Plant Services - August 2007 - (Page 41) MANAGEMENT Engineering when the upfront investment is no lower than the more hazardous formulations. Sermatech is among the companies that have developed chromium-free coatings with similar application and performance properties as the original formulations. The new coatings comply with regulations restricting the use of materials with this compound, and alleviate the need to implement government-mandated worker exposure controls. “Worker exposure controls include individual employee monitoring that could cost as much as $2,000 per year per employee,” says Kevin Eddinger, Sermatech’s materials division manager. “Additional personal protective equipment [PPE] needs could add another $1,000 to $2,000 per employee annually.” Calculation of any cost savings on waste disposal depends on whether wastes are treated. “The cost to dispose of solid chromium-contaminated waste can be as much as $200 per drum,” says Eddinger. “Depending on local regulations, the new formulations might not need to be considered hazardous with respect to their disposal.” PPE must be worn when handling lead-acid batteries, and spent batteries should be taken to a recycling center. If disposed in a landfill or illegally dumped, the batteries can pollute drinking water sources. If burned in incinerators, lead remaining in the ash may be released into the air. One way to minimize exposure is to replace lead-acid batteries in uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems with clean energy storage technology. A single Pentadyne Power flywheel can supplant 200 or more large-scale lead-acid batteries along with their 15,000 pounds of lead, hundreds of gallons of highly corrosive sulfuric acid, explosive hydrogen and special disposal procedures. Initially, “The Pentadyne flywheel does cost more. But because battery maintenance and replacement costs run so high and so frequently, the flywheel achieves ROI within two years to three years,” says Frank DeLattre, senior vice president of sales for Pentadyne Power Corp. “The flywheel has a 20-year design life between factory maintenance, so the cost savings over that time against low-cost VRLA [valve-regulated leadacid] batteries will be in excess of More resources at www.PlantServices.com/thismonth Global distribution of large stationary sources of CO2 http://arch.rivm.nl/env/int/ipcc/pages_media/SRCCS-final/ graphics/ppt/Figure-TS02a.ppt#1 Indicators of the human influence on the atmosphere during the Industrial era www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/2001syr/ppt/02.01.ppt Images of the 10.4-acre green roof on Ford Motor Company’s assembly plant in Dearborn, Mich. www.mcdonoughpartners. com/projects/fordrouge/default.asp?projID=fordrouge www.hrt.msu.edu/greenroof/ www.PLANTSERVICES.com 41 August 2007 http://www.PlantServices.com/thismonth http://www.commtest.com http://arch.rivm.nl/env/int/ipcc/pages_media/SRCCS-final/graphics/ppt/Figure-TS02a.ppt#1 http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/2001syr/ppt/02.01.ppt http://www.commtest.com http://www.mcdonoughpartners.com/projects/fordrouge/default.asp?projID=fordrouge http://www.mcdonoughpartners.com/projects/fordrouge/default.asp?projID=fordrouge http://www.hrt.msu.edu/greenroof/ http://www.PLANTSERVICES.com
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