Project Summary (2000-2006)

The long-range goals of this project are to improve the combustion processes used for treatment and destruction of wastes, and production of energy and materials, and to provide a means of on-line real-time monitoring of air emissions. Researchers are investigating the processes and mechanisms that result in the evolution of particles and gas-phase byproducts in high temperature environments. These efforts can contribute to the reduction of direct and indirect exposures to toxic combustion byproducts, especially to metals, chlorinated hydrocarbons (CHCs), and ultrafine particles. In addition, combustion may be regarded as a model system for applying environmental metrics during the design phase to improve performance and reduce environmental health impacts. One additional dimension of the project is extending the application of excimer laser fragmentation-fluorescence spectroscopy (ELFFS) to the measurement of toxic species in soils or solids; this work may provide additional resources to other program projects, which involve the fate and transport of toxic metals and CHCs in the ground.