A
system for abating undesired component(s) from a gas
stream containing same, such as halocompounds, acid gases,
silanes,
ammonia, etc., by scrubbing of the
effluent gas
stream with an aqueous scrubbing medium. Halocompounds, such as
fluorine, fluorides, perfluorocarbons, and chlorofluorocarbons, may be scrubbed in the presence of a
reducing agent, e.g.,
sodium thiosulfate,
ammonium hydroxide, or
potassium iodide. In one embodiment, the scrubbing
system includes a first
acid gas scrubbing unit operated in cocurrent gas / liquid flow, and a second "
polishing" unit operated in countercurrent gas / liquid flow, to achieve high removal efficiency with low consumption of water. The scrubbing
system may utilize removable insert beds of packing material, packaged in a foraminous containment structure. The abatement system of the invention has particular utility in the treatment of
semiconductor manufacturing process effluents.