Somerset Raritan Valley
Sewerage Authority

Mercury Emission Control System Progress Update

Introduction

The Somerset Raritan Valley Sewerage Authority (SRVSA) incinerates its residual wastewater solids, as the primary method of sewage sludge disposal.  Incineration reduces sludge volume and creates a stable product that can be landfilled.  Recent federal air emission requirements of 40 CFR Part 62 Standards of Performance for New Stationary Sources and Emission Guidelines for Existing Sources: Sewage Sludge Incineration Units (SSI MACT Rule) require that SRVSA reduce the incinerator mercury emissions by approximately 96%.  In order for SRVSA to achieve this level of mercury reduction, it is necessary to construct an air pollution control system utilizing carbon adsorption to scrub the incinerator flue gas.

 

The SRVSA is undergoing the Mercury Emission Control System Project in order to bring its incinerator into compliance with 40 CFR Part 62.  The Mercury Emission Control System Project includes design, procurement, construction, and testing of an air pollution control system.  The design has been completed and the General Construction Contract has been awarded.  The Notice to Proceed was issued to Iron Hills Construction, Inc. on July 31, 2017.

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Progress Update Log:

February 20, 2019 Progress Update #19 – Final Update

As of February 20th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed all the required work for the project and has provided the Authority with the building and electrical Operation and Maintenance (O&M) manuals.  The GCC has also provided the Design Engineer, CDM Smith, with the red line markups of the Contract plans in order for CDM Smith to generate as-built plans.  Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”) is finalizing the submission of the Mercury Emissions Control System O&M manuals and will be making final minor system adjustments.

The Authority has received the final test results from the Final Acceptance Testing (or “stack test”).  CDM Smith has reviewed the stack test results and confirmed that all results are in compliance with the SSI MACT Standards.  The project is now 100.0% complete.

 

January 29, 2019 Progress Update #18

As of January 29th, the Authority is still waiting for final test results from the Final Acceptance Testing (or “stack test”).  Final test results are anticipated to be available in February.  The Mercury Emission Control System is currently in full operation and the Authority has been continuously incinerating sludge for the past several months.

Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) is continuing to complete the punch list items, which includes submittal of the final Operation and Maintenance (O&M) manuals.  Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”) has completed the final instrumentation and HMI adjustments and is also in the process of submitting the O&M manuals.  To date, the project is estimated to be 99.5% complete.

December 12, 2018 Progress Update #17

As of December 12th, the Authority has completed the Final Acceptance Testing (or “stack test”).  Final test results will be available in a couple of months.  The Mercury Emission Control System is currently in full operation and the Authority has been continuously incinerating sludge for the past several months.

Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) is in the process of completing the punch list items, which includes submittal of the final Operation and Maintenance (O&M) manuals.  Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”) has completed the final instrumentation and HMI adjustments and is also in the process of submitting the O&M manuals.  To date, the project is estimated to be 99.5% complete.

November 15, 2018 Progress Update #16

As of November 15th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed most of the construction activity at the site and has begun demobilizing.  Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”) is scheduled to complete the final commissioning phase by the end of the month.  Allied Control Services is performing calibration of all instruments in preparation for the Final Acceptance Testing (or “stack test”).  The Mercury Emission Control System manufacturer is also scheduled to perform a site visit and adjustments prior to the stack test in late November.  To date, the project is estimated to be 99.5% complete.

October 12, 2018 Progress Update #15

As of October 12th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) is continuing to complete the punch list items and assist Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”) with the commissioning of the new Mercury Emissions Control System.  The EPC and the equipment supplier representative have continued commissioning.  The required Final Acceptance Testing (or “stack test”) will be conducted by Environment Source Samplers, Inc. (ESS) in late November.  The stack test consists of collecting samples from the final exhaust stack and comparing the analyzed samples to the required permit limits.  Successfully completing this test will verify that the new Mercury Emission Control System is performing as designed and will achieve the final milestone for this project (Compliance with SSI MACT Standards).  It is anticipated that the test results will be available by early February, 2019.  To date, the project is estimated to be 99.2% complete.

September 19, 2018 Progress Update #14

As of September 19th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) is in the process of completing the punch list items.  The GCC will provide commissioning assistance to Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”) until the project’s completion.  The EPC and the equipment supplier representative have continued the commissioning of the new Mercury Emissions Control System.  The Mercury Emissions Control System is currently in operation and working as designed.  The Authority staff are gaining operating experience and testing the system in real-time operating conditions.  The Authority staff will submit an Issues and Optimization Report to the EPC by the end of October, prior to the EPC’s finalization of the system and settings.  To date, the project is estimated to be 99.0% complete.

August 16, 2018 Progress Update #13

As of August 16th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”)  is substantially complete.  The GCC was issued a letter of Substantial Completion and punch list on August 6th, with a substantial completion date of July 16.  The GCC is currently working on the punch list items, and continuing to provide startup assistance to Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”).  The EPC and the equipment supplier representative have continued the commissioning of the new Mercury Emissions Control System.  The EPC is also planning to conduct Authority staff training over the next several weeks.  To date, the project is estimated to be 99.0% complete.

July 18, 2018 Progress Update #12

As of July 18th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the system-wide duct leak test.  The GCC’s insulation subcontractor has completed the outdoor duct insulation work and is currently in the process of completing the insulation installation inside the new Mercury Building.  The GCC turned over the Mercury Emissions Control System to Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”) and is working with the EPC to complete all system installation checks.  The EPC started commissioning the new Mercury Emissions Control System on July 10th and is working with the GCC’s electrical subcontractor to address any electrical issues.  It is anticipated that the commissioning phase of the new system will continue for the next 2 to 3 weeks.  To date, the project is estimated to be 97.0% complete.

June 19, 2018 Progress Update #11

As of June 19th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the installation of all required equipment, ducting, and instrumentation for the project.  The GCC has also completed the startup of the induced draft fan at the Mercury Building and is planning to perform a leak test on newly installed stainless-steel ducting by June 20th.  The GCC’s electrical subcontractor has completed most of the electrical and instrumentation work at the site. The GCC’s other subcontractors have also completed all plumbing and HVAC work for the project.  To date, the project is estimated to be 90.0% complete.  It is anticipated that the Mercury Emissions Control System will be turned over to the Equipment Procurement Contractor for commissioning by the first week of July.  The commissioning process will take at least 6 to 8 weeks to complete.

May 17, 2018 Progress Update #10

As of May 11th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the installation of the new equipment and associated stainless-steel ducting inside the new Mercury Building.  The GCC has also installed the unit heaters, louvers and various instruments on the ducting and carbon vessel.  The GCC is in the final stages of connecting the new stainless-steel ducting to the existing incinerator process stream in the R2 building.  The GCC’s plumbing subcontractor has continued to install the waterlines inside the new Mercury Building.  The GCC’s electrical subcontractor has also continued various electrical and instrumentation work.  To date, the project is estimated to be 82.0% complete.

April 17, 2018 Progress Update #9

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As of April 17th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has continued the installation of equipment and associated stainless steel ducting inside the new Mercury Building.  The GCC completed the installation of the outside duct supports, mercury emissions control system instrumentation panel, building exhaust fans, and air circulating fans.  The GCC has also started grading and cleanup of the area around the new Mercury Building.  The GCC’s electrical subcontractor has completed all the electrical work associated with the mercury emissions control system in the basement of the R2 Building and has continued to install electrical conduits inside the new Mercury Building.  The GCC’s electrical subcontractor has also completed the replacement of the motor control center and utility panels in the control room of the R2 Building.  To date, the project is estimated to be 72.0% complete.

March 20, 2018 Progress Update #8

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As of March 20th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed most of the exterior work for the new Mercury Building and has started the installation of the interior equipment and associated ducting.  The GCC’s roofing subcontractor has completed the installation of the roof, insulation, and ceiling in the new Mercury Building.  The roofing subcontractor is in the process of installing the building trim and end gable siding.  The GCC’s electrical subcontractor has started the installation of electrical conduit and has provided temporary power to the new Mercury Building.  The electrical subcontractor is also replacing the motor control center in the control room of the R2 Building.  To date, the project is estimated to be 62.0% complete.

February 27, 2018 Progress Update #7
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As of February 20th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has focused on the completion of the new Mercury Building, in preparation for the mercury emissions control equipment installation.  The GCC’s masonry subcontractor has completed the exterior and interior block construction for the new Mercury Building.  The masonry subcontractor is set to demobilize by the end of the week.  The GCC’s roofing subcontractor is installing the roof sheathing and is scheduled to complete the roofing work by the end of next week.  The GCC’s concrete subcontractor has mobilized and started the excavation and construction work for the duct support foundations outside of the R2 Building.  The work is expected to be completed by next week.  To date, the project is estimated to be 45.0% complete.

February 1, 2018 Progress Update #6

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As of January 30th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the installation of all new major equipment in the R2 Building and performed associated mechanical work.  The GCC has also set the new carbon vessel inside the Mercury Building (the new building) and installed the required pipe hanger beams.  The GCC’s masonry subcontractor has continued to make progress with the Mercury Building’s block walls.  The GCC’s roofing subcontractor has also mobilized to the site and started the installation of the Mercury Building’s ceiling frame.  To date, the project is estimated to be 40.0% complete.

December 12, 2017 Progress Update #5

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As of December 12th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the installation of the new carbon building’s steel structure, roof trusses, and carbon equipment pad.  The GCC has also completed the installation of the new secondary heat exchanger, tertiary heat exchanger, vertical ducting, and new process piping in the R2 Building.  The GCC’s masonry subcontractor has mobilized to the site and started the installation of the new carbon building’s block wall.  The GCC’s concrete subcontractor has completed the concrete infill work at the former cake sludge receiving station and the sidewalk installation between the R2 Building and the new carbon building.  To date, the project is estimated to be 30.0% complete.

November 20, 2017 Progress Update #4

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As of November 20th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the demolition of the existing equipment and ducting inside the R2 Building and has started the preparation work to install the new equipment.  The GCC’s subcontractors have completed the concrete slab installation for the new building, and started the erection of the steel framing for the new building.  The GCC’s electrical subcontractor has installed all the electrical cables required from the electrical substation to the R2 Building.  The GCC has also continued to accept delivery of equipment provided by Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”).  The EPC is currently finalizing the shipment of all remaining equipment required for the project.  To date, the project is estimated to be 16.0% complete.

October 17, 2017 Progress Update #3

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As of October 17th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the installation of the concrete foundation for the new building and the modifications to the R2 Building catwalk.  The GCC has also accepted delivery of various equipment provided by Hankin Environmental Systems (Equipment Procurement Contractor or “EPC”).  The GCC’s plumbing subcontractor has laid out the plumbing for the new building,and the electrical subcontractor has started laying out the underground electrical conduit.  To date, the project is estimated to be 7.0% complete.

September 19, 2017 Progress Update #2

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As of September 19th, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has completed the demolition of the sludge receiving station and the odor control ducting outside Building R2.  The GCC has also completed the installation of the new 4-inch diameter sanitary lateral line that will serve the new building.  The GCC’s electrical subcontractor has completed most of the major conduit installations in the basement of Building R2 and has finished the installation of the new electrical duct bank.  To date, the project is estimated to be 3.0%.

August 22, 2017 Progress Update #1

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As of August 22nd, Iron Hills Construction, Inc. (General Construction Contractor or “GCC”) has mobilized to the site and installed silt fencing around the project area.  The GCC has also started excavation for the new building foundation and sanitary drain lines.