2.5.5 Waste Classification

Ethylbenzene containing wastes are considered hazardous if the flash point of the material is below 61 °C. Hazardous wastes may include, but are not limited to, process wastes containing ethylbenzene, ethylbenzene contaminated water, soil, debris, and empty unclean product containers.

Soil contaminated with ethylbenzene to the extent it has to be treated as hazardous waste should be excavated and transported to a secure hazardous waste treatment or disposal facility. Contaminations involving ethylbenzene may be ignitable and should be treated as hazardous until proven otherwise.

For contaminated product the preferred disposal options include sending it to a licensed incinerator or other thermal destruction device. As a service to its customers, the chemical industry can provide lists of companies which recycle or process ethylbenzene and which handle used drums.

Water contaminated with ethylbenzene may be cleaned by air stripping (to remove the bulk of the ethylbenzene), followed by biological treatment and, if required, treated with granular activated carbon. The ethylbenzene vapour should be captured by a collecting system, optionally provided with a condenser. Containers used to hold ethylbenzene must be drained and then thoroughly cleaned to be considered non-hazardous. Rinse liquid generated from washing should be collected and properly disposed of. Waste classification and compliance with laws, regional and/or local, are the responsibility of the waste generator.

CEFIC
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Patrick Detournay
T +32 2 676 72 05
E pdt@cefic.be