Thermal behaviors and heavy metal vaporization of phosphatized tannery sludge in incineration process

The high concentration of heavy metal (Cu, Cr, Zn, Pb) in tannery sludge causes severe heavy metal emissions in the process of incineration. In the present investigation, the tannery sludge was treated with 85% phosphoric acid before the incineration process in the tube furnace to control the heavy metal emissions. The thermal behavior and heavy metal vaporization of pre-treated tannery sludge were investigated, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis were also implemente...

Removal of Cr from tannery sludge by bioleaching method

Bioleaching of Cr（Ⅲ） from tannery sludge using the mixture of ingenuous iron- and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria was investigated in batch flasks. Experiments involved the adaptation of indigenous iron-and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria, the pre-acidification the sludge to pH 6.0 and the addition of energy substrates. Results showed the inoculation of mixture of ingenuous iron- and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria and co-addition of Fe^2 and elemental sulfur accelerated acid production and increase of oxidation-reduction potential originating from the bio-oxidation of Fe2^＋ and elemental sulfur. Dissolved Cr concentration increased concomitant with pH decreased in the sludge and reached its maximum removal of 95.6%. The amelioration of the odor of bioleached sludge could be noted. However, 20.4%o of N, 24.5% of P and 14.3% of organic matter were lost in the bioleaching process. The residual Cr content in the leached tannery sludge was acceptable for use in agriculture. This study had shown the feasibility of applying the bioleaching process, developed for sewage sludge, to tannery sludge with high Cr.

Transformation of ammonium nitrogen and response characteristics of nitrifying functional genes in tannery sludge contaminated soil

High concentrations of ammonium nitrogen released from tannery sludge during storage in open air may cause nitrogen pollution to soil and groundwater.To study the transformation mechanism of NH_(4)^(+)-N by nitrifying functional bacteria in tannery sludge contaminated soils,a series of contaminated soil culture experiments were conducted in this study.The contents of ammonium nitrogen(as NH_(4)^(+)-N),nitrite nitrogen(as NO_(2)^(−)-N)and nitrate nitrogen(as NO_(3)^(−)-N)were analyzed during the culture period under different conditions of pollution load,soil particle and redox environment.Sigmodial equation was used to interpret the change of NO_(3)^(−)-N with time in contaminated soils.The abundance variations of nitrifying functional genes(amoA and nxrA)were also detected using the real-time quantitative fluorescence PCR method.The results show that the nitrification of NH_(4)^(+)-N was aggravated in the contaminated silt soil and fine sand under the condition of lower pollution load,finer particle size and more oxidizing environment.The sigmodial equation well fitted the dynamic accumulation curve of the NO_(3)^(−)-N content in the tannery sludge contaminated soils.The Cr(III)content increased with increasing pollution load,which inhibited the reproduction and activity of nitrifying bacteria in the soils,especially in coarse-grained soil.The accumulation of NO_(2)^(−)-N contents became more obvious with the increase of pollution load in the fine sand,and only 41.5%of the NH_(4)^(+)-N was transformed to NO_(3)^(−)-N.The redox environment was the main factor affecting nitrification process in the soil.Compared to the aerobic soil environment,the transformation of NH_(4)^(+)-N was significantly inhibited under anaerobic incubation condition,and the NO_(3)^(−)-N contents decreased by 37.2%,61.9%and 91.9%under low,medium and high pollution loads,respectively.Nitrification was stronger in the silt soil since its copy number of amoA and nxrA genes was two times larger than that of fine sand.Moreover,the copy numbers of amoA and nxrA genes in the silt soil under the aerobic environment were 2.7 times and 2.2 times larger than those in the anaerobic environment.The abundance changes of the amoA and nxrA functional genes have a positive correlation with the nitrification intensity in the tannery sludge-contaminated soil.

A novel strategy of tannery sludge disposal–converting into biochar and reusing for Cr(Ⅵ)removal from tannery wastewater

Tannery sludge with high chromium content has been identified as hazardous solid waste due to its potential toxic effects.The safety disposal and valorization of the tannery sludge remains a challenge.In this study,the chromium stabilization mechanism was systematically investigated during chromium-rich tannery sludge was converted to biochar and the removal performance of the sludge biochar(SBC)for Cr(Ⅵ)from tannery wastewater was also investigated.The results showed that increase in pyrolysis temperature was conductive to the stabilization of Cr and significant reduction of the proportion of Cr(Ⅵ)in SBC.It was confirmed that the stabilization of chromium mainly was attributed to the embedding of chromium in the C matrix and the transformation of the chromium-containing substances from the amorphous Cr(OH)_(3)to the crystalline state,such as(FeMg)Cr_(2)O_(5).The biochar presented high adsorption capacity of Cr(Ⅵ)at low pH and the maximal theoretical adsorption capacity of SBC produced at 800°C can reach 352 mg Cr(Ⅵ)/g,the process of which can be well expressed by Langmuir adsorption isotherm and pseudo second order model.The electrostatic effect and reduction reaction were dominantly responsible for the Cr(Ⅵ)adsorption by SBC800.Overall,this study provided a novel strategy for the harmless disposal and resource utilization for the solid waste containing chromium in leather industry.

Combustion characteristics of tannery sludge and volatilization of heavy metals in combustion

Incineration is considered one of the most readily available techniques for sewage sludge disposal, including tannery sludge, which often contains significant amounts of volatile heavy metals. The combustion characteristics and kinetic analysis of tannery sludge were investigated using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) at a heating rate of 30 °C/min in 50–950 °C. In addition to confirming that tannery sludge has a high content of volatile material and ash, it was further discovered that almost all the zinc (Zn) in tannery sludge is volatilized at 900 °C. The degree of volatilization for heavy metals at 900 °C followed the order of Zn>Cd>Cu>Mn>Pb>Cr. Moreover, the volatilization of these heavy metals increased with temperature. It is thus concluded that, to avoid heavy metal volatization during incineration disposal, 800 °C is a reasonable incineration temperature.

Immobilization of heavy metals in sludge using phosphoric acid and monobasic calcium phosphate

The purpose of this research is to investigate the potential of pre-treatment with phosphoric acid(PA) and monobasic calcium phosphate(MCP) for the stabilization of heavy metals in sludge and its bottom ash.The tannery sludge samples were collected in Wenzhou,China and heavily contaminated with heavy metals,such as Pb,Cr and so on.The samples were pre-treated with PA or MCP.Then XRD and TCLP tests were adopted as the evaluating methods to characterize the Pb,Cr,Cu,Zn and Cd immobilization in the pre-treated sludge and its bottom ash.The results showed that this treatment effectively immobilized Pb and Cd in the sludge,lightly stabilized the metal Cu,and adversely,enhanced the leachability of Zn.After incineration at 900℃,Pb and Cr in the bottom ash of pre-treated sludge were significantly stabilized due to the formation of their highly thermostable phosphates and pyromorphite-like minerals during the incineration process.However,an increase of Cu and Zn solubility was observed which might be attributable to the acidification of sludge due to the addition of PA or MCP.

Environmental Factors Affecting Chromium-Manganese Oxidation-Reduction Reactions in Soil

Disposal of chromium （Cr） hexavalent form, Cr（Ⅵ）, in soils as additions in organic fertilizers, liming materials or plant nutrient sources can be dangerous since Cr（Ⅵ） can be highly toxic to plants, animals, and humans. In order to explore soil conditions that lead to Cr（Ⅵ） generation, this study were performed using a Paleudult （Dystic Nitosol） from a region that has a high concentration of tannery operations in the Rio Crande do Sul State, southern Brazil. Three laboratory incubation experiments were carried out to examine the influences of soil moisture content and concentration of cobalt and organic matter additions on soil Cr（Ⅵ） formation and release and manganese （Mn） oxide reduction with a salt of chromium chloride （CrCl3） and tannery sludge as inorganic and organic sources of Cr（Ⅲ）, respectively. The amount of Cr（Ⅲ） oxidation depended on the concentration of easily reducible Mn oxides and the oxidation was more intense at the soil water contents in which Mn（Ⅲ/Ⅳ） oxides were more stable. Soluble organic compounds in soil decreased Cr（Ⅵ） formation due to Cr（Ⅲ） complexation. This mechanism also resulted in the decrease in the oxidation of Cr（Ⅲ） due to the tannery sludge additions. Chromium（Ⅲ） oxidation to Cr（Ⅵ） at the solid/solution interface involved the following mechanisms： the formation of a precursor complex on manganese （Mn） oxide surfaces, followed by electron transfer from Cr（Ⅲ） to Mn（Ⅲ or Ⅳ）, the formation of a successor complex with Mn（Ⅱ） and Cr（Ⅵ）, and the breakdown of the successor complex and release of Mn（Ⅱ） and Cr（Ⅵ） into the soil solution.

Research progress on resource utilization of leather solid waste

Leather making is the process of converting raw hides into leather.Amounts of solid waste containing hazardous and high value components are generated during this process.Therefore,the elimination of the potential pollution and resource utilization of leather solid waste are the primary research hotspots.Herein,we comprehensively review the recent advances in the resource utilization of leather solid waste generated from chrome tanning including the utilization of tannery hair waste,untanned solid waste,chrome-containing leather solid waste,tannery sludge and finished leather waste,emphasizing on the general and novel utilization approaches.Finally,the remaining challenges and perspectives were summarized,in order to accelerate the development of resource utilization of leather solid waste.