Abstract
In this study, fly ash, pond ash, bottom ash, slurry ash, raw water, pond water, and slurry samples were collected from Bokaro Thermal Power Plant, Bokaro, Jharkhand, India, and studied for the leachability of different elements by acid digestion and shake test at different liquid to solid (L/S) ratios. The raw water, pond water, slurry water, and leachates of acid digestion and shake tests were analyzed for the elements sodium (Na), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), cobalt (Co), manganese (Mn), cadmium (Cd), zinc (Zn), lead (Pb), nickel (Ni), and chromium (Cr). Shake test results confirmed that the water got saturated when the L/S ratio was equal to or above 10, indicating no further increase in concentration of elements at the L/S ratio of 10. Leaching behavior of Na from pond ash was not understood in the present study. In the study, the chemical composition showed that all the four types of ashes contain a small fraction of CaO (about 0.37 to 0.90 % by weight) and very high contents of SiO2 (about 55.14 to 58.34 % by weight) and Al2O3 (about 29.44 to 32.81 % by weight) that are the major composition of Portland cement. The study will help to understand the leachability potential of harmful elements present in fly ash, pond ash, bottom ash, and slurry ash under natural conditions and to take regulatory measures to protect the surface water, groundwater, and soil environment.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Society for Testing and Materials (2005). Standard specification for coal fly ash and raw or calcined natural pozzolan for use in concrete (C618-05), 04.02.
Baba, A. (2000a). Investigation of environmental geology of the Yatagan (Mugla-Turkey) thermal power plant waste. Ph.D. Thesis, Dokuz Eylul University.
Baba, A. (2000b). Leaching characteristics of wastes from kemerkoy power plant. Global Nest: The International Journal, 2(1), 51–57.
Baba, A. (2003). Geochemical assessment of environmental effects of ash from Yatagan (Mugla-Turkey) thermal power plant. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, 144(1–4), 3–18.
Baba, A., & Kaya, A. (2004). Leaching characteristics of solid wastes from thermal power plants of western Turkey and comparison of toxicity methodologies. Journal of Environmental Management, 73(3), 199–207.
Baba, A., & Turkman, A. (2001). Investigation of geochemical and leaching characteristics of solid wastes from Yeniköy (Mugla-Turkey) power plant. Turkish Journal of Engineering and Environmental Sciences, 25, 321–328.
Baba, A., Kaya, A., & Birsoy, Y. K. (2003). The effect of Yatagan thermal power plant (Mugla-Turkey) on the quality of surface and ground waters. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, 149(1–4), 93–111.
Biermann, A. H., & Ondow, J. M. (1980). Application of surface depositions models to size-fractionated coal fly ash. Atmospheric Environment, 14(3), 289–295.
Cetin, B., & Aydilek, A. H. (2013). pH and fly ash type effect on trace metal leaching from embankment soils. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 80, 107–117.
Drakonaki, S., Diamadopoulos, E., Vam-vouka, D., & Lahaniatis, M. (1998). Leaching behavior lignite fly ash. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A: Toxic/Hazardous Substances and Environmental Engineering, 33(2), 237–248.
Georgakopoulos, A., Filippidis, A., Kassoli-Fournaraki, A., Fernández-Turiel, J. L., Llorens, J. F., & Mousty, F. (2002a). Leachability of major and trace elements of fly ash from Ptolemais Power Station, northern Greece. Energy Sources, 24(2), 103–113.
Georgakopoulos, A., Filippidis, A., Kassoli-Fournaraki, A., Iordanidis, A., Fernández-Turiel, J. L., Llorens, J. F., et al. (2002b). Environmentally important elements in fly ashes and their leachates of the power stations of Greece. Energy Sources, 24(1), 83–91.
Güleç, N., Çanci Günal, B., & Erler, A. (2001). Assessment of soil and water contamination around an ash-disposal site: a case study from the Seyitömer coal-fired power plant in western Turkey. Environmental Geology, 40(3), 331–344.
Henery, W. M., & Knapp, K. T. (1980). Compound forms of fossil fuel fly ash emissions. Environmental Science and Technology, 14(4), 450–456.
Kamon, M., Katsumi, T., & Sano, Y. (2000). MSW fly ash stabilized with coal ash for geotechnical application. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 76(2–3), 265–283.
Karuppiah, M., & Gupta, G. (1997). Toxicity of metals in coal combustion ash leachates. Journal of Hazardous Material, 56(1–2), 53–58.
Khanra, S., Mallick, D., Dutta, S. N., & Chaudhuri, S. K. (1998). Studies on the phase mineralogy and leaching characteristics of coal fly ash. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, 107(1–4), 251–275.
Komonweeraket, K., Cetin, B., Benson, C. H., Aydilek, A. H., & Edil, T. B. (2015a). Leaching characteristics of toxic constituents from coal fly ash mixed soils under the influence of pH. Waste Management, 38, 174–184.
Komonweeraket, K., Cetin, B., Aydilek, A. H., Benson, C. H., & Edil, T. B. (2015b). Effects of pH on the leaching mechanisms of elements from fly ash mixed soils. Fuel, 140, 788–802.
Kosson, D. S., Garrabrants, A. C., DeLapp, R., & Van der Sloot, H. A. (2014). pH-dependent leaching of constituents of potential concern from concrete materials containing coal combustion fly ash. Chemosphere, 103, 140–147.
Kumar, V., Mathur, M., & Sinham, S. S, (2005). A case study: manifold increase in fly ash utilization in India. Fly Ash Utilization Programme (FAUP), TIFAC, DST, 1.1-1.8.
Mandal, A., & Sengupta, D. (2002). Characterization of fly ash from coal-based thermal power station at Kolaghat—possible environmental hazards. Indian Journal of Environmental Protection, 22(8), 885–891.
Pandey, V. C., Singh, J. S., Singh, R. P., Singh, N., & Yunus, M. (2011). Arsenic hazards in coal fly ash and its fate in Indian scenario. Resources Conservation and Recycling, 55(9–10), 819–835.
Praharaj, T., Powell, M. A., Hart, B. R., & Tripathy, S. (2002). Leachability of elements from sub-bituminous coal fly ash from India. Environment International, 27, 609–615.
Ram, L. C., Srivastava, N. K., Das, M. C., & Singh, G., (1999). Leaching behavior of fly ash under simulated conditions vis-à-vis quality of the leachate. In: Ram, L. C. et al. (Ed), Proceedings of the national seminar on bulk utilization of fly ash in agriculture and for value-added products. Dhanbad (India). ISBN 81–7525-184-0.
Ram, L. C., Srivastava, N. K., & Singh, G., (2000). Prediction of leaching behavior of TPP ash under simulated condition by column studies. In: Proceedings of the international conference on fly ash disposal and utilization (CBIP) (pp-16). New Delhi technical session IV-3.
Ram, L. C., Srivastava, N. K., Tripathi, R. C., Thakur, S. K., Sinha, A. K., Jha, S. K., et al. (2007). Leaching behavior of lignite fly ash with shake and column tests. Environmental Geology, 51(7), 1119–1132.
Sushil, S., & Batra, V. S. (2006). Analysis of fly ash heavy metal content and disposal in three thermal power plants in India. Fuel, 85(17–18), 2676–2679.
Van der Sloot, H. A., (1995). Development in evaluating environmental impact from utilisation of bulk inert using lab leaching tests and verification. In: International symposium on bulk industrial waste an opportunity for use, Leeds (UK), Report No. ECN-RX-(5–056), 34.
World Health Organization (2008). Drinking water quality: 3rd Edition incorporating the First and Second Addenda, (1): Recommendations. Geneva.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge the support provided by the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad, for carrying out this research work.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kumar, A., Samadder, S.R. Analysis of the leaching behavior of elements from coal combustion residues for better management. Environ Monit Assess 187, 370 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-015-4605-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-015-4605-4