Roxul Inc. is taking steps to reduce emissions from its Grand Forks factory with a $6 million project set to start in June.
Roxul announced that it will be installing new emission abatement technology by the summer to reduce smoke and odour coming from its Grand Forks operation and to improve air quality in the airshed.
The Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer (RTO) technology that will be used is a type of high efficiency afterburner that includes desulfurization equipment, Roxul said.
An RTO is a widely accepted air pollution control technology that uses a high temperature burner to destroy emissions that contribute to visual smoke and odour.
"We have selected this technology because we believe it will best address the challenges we face due to the valley location of our facility," explained Elmar Hermann, Grand Forks' factory manager. "The technology is well known in other industries, such as wood processing facilities."
According to Leslie McLaren, Roxul's manager of corporate communications, the RTO technology was selected after a review of conditions and emissions from the Grand Forks operation by independent third party experts, followed by an analysis of available abatement technologies and trials on various technologies.
"The research on this project has been two years in the making," McLaren explained. "We have done a lot of testing to ensure we have the right solution."
The RTO installation will be customized to fit the Grand Forks factory's specific requirements and is expected to be completed by late-July.