Investigating air pollution caused by the ferrosilicon industry (Case study: Iran Ferroalloy Factory, Lorestan)

Ferrosilicon is used in the production of steel and cast iron as a modifier. The most important pollutants in the ferrosilicon industry are particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) and dust, carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and sulfur oxides (SOx). The purpose of this study was to investigate the environmental status of air pollution in Iran's ferroalloy industry by examining air pollutant control equipment. Iran's ferroalloy factory with a production capacity of 60 thousand tons of ferrosilicon is located in Lorestan province and air pollutants were measured in the years 2020 and 2021. The exhaust gases and dust were measured with the XL 350 and Westech portable particle detectors and environmental particulate matter with the Dust Trak 8520, respectively. The data analysis was done using SPSS and Excel software. So that the normality of the data was reviewed using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and the average of the data was compared with the pollution standards using the one-sample t-test. The results showed that all measured parameters of flue gases, dust, and ambient particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10 during the studied years 2020 and 2021 were according to the standard and there was no polluted air in the factory. Having suitable environmental equipment, including U-shaped pipes to cool the transfer smoke-containing gases from the furnace area to the dust collection hall (Baghouse), a cyclone separator for dust removal and the collection of particle matter (PM), and bag filters in the dust collection hall (Baghouse) have been used for collecting particle matter (PM) and filtering dust. Also, the green space, with more than 60% of the factory space, has played a very influential role in reducing the air pollution of the factory.