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Song Y, Zhao Y, Ginella A, Gallagher B, Sant G, Bauchy M. Predicting rare earth elements concentration in coal ashes with multi-task neural networks. MATERIALS HORIZONS 2024; 11:1448-1464. [PMID: 38214154 DOI: 10.1039/d3mh01491f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
The increasing demand for rare earth elements (REEs) makes them a scarce strategic resource for technical developments. In that regard, harvesting REEs from coal ashes-a waste byproduct from coal power plants-offers an alternative solution to conventional ore-based extraction. However, this approach is bottlenecked by our ability to screen coal ashes bearing large concentrations of REEs from feedstocks-since measuring the REE content in ashes is a time-consuming and costly task requiring advanced analytical tools. Here, we propose a machine learning approach to predict the REE contents based on the bulk composition of coal ashes, easily measurable under the routine testing protocol. We introduce a multi-task neural network that simultaneously predicts the contents of different REEs. Compared to the single-task model, this model exhibits notably improved accuracy and reduced sensitivity to noise. Further model analyses reveal key data patterns for screening coal ashes with high REE concentrations. Additionally, we showcase the utilization of transfer learning to improve the adaptability of our model to coal ashes from a distinct source.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Song
- Physics of AmoRphous and Inorganic Solids Laboratory (PARISlab) 5731B Boelter Hall, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
- Laboratory for the Chemistry of Construction Materials (LC2) 5731J Boelter Hall, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Yifan Zhao
- Physics of AmoRphous and Inorganic Solids Laboratory (PARISlab) 5731B Boelter Hall, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
| | - Alex Ginella
- Physics of AmoRphous and Inorganic Solids Laboratory (PARISlab) 5731B Boelter Hall, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
| | - Benjamin Gallagher
- Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) 3420 Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA
| | - Gaurav Sant
- Laboratory for the Chemistry of Construction Materials (LC2) 5731J Boelter Hall, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Institute for Carbon Management (ICM), University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- California Nanosystems Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Mathieu Bauchy
- Physics of AmoRphous and Inorganic Solids Laboratory (PARISlab) 5731B Boelter Hall, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
- Institute for Carbon Management (ICM), University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Peng F, Li J, Gong Z, Yue B, Wang X, Manyande A, Du H. Investigation of Bioaccumulation and Human Health Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Crayfish ( Procambarus clarkii) Farming with a Rice-Crayfish-Based Coculture Breeding Modes. Foods 2022; 11:261. [PMID: 35159413 PMCID: PMC8834495 DOI: 10.3390/foods11030261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2021] [Revised: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Due to the rapid development of the crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) industry in Chinese catering, people are paying more attention to the bioaccumulation of heavy metals in crayfish. To evaluate the health risks associated with the consumption of crayfish, nine types of heavy metals in both crayfish and abdominal muscles of crayfish were investigated. Crayfish samples were collected from rice-crayfish-based coculture breeding modes from different areas located in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. The average concentrations of heavy metals in the whole crayfish were much higher than the abdominal muscle of crayfish. The estimated daily intake (EDI) of heavy metals in the abdomen of crayfish was calculated to assess the noncarcinogenic risk and the overall noncarcinogenic risk including the target hazard quotient (THQ), the hazard index (HI) and carcinogenic risk (CR). The results of the present study showed that the consumption of crayfish may not present an obvious health risk to human associated with heavy metals. However, the THQ values of As in the abdominal muscles of crayfish for adults in EnShi (ES) and children in JiaYu (JY) should be of concern due to the higher contribution to the potential health risks of crayfish compared to other metals. Through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) detection of heavy metal As, it is found that As in crayfish culture environment mainly exists in the form of As3+.Therefore, the quality and quantity of crayfish consumption should be moderated to prevent the bioaccumulation of As. The results indicate that crayfish cultured in different areas may have similar pollution levels and/or emissions from the same pollution sources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangjun Peng
- College of Food Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China;
- National R & D Branch Center for Conventional Freshwater Fish Processing, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Jiawen Li
- QianJiang Public Inspection and Testing Center, Qianjiang 433100, China;
| | - Zhiyong Gong
- Key Laboratory for Deep Processing of Major Grain and Oil of Ministry of Education, Wuhan Polytechnic University, Wuhan 430023, China;
| | - Bing Yue
- Department of Scientific Education & International Cooperation, China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment, Beijing 100022, China;
| | - Xueli Wang
- School of Mathematics and Statistics, Beijing Technology and Business University, Beijing 100048, China;
| | - Anne Manyande
- School of Human and Social Sciences, University of West London, Middlesex TW8 9GA, UK;
| | - Hongying Du
- College of Food Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China;
- National R & D Branch Center for Conventional Freshwater Fish Processing, Wuhan 430070, China
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Zhou H, Bhattarai R, Li Y, Si B, Dong X, Wang T, Yao Z. Towards sustainable coal industry: Turning coal bottom ash into wealth. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 804:149985. [PMID: 34508934 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149985] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Revised: 08/18/2021] [Accepted: 08/24/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Although the world is gradually moving towards renewable energy resources, the coal industry will continue to be a major energy supply sector in the foreseeable future. However, by-products such as coal fly ash (CFA), coal bottom ash (CBA), and boiler slag are generated during coal combustion, and have become a significant environmental concern. There is an urgent need for transdisciplinary efforts in research, policy, and practice to reduce these by-products substantially. Many studies have focused on the environmental management and comprehensive utilization of CFA. As a comparison, less attention has been paid to CBA. Therefore, this critical review provides a holistic picture of CBA, from the generation, fundamental characteristics, environmental concerns to potential applications, and benefits analysis. Based on the fundamental characteristics, CBA can be considered as a sustainable and renewable resource with great potential to produce value-added materials. High-value applications and current research related to CBA, including construction and ceramic industry, wastewater remediation, soil amelioration, energy catalysis, valuable metals recovery, and material synthesis, are systemically presented and compared. It emphasizes the environmental and economic benefits of the sustainable applications of CBA as well. Particularly, it indicates that CBA is a promising candidate in normal, lightweight, self-compacting, and ultra-high-performance concrete, which shows a reduction in both energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions during concrete production. This work provides new insights into the greener and sustainable applications of CBA, and it will offer a practical guide for the sustainable development of the coal industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongxu Zhou
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, USA
| | - Rabin Bhattarai
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, USA.
| | - Yunkai Li
- College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing, PR China
| | - Buchun Si
- College of Water Resources and Civil Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing, PR China
| | - Xinxin Dong
- Key Laboratory of Energy Thermal Conversion and Control of Ministry of Education, School of Energy & Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing, PR China
| | - Tengfei Wang
- Faculty of Geosciences and Environmental Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, PR China
| | - Zhitong Yao
- College of Materials Science and Environmental Engineering, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, PR China.
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Liu T, Liu S. The impacts of coal dust on miners' health: A review. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2020; 190:109849. [PMID: 32763275 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2020] [Revised: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 06/16/2020] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
As one of the most important energy resources in the world, coal contributes a great deal to the world economy. Coal mining and processing involve multiple dust generation processes including coal cutting, transport, crushing and milling etc. Coal dust is one of the main sources of health hazard for the coal workers. Exposure of coal dusts can be prevented through administrative controls and engineering controls. Ineffective control of coal dust exposure can harm coal workers' health. Although many efforts have been made to eliminate these threats, recent years have seen an unexpected increase in coal workers' pneumoconiosis (CWP) in Appalachian basin in US. To explore the reasons for this phenomenon, in this review, we first reviewed the historical studies on coal mine dust including the regulation and engineering controls. Then, the effects of coal dust on human health was comprehensively reviewed. Next, the effects of nanoparticles on human health were reviewed, with an emphasis on toxicity of nanoparticles such as carbon nanotubes in other industries. From all this information, we hypothesize that nano-sized coal dust has contributed to the increase of CWP prevalence in recent years. As no research has been reported in this area, four directions which may need further investigation and future studies are recommended in this review. They include: 1) Systematic characterization of physicochemical properties of nano-size coal dust; 2) Toxicity and pathogenesis of nano-sized coal dust; 3) Development of real-time monitoring technology and equipment for nano-sized coal dust; 4) Development of exposure control technology and equipment. The intent of this review paper is to demonstrate the variation of coal dust properties and their impact on the mine worker's health. We suggest that the impact of nano-sized coal mine dust on miner's health has not yet been understood well and further improvements are necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ting Liu
- School of Safety Engineering, China University of Mining & Technology, Xuzhou, 221116, China; Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering, G3 Center and EMS Energy Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Shimin Liu
- Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering, G3 Center and EMS Energy Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
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Yang Z, Zhang W, Li Y, Wang C, Yang S, Tang Z, Liu D, Li Y. Water-leaching characteristic of valuable trace metals (U, V, and Ga) from (NH 4) 2SO 4-treated coal ash: A coprecipitation behavior at high temperature. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2020; 388:122113. [PMID: 31972436 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.122113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2019] [Revised: 11/23/2019] [Accepted: 01/14/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Coal ash (CA) becomes the most significant industrial solid waste and attracts much attention due to its potential environmental risk and reuse as the supplementary material. In this study, experiments were conducted to investigate the mode of occurrence and the leaching behavior of valuable trace metals (U, V, and Ga) from CA and (NH4)2SO4-treated CA (NCA), based on the recovery of aluminum. Integrations of Fe- and K-oxide with Si-Al glass increased the ash strength and obstructed the activation of NH4+ on amorphous Al-bearing phases, resulting in a limited improvement in the leaching efficiency of trace metals. On the other side, a higher liquidus temperature, contributing to the dissolutions of Al3+ and Ca2+, could promote the leaching of U from NCA as well, whereas the water-leaching behaviors of V and Ga involved a sophisticated trend with temperature > 40℃. Water-leached V/Ga tended to transfer into Fe-Mn oxide-bound and residual V/Ga owing to the noticeable hydrolysis of Fe and Ti ions that facilitated the formation of coprecipitation. However, 0.1 M H2SO4 could re-dissolve that coprecipitation, and thus leaching efficiencies of U, V, and Ga were 1.9, 1.3, and 5.0 times higher than those by directly leaching CA, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Yang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yumei Li
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China; State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Changxiang Wang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Sen Yang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Zhi Tang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Danqing Liu
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China; State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yilian Li
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China.
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Yang Z, Wang C, Liu D, Yang S, Li Y, Ning Y, Zhang Y, Tang Y, Zhang W, Li Y. A quantitative evaluation of uranium mobility and potential environment risk in coal ash with SiO 2-Al 2O 3-Fe 2O 3-CaO system. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2020; 381:120977. [PMID: 31437802 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2019.120977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2019] [Revised: 06/23/2019] [Accepted: 08/06/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Uranium-enriched coal ash (CA) receives a significant attention as a supplementary nuclear resource also due to its potential environmental risk. Combining with CA, the changing trend of uranium occurrence in synthetic coal ash (SCA) was described at CaO-Al2O3-Fe2O3 ternary phase diagrams with a fixed SiO2 (wt. %, 30%, 50% and 70%) and Na2O (2%) content. This study reveals that the mode of uranium occurrence proposes a three-stage changing process during coal combustion including uranium oxidation, combination and encapsulation. Furthermore, a high frequency of encapsulated uranium resulted from the complicated interactions among major components with a medium SiO2 content, whereas the degree was higher at a higher SiO2, resulting in the decrease of uranium mobility. Uranium was encapsulated by Si-Al matrix and Fe-Si depletion if provided the high Al2O3 and Fe2O3 but low CaO contents. However, with the development of calcium looping and biomass co-firing process, the change of element mobility should be considered in industry owing to the extra-added alkaline metals. As the activation of Ca2+ induces a significant susceptibility of acid attack, cautions must be paid in CA with a higher Ca/Si ratio to avoid its utilization as constructive materials for the potential environmental risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Yang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Changxiang Wang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Danqing Liu
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China; State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Sen Yang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yumei Li
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China; State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yu Ning
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yangyang Zhang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Ye Tang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yilian Li
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China.
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