Profitable pollution prevention : Concept, fundamentals & development

Industrial pollution prevention (P2) is a national strategic goal for effective environmental protection. Over the past decade the electroplating industry has implemented numerous basic P2 techniques that have greatly reduced the quantity and toxicity of end-of-plant waste. In recent years, various new P2 technologies have been developed for technology change material substitution, in-plant recovery/reuse and treatment. Those new technologies usually require significant capital investment, however. Moreover, how to ensure production competitiveness when using those technologies is not clear. Their applicability to, and acceptance by the industry are therefore yet to be proven. This paper explores the opportunity for developing a new generation of P2 technologies that can also make profits for plants. The basic feature of these technologies is the promise of both environmental and economic benefits. They can be named P3 (i.e., profitable P2) technologies. The P3 concept can be justified through fundamental study of process operation and deep analysis of waste generation. It will show that the development of P3 technologies should be a new direction of R&D for environmental protection in this decade. These key issues in the development will be discussed in detail. Two P3 technologies are described to show their effectiveness for both P2 and optimal production. It is predicted that the P3 technologies will soon become the most attractive environmental technologies for the metal finishing industry.