Gerdau Ameristeel

Sayreville, New Jersey

This large steel mill located in Sayreville, NJ operates an Electric Arc Furnace and various other air pollutant sources resulting in its being classified as a "major source" per NJDEP and U.S. EPA regulations. Roux Associates assists the facility with all of its air quality management and air permitting activities. This includes maintaining its Title V Operating Permit, review of new equipment and process modifications for air permit (NSR/PSD) applicability, developing compliance strategies for new regulations, and investigating new technologies that may be appropriately applied for air pollution control. Most recently, we have prepared a Title V Operating permit renewal application and minor permit modification applications for a replacement Billet Reheat Furnace and scrap steel conveyor. Both projects will increase energy efficiency while reducing air quality impacts. We are also managing investigations into available measures to control mercury emissions from the mill's melt shop. These investigations include pollution prevention, process modifications and add-on controls.

With respect to pollution prevention, a pilot test program was conducted to investigate whether removal of accessible mercury switches from hoods, trunks and anti-lock braking systems of auto scrap (prior to crushing, shredding and melting) would result in significant reductions in mercury emissions. The program successfully demonstrated that this pollution prevention alternative was a viable and preferable strategy for controlling this source of mercury. Results have been used to support an administrative appeal of recently adopted rules requiring mercury emissions control at all iron and steel melting facilities in New Jersey.

More recently, full scale pilot testing has been conducted to investigate the potential effectiveness of add-on controls on the unique exhaust gas stream that steel mills produce. Powdered activated carbon (PAC) was injected at the inlet of the steel mill baghouse to investigate potential removal efficiencies, effects of various injection rates, balance of plant impacts, and other factors that might be associated with such potential control systems. In concert with this testing, a variety of continuous and semi-continuous emissions monitoring equipment for mercury were incorporated into the testing plan to assist in validation and analysis of test program data.