase II - Recirculation/flowpartition system design andinstallation

This phase of the program included thedesign, fabrication, and construction ormodification of the demonstration booths.Also included was a second series of boothcharacterization studies performed imme-diately prior to any construction to confirmthat booth operations did not change sig-nificantly after the baseline.

Phase III - Recirculation/flowpartition system demonstrationtesting

The third and final phase of the demon-stration program was the characterizationand evaluation of the performance of therecirculation/flow partition systems installedon each of the paint spray booths. Theperformance characterization activities in-cluded assessing the health and safetyaspects of the recirculation system andestablishing the capability of a technologi-cally innovative safety monitoring systemusing Fourier transform infrared detectortechnology.

Results and Conclusions1. In non-recirculating paint spra

booths, the presence of hazardouconstituent compounds in the vicinity of the operator is attributed tthe air flow conditions in the booththe target configuration, and thespray pattern created by the painapplication process. These conditions create a cloud of oversprayaround the painter which often creates conditions in the vicinity of thepainter in which OSHA factors canexceed unity. The Phase III evaluations of this program demonstratedthat recirculation based on the design of this program does not causea deterioration of working conditions in the booth. The working conditions were approximately equivalent to, although somewhat bettethan, the pre-modification booth environment. Thus, since the booth

showed no degradation of boothenvironment from the pre-modification conditions, it was concludedthat recirculation complies with thespirit of both the OSHA regulationdefined in OSHA 1910.1000 andother applicable codes.

2. The test results in the Phase Idemonstration study indicate thathe partition heights and corresponding rate projections were correctly estimated. Sufficient concentration gradients occurred in thedemonstration booths exhaust faceto warrant application of the recirculation/partitioning system designThis was indicated by the markeddecrease in exhaust concentrationabove the 7 ft. (2.1 m) level of thebooth exhaust face, indicating thathe pollutant tended to concentrateand remain in the lower level of thebooths.

3. The use of recirculation in the demonstration booths enabled the exhaust stream to the control systemto be reduced from approximately143,500 to 41,450 cfm (4,061 to1,176 m3/min). This is an approximate 61% reduction in exhaust flowrate.

The MCLB is a high production facilitythat generally operates year-round withtwo or three shifts per day. These operat-ing conditions provide an ideal situationfor demonstrating the viability of the paintspray booth design concept that was dem-onstrated in this program. The programprovided an opportunity to conduct a real-

istic, long-term performance evaluation ofthe spray booth design. This summaryprovides some of the technical highlightsfor that program and of the paint spraybooth design and operations.

ObjectiveThe objective of the paint spray booth

design and modification efforts was to re-duce the cost of controlling emissions dur-ing painting. Based on previous DoD andEPA studies, the most straightforward andeffective approach was to reduce the ex-haust flow rate emitted from the paint ap-plication processes. Reducing the exhaust

volume flow rate allows a correspondingreduction in the size, capacity, installationcost, and operating requirements of theemission control device. Further benefitsgained with the reduction of exhaust vol-umes include the reduction of energy re-quirements and costs for the conditioningand movement of air.

Although the economic advantage ofexhaust flow reduction is readily appar-ent, there are regulatory and code limitsrelated to the health and safety aspects ofventilation system design. The design andoperation of spray booths are regulatedby OSHA and NFPA regulations and

codes, respectively. Therefore, to validatethat a recirculating spray booth can bedesigned, the key safety issues in the useof paint spray booths were researchedand addressed during the program.

The Recirculation/flow partition boothdesign concept was successfully demon-strated in 1992 in a small paint booth atTravis Air Force Base (AFB) in California.However, the Travis AFB demonstrationdid not include an attached air pollutioncontrol system; rather, the exhaust wasdischarged to the atmosphere. These stud-ies did, however, prove the capability ofthe concept.

Based on the successful results of theEPA/Air Force program, the USMC electedto implement a full-scale technology dem-onstration project that combined the recir-culation/flow partitioning booth design with

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Jacqueline Ayer is with Air Quality Specialists, Newport Beach, CA 92660; and David Proffittis with Acurex Environmental Corp., Durham, NC 27713.

Charles H. Darvinisthe EPA Project Officer (see below).The complete report consists of two volumes, entitled "Demonstration of a Paint Spray Booth

Emission Control Strategy Using Recirculation/Partitioning and UV/Ozone Pollutant Emis-sion Control," Volume I. Technical Report (Order No. PB98-124316; Cost: $28.00,subject to change) and Volume II. Appendices A-E (Order No. PB98-124324; Cost: $49.00,subject to change)

The above reports will be available only from:National Technical Information Service5285 Port Royal RoadSpringfield, VA 22161Telephone: 703-487-4650

The EPA Project Officer can be contacted at:National Risk Management Research LaboratoryU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyResearch Triangle Park, NC 27711

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United StatesEnvironmental Protection AgencyNational Risk Management Research Laboratory (G-72)Cincinnati, OH 45268

Official BusinessPenalty for Private Use $300

EPA/600/SR-92/048

BULK RATEPOSTAGE & FEES PAID

EPAPERMIT NO. G-35

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