Alternative Treatment Technologies

Elastomeric Polymer Filter Media — Radian Corporation

In 1995, the Radian Corporation conducted a demonstration of a new adsorbent at McClellan AFB. The adsorbent used in the demonstration was PetroLOK TM PL22 polymer which is still manufactured by Advanced Water Systems, Inc. The adsorbent was evaluated as a possible replacement for granular activated carbon (GAC) in a vapor adsorber. PetroLOK TM PL22 is a proprietary blend of molecular-bonding, cross-linked polymer and activated carbon that had been used successfully as an economic replacement for GAC in removal of hydrocarbons in water treatment applications.

Figure illustrating a schematic of the adsorption system evaluated at McClellan AFB.

The test at McClellan AFB did not produce the expected increase in removal capacity or the VOC's of concern, TCE, 1,2-dichloroethane and benzene. Therefore the use of PetroLOK sorbent technology was not applied at full scale since replacement costs were higher than for GAC. More details are provided in a summary of the test report ElastomericPolymer.htm