Performance of Grease Abatement Devices for Removal of Fat, Oil, and Grease

Abstract

This study assessed the performance of a conventional grease abatement device and the impact of internal geometry modifications on fat, oil, and grease (FOG) removal efficiency. Analysis was performed using experimental results and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) on alternative inlet, outlet, and baffle wall designs. Numerical and experimental results indicated that the conventional two-compartment design leads to substantial FOG short circuiting when operated at a 20-min hydraulic retention time (HRT). Alterations to the inlet configuration and baffle wall arrangement yielded FOG removal enhancements with the 20-min HRT that approached removal performance levels obtained with the standard configurations at the 1-h HRT. CFD simulations effectively reproduced performance trends observed on the lab-scale with the exception of simulations using a distributive inlet tee, where CFD over predicted the removal performance.