NBSIR 73-247

A Study of the Destruction and

Disposal of Classified Documents in

the Washington, D.C. Area

Edmond L. Graminski

Paper Evaluation Section

Institute for Materials Research

National Bureau of Standards

July 23, 1973

Final Report

Prepared for General Services Administration

Washington, D. C. 20407

NBSIR 73-247

A STUDY OF THE DESTRUCTION AND

DISPOSAL OF CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS IN THE WASHINGTON, D.C. AREA

Edmond L. Graminski

Paper Evaluation Section

Institute for Materials Research

National Bureau of Standards

July 23, 1973

Final Report

Note: This document has been prepared for the use of General Services Administration. Responsibility

for its further use rests with that agency.

Prepared for General Services Administration

Washington, D. C. 20407

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE. Frederick B. Dent, Secretary

IMATIOIMAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS, Richard W. Roberts, Director

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

SUMMARY 1

1. INTRODUCTION , 3

2. DOCUMENT DESTRUCTION BY PULPING 5

3. DOCUMENT DESTRUCTION BY DRY PROCESSING 6

4. SURVEY OF PAPER MACHINERY 8

4.1 Potential Additions to the Present

Pulping Systems 8

4.2 Potential for Manufacture of Complete

Destruct Systems 9

5. FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED IN CHOOSING A

LESTPUCT SYSTEM 10

6. POTENTIAL MARKETS FOR FIBER FROM DESTRUCTED

DOCUMENTS 12

7. CENTRAL PAPER PROCESSING CENTER 14

8. CONCLUSIONS

,

. . 16

9. RECOMMENDATIONS 17

SUMMARY

Several agencies in the Washington, D.C. area are required to destroy comparatively large quantities of classified documents on a daily basis. Most agencies use a wet

destruct process, and the product is a paper pulp that at

times contains some impurities such as tape, staples, plastic

film, etc. The pulp contains a high percentage of water,

and the solids content is on the order of 30 percent. Although the fiber is potentially useful for paper and paperboard (especially the latter) manufacture, it contains too

much water to be baled or economically shipped to a mill

where it could be utilized.

The Paper Evaluation Section of NBS was asked to

(1) determine whether the pulp from existing facilities

could be baled, (2) look into the availability of more

efficient dewatering equipment, (3) determine what equipment

is available for document destruction and baling, and (4) obtain market information on the destructed material.

Information on (l)-(3) was developed by surveying tne

paper machinery industry. As equipment of this type (pulpers,

dry defibrators, dewaterers , balers) usually is available

from different manufacturers and not as a system from one

manufacturer, an attempt was made to generate interest in

planning a complete system for the destruction of classified

documents and sale of the product for reuse or recycling.

Whenever possible, trial runs were conducted by manufacturers

at their plants.

Trial runs on two high powered screw presses extracted

enough water to increase the solids content of the pulp to

almost 70 percent. However, changes occurred during water

extraction that made the pulp less desirable for recycling.

Two other types of water extractors are manufactured for

extracting water from wood pulp and would be quite satisfactory for water extraction in the present wet destruct systems.

One of the extractors has the capability of forming wet sheets

that can be stacked on skids for shipment. No trials have

been conducted on any of this equipment.

One baler designed specifically for baling wet pulp is

available, but the pulp consistency must be approximately

50 percent for successful operation.

*

2

At present, there is a good market for pulp from wet

destruction of classified documents. This stems from a severe pulp shortage that is likely to continue for the

foreseeable future. However, the pulp must first be baled

before it can be sold, as paper and paperboard mills are

not equipped to handle it in any other form. The pulp would

be classified as mixed waste paper. The price of the pulp

would be tied to the mixed waste paper market, which fluctuates considerably.

In addition to the two wet pulping systems currently

used by many Government agencies, two dry destruct systems

are available commercially. None of the systems have baling

capabilities, and, in fact, the constitution of the effluent

from one of the systems does not allow the effluent to be

baled. The effluent from dry systems has a low bulk density

so it is more expensive to truck to landfill.

All of the equipment necessary to assemble a satisfactory wet or dry destruct system is available commercially.

Two firms have expressed an interest in manufacturing a destruct system. One of the firms, which manufactures a dry

system, already has made arrangements to get on GSA schedule.

This firm has conducted trials for a number of Government

agencies and has proved its capability for destructing documents, and proved that the discharge from its system can be

baled. The second firm supplies a wet pulping system that

is used in the waste paper recycling industry. This system

should be excellent for document destruction.

This investigation has shown that the wet system is best

for destructing paper documents from the standpoint of completeness of document destruction and recycling potential.

Hov/ever, a dry system might be more suitable for agencies

having only small quantities of material to destruct.

Considering the number of document destruction sites

located in the V7ashington, D.C. area, it perhaps would be

more efficient if a central facility for processing waste

paper was established^ Such a processing center would destruct

classified documents and process mixed waste paper. A central

processing center for paper should make waste paper collection

and sale more efficient and hopefully more profitable. The

center also could serve as a model waste paper reclamation

system for municipalities. A successful paper reclamation

system would eventually lead to a decline in the volume of

waste sent to landfill.

3

1. INTRODUCTION

Three methods are available for the destruction of

classified documents:

(1) Incineration

(2) Pulping (wet process)

(3) Shredding or milling (dry process)

Incineration is total destruction and precludes reuse or

recycling, although the fuel value of the organic matter

could be recovered. Pulping involves disintegration and

dispersion in a water medium to individual fibers. Shredding

or milling (hammermill) involves cutting or dry beating, and

the effluent is discharged through a heavy screen. The product is less homogeneous than that from wet pulping, and the

size distribution is governed by the size of the holes in the

screen. In any case, considerable dust is generated and

precautions must be taken to prevent explosions. The machines

are very noisy and must be installed in acoustically insulated

rooms

During the mid 1960s, two wet pulping systems for document destruction became available commercially, and a number

of these systems were installed at various Government agencies

in the Washington, D.C. area. The effluent from the pulper,

containing approximately 5 percent solids dispersed in water,

is pumped into a low powered screw press which concentrates

the slush to about 30 percent solids. The extracted water

is recycled to the pulper. The discharge from the screw

press is conveyed to a dump truck or a trash container for

disposal to landfill.

Originally, it was planned that the pulp would be baled

and sold to paper and paperboard mills for recycling. The

high water content and the fact that the screw press caused

the pulp to aggregate into sphere-like shapes made it impossible to form a rigid bale. The bales broke apart during

loading, shipping, or unloading. Therefore, marketability

vanished and the pulp had to be trucked to landfill. Disposal

of the pulp became a liability, and considerable effort was

made to find a use for it.

Each new use that was found disappeared as soon as its

lack of easy handling was recognized. Disposal problems

mounted as similar destruct systems were installed in new

locations

4

As dissatisfaction with the wet pulping system became

known, dry systems for document destruction were investigated.

Some commercial systems were available and at least two different systems were installed in the Washington, D.C. area.

Ironically, one of the dry systems quickly found itself in

a position similar to that of the wet pulping system because

the product could not be baled due to the constitution of the

effluent and had to be trucked to landfill. By virtue of its

low apparent density, the cost of disposing of the dry material on a per ton basis was greater than for the wet material.

As noted above, the dry system is very noisy and dusty and

requires appreciably more maintenance.

Responsibility for the disposal of destructed classified

documents lies largely with the General Services Administration (GSA) , as most destruct systems are located in buildings

under their supervision. In response to a proposal submitted

to GSA by the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) , a project

was initiated at NBS to:

(1) Determine whether the pulp from existing facilities

could be baled.

(2) Look into the availability of more efficient dewatering equipment.

(3) Determine what equipment is available for document

destruction and baling.

(4) Obtain market information on the destructed material.

5

DOCUMENT DESTRUCTION BY PULPING

Destruction of paper documents by wet pulping is most

certainly one of the most desirable methods from the standpoint of destruction efficiency and recycling potential. It

would be impossible to restore any part of a completely defibered document, and the pulps could be recycled to make

paper or paperboard. Because of the mixture of papers, the

product, at best, would be classified as pulp from No. 1

mixed paper.

The operators of a pulping system must have some training in the use and maintenance of the equipment and at least

a moderate degree of technical competence. Operators must

understand the limitations of their equipment and how to deal

with problems that are certain to occur.

For a pulping destruct system to function properly, it

must contain a pulper capable of ultimate paper defibering.

It should be constructed of stainless steel to avoid corrosion

and must be ruggedly constructed. It should be equipped with

a "junker" and a "ragger" to cope with contaminants such as

metal clips, staples, cans, and bottles.

A desirable feature is the capability to pulp wet strength

paper. Most pulpers cannot defiber wet strength paper, and

docu'Tients such as maps otherwise could not be processed in a pulping system. Map paper is made from expensive long fibered

pulp, and every effort should be made to recycle the paper.

If destructed dry, maps can be utilized only by a small number

of paper mills set up to process wet strength paper. This

creates a fluid market situation. If the maps were completely

defibered in a pulping system, there would be no restraints

on its marketability.

The pulping system should be fitted with a high powered

press capable of receiving a consistency varying from 1 to

10 percent solids and capable of producing a discharge of no

less than 45 percent solids. This permits the production of

stable bales. One piece of dewatering equipment can produce

a lap which can be sheeted, stacked, and loaded into skids.

The resulting skid can be transported easily without problems.

Lap is sheets of wet pulp as they come from a wet machine

for shipment or for storage. The lap, whether baled or in

sheet form, can be mixed with solid fuels and burned in power

plants for energy. There may be a need to burn pulped documents at times when a surplus of waste paper exists. The

possibility of multiple use for destructed documents should

result in a more stable price for the pulped document.

6

3. DOCUMENT DESTRUCTION BY DRY PROCESSING

Dry methods reduce documents to such a small size that

restoration would be virtually impossible. In hammermilling

the documents are thrown against a breaker plate where considerable size reduction occurs. The hammers then drive the

material against a screen where further size reduction is

performed. Final particle size is governed by the diameter

of the perforations in the screen through which the disintegrated material is discharged from the hammermill.

The discharge is conveyed away from the hammermill by a pneumatic system. Air is drawn through the mill to help clear

the screens, to increase the grinding efficiency, and to cool

the screen and hamm.ers , thus reducing the possibility of fire.

An insufficient amount of air drawn through the mill very

frequently results in a fire somewhere in the system. Very

high velocities of air also help extinguish a fire.

The effluent is conveyed to a cyclone where the solids

are separated from the air stream. The solids drop to the

bottom of the cyclone and pass through an air lock. The

discharge can be baled providing its constitution is amenable

to baling. Otherwise, the effluent is placed in trash containers and hauled to landfill.

A hammermill operation is noisy, dusty, and there is

the potential for fire and explosions. Therefore, the proper

precautions for the health and safety of the operators must

be taken. It is necessary to insulate the system to reduce

noise and to locate it in an air-tight room to prevent dust

from circulating throughout the building. The introduction

of a fine mist of water usually is sufficient to prevent dust

explosions.

The fan which draws air and material discharge from the

hammermill usually is connected directly to the mill shaft.

There is an initial decrease in motor speed as the m.ill is

charged, which results in a decrease in the amount of air

drawn through the mill at a time when it is most needed. The

problem would not arise if the fan were driven by a separate

motor, but then the cost of the system would increase significantly .

7

A supposed advantage of the dry system is its ability

to destruct tapes, plastics, metal components, and glass.

These non-paper articles usually are mixed with paper documents, so the result is a defibered paper product contaminated with film, tape, metal, and glass. In addition, there

is a significant shortening of paper fibers and production

of fairly large quantities of debris. These make recycling

of the paper virtually impossible. From the standpoint of

recycling, the dry system is less satisfactory than wet

pulping for destructing paper documents.

Although the disadvantages of the dry method for destruction generally outnumber the advantages, a dry system would

have an apparent advantage over the wet system for small

quantities. The dry system can be operated intermittently

and for short periods of time. The wet system should be

operated continuously for at least one shift per day for best

performance

8

4. SURVEY OF PAPER MACHINERY

4 . 1 Potential Additions to the Present Pulping

Systems

The first task was to determine if equipment is commercially available that would extract more water from the pulp

than at present. Manufacturers of water extraction equipment

were contacted, and at least two demonstrations of screw

type presses were observed. It was demonstrated that much

more water could be extracted than by the present systems,

and in one instance, the solids content was as high as 67

percent. However, as the discharge from the water extractor

consisted of clumps of varying sizes, the clumps would not

cohere, and there was no real improvement in baling. In

addition to the difficulty in baling, "fish eyes" (which later

cause transparent spots in the finished paper) formed during

the extraction process. These make the pulp undesirable for

recycling

One baler manufacturer found that wet pulp could be

baled successfully at a consistency of approximately 50 percent if the pulp was fluffed before baling. Fluffing i-^ an

operation similar to hammermilling , whereby the structured

pulp is broken down mechanically to a near fibrous condition

after water extraction. The fluffed pulp is readily baled in

a baler specifically designed to bale wet pulp. All attempts

to arrange for a demonstration were unsuccessful. The reason

given by the manufacturer was that many mills utilize his

equipment to bale all types of wet pulp, and he was not

willing to underwrite the cost of a trial run. He did suggest, however, that a pulp mill with this equipment might

agree to process a quantity of pulp for a fee. This arrangement was made but more than a year elapsed before funds were

made available for the work. By that time, the work load in

the pulp mill precluded the use of his equipment for this

purpose

Further inquiries revealed that at least one press is

commercially available that can concentrate pulp from 3 percent or less to 50 percent consistency in a single step.

Unfortunately, the press is designed to process much greater

amounts of paper than are produced in the largest of the

pulping destruct systems.

9

4 . 2 Potential for Manufacture of Complete Destruct

Systems

An extensive search of the pulp and paper machinery

industry indicated that no complete pulping and baling system

for document destruction is available. The two commercial

pulping destruct systems now in use are not manufactured by

paper machinery companies. Many of the problems associated

with the two pulping destruct systems now in use may be due

to lack of knowledge of paper technology by the two manufacturers . Although no complete wet destruct system is produced by

any one manufacturer in the paper machinery industry, all of

the components needed for a destruct system are available

commercially. It is necessary only to combine the components

into a complete destruct system. Furthermore, one system

designed for processing waste paper would be excellent for

destructing paper documents. Reference to this system is

made in section 7 of this report.

A similar situation exists with respect to dry destruction. Commercially available dry destruct systems are not

manufactured by the paper machinery industry. However, oaper

machinery firms have shown a greater willingness to demonstrate

dry destruct equipment. Part of the reason for the difference

in attitude is the lower dependence on other companies for

system components. Consequently, companies are more enthused

about designing a dry destruct system since it involves

greater in-house utilization of products and manpower.

10

5. FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED IN CHOOSING

A DESTRUCT SYSTEM

Perhaps the most important factor in deciding on a destruct system is the disposition of the discharge from

the system. The existing wet systems have created a distorted opinion of wet destruction because of the many

problems associated with the product. The present trend

appears to favor dry destruction of documents if only because

the effluent is dry. However, a decision should not be biased

for or against a type of process because of past performance

of systems that were improperly designed.

A very important difference between dry and wet pulping

is the relative degradation of the fiber by the two systems.

Wet pulping causes changes in the fibers, but these changes

are small in comparison with the cutting and massive destruction that occurs during dry disintegration. Therefore, pulp

from a wet process normally is useful for recycling, but the

product from dry disintegration is se""erely limited in recycling potential.

There is an increasing trend to dispose of paper by

using it as a fuel in power plants. There are many advantages, but the wisdom of burning paper instead of reusing

it to make paper or paperboard is questionable at a time

when a serious fiber shortage exists. A very real local

pulp supply shortage last winter was caused by a low wood

inventory at some pulp mills due to unfavorable weather in

the South for harvesting and delivering logs.

Other problems may cause future localized shortages of

pulp for paper. One problem is a potential woods labor

shortage, especially in the South. Logging is strenuous,

the summer heat is almost unbearable, and, for some, there

is a constant danger of poisonous snakes. With generally

high employment levels, work opportunities in other employrent, high wage levels, and better employment conditions,

higher woods wages would probably simply result in higher

pulp and paper prices.

Fuel shortages would also affect pulp supply. Sixty

three percent of the industry's pulp capacity and 48 percent

of its paper and paperboard capacity is in the South. Gas

provided 50 percent of the external energy required by the

industry in the South in 1971. In the South Central Region,

52 mills with 25 percent of the industry's pulp capacity

11

depend on gas for 85 percent or more of their external

energy requirements. On January 8, 1973, the Federal Power

Commission announced proposals to establish a system of

rationing natural gas and to put industrial consumers on the

lowest order of priority. Industrial consumers would also

be put on an interruptable basis for gas beginning mid 1974,

even if they presently hold firm contracts for gas. Hence,

a severe winter in 1973-74 could create a paper shortage even

greater than the one experienced during the winter of 1972-73.

In consideration of the impending problems of the pulp

and paper industry and the encouragement by the Federal

Government to recycle materials, it would seem only logical

to choose document destruct systems that would enable the

discharge to have maximum recycling potential. Therefore,

in general, wet pulping systems should be favored over dry

systems. Choosing a system yielding a product with maximum

recyclability would tend to encourage recycling in the private

sector. As stated previously, however, certain installations

that process only small quantities of paper documents probably

should choose a dry system.

In the event the pulp supply situation becomes brighter

and the need for recycling declines, the wet pulp at 50 percent solids could be burned as fuel in power plants. Wet

systems have the diversity of providing a discharge which

can be recycled for paper or paperboard or used as fuel to

generate power.

The disadvantages of the wet systems compared to other

systems are their cost, the need for good technical staffing,

and the necessity for avoiding or removing contamination with

plastics, glass, or metals. The inability of some pulpers

to defiber wet strength paper can be eliminated by merely

specifying that the pulper be capable of defibering wet

strength paper. Pulpers that can process both types of papers

equally well are available.

12

6. POTENTIAL MARKETS FOR FIBER FROM

DESTRUCTED DOCUMENTS

The discharge from document destruction systems is considered to be a product from mixed paper. As such, the price

for the destructed documents would be tied to the mixed paper

market. However, the sale of this material is dependent on

its transportability, i.e., stability of bales, freedom from

contamination, and water content, as it affects total weight

and shipping costs.

Pulped documents inherently produce a cleaner product

than is produced by dry systems from the standpoint of paper

machine performance. Great care must be taken at destruct

sites to avoid such articles as glass, plastic cups, tapes,

films, etc., being charged to the pulper. This product would

be acceptable to paper and paperboard m.ills if the products

contained less water and could be baled or formed into wet

lap. The almost certain cleanliness of the pulp might result

in a higher price than mixed paper since it could be used for

combination paperboard outer liner and would not have to be

us3d for paperboard filler as is the case with other Government mixed paper.

The only undesirable contaminant that might be found

are polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) originating in "no

carbon required" paper. The incidence of PCBs should decline

with tim.e as PCBs have not been used in this type of paper

for at least two years. However, as old files containing

PCBs wj 11 be in the discard category for several years, the

problem will remain for some time.

The market for dry destructed documents is much more

uncertain. Considerable debris is formed when documents

are destructed by hammermilling or shredding. The debris

makes the product undesirable for many paper uses, and

perhaps, its only real market would be for board filler or

for insulation. When used for insulation, the destructed

documents would be referred to as fluffed waste paper.

As pointed out earlier, dry destructed documents are

more likely to contain contaminants because the dry systems

can tolerate a certain quantity of these materials. Therefore, the market potential for dry destructed documents would,

at best, be equal to that of wet pulped documents on a per

ton basis, but is more likely to be significantly lower.

13

A stable price could not be placed on either wet or dry

destructed documents, even if they met all the paper stock

and mill requirements, because of market fluidity. Of

greatest importance is the potential marketability. However,

because of the superior quality of fiber, wet destruct systems

of proper design should produce the most marketable product.

14

7. CENTRAL PAPER PROCESSING CENTER

As the study on destruction processes progressed, it

became clear that a great amount of duplication exists in

document destruction facilities. This redundancy is costly

and quite possibly unnecessary. A central location for

document destruction in the Washington, D.C. area might

eliminate this duplication of facilities, improve the quality of destruction, and reduce the cost.

Paper documents to be destructed would be baled at

each Government facility. The baling equipment could be

designed to bale automatically and to bag and seal each

bale. The bales would be picked up by armored truck at

each agency at an appointed time and delivered to the

central destruct center.

When the bales arrived at the center, they would be

transferred to the destruct system and, in the presence of

a security officer of the agency, removed from the plastic

wrapper and dumped into a large pulper. The system would

be designed to remove cans, bottles, tape, film, and other

contaminants from the charged documents. Such a system is

available commercially. Contaminants such as tape and film

could then be destroyed by pyrolysis. The documents would

be completely defibered. The discharge from the system

would be in the form of a wet lap or it could be flash dried,

depending on the disposition of the effluent. The final

product would either be sheeted wet lap or baled secondary

pulp.

A separate study would be needed to evaluate the security

requirements for a central processing facility. Traffic

accidents, the possibility of removing documents during transit,

and other factors known only to security personnel would need

to be considered. Although the cost of security might be

greater, the elimination of duplication of facilities, plus

other advantages mentioned below, should far outweigh this.

With a central paper processing center as suggested

,

all Government mixed papers could be processed at the site

during the remaining hours of the day . The resulting pulp

should be satisfactory for making paperboard without additional

processing. Because of the cleanliness of the product, the

pulp could be used for top or bottom board liner with an

expected price increase of 50-60 percent above the market

price of mixed papers. The processing of paper other than

classified documents would increase security because the

classified documents would be diluted with unclassified paper.

15

The central paper processing facility would make the

waste paper collection and selling system more efficient

and, hopefully, m.ore profitable. The facility could also

serve as a model waste paper reclamation system for municioalities of all sizes. Considerable information could be

generated with respect to waste paper collection and processing with the intent of recycling. The system eventually

could be modified to include a deinking plant so that a high

quality secondary pulp could be produced. If the tonnage

became large enough, the secondary pulp could be flash dried

to decrease the cost of transportation. Production of secondary pulp would enable much greater use of waste paper

since mills not having recycling equipment could include

secondary fiber in their products. At present, only specially

designed mills are able to use waste paper. Unfortunately,

secondary fiber usually is consumed at the mill or at another

corporate mill and does not enter the pulp market. A central

paper processing center would provide an excellent example for

the private sector.

Such a central facility would not necessarily have to

be financed and operated by the Federal Government. There

are strong indications that with assured volumes and grades

of waste paper available under long-term, equitable arrangements, a secondary fibers firm(s) would be ready to seize the

opportunity and finance the plant wholly or in part under

agreed upon security surveillance procedures.

16

8. CONCLUSIONS

1. The discharge from wet pulping systems currently

in use can be baled only if more water is extracted and a unique baler is employed. This equipment is available.

2. A commercial press is available that produces a wet lap which can be sheeted and placed on skids for shipment. No baler is required.

3. Equipment necessary to assemble satisfactory wet

or dry destruct systems is available commercially.

4. Pulping is preferred to dry disintegration as it

produces the best marketable fiber for recycling. In the

event the market for pulp declines, the pulp can be burned

for fuel.

5. At least two firms are interested in manufacturing

destruct systems with proven capability for baling or wet

lap production.

6. Dry systems can destruct documents satisfactorily,

but considerable debris is generated. The discharge is

barely suitable for recycling. Nevertheless, the dry method

for destruction probably is best suited for small quantities

of documents, that is, approximately five tons of documents

per day or less.

17

9 . RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Several agencies in the Washington, D.C. area

ipaintain facilities for document destruction. Duplication

of equipment should be eliminated by installing one central

facility for waste paper processing.

2. Whenever possible, document destruction should be

accomplished by pulping and not by dry disintegration.

Facilities destructing less than five tons of paper daily

should consider a dry system. A central facility for document destruction will eliminate the need for dry destruction.

3. Every effort should be made to recycle destructed

paper documents, especially with the present and probable

continuing fiber shortage.

4. No destruct system should be purchased unless it

has demonstrated a capability for baling or sheeting the

effluent in a transportable form.

5. A properly designed wet system would be capable of

defibering wet strength paper as well as non-wet strength

paper

6. Dry destruct systems should have adequate safety

and health provisions, e.g., explosion proof protection in

addition to provisions for noise abatement.

7. Wet pulping systems should be fabricated from

stainless steel in order to avoid corrosion problems.

8. Before it is approved, a wet destruct system that

employs uncommon methods for defibering paper should be

evaluated to ensure that excessive fiber degradation does

not occur.

9. Every effort should be made to avoid contamination

of paper with plastic, glass, film, metal, etc., regardless

of the method of destruction.

10. The proper destruction of material other than paper

should be investigated. For example, pyrolytic methods for

destructing non-paper classified documents such as plastics

and films should be considered, especially if the system

converts the plastic and films into a gaseous or liquid fuel.

18

11. Specifications for document destruct systems

should be reviewed by experts before they are released for

bid.

FORM NBS-n4A (1.71) U.S. DEPT. OF CCMM. 1, PUBLICATION OR REPORT NO. 2. Gov't Accession

BIBLIOGRAPHIC DATA „^ . No. SHEET NBSIR 73-247

3. Recipient's Accession .No.

4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE

A Study of the Destruction and Disposal of

Classified Documents in the Washington, D.C. Area

5. Publication Date

6. Performing Organization Code

NBSIR 73-247

7. AUTHOR(S)

Edmond L. Graminski

8, Performing Organization

9. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCF

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20234

10. Project/Taslc/Work Unit No. 4110440

11. Contract/Grant No.

12. Sponsoring Organization Name and Address

General Services Administration

wasmngton, u.l.. ^U4U/

13. Type of Report & Period

Covered

Final Report

14. Sponsoring Agency Code

15. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES

16. .ABSTR.^CT (A 200-word or less factual sununary of most significant information. If document includes a significant

bibliography or literature survey, mention it here.)

Several agencies in the Washington, D.C. area are required to

destroy comparatively large quantities of classified documents on

a daily basis. Most agencies use a wet destruct system, and the

product is a paper pulp that contains a high percentage (70) of

water and impurities such as tape, staples, plastic, and film. The

pulp is potentially marketable but contains too much water to be

baled or economically shipped to a paper mill.

The Paper Evaluation Section was asked to (1) determine whether

pulp from existing facilities could be baled, (2) determine the

availability of more efficient dewatering equipment, (3) determine

what equipment is available for document destruction and baling, and

(4) obtain market information on the destructed material.

The study indicated that (1) more efficient water extractors

are available commercially, (2) the discharge from wet destruct

systems can be baled, (3) other destruct equipment is available,

and (4) a market exists for the baled pulp.

'7. KEY WORDS (Alphabetical order, separated by semicolons)

Balers; classified; destruction; documents; hammermills; pulpers;

recycling

18. .AVAILABILITY ST.\TEMENT

UNLIMITED.

19. SECURITY CLASS

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