Facts on RTO’s
Industrial use of a regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) is both economical and versatile. Units can be programmed for various situations, modified as conditions change, and are useable where catalytic oxidizer systems, bioscrubbers, and biofilters are not.
English: Shows heat transfer, conduction, convection,and induction (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The system works in a three-stage process. First, the hot exhaust passes through a ceramic layer. It takes the heat and uses it to preheat the next chamber. Here, the exhaust is burned up. Then, the now clean gas passes through a cooling ceramic layer that soaks up the heat, and the clean gas is released into the air.
The final stage is a repetition of stages two and three, ensuring that whatever contaminated exhaust still exists is eliminated. The cycle repeats, and the ceramic layers are constantly increased or tweaked, as needed. This secures upwards of 97% heat retrieval. RTOs can run to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, which means they can eliminate volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that bioscrubbers and biofilters cannot.
They also remove carbon monoxide, dangerous air pollutants, organic unprocessed substances, and nitrogen oxide. The ceramic media used are thinner, so heat transfer can be done quicker, more often, and with huge exhaust streams. In fact, RTO’s can accommodate both minimal solvent concentrations and exhaust flows at 550,000 SCFM levels. And when exhaust levels can’t be lowered, heat recovery can still remain above 80%. Keeping costs down is simplified by using RTO’s because the system runs on the very heat it generates, while maintaining an excellent scrub rate.
