In a move to address the issue, Lintec & Linnhoff is now partnering with Fudan University in Shanghai to ensure that its asphalt plants meet the new Chinese market requirements.
This collaboration with the well-recognised Chinese public research institution is helping to make sure that the Lintec & Linnhoff asphalt plants can exceed China’s strict requirements for air quality. The Lintec & Linnhoff plants are now put through a series of laboratory tests, which have shown they have low emissions levels of bitumen fumes, particulates and benzopyrene.
In recent years, China has taken tough decisions in its push for better air quality, culminating in its latest legislation, the Atmospheric Pollution Prevention and Control Law (2018 Amendment). As part of a wider range of measures within this legislation there are strict requirements for the use of industrial machinery. This states that companies that discharge dust, sulphides and NOx during the production of building materials must adopt cleaner processes to limit the discharge of pollutants. For contractors it means that any equipment in their fleets that fails to meet the required standards is prohibited from working in urban areas. For manufacturers it follows that they must produce equipment that operates within the legislative limits to ensure customers can receive asphalt for their construction projects.
To demonstrate that the Lintec & Linnhoff plants would exceed Chinese legislative requirements, the company partnered with Fudan University to put its equipment through a series of real-world and lab-based tests to verify the performance.
Fudan University is a major public research university, based in Shanghai, approximately 150km from the Lintec & Linnhoff plant in Jiangyin. It is recognised as one of the most prestigious universities in China and has played a leading role in research into industrial pollution over many decades. The university was also involved in the development of the Atmospheric Pollution Prevention and Control Law (2018 Amendment), suiting it as a partner for Lintec & Linnhoff.
“Working with a team of scientists and PHD students from Fudan, we were able to verify the performance of our asphalt plants and also identified some potential areas for improvements,” explained Tony Liu, CEO of Lintec & Linnhoff China. “Following a analysis of the dust and emissions, the team provided guidance on how to make improvements to ensure stronger legislative compliance.”
After initial testing, Lintec & Linnhoff tunnd a number of elements of the environmental protection systems on its plants. This included inside the pollution control packages that ensure clean air is released into the atmosphere, and recycle the dust and dirt that is filtered out.
After design adjustments, further testing at the research facility showed how successful the modifications were. On one of the company’s highest-capacity models, the CSM4000 HS20-SE, sample collections found bitumen fume levels of <4.1 mg/m3, far below the permitted concentration limit of 75 mg/m3. Particulate levels were well below permissible limits and levels of benzopyrene were <1.2x10-4 mg/m3, almost a third of the 3x10-4 mg/m3 limit.
Outside the lab, testing was conducted on a simulated jobsite with levels for fugitive emissions of suspended particulates measured at the north, south, east and west boundaries of the site. The recorded levels ranged from 0.267 mg/m3 to 0.433 mg/m3, again well within the regulation 1.0 mg/m3.
The result of this research and design work is that Lintec & Linnhoff asphalt plants manufactured at the company’s facility in China produce very low emissions. When powered with light oil or natural gas, the company’s plants feature dust content levels below 20 mg/m3. With the addition of optional attachments that performance can be improved further, dropping emissions down below 10 mg/m3.
This is a key move for the firm’s presence in China, an important market for Lintec & Linnhoff. In addition, the company is using its research with Fudan University and will apply it to its production facilities worldwide. As many Chinese contractors carry out major infrastructure projects in Asia and Africa, the benefits will be felt further afield.
