Gulf Coast Environmental Systems

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2020 Pollution Control Outlook

We have all seen the industry outlook articles, claiming to name the upcoming industry leaders and trends for this year. You might notice these articles list completely irrelevant “trends” and a number of companies that paid to be called “up and coming,” Gulf Coast Environmental Systems has been recognized as an industry leader for nearly two-decades. We work in some of the most challenging environments on the planet, with some of the harshest pollutants. Because of this, we have a constant pulse on the pollution control field.

With 2020 upon us, we sat down with a few of our in-house experts and put together a list of trends and changes the industry should expect this year.

The most obvious issue facing nearly every industrial facility is the public focus on pollution and climate change. In 2019, we were presented with study after study proving a connection between pollution and serious human health risks, and even death. With 24-hour access to these studies, and widespread social media use, the general public is starting to raise their voice in protest, and demanding government action. This, in combination with increased urbanization in previously underdeveloped areas, the regulatory agencies of the world have started to demand more stringent destruction requirements.

Most of the trends we expect to see in 2020 are related to the pressure that these regulatory industries are facing, regarding specific applications and/or emissions. Below are the “hot topics” for 2020: [Read more…]

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Rendering Pollution Control: Vapor-Tolerant and Aqueous RTOs Comparison

Vapor-rich and wastewater waste streams, such as those from the rendering process, pose challenges for traditional treatment systems. Gulf Coast Environmental Systems provides robust, economic solutions to these challenges utilizing thermal oxidizers which apply the combination of heat and time to combust pollutants into harmless CO2 and water.

Some of the harshest pollution control applications are in the rendering field of the food processing industry. The waste stream can contain odors, ammonia, fats, grease, water and other vapors, and even particulate matter, all in a wide ranging mix. GCES’ custom designs systems to handle these difficult processes based on each facilities waste output and goals. Included in our solution is the Aqueous RTO wastewater destruction system with capabilities that allow for processing of both air and water pollution simultaneously. The process is controlled through metered injection of the water into a pre-heated inlet stream into the oxidizer for complete destruction using the standard oxidation process. The following is a comparison of the Aqueous Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer (RTO) and a Vapor-Tolerant RTO for implementation in the treatment of food rendering waste streams. [Read more…]

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Case Study – Odor Control in Rendering

Animal Rendering – Odor Control

  • Location: Texas
  • Industry: Natural Ingredients/Edible Fats and Oils
  • Project Type: Animal Rendering
  • Project Goal: Providing efficient pollution and odor control for a highly vaporous stream
  • Equipment Type: Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer (RTO)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Gulf Coast Environmental Systems was contacted by a long-standing customer, to design and build a pollution control solution that would be able to handle the strong odors and heavy vapors produced by an animal processing application, in a Texas facility. This is the 4th system that Gulf Coast Environmental Systems has provided for this customer, supporting their odor control needs since 2004.

[Read more…]

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Does Your RTO Need a Bake-Out?

What is a Bake-Out, and Why Is It Necessary?

Improve Lifetime of Pollution Control EquipmentField service and maintenance on pollution control equipment can be complicated. GCES prides itself on having one of the most capable teams of service experts in the field service, with over 75 combined years of industry specific experience. Our team understands the importance of a customer understanding their equipment’s specific needs. In their continuing commitment to extending the life of pollution control equipment for GCES customers, they regularly provide maintenance tips, based on their real-world experience.

A bake-out is a maintenance function that must be performed on a Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer, in order to clean the media bed. The bed of the RTO accumulates process specific aerosols and particulates over time, which can cause alter the unit’s ability to function as it was designed to. Efficiency, capacity, and reliability of the unit may be compromised, if the ceramic media beds performance is inhibited. If left unclean for a prolonged period, the risks of fire, and total shutdown may become more prevalent.

A bake-out involves heating the ceramic media beds to a predetermined, extremely high temperature, in order to burn off all the accumulates. Temperatures may vary, depending on the design of the equipment. This area of the RTO can be difficult to manually access, so a bake-out is the most efficient way to remove and destroy these particulates. Think of it like the “self-cleaning” button on your kitchen oven. [Read more…]

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Is Pollution Control a New Source of Profit?

What if pollution control equipment was on the profit side of your budget sheet, instead of the expense side?expense to profit

Industrial air pollution gets a lot of slack in the media, because it has been directly linked to climate change. Regulatory agencies on nearly every continent have taken further steps to reduce the amount of emissions allowed by industrial processes, and the only method of reducing the pollutants in exhaust emissions is with industrial air pollution control equipment.

In many manufacturing processes, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are produced as a byproduct of production or processing. Industrial air pollution control equipment is used to process or abate those dangerous chemicals and compounds, so they do not end up in the air, soil, and/or water. This encompasses just about every manufacturing process you can think of; food, beverage, packaging, steel, natural gas, oil, cosmetics, automotive, paint, pharmacy, printing, et cetera. The price to install this equipment varies greatly, from tens of thousands of dollars, to millions of dollars, depending on the size of the process streams, and what types of VOCs and hazardous air pollutants the streams contain. This equipment is mandatory in most cases, and is the responsibility of the facility to purchase.

Because of the associated cost, pollution control equipment is often something facilities are not excited to purchase. But what if pollution control equipment was on the profit side of your budget sheet, instead of the expense side? There are a few ways pollution control equipment can help pay for itself, and sometimes even produce a profit for the facility.

Profit Sources:

  1. Methane Abatement
  2. Heat Recovery
  3. Solvent Recovery
  4. Carbon Trading
  5. Tax Incentives
  6. VOC & NOx Trade
  7. RNG + Green Energy

[Read more…]

Company Profile

Gulf Coast Environmental Systems (GCES) is your custom solutions provider for pollution control systems, industrial ovens, systems engineering and field support worldwide. Our unique approach is to analyze your process stream and business objectives and propose an ideal solution or range of options to help you optimize these objectives. GCES is a one-stop shop: we provide engineering services, manufacturing, installation, commissioning and ongoing support. With our broad base of expertise and large installed global base, we are well-positioned to solve your pollution control issues.

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