Scrap metal hazards

Scrap metal Scrap metal that is disposed of or recycled is a solid waste however, it is exempt from Subtitle C regulation when it is reclaimed (i.e., recycled to recover metal content). This does not apply to processed scrap metal that is excluded from hazardous waste regulation entirely. 

Scrap metal comprises worn or extra bits and pieces of metal parts, such as scrap piping and wire, or worn metal items, such as scrap automobile parts and radiators. If scrap metal is reclaimed, it is a solid waste and is subject to hazardous waste regulation. Scrap metal is also regulated as a solid waste when used in a manner constituting disposal burned for energy recovery, used to produce a fuel, or contained in fuels or accumulated speculatively. This does not apply to processed scrap metal, which is excluded from hazardous waste generation entirely. 

Processed scrap metal. Scrap metal includes, but is not limited to, pipes, containers, equipment, wire, and other metal items that are no longer of use. To facilitate recycling, scrap metal that has been processed to make it easier to handle or transport and is sent for metals recovery is excluded from the definition of solid waste. Unprocessed scrap metal is still eligible for an exemption from hazardous waste regulation when recycled. 

Shredded circuit boards. Circuit boards are metal boards that hold computer chips, thermostats, batteries, and other electronic components. Circuit boards can be found in computers, televisions, radios, and other electronic equipment. When this equipment is thrown away, these boards can be removed and recycled. Whole circuit boards meet the definition of scrap metal, and are therefore exempt from hazardous waste regulation when recycled. On the other hand, some recycling processes involve shredding the board. Such shredded boards do not meet the exclusion for recycled scrap metal. In order to facilitate the recycling of such materials, U.S. EPA excluded recycled shredded circuit boards from the definition of solid waste, provided that they are stored in containers sufficient to prevent release to the environment, and are free of potentially dangerous components, such as mercury switches, mercury relays, nickel-cadmium batteries, and lithium batteries. 

This scrap metal includes metal munitions casings after the chemical agent has been drained and the casings have been treated in the MPF. Drained bulk containers and metal munition casings and components are treated in the MPF to destroy agent residues. After treatment in the MPF, the metal parts are allowed to cool, vacuumed to remove loose paint flakes and ash residue, and stored temporarily in roll-off bins prior to shipment off-site. Munition bodies and empty TCs are carbon steel and may be recycled by smelting at either a commercial recycling facility or the Rock Island Arsenal,6 or disposed of at a hazardous waste landfill. 

Scrap metal is generated at up to 300 tons per year per site. The volume varies depending on the type of original munitions in the individual site stockpiles. In general, scrap metal parts are classified and managed either as a hazardous waste for disposal at an approved TSDF or as scrap metal for recycling. 

Similarly, PBCDF agent-contaminated scrap metal that has been thermally decontaminated and further cleaned to remove loose residue may be managed as a hazardous waste and disposed of at a permitted RCRA TSDF or, alternatively, managed as scrap metal and recycled exclusively by smelting (ADEQ, 2006). 

At TOCDF, treated scrap metal must be managed as a hazardous waste until verification testing has been accepted. Treated scrap metal is defined in the permit as metal from bulk containers, projectiles, and mortar rounds that has undergone thermal decontamination in the MPF under normal operating parameters and has no residue, internally or externally. Before shipment of treated scrap metal, residue in the interior and on... 

Although lead has been classified for many years as a hazardous product, the main driver behind the recycling of lead-acid batteries is the value of lead as a tradeable commodity. Lead and its products form part of the scrap-metal family (with aluminium, zinc, and copper and its alloys) that has been the focus of scrap-metal merchants for many years. Throughout the world, efficient scrap networks and channels exist to supply the recycler with raw materials such as aluminium cans, copper wire, and lead-acid batteries. 

The volumes of wastes generated are small. The scrap metal will of course be free of chemical agent. The dust from the filter will contain lead from the lead stearate in the propellant. It could possibly be defined as a RCRA hazardous waste. 

Secondary waste production is moderate. The aqueous scrubbers would produce no liquid effluents but would produce up to 500 lb per day of salts as a filter cake. The rocket motors contain lead, and the salts resulting from rocket motor processing could be hazardous for that reason. The scrap metal can be released for unrestricted use. 

The TC-60 TDC produces relatively small amounts of secondary waste. These are described in Chapter 3. It is likely that the spent lime and spent pea gravel will not be a RCRA hazardous waste for mercury since the Levinstein mustard agent in the projectiles at BGAD contains low levels of mercury. Overall, the secondary waste, including the spent activated carbon, is not expected to contain compounds of regulatory concern. The scrap metal is thermally decontaminated to a... 

Note the preceding discussion of mercury concentrations. The scrap metal resulting from the munition bodies is suitable for unrestricted release however, it is a listed waste in Colorado and can therefore be sent only to a hazardous waste TSDF or to a recycler allowed to receive it, such as the Rock Island smelter. 

In addition to unexploded ordnance, there is a vast amount of scrap metal and non-hazardous waste that has also been deposited in the water. This can be mis-identified as ordnance with the resultant delays to projects. 

The fact that ferrous chloride can be produced from nearly any source of iron, including scrap metal, can be of great economic advantage. Lower grade supplies, however, give lower purity product and ultimately produce more unreacted sludge. This sludge must be treated and disposed of, usually under hazardous waste restrictions. 

If you manage hazardous wastes properly, there should be fewer hazards for you, your co-workers, your community, and the environment. Recycling and reducing the amounts of waste generated can also increase safety. In fact, used oil, lead-acid and nickel-cadmium batteries, scrap metal, pesticides, and mercury-containing thermostats should be re- cycled where possible. 

Circuit boards receive a special exemption from federal hazardous waste rules. Whole used circuit boards meet the definition of spent materials but also meet the definition of scrap metal. EPA exempts recycled whole used circuit boards from hazardous waste regulation. EPA also excludes shredded circuit boards from the definition of solid waste if they are containerized before recovery. Shredded circuit boards cannot contain mercury switches, mercury relays, nickel cadmium batteries, or lithium batteries. 

This chapter will not be seriously concerned with engineering components and plastics used in the automotive or building industries since it will be some considerable time before plastics play an important enough part in this type of application to present a serious problem in disposal. However, examination of motor car bodies which have been exposed to the environment for many years shows that, even when the metallic parts of the chassis are essentially broken down by rusting, the rubber and plastics components remain relatively unchanged. This may well, therefore, produce a long-term problem for the environment since, unlike the all-steel chassis which can be compressed and the scrap metal reprocessed, plastics consist of a wide variety of chemical entities which cannot be usefully reprocessed in toto. Separation of plastics and rubbers into their individual chemical species on the basis of present technology presents an insurmountable problem from the economic point of view and, at present, incineration (see later) seems to be the only viable alternative in spite of its associated atmospheric pollution hazard. 

Besides the environmentally sound disposal of hazardous components, the recovery of ferrous, nonferrous, and noble metals is the main priority in the disposal of electrical and electronic appliances. Here, it is important to ensure that the requirements relating to scrap quality are met. 

The objectives for disposal of electronic waste appliances are (a) stripping of hazardous substances (b) reduction of pollutant and metal contents in the plastic fraction, thus permitting recycling or incineration in waste incineration plants or cement works (c) recovery of nonferrous metals and (d) attainment of commercially recyclable scrap quality. 

The requirements for proper disposal of electronic waste appliances are as follows (a) appliances may be broken up (shredded) only if the components containing particularly hazardous substances have previously been removed and (b) since in disposing of electronic appliances the main emphasis is on the recovery of nonferrous metals, nonstripped appliances must not be shredded together with scrap cars. As a rule, electronic appliances are dismantled manually to achieve effective separation of the components containing hazardous substances. 

PEAT, Inc., has developed the thermal destruction and recovery (TDR) system for the treatment of medical, hazardous, and radioactive wastes. An electronic plasma heating system is used to break down wastes into three phases. The ceramic, metal, and off-gas phases can aU be used as commercial products. The technology has been evaluated in treatability studies on infectious medical waste. Department of Defense (DOD) ammunition and energetic materials, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) weapon components, ash, electronic scrap, batteries, asbestos, and organic compounds. 

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