What pollutants are generated during the production process of aldehyde resin?

During the production process of aldehyde resin, various pollutants may be generated due to the raw materials used and the chemical reaction characteristics that occur, which may have a certain impact on the environment and human health. Taking common phenolic resins, urea formaldehyde resins, and melamine formaldehyde resins as examples, the following introduces the pollutants generated during their production process:

Waste gas pollutants

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs): In the production of formaldehyde resins, volatile organic compounds are produced in the production processes of phenolic resins, urea formaldehyde resins, and melamine formaldehyde resins. Taking phenolic resin as an example, the phenol and formaldehyde in the raw materials have a certain degree of volatility. During the reaction process, dehydration, post-treatment, and other steps, unreacted phenol and formaldehyde will evaporate into the air. Formaldehyde is the main volatile pollutant in the production of urea formaldehyde resin and melamine formaldehyde resin. Formaldehyde gas may escape during addition reactions, condensation reactions, and subsequent dehydration processes. These volatile organic compounds not only cause pollution to the atmospheric environment, but may also pose a health hazard to operators, such as irritating the respiratory tract and triggering allergic reactions.

Other organic waste gases: In addition to major pollutants such as formaldehyde and phenol, some other organic waste gases may also be generated during the production process. For example, in the production of phenolic resin, small amounts of organic substances such as benzene and toluene may be produced; In the production of urea formaldehyde resin and melamine formaldehyde resin, due to the complexity of the reaction, some side reaction products may be generated, such as volatile organic compounds such as lower aldehydes and alcohols, which can also cause certain pollution to the atmospheric environment.

Wastewater pollutants

Organic compounds: Formaldehyde resin production wastewater contains a large amount of organic pollutants. Taking phenolic resin production wastewater as an example, it contains unreacted phenol, formaldehyde, and organic compounds such as phenolic oligomers generated by reactions. These organic compounds have high concentrations, usually high chemical oxygen demand (COD) values, poor biodegradability, and high treatment difficulty. The wastewater from the production of urea formaldehyde resin and melamine formaldehyde resin contains unreacted urea, formaldehyde, melamine, and organic macromolecules produced by condensation reactions, which also have high COD values and cause significant pressure on the water environment.

Acidic and alkaline substances: Acid and alkali catalysts used in the production process will remain in the wastewater, resulting in strong acidity and alkalinity of the wastewater. For example, acid or alkaline catalysts used in the production of phenolic resin, formic acid and sodium hydroxide used for pH adjustment in the production of urea formaldehyde resin, etc. will make the pH value of wastewater deviate from the neutral range. If discharged directly, it will cause damage to the water ecosystem and soil environment.

Nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus: In the production wastewater of urea formaldehyde resin and melamine formaldehyde resin, due to the presence of nitrogen-containing substances such as urea and melamine in the raw materials, the wastewater may contain a certain amount of nitrogen elements, and in some cases, phosphorus and other nutrients. If these nutrients are discharged into water bodies, they may lead to eutrophication and cause environmental problems such as massive algal growth.