Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM) Practice Exam

Incineration is a waste treatment technology that involves the combustion of hazardous waste at high temperatures. This process effectively reduces the volume of the waste and destroys any organic contaminants present, resulting in the formation of ash, gases, and heat. Unlike treatment methods that concentrate contaminants, incineration fundamentally transforms the waste material, leading to a reduction in its hazardous characteristics. In contrast to incineration, thermal desorption, carbon absorption, and solvent distillation are methods that involve separating or concentrating the contaminants from the waste stream. Thermal desorption uses heat to separate volatile contaminants from soil or other solid materials, carbon absorption captures contaminants onto activated carbon, and solvent distillation separates components based on differences in boiling points. Therefore, incineration stands out as the technology that focuses primarily on the destruction and transformation of waste rather than separating and concentrating contaminants.