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Fire emissions of organics into the atmosphere

Blomqvist, Per LU ; Persson, Bror and Simonson, Margaret LU (2007) In Fire Technology 43(3). p.213-231
Abstract

The mass of dioxins, PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and VOC (volatile organic compounds) emitted from fires to the atmosphere in Sweden per year has been estimated. The estimate is based on the number of fires in buildings, vehicles, waste and forest fires in Sweden in 1999. It is estimated that the total emission of dioxins from fires is in the range 0.5-1.4 g TEQ. The total emissions of PAH and VOC are in the ranges 2-12 ton and 13-200 ton, respectively. The estimated emission of dioxins from fires approximately corresponds to the total emission from traffic or half the emissions from municipal waste combustion (Swedish data from 1993). The fire statistics show that the mass of material combusted in building fires during a... (More)

The mass of dioxins, PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and VOC (volatile organic compounds) emitted from fires to the atmosphere in Sweden per year has been estimated. The estimate is based on the number of fires in buildings, vehicles, waste and forest fires in Sweden in 1999. It is estimated that the total emission of dioxins from fires is in the range 0.5-1.4 g TEQ. The total emissions of PAH and VOC are in the ranges 2-12 ton and 13-200 ton, respectively. The estimated emission of dioxins from fires approximately corresponds to the total emission from traffic or half the emissions from municipal waste combustion (Swedish data from 1993). The fire statistics show that the mass of material combusted in building fires during a year is approximately 7500 ton, while that from forest fires is 2600 ton. Additionally, 2000-3000 tons are combusted in vehicle fires, fires in containers, etc. In addition to the more common types of fires during a year, individual large incidents may contribute significantly to the total emission. Such incidents include fires in municipal landfills or specific waste storage facilities (such as those for used tyres). An assessment of the consequences of such incidents has been made. This assessment implies that a large contribution to the emission of dioxins could be expected from fires in landfills and from fires in waste plastics (PVC) and tyres. Fires in deposits of wood chips and tyres are also significant potential sources of PAH and VOC.

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author
; and
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Accident statistics, Dioxins, Emissions, Fires, PAH, VOC
in
Fire Technology
volume
43
issue
3
pages
19 pages
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • scopus:34548768688
ISSN
0015-2684
DOI
10.1007/s10694-007-0011-y
language
English
LU publication?
no
additional info
Funding Information: The authors would like to thank the Swedish Rescue Services Agency for funding the research presented in this article. Input from Karl-Erik Kulander is particularly appreciated. Copyright: Copyright 2008 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
id
5459e4a6-94d8-4c33-82e5-9f2a90c4fdc4
date added to LUP
2021-09-29 14:25:57
date last changed
2022-02-17 00:18:02
@article{5459e4a6-94d8-4c33-82e5-9f2a90c4fdc4,
  abstract     = {{<p>The mass of dioxins, PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and VOC (volatile organic compounds) emitted from fires to the atmosphere in Sweden per year has been estimated. The estimate is based on the number of fires in buildings, vehicles, waste and forest fires in Sweden in 1999. It is estimated that the total emission of dioxins from fires is in the range 0.5-1.4 g TEQ. The total emissions of PAH and VOC are in the ranges 2-12 ton and 13-200 ton, respectively. The estimated emission of dioxins from fires approximately corresponds to the total emission from traffic or half the emissions from municipal waste combustion (Swedish data from 1993). The fire statistics show that the mass of material combusted in building fires during a year is approximately 7500 ton, while that from forest fires is 2600 ton. Additionally, 2000-3000 tons are combusted in vehicle fires, fires in containers, etc. In addition to the more common types of fires during a year, individual large incidents may contribute significantly to the total emission. Such incidents include fires in municipal landfills or specific waste storage facilities (such as those for used tyres). An assessment of the consequences of such incidents has been made. This assessment implies that a large contribution to the emission of dioxins could be expected from fires in landfills and from fires in waste plastics (PVC) and tyres. Fires in deposits of wood chips and tyres are also significant potential sources of PAH and VOC.</p>}},
  author       = {{Blomqvist, Per and Persson, Bror and Simonson, Margaret}},
  issn         = {{0015-2684}},
  keywords     = {{Accident statistics; Dioxins; Emissions; Fires; PAH; VOC}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{3}},
  pages        = {{213--231}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Fire Technology}},
  title        = {{Fire emissions of organics into the atmosphere}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10694-007-0011-y}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s10694-007-0011-y}},
  volume       = {{43}},
  year         = {{2007}},
}