PFAS stack testing services for a manufacturing client

About this project

client
Confidential
location
Eastern U.S.
completion date
2021

Barr has been measuring per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in stack emissions at facilities in the U.S. for two decades. Because of this experience, a confidential manufacturing client hired Barr to perform compliance testing to evaluate the performance of thermal oxidation as a best available control technology (BACT) to control PFAS emissions from its processes.

Barr conducted stack testing for EPA OTM-45, Method 25A hydrocarbons, 26A hydrogen fluoride, and EPA 204 capture efficiency. We wrote the test plan, performed testing, and prepared the report. The test results satisfied all permit requirements. The determination of BACT and incorporation of PFAS emission limits in the permit was among the first such instances in the U.S. and was based on the potential to cause or contribute to surface or groundwater contamination.

Our experience in this area dates back more than 20 years, when we participated in an industry-wide mass balance study to measure air, water, and solid waste releases of PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid, a type of PFAS) to the environment from 2003 to 2005. The study involved the development of sampling methods with full Quality Assurance Project Plans (QAPP). During the study, Barr’s stack test engineers developed an early version of modified Method 5 that was accepted by the EPA in the study docket.

Subsequently, Barr conducted stack tests to evaluate emissions, control-device effectiveness, and emission reduction due to reformulation of input materials to manufacturing processes. Barr has also performed indoor air quality and ambient air measurements for PFAS compounds.

Our work contributed to the development of OTM-45, published in January 2021 through submission of a separate and complete set of stack samples to EPA-ORD to further method development. Barr’s stack test emissions data has been used as input to air, soil, and hydrogeologic modeling to understand PFAS fate and transport as well as the impact of air emissions on surface and groundwater.

Learn more about our PFAS engineering and environmental capabilities.

Key team members

Tom Kuchinski

Vice President

Tim Russell

Vice President
Senior Chemical Engineer

Related Permitting and compliance projects

Park and landscape design for Mouse River enhanced flood protection project
Design of abutment wall extension at Dells hydro station
Coffee Creek trout stream restoration
Dry-stack tailings management
Tailings basin expansion and closure options
Investigation and remediation of jet-fuel release
Vapor intrusion investigation and mitigation in a residential neighborhood
Snowpack monitoring and lake drawdown for Minnesota watershed district
Redevelopment services for Surly destination brewery
Penn Avenue sinkhole investigation and rehabilitation
Monitoring of constructed wetland for groundwater remediation
Landslide stabilization design for an underground coal mine
Advanced oxidation process pilot evaluation for municipal drinking-water system
RICE applicability analysis and audit
Responding to wind-farm tornado damage
Environmental liability assessment at manufacturing facility
Evaluation of wind-turbine foundation following fire damage
Groundwater modeling for wellhead-protection-plan amendment
Multi-site PFAS remedial investigation and remediation
Sediment removal from beneath Vermillion River bridge
Monitoring and maintenance of remediation system at wood-treating site
Monitoring of end-pit lake at oil sands mine
Flood risk reduction of suburban lakes
Letter of map revision for Minnesota city
Options study and design to restore biomass fuel-handling system
Mine remediation and reclamation
West River Parkway landslide repair
FERC relicensing of Ford Lake Dam
Groundwater compliance assistance for CCR Rule
Floodproofing of utility switchyard
Concept-level design of wastewater discharge option
Flood mitigation at refinery
Wetland replacement assistance for highway project
Environmental support for post-fire cleanup at industrial facility
Permitting and compliance services for oilseed-processing plant
Lilydale Regional Park stormwater management and slope stabilization
PFOS investigation at municipal wastewater plant
Response to denatured ethanol release
Aquatic invasive species (AIS) management in a Wisconsin lake
Solar-energy-system compliance
Berm-failure study at saltwater disposal well site
Remedial investigation, negotiation, and design for Superfund site
Preliminary feasibility study for PFAS-related water quality concerns
Rockford dam removal
Groundwater modeling and remedial improvements at closed landfills
Stressor-identification report for an impaired urban stream
Post-flood stream assessment and natural channel design
Support for decommissioning and demolition of manufacturing facility
Water reuse evaluation for zero liquid discharge at manufacturing facility
Water-quality and structural monitoring for channel dredging
Spillway redesign at Cedar Falls Hydro Generating Station
Air-quality services for steel company
Flood risk management system upgrades and FEMA certification
PMF modifications at hydroelectric plants
PMF study for the Dead River
PFAS mass balance and sample collection
PFAS treatment during power plant decommissioning
TMDL study and water quality assessment for a suburban stream
Gas processing equipment, outage procedure and fitness-for-service evaluation
Permitting and nondegradation services for sugar-beet facility
AWIA risk and emergency compliance for urban drinking water
Environmental assessment program for highway safety improvements
CFD modeling of stormwater tunnels
Environmental services at manufacturing facility
Assessment of PFAS use
Air permitting assistance for manufacturing coating facility
Air permitting assistance for pharmaceutical facility
Design of repairs to leaking reservoir
Water reuse system design
Trichloroethylene (TCE) investigation and remediation
RCRA waste tank inspection, certification, and closure
Air permitting assistance for reaction-injection molding operation
Environmental permitting and engineering design for biomass carbon production
Road raise and conceptual design
Reasonably available control technology analysis for refinery
Flood-control-system upgrades and certification
Landslide stabilization protects architectural treasures
Strategy for collecting lake-morphometry data
Tailings facility dam safety review
Engineering services for industrial landfill expansion and closure
Comprehensive water audits at manufacturing facilities