American Journal of Environmental Protection, 2017, Vol. 5, No. 1, 9-12 Available online at http://pubs.sciepub.com/env/5/1/2 ©Science and Education Publishing DOI:10.12691/env-5-1-2 Emission Inventory of Air Pollutants in a Metal Recycling Facility M.A. Adeyeye 1,* , F.A. Akeredolu 1 , J.A. Sonibare 1 , B.S. Fakinle 1 , E.L. Odekanle 1 , I.M. Oloko-Oba 2 1 Environmental Engineering Research Laboratory, Department of Chemical Engineering, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria 2 African Regional Centre for Space Science and Technology Education-English (ARCSSTE-E), Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria *Corresponding author: foluy2k4@yahoo.com Abstract Emission inventory plays important roles in the assessment, monitoring, modelling and management of emissions of air pollutants which have devastating impacts on human health, vegetation and climate. The study estimates the quantities of selected air pollutants generated from a metal recycling process involving charging, melting and tapping using standard emission factor approach. The pollutants considered include Nitrogen oxides (NO x ), Sulphur oxides (SO 2 ), Carbon monoxide (CO) and Total Suspended Particulate (TSP) matter. The total quantity of material consumption daily represents the activity level. The total quantity of material consumed was combined with appropriate published emission factors by United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). The result showed that the quantities of NO x , SO 2 , CO, and total suspended particulate (TSP) matter emitted are 0.013, 0.012, 0.110 and 2.323 tonne/day, respectively. The percentage proportion of TSP emitted is 94.5 % followed by CO (4.5 %) while the quantities of NOx (0.5 %) and SO 2 (0.5 %) are similar. The inventory information in this study is expected to serve as a guide to researchers and policy makers to know the fate and effects of air pollutants in the study area for adequate air quality management. Keywords: emission inventory, metal recycling, emission factors, air pollutants Cite This Article: M.A. Adeyeye, F.A. Akeredolu, J.A. Sonibare, B.S. Fakinle, E.L. Odekanle, and I.M. Oloko-Oba, “Emission Inventory of Air Pollutants in a Metal Recycling Facility.” American Journal of Environmental Protection, vol. 5, no. 1 (2017): 9-12. doi: 10.12691/env-5-1-2. 1. Introduction The complex and local air pollution issues of concern such as acid rain, photochemical smog, material damage, ecosystem disturbances and haze caused by emission sources, especially anthropogenic sources, have become the most crucial areas of research in environmental engineering in most part of the world, particularly in Nigeria. Studies have been conducted to assess the level of criteria air pollutants in highly polluted areas [1,2,3,4]. The increased growth of cottage industries in Nigeria, for example, iron and steel smelting factory has become a major environmental driving force for the deterioration of urban air quality [5]. Therefore, the quantification of air pollutants emission from such industry will be fundamental to the understanding of emission levels, forecasting air quality status, and guiding formidable air pollutant control strategies. Iron and steel scrap recycling, by nature of its process, is often characterized with emission of toxic air pollutants [6]. Air pollutants such as NO x , SO 2 , CO, and TSP are pollutants generated and subsequently emitted into the atmosphere at each stage of charging, melting and tapping of molten scrap which takes place in electric arc furnaces and the ladle. The emission inventory of the iron and steel smelting industry considered in this work was necessitated due to the heavy dark smoke that escapes from the smelting shop during production. Emission from metal recycling has been reported to be a complex mixture with many toxic metal components which are hazardous to human health [7]. Although, the factory location was initially in the outskirt of the host town, the housing development of the town has in the mean time extended to areas that are in close proximity to the factory. For an effective and efficient air quality execution and planning, there is a need for emission inventory for identification and quantification of its emission. Emission inventories play important roles in the assessment, monitoring, modelling and management of emissions of air pollutants which have adverse impacts on human health, vegetation and climate [8,9,10,11]. It is a crucial scientific tool used to account for all air pollutants emitted into the atmosphere from sources within a specific geographical area. Due to their importance in forming the basis of modelling studies, and eventually mitigation policies, it is important that emission inventories produce emission estimates that are accurate [12]. It also provides information for judging the efficiency of existing air pollution management programs and for developing future air pollution control strategies. Considerable number of studies on emission inventory of anthropogenic sources has been done in many parts of