Extraction kinetics of heavy metal-containing sludge

MSWI Fly Ash Multiple Washing: Kinetics of Dissolution in Water, as Function of Time, Temperature and Dilution

Municipal solid waste incineration fly ash (FA) can represent a sustainable supply of supplementary material to the construction industries if it is pre-treated to remove hazardous substances such as chloride, sulfate, and heavy metals. In this paper, the phenomenology associated with a water washing multi-cycle treatment of FA is investigated, focusing attention upon the mineral dissolution process. The efficacy of the treatment is assessed by leaching tests, according to the European Standard, and discussed in light of the occurring mineral phases. The water-to-solid (L/S) ratio is a crucial parameter, along with the number of washing cycles, for removing halite and sylvite, whereas quartz, calcite, anhydrite, and an amorphous phase remain in the solid residue. The sequential extraction method and dissolution kinetics modelling provide further elements to interpret leaching processes, and suggest that dissolution takes place through a two-step mechanism. Altogether, multi-step washing with L/S = 5 is effective in reducing contaminants under the legal limits for non-hazardous waste disposal, while the legal limits for non-reactive or reusable material cannot be completely reached, owing to sulfate and some heavy metals which still leached out from the residue.

Washing Batch Test of Contaminated Sediment: The Case of Augusta Bay (SR, Italy)

Two experimental campaigns were conducted to optimize the applicability of the Sediment Washing treatment on the marine sediments of Augusta Bay contaminated with heavy metals and total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH). In the first campaign were used EDTA, citric acid, and acetic acid to removal only heavy metals (Ni, Cu, Zn, Cr, and Hg) from the sediments, while in the second campaign EDTA, citric acid, and EDDS were used to removal heavy metals (Ni, Cu, Cr, and Pb) and TPH. The tests were conducted at different pH values and contact times with 1:10 solid:liquid weight ratio. In the first experimental, at pH values 4, contact time 3 h, and citric acid, high removal efficiencies (78–82%) have been obtained for Ni, Cu, Zn, and Cr metals, while, in the second experimental campaign, at pH value 4, contact time 0.5 h, and citric acid, high removal efficiencies have been achieved especially for Pb and TPH. Finally, on the basis of the results obtained, a conceptual sediment washing treatment layout was proposed and the related costs estimated.

Application of washed MSWI fly ash in cement composites: long-term environmental impacts

In the present study, long-term environmental impacts of compact and ground cement composites, in which 30 wt.% of cement was replaced by washed municipal solid wastes incineration (MSWI) fly ash, were investigated for use in building industry. Consecutive leaching tests over a time span of 180 days were performed in acid water, deionized water, and saline water, respectively, with the accumulative concentration of different elements determined in the leachate. Different leaching behaviors are observed among different potential toxic elements (PTEs). For instance, higher concentrations of V in the leachate were observed from the compact cement composites than those from the ground ones. The concentration of Ba in the leachate increased with the decrease of particle size of the cement composites, and an initial increase in the leaching efficiency of Sn was followed by a clear decline with the leaching time. In addition, kinetic study revealed that the leaching behaviors of potential toxic elements follow a second-order model. The results demonstrated that the addition of washed MSWI fly ash into cement can contribute to the attrition resistance, indicating that the washed MSWI fly ash could be a promising alternative for cement as supplementary building materials.

Long-term leaching behaviours of cement composites prepared by hazardous wastes

In order to evaluate the long-term environmental impact of Eco-Ordinary Portland Cement (EOPC) prepared by municipal solid wastes (MSS) and hazardous wastes (HW), consecutive leaching tests with a time span of 180 days were conducted on the EOPC composites in the compact and ground forms under deionized and saline water conditions. The results show that the heavy metals investigated can be classified into three groups according to their leaching behaviours. The concentrations of V, Pb, Ni, Ba, Cd and Zn in the leachate increase with the leaching time, which can be classified into the first group. Cu and Sn are in the second group, and their concentrations increase initially, and decline afterward. Cr and As are in the third group, and their concentrations decline firstly, followed by a clear increase. Besides, a kinetic study was also conducted in the present study, revealing that the leaching behaviours of heavy metals follow a second-order model. Furthermore, our results suggest that the EOPC is resistant to the saline water, but the application of such materials in marine conditions should be paid attention to due to the pollution of arsenic.

In order to evaluate the long-term environmental impact of Eco-Ordinary Portland Cement (EOPC) prepared by hazardous wastes, long-term leaching tests were conducted on the EOPC composites under deionized and saline water conditions.

Pilot-scale investigation of sludge reduction in aerobic digestion system with endospore-forming bacteria

A pilot-scale investigation of membrane-based aerobic digestion system dominated by endospore-forming bacteria was evaluated as one of the potential sludge treatment processes (STP). Most of the organic matter in the sludge was removed (90.1%) by the particular bacteria in the STP, which consisted of mixed liquor suspended solid (MLSS) contact reactor (MCR), MLSS oxidation reactor (MOR), and membrane bioreactor (MBR). The sludge was accumulated in the MBR without wasting, and then the effluent in STP was fed into the first step in water resource recovery facility (WRRF). According to the analysis of microbial communities in all reactors, various Bacillus species were present in the STP, mainly due to their intrinsic resistance to the extreme conditions. As the surviving Bacillus species might consume degraded microorganisms for their growth, these endospore-forming bacteria-based STP could be suitable for the sludge reduction when they operated for a long time.

Innovative Application of Mechanical Activation for Rare Earth Elements Recovering: Process Optimization and Mechanism Exploration

With the rapidly expanding use of fluorescent lamps (FLs) and increasing interest in conservation and sustainable utilization of critical metals such as rare earth elements (REEs), the recovering of REEs from phosphors in waste FLs is becoming a critical environmental and economic issue. To effectively recycle REEs with metallurgical methods, mechanical activation by ball milling was introduced to pretreat the waste phosphors. This current study put the emphasis on the mechanical activation and leaching processes for REEs, and explored the feasibility of the method from both theoretical and practical standpoints. Results showed physicochemical changes of structural destruction and particle size reduction after mechanical activation, leading to the easy dissolution of REEs in the activated samples. Under optimal conditions, dissolution yields of 89.4%, 93.1% and 94.6% for Tb, Eu and Y, respectively, were achieved from activated waste phosphors using hydrochloric acid as the dissolution agent. The shrinking core model proved to be the most applicable for the leaching procedure, with an apparent activation energy of 10.96 ± 2.79 kJ/mol. This novel process indicates that mechanical activation is an efficient method for recovering REEs from waste phosphors, and it has promising potential for REE recovery with low cost and high efficiency.

Kinetic Study for Platinum Extraction from Spent Catalyst in Cyanide Solution at High Temperatures

In this research, the kinetics of platinum extraction from a selective linear paraffin dehydrogenation spent catalyst in cyanide solutions at high pressure and temperature was experimentally studied. Three variables, including reaction temperature, initial sodium cyanide concentration in solution and liquid to solid weight ratio were investigated. Based on the design of experiments via response surface methodology (RSM) by computer simulating software “Minitab 16”, experiments were carried out at operating conditions including five solution temperatures, five initial concentrations of cyanide solution and five liquid/solid weight ratios. The effects of these operating conditions on the reaction kinetics and extraction time were determined. The obtained kinetics data were fitted into an empirical power–law rate equation. The kinetics model parameters were evaluated by using experimental data via non-linear regression analysis. It was found that the platinum extraction from a selective linear paraffin dehydrogenation spent catalyst in cyanide solution at high pressure and temperature can be appropriately modeled by the proposed correlation in the selected range of operating conditions.

Insights into solid phase characteristics and release of heavy metals and arsenic from industrial sludge via combined chemical, mineralogical, and microanalysis

This study investigates the solid phase characteristics and release of heavy metals (i.e., Cd, Co, Cu, Cr, Mo, Ni, Pb, and Zn) and arsenic (As) from sludge samples derived from industrial wastewater treatment plants. The emphasis is determining the influence of acidification on element mobilization based on a multidisciplinary approach that combines cascade and pHstat leaching tests with solid phase characterization through X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission gun electron probe micro analysis (FEG-EPMA), and thermodynamic modeling (Visual MinteQ 3.0). Solid phase characterization and thermodynamic modeling results allow prediction of Ni and Zn leachabilities. FEG-EPMA is useful for direct solid phase characterization because it provides information on additional phases including specific element associations that cannot be detected by XRD analysis. Cascade and pHstat leaching test results indicate that disposal of improperly treated sludges at landfills may lead to extreme environmental risks due to high leachable concentrations of Zn, Ni, Cu, Cr, and Pb. However, high leachabilities under acid conditions of Ni and Zn as observed from pHstat leaching test results may provide a potential opportunity for acid extraction recovery of Ni and Zn from such sludges.

The migration and transformation behavior of heavy metals during the liquefaction process of sewage sludge

Bio-oils and bio-chars were obtained from sewage sludge (SS) by liquefaction with ethanol (or acetone) as the solvent at the temperature of 280, 320 and 360°C. The migration and transformation of HMs as Pb, Zn, Cu and Ni during liquefaction were thoroughly investigated. Meanwhile, the environmental risk of HMs in the bio-oils and bio-chars was assessed according to the risk assessment code (RAC). The results showed that the liquefaction solvent and temperature significantly affected the redistribution of HMs. HMs distributed mainly into the bio-chars, with less than 10% into the bio-oils. Increasing liquefaction temperature would promote a higher HM content in bio-oils. The environmental risk of HMs in bio-chars was mitigated compared to SS, especially for Ni. However, the environmental risk of Zn and Ni in bio-oils was undesirably high in comparison with bio-chars. It was suggested that the bio-oil should be pretreated before utilization.

Dynamics of aluminum leaching from water purification sludge

In this investigation, the shrinking core model is used to study the rate of aluminum salt leaching from water purification sludge (WPS). This model, which describes the aluminum leaching rate, can be developed to maximize the Al(III) recovering efficiency. Laboratory results indicate that when the mixing speed exceeds 80rpm, the effect of film diffusion control on the leaching process is greatly reduced, such that any further increase in the mixing speed does not affect the Al(III) leaching rate. Additionally, increasing the temperature or acid concentration improves Al(III) leaching rate. The laboratory data were verified by using the shrinking core model to confirm that the leaching of Al(III) from WPS is consistent with the inert-layer diffusion control model. This finding reveals that large amounts of SiO(2), Al(2)O(3) and other inert constituents will form an inter diffusion layer in the WPS and thus become the major limiting factors that control the Al(III) leaching process. The dynamic equation can be expressed as 1-3(1-x)(2/3)+2(1-x)=(2707.3 exp(-3887.6/T))t, in which the apparent activation energy and pre-exponential factors are 32.32 kJ/mol and 2707.3 min(-1), respectively, as determined by solving the Arrhenius equation.

Nickel (II) Preconcentration and Speciation Analysis During Transport from Aqueous Solutions Using a Hollow-fiber Permeation Liquid Membrane (HFPLM) Device

Nickel (II) preconcentration and speciation analysis using a hollow fiber supported liquid membrane (HFSLM) device was studied. A counterflow of protons coupled to complexation with formate provided the driving force of the process, while Kelex 100 was employed as carrier. The influence of variables related to module configuration (acceptor pH and carrier concentration) and to the sample properties (donor pH) on the preconcentration factor, E, was simultaneously studied and optimized using a 3 factor Doehlert matrix response surface methodology. The effect of metal concentration was studied as well. Preconcentration factors as high as 4240 were observed depending on the values of the different variables. The effects of the presence of inorganic anions (NO₂⁻, SO₄²⁻, Cl⁻, NO₃⁻, CO₃²⁻, CN⁻) and dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the form of humic acids were additionally considered in order to carry out a speciation analysis study. Nickel preconcentration was observed to be independent of both effects, except when cyanide was present in the donor phase. A characterization of the transport regime was performed through the analysis of the dependence of E on the temperature. E increases with the increase in temperature according to the equation E(K) = −8617.3 + 30.5T with an activation energy of 56.7 kJ mol⁻¹ suggesting a kinetic-controlled regime. Sample depletion ranged from 12 to 1.2% depending on the volume of the donor phase (100 to 1000 mL, respectively).

Heavy metal extraction from PCB wastewater treatment sludge by sulfuric acid

Heavy metals contaminated wastewater sludge is classified as hazardous solid waste and needs to be properly treated to prevent releasing heavy metals to the environment. In this study, the wastewater treatment sludge from a printed circuit board manufacturing plant was treated in a batch reactor by sulfuric acid to remove the contained heavy metals. The effects of sulfuric acid concentration and solid to liquid ratio on the heavy metal removal efficiencies were investigated. The experimental results showed that the total and individual heavy metal removal efficiencies increased with increasing sulfuric acid concentration, but decreased with increasing solid to liquid ratio. A mathematical model was developed to predict the residual sludge weights at varying sulfuric concentrations and solid to liquid ratios. The trivalent heavy metal ions, iron and chromium were more difficult to be removed than the divalent ions, copper, zinc, nickel, and cadmium. For 5 g/L solid to liquid ratio, more than 99.9% of heavy metals can be removed from the sludge by treating with 0.5M sulfuric acid in 2h.

Analysis of bio-obtainable endocrine disrupting metals in river water and sediment, sewage influent/effluent, sludge, leachate, and concentrated leachate, in the irish midlands shannon catchment

The application of an acid digestion and subsequent solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedure were implemented as preliminary treatments prior to quantifying the levels of potentially endocrine disrupting metals (EDMs) in a variety of solid and liquid matrices. These included (solid) river sediment, leachate sediment and sewage sludge and also (liquid) river water, landfill leachate, concentrated leachate, sewage influent, and sewage effluent, sampled in the Irish Midlands. The total concentrations of cobalt (Co), cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), and manganese (Mn), after extraction and preconcentration, were determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). Mercury (Hg) in sediment and sludge was determined using cold-vapour atomic fluorescence spectroscopy (AFS). For sewage sludge maximum values (mg/kg_dw) of 4700 Ni, 1642 Mn, 100.0 Cd, 3400 Zn, 36.70 Co, 750.0 Pb, 485.8 Cr, and 1003 Cu were determined whilst in leachate sediment, maximum values (mg/kg_dw) of 32.10 Ni, 815.0 Mn, 32.78 Cd, 230.3 Zn, 26.73 Co, 3525 Pb, 124.9 Cr, and 50.13 Cu were found. Over several months, the data showed elevated levels in sewage influents, effluents, and sludges compared to a battery of adjacent river water samples and corresponding sediments. There was a definite trend for target values for sediments to be exceeded, while intervention values were only exceeded for cadmium. Overall the pattern in terms of concentration was sewage > leachate > river matrices. A nonparametric assessment of the effect of sewage treatment method on median metal levels in sludge revealed statistically significant differences at the 95% level of confidence for Co, Cr, and Hg and at the 90% level of confidence for Cd.

Application of methods (sequential extraction procedures and high-pressure digestion method) to fly ash particles to determine the element constituents: a case study for BCR 176

Sequential extraction procedures and the high-pressure digestion method were selected to determine the element constituents of fly ash samples. Sequential extraction is one of the most useful methods used to measure the various elements from municipal solid waste incineration ash and contaminated soils. The extract from each step is analyzed using various techniques and equipment, and the results are then evaluated. In this work, a six-step extraction procedure modified from that of Tessier et al. and Wang et al. was performed and applied to the certified reference material BCR 176 (city waste incineration ash). Analyses were carried out by various techniques such as inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES), inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDX), and X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) to evaluate the characteristics of fly ash. The extraction efficiency of many elements was higher than 80%, and the relative standard deviations (RSD) for recovery of most elements were within 10%. In addition, an H(2)O(2)+HNO(3)+HF mixed acid digestion solution processed using a low-temperature evaporation procedure was selected as the optimal process for fly ash digestion. The results of this work provide information on the chemical composition, distribution, and potential mobility of the investigated elements.

Factorial experimental design for recovering heavy metals from sludge with ion-exchange resin

Wastewaters containing heavy metals are usually treated by chemical precipitation method in Taiwan. This method can remove heavy metals form wastewaters efficiently, but the resultant heavy metal sludge is classified as hazardous solid waste and becomes another environmental problem. If we can remove heavy metals from sludge, it becomes non-hazardous waste and the treatment cost can be greatly reduced. This study aims at using ion-exchange resin to remove heavy metals such as copper, zinc, cadmium, and chromium from sludge generated by a PCB manufacturing plant. Factorial experimental design methodology was used to study the heavy metal removal efficiency. The total metal concentrations in the sludge, resin, and solution phases were measured respectively after 30 min reaction with varying leaching agents (citric acid and nitric acid); ion-exchange resins (Amberlite IRC-718 and IR-120), and temperatures (50 and 70 degrees C). The experimental results and statistical analysis show that a stronger leaching acid and a higher temperature both favor lower heavy metal residues in the sludge. Two-factors and even three-factor interaction effects on the heavy metal sorption in the resin phase are not negligible. The ion-exchange resin plays an important role in the sludge extraction or metal recovery. Empirical regression models were also obtained and used to predict the heavy metal profiles with satisfactory results.