Facilities-Related Emissions

We report on a variety of facilities-related emissions in the Environment data section of this Web site. Also, the Operational Energy Use and Greenhouse Gas Emissions section discusses GHG emissions from facilities.

In this section, we focus on how we are reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at our facilities. VOCs are a significant aspect of Ford's manufacturing operations due to the size and number of paint shops that we operate.

Since 2000, Ford's North American operations have cut the VOC emissions associated with the painting process (by far our largest source of VOC emissions) by more than 30 percent. In 2009, these operations emitted 21 grams of VOCs per square meter of surface coated. Because the control equipment used to reduce VOC emissions consumes significant amounts of energy, we have worked to identify innovative approaches to painting that meet cost, quality and production goals while allowing us to reduce energy use significantly and maintain environmental compliance.

In one innovative approach, Ford developed a "fumes-to-fuel" system in partnership with Detroit Edison. Initially tested at the Ford Rouge Center, the system concentrated fumes containing VOC emissions from solvent-based paint for use as fuel to generate electricity. The fuel was tested on a solid oxide fuel cell.

A production-scale fumes-to-fuel system was installed as a pilot project at Ford's Michigan Truck Plant. The Michigan Truck pilot used a specially designed Stirling cycle engine that was more cost effective than a fuel cell. The engine produced about 50 kilowatts of electricity to help power the facility. The only byproducts of this system were small amounts of water vapor, CO₂ and nitrogen oxides. The Stirling engine also produced heat during combustion, which may be another useful source of energy in the future.

To further support Ford's research and development efforts, in 2009 a research facility was built at our assembly plant in Oakville, Canada, with support from the Canadian government. This site contains a production-scale version of the fumes-to-fuel system including a fluidized bed adsorber-desorber, a VOC fuel reformer, a 300 kW molten carbonate fuel cell, and a120 kW internal combustion engine. The intent of this technology is to collect a portion of the VOCs from the spray booth exhaust, then super-concentrate the VOCs in fluidized bed concentrator, followed by condensing the VOCs for use as a fuel for either the120 kW internal combustion engine or as feed to the VOC reformer which would then be used in the 300 kW molten carbonate fuel cell. The fluidized bed adsorber-desorber as well as the 120 kW internal combustion engine are running as planned. This system is now being evaluated and optimized with research and development occurring on-site. In 2010, the VOC reformer will be brought online to determine if it can reform the VOCs into a form suitable for use in a commercially available 300 kW molten carbonate fuel cell from an operations, energy efficiency and economic perspective. Ford's fumes-to-fuel system, with or without energy generation, has the potential to reduce carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions by 80 percent to 85 percent compared to traditional abatement equipment. A fumes-to-fuel system with energy generation using the fuel cell also has the potential to eliminate nitrogen oxide emissions.

Recently Ford formed partnerships with two leading-edge Canadian universities to help drive the research and development of this innovative technology, which will hopefully lead to further environmental CO₂ improvements and potential cost savings compared to traditional abatement equipment.

Moreover, we are reducing VOC emissions with an innovative paint process called "three wet." This process reduces VOC emissions by 10 percent and has other environmental, financial and quality benefits. For more information on three wet, please see the Operational Energy Use and Greenhouse Gas Emissions section.