What would be the best way to dispose of your used compressor filters? I was trying to look it up, though could not find any information of value. It would be wrong to just put it into the regular garbage bin, so what would be the correct way?
Thanks
This would depend on where you live and in what country. Also in some locations if you were what is known as a commercial compressor operation or business i.e. if you sold compressed air for money.
As for the risks. While not classed strictly as hazardous waste it’s not quite that straightforward.
Undisclosed risks are present perhaps greater than first appreciated
The drying agent common in reducing the water vapour dew point at high pressure in compressed air systems is known as molecular sieve or zeolite.
In its purest form it is a bright pure white powder, and is made from powder into the required mesh size ball without any additional chemical binder for medical use and in laboratory high pressure air pure air compressors, high pressure thermal imaging systems, cryogenic mini coolers (liquid air) and in some pure air high pressure breathing air compressors.
By contrast for industrial use of high pressure air and in most scuba shop compressor filters this pure zeolite is “cut” with an inert silica binder to make the spherical balls, And it is this inert binder that can be up to 30% of the molecular sieve total product by weight.
Further imported zeolite and binder from the likes of China also taint the colour of the white molecular sieve causing it to vary from off white to dark grey to brown depending on the type of carcinogenic silica bulk filler/binder used.
This also gets the price down and because it is a cheaper option it is found in most dive shop filters and stores, dive boats and resort compressors.
Not much is talked about this in the scuba world but if you look for example at a responsible manufacturer at the packaging label on say the Bauer filter cartridges it does give the silica warning together with the carcinogenic warning and the advise to dispose of in a registered landfill site.
If you wish to breathe from this industrial chemical production, that’s not my problem sadly I dare say most divers don’t get given the option or have a choice.
By contrast the pure white pure air grade MS that I have been using for the last 30 years is non carcinogenic as it does not use binder in the manufacturing process, it is also up to 30% more effective and has no inert component contained within the zeolite chemical matrix.
The other carcinogenic chemical common in scuba diving compressor filters is Cobalt Chloride Hexahydrate again not something you would want to chew on but found in very small quantities.
To be honest your real risk is in breathing the lubrication breakdown compounds, the carry over for the compressor lubricant much more dangerous and found in much higher levels and again is very seldom discussed on divers forums for well understood reasons but also needa as much consideration in its waste product disposal. Iain
