Treatment of MeBr Off-Gas

Methyl bromide is an effective fumigant that has been in use since the 1930s. However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will soon prohibit the production and importation of methyl bromide because it has been found to be a significant ozone depleting substance. Although a number of significant research efforts have been conducted to find alternatives for soil and post-harvest fumigation, so far these alternatives are either more costly or not as effective as methyl bromide. Another possible approach to mitigate the ozone depleting effects of methyl bromide would be to capture and to recycle or to treat the methyl bromide to minimize its release into the atmosphere. Recent advances in biological waste air treatment and in biodegradation of methyl bromide suggest that biological treatment of methyl bromide vapors in a biotrickling filter may be a cost effective solution. The purpose of the proposed investigation is to determine the feasibility and efficacy of biotrickling filtration to treat offgases from agricultural operations that contain methyl bromide. The primary objective of the first phase will be to demonstrate methyl bromide treatment, and to determine treatment performance under various, yet controlled, operating conditions and to define important design information needed for full-scale systems.