EPA Awards $750K to Toxics Use Reduction Institute

11/13/2024

In 1989, identification and eradication of trichloroethylene, or TCE, a toxic chemical linked to a cluster of childhood cancers and other horrific incidents, was one of the driving forces behind the establishment of the Toxics Use Reduction Institute at UMass Lowell.

So prevalent was the use of TCE that 35 years later TURI’s mission remains reducing the use of carcinogens and other toxic substances like it in industrial applications. Today, the research institute in downtown Lowell received two U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grants totaling $759,250 to implement new technology and industry-based outreach to further its efforts.

“This endeavor will emphasize the importance of transitioning away from hazardous substances and best practices in cleaning processes,” said TURI Laboratory Director Jason Marshall. “We look forward to working with businesses and serving as a central source for information on safer alternatives, best practices and case studies.”

The first grant, funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will establish a Vacuum Degreasing Hub dedicated to identifying, optimizing and validating safer alternatives to TCE and other toxic solvents. Vacuum vapor degreasing is a cleaning process that operates in a closed system, not open to the air, allowing fresh solvent vapors to clean contaminated units.

While vacuum degreasing systems are common features offered by equipment vendors to potential customers, the lab established at TURI will be one of very few facilities to offer independent testing. In addition, the TURI Vacuum Degreasing Hub is compatible with flammable solvents, a new development in vacuum vapor systems which have relied on halogenated solvents in years prior.

“The Vacuum Degreasing Hub represents a significant step forward in our commitment to advancing toxic use reduction technologies,” said TURI Director Baskut Tuncak. “By replacing these hazardous solvents, TURI aims to prevent pollution and the various diseases and disabilities, particularly in disadvantaged communities.”

TURI’s Vacuum Degreasing Hub will also provide essential training for potential TCE users in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island. This will include collaboration with pollution prevention groups and industries across New England to provide validation of the cleaning process.

Aligning with the research institute’s “Drive to Zero” campaign, which aims to completely phase out the use of TCE and similar harmful solvents, the second grant gives TURI the opportunity to educate about and demonstrate how vacuum degreasing systems have been successfully implemented replacing the use of hazardous solvents.

The demonstration events, funded through the EPA’s State and Tribal Assistance Grants program, will be open to companies interested in purchasing vacuum degreasing systems in Massachusetts and the surrounding states. TURI hopes to partner with four or five such companies who plan to eradicate the use of TCE and engage, via networking and webinars, dozens more across the nation.

Projects under the two grants are slated to commence in early 2025.