Process

Advantages

• With the minimum of air that initially occupies the ovens and is removed once the ovens are put under vacuum, risk of fire or explosions is reduced to 0%.
• Another big advantage of the technology used, is the extreme small amount of exhaust, caused during the process. Evaporated mercury, water and VOC’s are condensed and led through various piping, to finally catch them in separated fully closed reservoirs. Depending on the types of components, most of them are ready to be disposed of in a safe and sustainable way.
• The mercury that has been extracted from the materials is collected up to a certain volume after which it is turned into mercury sulfide.
• The mercury sulfide is non-hazardous and is the most stable form of mercury and can therefore be safely disposed of as well at preset locations.
• The small amount of exhaust is washed in our active carbon tank before it is released. Dried and cleaned residues that were left behind in the ovens are taken out and either be re-used as a raw material or be disposed of in a sustainable way as well.

Analysis

Technology alone does not provide a guarantee for the proper cleaning of mercury contaminated material. BMT’s vast experience and expertise in the treatment of mercury contaminated materials enable us to choose the right “recipes for treatment”. Depending on the content and characteristics of the material to be treated, we know which temperatures and time is needed to separate hazardous components from solid materials. Before the process is started, an analysis of the materials is performed to make sure we know exactly what content we will be treating. After the treatment, the solid residues are analyzed again to verify the removal of all mercury to make sure the to be disposed materials do not contain mercury any longer.

Static vacuum treatment

Static vacuum treatment provides the perfect solution for many types of material that require mercury decontamination. The double-walled ovens are electrically heated. For sludges, a heat-distributor inside the oven ensures that all heat is equally divided in the oven to ensure that all mercury is removed properly.

Static vacuum treatment is suited for many different types of mercury contaminated waste such as sludges, active carbon, filters, PPE’s and objects like thermometers and barometers.

Dynamic vacuum treatment

Several types of mercury contaminated waste can be cleaned more effectively when they are being moved constantly during the process. Especially catalysts and other absorbents can be decontaminated effectively by using dynamic vacuum treatment. An advantage of using rotating ovens instead of static ovens for these types of material is the short treatment time needed to clean the materials and therefore reducing cost.

Mobile plant

When logistical challenges outgrow the challenge to effectively decontaminate mercury and NORM contaminated waste, BMT can treat materials on-site as well. The mobile plant consists of 4 units that are connected and configured to start treatment. The set-up time required is about 3 weeks after which the cleaning process can start. The mobile has a maximum capacity of approximately 1.000 tons per year, depending on the type of waste being treated.

Which materials

BMT treats a broad variety of mercury and NORM contaminated waste streams. For example:

• Sludge
• Catalyst & Molecular sieve
• Activated carbon
• Ceramic balls
• Filters
• Batteries
• Thermometers / barometers
• E-Waste
• PPE
• Metal Equipment
• Polluted Soil and Sand
• Metallic mercury

BMT in the Netherlands has extensive permits within the framework of the Nuclear Energy Act. BMT is able to receive NORM materials directly. But we can also accept other NORM waste substances and materials for processing, decontamination and final disposal in an environmentally friendly and safe way.

Mercury stabilization

Mercury stabilization is the last step required before a safe and sustainable disposal of the mercury can take place. Today, BMT Europe partners with a company that is specialized in transforming toxic mercury into stabilized mercury sulfide, also known as cinnabar. Cinnabar can be safely packaged and stored without the risk of evaporation or leaching. BMT Europe does not sell mercury.

Accepting process

Before mercury and NORM contaminated material can be shipped to BMT, a formal acceptance process is executed to ensure BMT is legally allowed to receive the material and able to safely purify it. In addition, depending on the material, either the residue can be re-used as a raw material after treatment or requires to be disposed of. The final destination of the residues impacts the acceptance process as residues destined for final disposal need to be returned to the country of origin where the waste was created. During the acceptance process, BMT wants to ensure that the complete route has been defined and accepted by both parties to avoid that residues have to be returned to the customer as a final end station.

Please download the documents below to learn more about both the accepting process and accepting criteria.