Technical Bulletin No. 0850: Summary of Panel Plant Experiences with RTO and RCO Heat Exchange Media

Some plants within the wood products industry have experienced burdensome operational problems with RTOs and RCOs used to control VOCs and HAPs. Ceramic media used as heat sink material in RTOs and RCOs at panel plants are exposed to extreme process environments and at some locations have experienced high failure rates. Three failure mechanisms have been identified: irreversible plugging with process particulates, thermal degradation, and alkali attack.