Case Studies / Testimonials

Problem:

Quick Replacement of Damaged Oxidizer

Short Term Solution: Provided Rental Unit within 10 days of first call.

Final Solution: Provided permanent replacement unit with $50,000 /year fuel savings compared to original system; and 100% more flow capacity.

Equipment Provided:

Short Term Solution:
Direct thermal oxidizer
3,000 scfm capacity (1988 vintage)
Installed: Summer 2001
Location: Illinois

Final Solution:
Catalytic recuperative oxidizer
5,000 scfm capacity (1993 vintage)
Installed: Fall 2001
Location: Illinois

Temporary Unit: Direct thermal oxidizer installed in aisle to keep production on line.
Before: 5,000 scfm Catalytic unit prior to removal & refurb by Kono Kogs		After: Refurbished 5,000 scfm catalytic recuperative oxidizer on an automotive parts coating line

Project Details:
We received a call from this customer on a Thursday looking for a rental unit to take over for their failed thermal recuperative oxidizer. A fire had damaged the heat exchanger and the system required extensive rebuilding. They requested approval to emit to atmosphere until a solution could be found, but they were not sure they would receive approval. And if they did, it would only be a limited time before they would be forced to shut down production, until they put an emission control system in place.

We had several solutions available but time was the primary issue. The quickest solution for the short term was a direct thermal oxidizer, which could be shipped within days. We delivered, provided installation assistance and had the system operating on-line with the process on the next Sunday, 10 days after their initial call. They ran the rental unit for several weeks while considering the long term solutions of either rebuilding the damaged oxidizer, or purchasing a replacement system.

Emissions were generated from a flow coater which rained paint onto plastic parts. The parts were then conveyed through an oven and a UV cure station. The main source of emissions occurred when the coating was applied. The remainder originated from the oven and UV cure areas. To improve curing time of the parts, they would like to be able to increase exhaust flow from the coater to maintain the concentration of solvents in the unmanned, enclosed coater at lower levels. The original (failed) oxidizer did not allow them to increase the exhaust rate. Their process flow included a mixture of alcohols, acrylate, and acetates.

Solution Provided by Kono Kogs, Inc.
We prepared a total (capital & operating) cost comparison of several options, including rebuilding of the existing thermal recuperative oxidizer. We also reviewed their entire coating library and it turned out that all of their coatings contained no potential catalyst poisons. It was determined that a refurbished catalytic system would operate with no fuel usage (self sustaining) and would be the most economical system for them. In fact, it would save over $50,000 per year in fuel usage versus the original system.

Within 2 years they will recover the capital expense for the oxidizer and installation. In addition, the catalytic unit provides twice the capacity of the previous system, which allowed our customer to do something they had hoped to do for some time... increase process exhaust to improve performance of the flow coater.

Equipment / Services Provided by Kono Kogs, Inc.:

• Solution #1: Rental unit to get production on line and in compliance
• Solution #2: Refurbished & warranted used Catalytic recuperative oxidizer
• Low Capital Cost: Approximately 50% of the cost for a new system
• Energy efficient (70% HX) low temp (600F) operation
• Oxidizer and flow coater optimized to run at oxidizer at low to NO fuel usage
• Interfaced oxidizer with existing fan and flow control dampers.
• Excellent quality, low maintenance system
• Late model (8 year old) system w/15+ year life expectancy
• Guaranteed 97% VOC destruction; field tests showed > 98% VOC destruction

Customer Testimonial:
"Kono Kogs really got us out of a bind. We received our rental unit quickly to address our short term emergency. And now we have a more energy efficient system that will actually pay for itself in fuel savings. Kono Kogs provided us support like we would expect from new equipment vendors, but at a lower cost. This system has been installed for over two (2) years and it is still running great".