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Leaching behavior of lignite fly ash with shake and column tests

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Environmental Geology

Abstract

The maximum concentration of the majority of the trace metals in the leachates from shake and column test of lignite fly ash (LFA) was within the prescribed limits; however, total dissolved solids, total hardness, cations and anions (except K+), being above the prescribed limits, may lead to the increase in the hardness and salinity in the soil on the disposal of LFA. Present generation of huge amount of fly ash from thermal power plants (TPPs) is a big challenge concerning contamination of soil, crop produce and surface and ground water bodies due to the presence of some of the toxic trace metals in it. The leaching behavior of alkaline LFA (pH, 10.94), from TPP of Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC), India, was investigated by shake and column tests using water and sodium acetate buffer. The leaching of trace metals from LFA was governed by their concentrations, association with the ash particles, leaching duration and pH of the leachate (most influencing parameter). The leaching of metals followed the order: buffer column > aqueous column > aqueous shake > buffer shake test.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the authorities of NLC, India, for providing financial assistance. They are also thankful to Dr. S. C. Roy, Director, CFRI, for constant encouragement, providing necessary facilities for carrying out this work and for permission to publish this paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Management Division, Central Fuel Research Institute, P.O. F.R.I, Dhanbad, Jharkhand, 828108, India

    Lal C. Ram, Nishant K. Srivastava, Ramesh C. Tripathi, Sanjay K. Thakur, Awadhesh K. Sinha, Sangeet K. Jha, Reginald E. Masto & Swapan Mitra

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  1. Lal C. Ram
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  2. Nishant K. Srivastava
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Ram, L.C., Srivastava, N.K., Tripathi, R.C. et al. Leaching behavior of lignite fly ash with shake and column tests. Environ Geol 51, 1119–1132 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-006-0403-1

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