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Fumes can be air, inert or organic based. An air based fume stream is generally destroyed at a temperature of 1400 to 1600° F. Destruction efficiency can range from 90 to 99 percent. Because they contain very little organics, a preheat exchanger downstream of the oxidizers is used to reduce fuel consumption by preheating the incoming fume stream. A catalytic incinerator may be used if the organic level is fairly low and the fume stream is free from dust or any substance poisonous to the catalyst. An incinerator for an inert based waste stream is no different from one for an air based fume stream except that air has to be injected for combustion purposes.
An organic based waste stream generally has a fairly high heating value and can be self-sustaining. A boiler may be used downstream to produce steam. Destruction efficiencies in excess of 99.9 percent may be required for such wastes, however, this is easily achieved by operating the oxidizer at a higher temperature with a minimal quantity of auxiliary fuel.