II. R&D NEEDS AND POTENTIAL PROJECTS

3. Emissions Characterization

The only current work related to emissions characterization that was identified is the work being done at Sandia to develop laser spark spectroscopy (LASS) to measure metal aerosol emissions; funding level for this project was $2.4M through September 1996. The EPA Office of Research and Development supported work several years ago in testing chromium emissions from plating baths and formaldehyde emissions from electroless copper baths; in both cases models were developed to help platers estimate emissions for the purposes of Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) Reporting. However, these studies are the only ones that were identified as related to characterizing emissions. When consulted, the EPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), which is responsible for monitoring compliance with TRI reporting, agreed that there was little information publicly available to help platers estimate emissions from plating operations.

Characterization of air emissions from plating baths is needed for both compliance purposes and to better evaluate risk. Emissions modeling based on emissions sampling is needed for TRI reporting. The data collected could also support risk characterization studies for estimating worker health and safety, community health, and ecological risks.