Abstract
Conventional treatment of AMD involves neutralization with consequent precipitation of metals as hydroxides. In AMD with a high concentration of metals, the settling rate of the sludge/water interface is low. We investigated the use of nano- and micro-magnetite particles to assist the settling and thickening of floc particles. The magnetite was produced from ferrous sulphate crystals (melanterite, Fe2SO4·7H2O) obtained by leaching pyrite from a coal mine. AMD was obtained from the treatment plant at the same mine and the water was neutralized with Ca(OH)2 at pH 8.7 ± 0.1. Laboratory studies were conducted in 1 L test tubes with and without the addition of magnetite particles and a flocculant. Sedimentation curves (interface settling) were generated to evaluate the rate of sedimentation. For the studied effluent, the best option was 4 g L−1 of magnetite particles and 5 mg L−1 of high molecular weight anionic polyacrylamide. The magnetite particles were recovered magnetically from the sludge with ≈ 90% efficiency. Thus, the combined use of magnetite and a flocculant increased the sludge settling rate and, consequently, reduced the area needed for settling basins.
Zusammenfassung
Die herkömmliche Behandlung von AMD umfasst die Neutralisation und die folgende Fällung der Metalle als Hydroxide. Bei AMD mit hohen Metallkonzentrationen ist die Sedimentationsrate an der Schlamm/Wasser-Grenzfläche gering. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurde untersucht, wie sich Nano- und Mikromagnetitpartikel auf die Sedimentation und das Eindicken der Flocken auswirken. Das Magnetit wurde aus Eisensulfatkristallen (Melanterit, Fe2SO4·7 H2O) hergestellt, die aus verwittertem Pyrit aus einer Kohlemine gewonnen wurden. Das AMD wurde aus der Wasserbehandlungsanlage desselben Bergwerks gewonnen. Das Wasser wurde bei pH 8,7 ± 0,1 mit Ca(OH)2 neutralisiert. In 1-Liter-Gläsern wurden Laborversuche sowohl mit als auch ohne Zugabe von Magnetitpartikeln und einem Flockungsmittel durchgeführt. Zur Bewertung der Sedimentationsrate wurden Sedimentationskurven (Grenzflächenabsetzung) erfasst. Für das untersuchte Abwasser waren 4 g L-1 Magnetitpartikel und 5 mg L-1 anionisches Polyacrylamid mit hohem Molekulargewicht die beste Option. Die Magnetitpartikel wurden magnetisch aus dem Schlamm mit ≈ 90 % Effizienz zurückgewonnen. Mit der kombinierten Nutzung von Magnetit und einem Flockungsmittel konnte die Sedimentationsrate des Schlamms erhöht und die benötigte Fläche für Absetzbecken verringert werden.
Resumen
El tratamiento convencional de los DAM implica la neutralización con la consiguiente precipitación de los metales en forma de hidróxidos. En los DAM con una alta concentración de metales, la tasa de sedimentación de la interfaz lodo/agua es baja. Hemos investigado el uso de nano y micropartículas de magnetita para ayudar a la sedimentación y al espesamiento de las partículas de los flóculos. La magnetita se produjo a partir de cristales de sulfato ferroso (melanterita, FeSO4-7H2O) obtenidos por lixiviación de pirita de una mina de carbón. El DAM se obtuvo de la planta de tratamiento de la misma mina y el agua se neutralizó con Ca(OH)2 a un pH de 8,7 ± 0,1. Los estudios de laboratorio se realizaron en tubos de 1 L con y sin la adición de partículas de magnetita y un floculante. Se generaron curvas de sedimentación (sedimentación de interfase) para evaluar la velocidad de sedimentación. Para el efluente estudiado, la mejor opción fue 4 g L-1 de partículas de magnetita y 5 mg L-1 de poliacrilamida aniónica de alto peso molecular. Las partículas de magnetita se recuperaron magnéticamente del lodo con una eficiencia ≈ 90%. Así, el uso combinado de magnetita y un floculante aumentó la tasa de sedimentación de los lodos y, en consecuencia, redujo la superficie necesaria para los diques de sedimentación.
概括
传统的酸性矿山废水(AMD)处理技术都要经历酸性水中和及随后的金属氢氧化物沉淀过程。在含高浓度金属的酸性矿山废水(AMD)中,污泥/水界面的沉淀速率较低。研究了利用纳米和微米磁铁矿颗粒提高絮凝颗粒沉淀性能和沉淀层厚度的方法。磁铁矿由煤矿黄铁矿溶滤出的硫酸亚铁晶体(Melanterite,Fe2SO4-7H2O)制成。酸性矿山废水(AMD)源自同一煤矿的水处理厂,用pH值为8.7 +/- 0.1的Ca(OH)2中和。实验在加入和不加入磁铁矿颗粒和絮凝剂的1L试管中进行。制成了沉淀曲线(界面沉降)评价沉淀速度。对于所研究的废水,最佳方案为4 g L-1磁铁矿颗粒和5 g L-1高分子量阴离子聚丙烯酰胺。污泥中磁铁矿颗粒被再次磁化回收,回收率达90%。因此,磁铁矿和絮凝剂的联合使用提高了污泥沉降率,进而减少了所需沉淀池面积。
References
Akcil A, Koldas S (2006) Acid mine drainage (AMD): causes, treatment and case studies. J Clean Prod 14:1139–1145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2004.09.006
Aubé BC, Lee DW (2015) The high density sludge (HDS) Process and Sulphate Control. Agreeing on solutions for more sustainable mine water management, Proc, 10th ICARD & IMWA Annual Conf, electronic document (paper 188); Santiago, Chile (GECAMIN)
Brasil (2011) Resolução CONAMA 430/2011. Ministério Do Meio Ambient. Cons. Nac. Do Meio Ambient. Available at: https://cetesb.sp.gov.br/aguas-interiores/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2018/01/RESOLU%C3%87%C3%83O-No-430-DE-13-DE-MAIO-DE-2011.pdf
Chen X, Kong F, Fu Y, Si C, Fatehi P (2019) Improvements on activated sludge settling and flocculation using biomass-based fly ash as activator. Sci Rep 9:14590. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-50879-6
Cornell R, Schwertmann U (2003) Electronic, electrical and magnetic properties and colour. The iron oxides: structure, properties, reactions, occurrences, and uses. Wiley, pp 111–137
Eaton AD, Clesceri LS, Rice E, Greenberg AE (eds) (2005) Standard methods for examination of water and wastewater: centennial edition, 21st edn. American Public Health Assoc, Washington
Johnson DB, Hallberg KB (2005) Acid mine drainage remediation options: a review. Sci Total Environ 338:3–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2004.09.002
Kamizela T, Kowalczyk M, Zawieja I (2020) The use of chemical methods and magnetic field in conditioning and dewatering of digested sewage sludge. Water. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12061642
Kefeni KK, Msagati TAM, Mamba BB (2017) Acid mine drainage: prevention, treatment options, and resource recovery: a review. J Clean Prod 151:475–493. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.03.082
Kefeni KK, Msagati TAM, Nkambule TTI, Mamba BB (2018) Synthesis and application of hematite nanoparticles for acid mine drainage treatment. J Environ Chem Eng 6:1865–1874. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2018.02.037
Kuyucak N (1998) Mining, the environment and the treatment of mine effluents. Int J Environ Pollut 10:315
Kuyucak N (1999) Implementation of high density sludge “HDS” treatment process at the Boliden Apirsa mine site. Mine Water Environ Congress, Sevilla, 473–479. http://www.mwen.info/docs/imwa_1999/IMWA1999_Kuyucak_473.pdf
Li S, Wang X, Zhang Q (2016) Dynamic experiments on flocculation and sedimentation of argillized ultrafine tailings using fly-ash-based magnetic coagulant. Trans Nonferrous Met Soc China 26:1975–1984. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1003-6326(16)64308-X
Lopes FA (2017) Produção Hidrometalúrgica de Óxidos Magnéticos a Partir de Concentrado de Pirita Proveniente de Rejeitos da Mineração de Carvão. Univ Federal do Rio Grande do Sul [in Portuguese]
Luo L, Nguyen AV (2017) A review of principles and applications of magnetic flocculation to separate ultrafine magnetic particles. Sep Purif Technol 172:85–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seppur.2016.07.021
Matlock MM, Howerton BS, Atwood DA (2002) Chemical precipitation of heavy metals from acid mine drainage. Water Res 36:4757–4764. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0043-1354(02)00149-5
Metcalf L, Eddy HP (2003) Wastewater engineering: treatment disposal reuse, 4th edn. McGraw-Hill, Boston
Pereira TCB, dos Santos KB, Lautert-Dutra W, Teodoro LS, Almeida VO, Weiler J, Schneider IAH, Bogo MR (2020) Acid mine drainage (AMD) treatment by neutralization: evaluation of physical-chemical performance and ecotoxicological effects on zebrafish (Danio rerio) development. Chemosphere. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.126665
Silva RDA, Castro CD, Vigânico EM, Petter CO, Schneider IAH (2012) Selective precipitation/UV production of magnetite particles obtained from the iron recovered from acid mine drainage. Miner Eng 29:22–27. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mineng.2011.12.013
Skousen J (2014) Overview of acid mine drainage treatment with chemicals. Acid mine drainage, rock drainage, and acid sulfate soils. Wiley, pp 325–337
Skousen JG, Ziemkiewicz PF, McDonald LM (2019) Acid mine drainage formation, control and treatment: approaches and strategies. Extr Ind Soc 6(1):241–249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exis.2018.09.008
Stolarski M, Eichholz C, Fuchs B, Nirschl H (2007) Sedimentation acceleration of remanent iron oxide by magnetic flocculation. China Particuol 5:145–150. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpart.2007.01.005
Talmage WP, Fitch EB (1955) Determining thickener unit areas. Ind Eng Chem 47:38–41. https://doi.org/10.1021/ie50541a022
Wei X, Viadero RC (2007) Synthesis of magnetite nanoparticles with ferric iron recovered from acid mine drainage: implications for environmental engineering. Colloids Surfaces A Physicochem Eng Asp 294:280–286. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2006.07.060
Zaidi NS, Sohaili J, Muda K, Sillanpää M (2014) Magnetic field application and its potential in water and wastewater treatment systems. Sep Purif Rev 43:206–240. https://doi.org/10.1080/15422119.2013.794148
Zieliński M, Rusanowska P, Dębowski M, Hajduk A (2018) Influence of static magnetic field on sludge properties. Sci Total Environ 625:738–742. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.12.226
Acknowledgements
The authors thank CNPq, CAPES, and FAPERGS for their financial support of this research.
Funding
Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico,310369/2016-9,Ivo André Homrich Schneider, 160570/2019-0, Jéssica Weiler, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior,88887.487819/2020-00,Karine Batista dos Santos, 88882.345874/2019-01,Vitor Otacílio Almeida.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Supplementary Information
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fröhler, H., Horn, E., dos Santos, K. et al. Enhancement of Sludge Sedimentation Properties in a Concentrated Acid Mine Drainage Using Nano- and Micro-magnetite Particles. Mine Water Environ 41, 840–847 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10230-022-00892-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10230-022-00892-5