Hokkaido PCB Waste Treatment Facility

Hokkaido Facility is planned to be the fifth regional PCB waste treatment facility in Japan, thanks to the acceptance of the facility by Hokkaido Prefecture and Muroran City. JESCO started construction in March 2006, and after a test run starting March 2007, operations are to start in April, 2008.

Outline of Facility (Plan)


^ Click above to enlarge
  • Location: 14-7 Nakamachi, Muroran City, Hokkaido 050-0087
  • Lot area: About 40,000 m2

  • Will accept PCB wastes stored in: Hokkaido, Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gumma, Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, Yamanashi & Nagano (Total: 16 prefectures)
  • Types of wastes to be treated: Electrical apparatuses such as transformers, capacitors and ballasts, and PCB oil
  • PCB treatment capacity: 1.8t/day (PCB decomposition volume)
  • Treatment Method:
    • Pre-treatment of containers and components: Solvent Cleansing Method and Vacuum Heating Separationt Method
      PCB decomposition: Dechlorination Method
  • Overview of PCB Waste Treatment Building
    4-story steel framed building, Height: About 29 m, Building area: About 11,000 m2, Total floor area: About 25,500 m2

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    Treatment Flow

    In the Pre-treatment process, PCB oil is extracted from transformers and capacitors, and the parts are disassembled and cleansed, and PCB-soaked materials are sent to the vacuum heating separation device , where PCB is separated and collected.

    In the PCB decomposition process, PCB is chemically decomposed in the reaction tank, and after passing PCB elimination tests, recyclables such as metal and treated oil are sent to recyling companies. The decomposition method mixes PCB with sodium dispersion (SD), which acts as an antichlor. Chlorine of PCB and sodium react and turn into NaCl (common salt) and byphenlys, which are harmless substances.
    Treatment Flow Diagram
    ^ Click above chart to enlarge

    Safety Measures of Hokkaido Facility


    Monitoring Operations are monitored 24 hours a day by computers from the Central Monitoring Room.
    Measures for Exhaust Exhaust from process is cleaned by oil scrubbers in the exhaust treatment equipment, and goes through activated carbon as a safety net before released. Furthermore, the air pressure inside the facilities are kept lower than atmosphere outside, to keep air from flowing outside.
    Measures to Prevent Leakage To prevent PCB from leaving the facilities, oil pans are set under PCB-handling areas and PCB treatment equipment. Floors are coated with epoxy resin which is impermeable, chemical resistant, and wear-resistant. These measures will prevent PCB from penetrating floors in case of a spilling. The oil pans and floors are equipped with detectors to identify leakage.
    Emergency Measures When an earthquake above preset intensity is detected, facilities are shut down automatically. Also, to protect facilities from fire, automatic fire alarms, chemical fire extinguishers and fire hydrants are installed.

    Information Disclosure of Operation Status

    JESCO makes effort to actively disclose information from planning of facilities to operation status.
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