Professional Documents
Culture Documents
• Fly Ash
• Red Mud
• Slag
• Tailings
Fly Ash
What is fly ash?
• Ash that falls in the bottom of the boiler is called bottom ash.
Together with bottom ash removed from the bottom of the boiler, it
is known as coal ash.
• Fly ash particles are generally spherical in shape and range in size
from 0.5 μm to 300 μm.
Chemical composition :
Fly Ash
Class F Fly Ash
• Exposure Concerns:
o Crystalline silica and lime along with toxic chemicals represent exposure
risks to human health and the environment. Exposure to fly ash through
skin contact, inhalation of fine particulate dust and ingestion through
drinking water may well present health risks. Fly ash contains crystalline
silica which is known to cause lung disease. Lime reacts with water to form
calcium hydroxide, giving fly ash a pH somewhere between 10 and 12, a
medium to strong base. This can also cause lung damage if present in
sufficient quantities.
Reuse of Fly Ash:
Concrete Production
Embankments and other structural fills
Grout and Flow able fill production
Waste stabilization and solidification
Reuse of Fly Ash
Percentage Composition
Components
(%)
Fe2O3 5-60
Al2O3 5-30
TiO2 0.3-15
CaO 2-14
SiO2 3-50
Na2O 1-10
Environmental problems:
Risks of red mud on agricultural soil:
• Soil and groundwater alkalinization.
• Elevation of soil and groundwater Na content.
• Modification of the chemical forms and mobility of the
elements;
• Changes in soil nutrient and water cycling, as well as in soil’s
water-balance;
• Increased risk of sodification;
• Soil and groundwater toxicity;
• Plant growth inhibition, limited nutrient supply, deteriorated
nutrient household;
• Caustic/corrosive effect of the contaminated soil on humans;
• Detrimental effect of contaminated soil and ground water on
humans.
Risks of red mud on agricultural soil:
• Red mud plugs the soil pores resulting anoxic conditions in
the soil.
• Meanwhile the micro-plug hinders penetration of further
contaminants.
• Damaging effect of the (temporary) anoxic conditions on soil
living organism.
• Detrimental effect of (temporary) anoxic conditions on plant
growth.
• Dusting, dust deposition on remotely located surfaces and
threat to humans by dust inhalation.
• Hazard due to caustic effect, threat to humans by ingestion.
• Toxic element content.
Environmental problems:
Ref: Patel, S., & Pal, B. K. (2015). Current Status of an Industrial Waste: Red Mud an Overview. International Journal of Latest
Technology in Engineering, Management and Applied Science, 4(8)
Reuse of Red mud:
• Recovery of metals:
– Since iron as oxides or oxy-hydroxides is usually the largest component of
red muds, iron recovery from red mud has attracted major attention.
• Construction:
– Red Mud in Cement Replacement
– Red mud in the brick industry
– Concrete industry
– Used as filling Material (Road base material, mining, smelting of red mud)
Ref: Patel, S., & Pal, B. K. (2015). Current Status of an Industrial Waste: Red Mud an Overview. International Journal of Latest Technology
in Engineering, Management and Applied Science, 4(8)
Ref: Patel, S., & Pal, B. K. (2015). Current Status of an Industrial Waste: Red Mud an Overview. International Journal of Latest Technology
in Engineering, Management and Applied Science, 4(8)
Slag
What is Slag?
• Chemical Composition:
Percentage Composition
Components
(%)
CaO 30-50%
SiO2 28-38%
Al2O3 8-24%
MgO 1-18%
Applications of GGBS:
• Examples:
– Sulfide minerals
– Coal and oil shale
– Aluminium mining
Storage methods:
• The following storage methods are used to dispose the tailings:
• Tailings ponds or impoundments
• Paste tailings
• Dry stacking
• Storage in underground workings
• Riverine tailings
• Submarine tailings
• Phyto-stabilization
Environmental Considerations:
• The rejected minerals and rocks liberated through mining and
processing are not part of the aerobic ecological systems and
are unstable. They have the potential to damage the
environment by releasing toxic metals (arsenic and mercury
being two major culprits), by acid drainage (usually by
microbial action on sulfide ores), or by damaging aquatic
wildlife that rely on clear water.