Analysis of the Relationship between Mechanical Properties and Pore Structure of MSW Incineration Bottom Ash Fine Aggregate Concrete after Freeze-Thaw Cycles Based on the Gray Theory

The destruction of concrete building materials in severely cold regions of the north is more severely affected by freeze-thaw cycles,and the relationship between the mechanical properties and pore structure of concrete with fine aggregate from municipal solid waste(MSW)incineration bottom ash after freeze-thaw cycles is analyzed under the degree of freeze-thaw hazard variation.In this paper,the gray correlation method is used to calculate the correlation between the relative dynamic elastic modulus,compressive strength,and microscopic porosity parameters to speculate on the most important factors affecting their changes.The GM(1,1)model was established based on the compressive strength of the waste incineration ash aggregate concrete,the relative error between the simulated and actual values in the model was less than 5%,and the accuracy of the model was level 1,indicating that the GM(1,1)model can well reflect the change in the compressive strength of the MSW incineration bottom ash aggregate concrete during freeze-thaw cycles.Using the gray correlation method,the correlation between the relative dynamic elastic modulus,compressive strength,air content,specific surface area,pore spacing coefficient,and pore average chord length was calculated,and the pore spacing coefficient and pore average chord length were determined to be highly correlated with each other.This determination can help analyze and infer the deterioration mechanism of concrete subject to freeze-thaw cycles.These results can provide a theoretical basis for guiding the engineering practice of concrete with fine aggregates of household bottom ash in the northern cold region.

Levels of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Healthcare Waste Incinerators’ Bottom Ash from Five County Hospitals in Kenya

Health-care waste contains potentially harmful microorganisms and compounds which can infect and affect hospital patients, healthcare workers, the general public and environment. Therefore, management of health care waste requires safe handling, treatment and disposal procedures. While incineration reduces the volume and quantity of waste for final disposal, it leads to the production of fly and bottom ashes laden with toxic incomplete combustion products such as Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), dioxins, furans and heavy metals. This exposes workers who handle and dispose the bottom ashes, hospital patients, the general public and environment. The goal of this study was to determine the total and individual levels of 16 most prevalent and toxic PAHs. Bottom ash samples were collected from incinerators in five county hospitals in Kenya, namely;Moi-Voi, Narok, Kitale, Makindu and Isiolo. Bottom ash samples were collected over a period of six months from the five hospitals. The samples were then sieved, homogenised and stored at 4°C in amber coloured glass containers. The PAHs were extracted using 30 ml of a hexane-acetone solvent (1:1) mixture by ultrasonication at room temperature (23°C) for 45 minutes. The PAHs were then analyzed with a GC-MS spectrophotometer model (Shimadzu GCMS-QP2010 SE) connected to a computer work station was used for the PAHs analysis. The GC-MS was equipped with an SGE BPX5 GC capillary column (30 m × 0.25 mm × 0.25 μm) for the separation of compounds. Helium was used as the carrier gas at a flow rate of 15.5 ml/minute and 14.5 psi. 1 μl of the sample was injected at 280°C, split mode (10:1). The oven programming was set for a total runtime of 40 minutes, which included: 100°C (2-minute hold);10°C /min rise to 200°C;7°C /min rise to 249°C;3°C /min rise to 300°C (2-minute hold). The interface temperature was set at 290°C. Analysis was done in Selected Ion Monitoring (SIM) mode and the peak areas of each of the PAHs were collected from the chromatograph and used for quantification of the 16 PAHs listed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) which included, BaA (benz[a]anthracene: 4 rings), BaP (benzo[a]pyrene: 5 rings), BbF (benzo [b]fluoranthene: 5 rings), BkF (benzo[k]fluoranthene: 5 rings), Chr (chrysene: 4 rings), DbA (dibenz[a,h]anthracene: 5 rings), InP (indeno[1,2,3 - cd] pyrene: 6 rings) and Acp (acenaphthene: 3 rings), Acpy (acenaphthylene: 3 rings), Ant (anthracene: 3 rings), BghiP (benzo[g,h,i]perylene: 6 rings), Flu (fluorene: 3 rings), FluA (fluoranthene: 4 rings), Nap (naphthalene: 2 rings), PhA (phenanthrene: 3 rings) and Pyr (pyrene: 4 rings). Ion source-interface temperature was set at 200°C - 250°C. Internal standards from Sigma Aldrich were used in the analysis and the acquired mass spectra data were then matched against the NIST 2014 library [1] [2]. The mean PAHs concentration in the bottom ashes of each hospital varied broadly from 0.001 mg/kg to 0.4845 mg/kg, and the mean total concentration levels of individual PAHs ranged from 0.0072 mg/kg to 1.171 mg/kg. Low molecular weight PAHs (Phenanthrene, Naphthalene and Fluorene) were predominant in all the hospital wastes whereas Kitale and Narok presented the lowest PAHs concentrations and the lowest number of individual PAHs. Moi/Voi recorded the highest total PAHs concentration at 1.3129 ± 0.0023 mg/kg from a total of 11 PAHs being detected from the bottom ash samples. Narok had only three PAHs being detected at very low concentrations of 0.0041 ± 0.00 mg/kg, 0.0076 ± 0.00 mg/kg and 0.012 ± 0.00 mg/kg for phenanthrene, anthracene and chrysene respectively. This study presents hospital incinerator bottom ash as containing detectable levels of both carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic PAHs. Continued unprotected exposure of hospital workers (waste handlers) to the bottom ash PAHs could be hazardous to their health because of their cumulative effect. Preventive measures e.g. the use of Personal protective equipment (PPE) should be prioritised to minimise direct contact with the bottom ash. The study recommends an upgrade on incinerator technology for efficient combustion processes thus for better pollution control.

Comparative evaluation of processes for heavy metal removal from municipal solid waste incineration fly ash

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MINTEQ modeling for evaluating the leaching behavior of heavy metals in MSWI fly ash

At present,all kinds of municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) fly ash stabilization technology has been reported and successfully applied in many countries.However,leaching procedures are very different that the technologies lack uniform standard,and it is even impossible to predict the long-term stabilization.Geochemical model can explain the environmental stabilization based on chemical phase and thermodynamic crystal structure,and it is also able to guide the development of environment-friendly stabi...

Chemical speciation and mobility of heavy metals in municipal solid waste incinerator fly ash

Chemical speciation is a significant factor that governs the toxicity and mobility of heavy metals in municipal solid waste incinerator fly ash. Sequential extraction procedure is applied to fractionate heavy metals(Pb, Zn, Cd, Cu, and Cr) into five defined groups: exchangeable, carbonate, Fe-Mn oxide, organic, and residual fractions. The mobility of heavy metals is also investigated with the aid of toxicity characteristic leaching procedure. In the fly ash sample, Pb is primarily presented in the carbonate(51%) and exchangeable(20%) fractions; Cd and Zn mainly exist as the exchangeable(83% and 49% respectively); Cu is mostly contained in the last three fractions(totally 87%); and Cr is mainly contained in the residual fraction(62%). Pb, Zn and Cd showed the high mobility in the investigation, thus might be of risk to the natural environment when municipal solid waste incinerator fly ash is landfilled or reutilized.

Effect of Water Washing Pre-treatment on the Properties of Glass-ceramics from Incinerator Fly Ash Using Electronic Arc Furnace

Production of glass-ceramics by sintering the molten slag obtained from electric arc furnace treatment of fly ash was investigated. The effect of washing pretreatment prior to melting the fly ash on the microstructure and properties of the glass-ceramics was examined. The results show that washing pretreatment of fly ash can decrease alkali metal chloride and increase network former in fly ash, which results in the increase of peak crystallization temperature of parent glass and strengthening of properties of bending strength and chemical stability of the glass-ceramics. The optimal heat treatment temperature for parent glass of washed fly ash is 1 173 K, at which the crystalline phase of glass-ceramics is composed of gelignite （Ca2A12SiO7） and akermanite （Ca2MgSi207）. Glass-ceramics produced at optimal heat treatment temperature are excellent in term of the physical and chemical properties and leaching characteristics, indicating attractive potential as substitute of nature materials.

Engineering and microstructure properties of contaminated marine sediments solidified by high content of incinerated sewage sludge ash

Management of incinerated sewage sludge ash(ISSA)and dredged contaminated marine sediments(CMSs)is a great challenge for Hong Kong and other coastal cities due to limited landfilling capacity.The present study investigates the use of high content(20%of sediment by mass)of ISSA in combination with cement/lime for solidification/stabilization(S/S)treatment of CMSs to provide a way to reuse the wastes as construction materials.The results showed that ISSA being a porous material was able to absorb a large amount of water rendering a more efficient solidification process of the marine sediment which normally had a very high water content(w80%).The S/S treatment improved the engineering properties of the sediment,but reduced the workability,especially for the lime-treated samples.Lime can be used to replace ordinary Portland cement(OPC)for better heavy metal immobilization and carbon emission reduction.The hardened sediment samples prepared with 10%of lime and 20%of ISSA could attain a strength of 1.6 MPa after 28 d of curing.In addition,leaching tests confirmed that there was no environmental risk induced by these stabilized materials.The formation of hydrated cementitious compounds including calcium silicate hydrate(CeSeH)/calcium aluminate silicate hydrate(C-A-S-H)/hydrocalumite/calcite was mainly responsible for the strength development in the ISSA/lime-treated sediments.

Phosphorus Recovery from the Ash of Sewage Sludge Using NaOH by Heat Treatment-II—Reuse of the Alkali Water Generated by Phosphorus Recovery

The phosphorus recovery from the incinerated ash using NaOH by the heat treatment,was investigated.In this method,non-reacted NaOH containing alkali water was generated with the phosphorus recovery.In order to find out the best method for reuse of the alkali water,the alkali water was mixed with new reagent of NaOH,and the phosphorus recovery was carried out.The phosphorus was recovered as a sodium phosphate,and the recovery rate was almost the same even with the reuse of the alkali water.

Influence of SO_2 in incineration flue gas on the sequestration of CO_2 by municipal solid waste incinerator fly ash

The influence of CO2 content and presence of SO2 on the sequestration of CO2 by municipal solid waste incinerator （MSWI） fly ash was studied by investigating the carbonation reaction of MSWI fly ash with different combinations of simulated flue gas. The reaction between fly ash and 100% CO2 was relatively fast; the uptake of CO2 reached 87 g CO2/kg ash, and the sequestered CO2 could be entirely released at high temperatures. When CO2 content was reduced to 12%, the reaction rate decreased; the uptake fell to 41 g CO2/kg ash, and 70.7% of the sequestered CO2 could be released. With 12% CO2 in the presence of SO2, the reaction rate significantly decreased; the uptake was just 17 g CO2/kg ash, and only 52.9% of the sequestered CO2 could be released. SO2 in the simulated gas restricted the ability of fly ash to sequester CO2 because it blocked the pores of the ash.

Characteristics of the stabilized/solidified municipal solid wastes incineration fly ash and the leaching behavior of Cr and Pb

Fly ash is a hazardous byproduct of municipal solid wastes incineration （MSWI）. An alkali activated blast fumace slag-based cementifious material was used to stabilize/solidify the fly ash at experimental level. The characteristics of the stabilized/solidified fly ash, including metal leachability, mineralogical characteristics and the distributions of metals in matrices, were tested by toxic characteristic leaching procedure （TCLP）, X-ray diffrac- tion （XRD） and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometer （SEM-EDS） respectively. Contin- uous acid extraction was utilized to extract metal ions and characterize their leaching behavior. The stabilization/ solidification procedure for MSWI fly ash demonstrates a strong fixing capacity for the metals by the formation of C- S-H phase, hydrated calcium aluminosilicate and ettringite. The stabilized/solidified fly ash shows a dense and homogeneous microstructure. Cr is mainly solidified in hydrated calcium aluminosilicate, C-S-H and ettringite phase through physical encapsulation, precipitation, adsorption or substitution mechanisms, and Pb is mainly solidified in C-S-H phase and absorbed in the Si-O structure.

Low-carbon stabilization/solidification of municipal solid waste incineration fly ash

Municipal solid waste incineration(MSWI)fly ash(FA)is classified as hazardous waste,which requires additional treatment before disposal or further utilization.Stabilization/solidification(S/S)is regarded as a low-cost and high-efficient method for MSWI FA treatment.“Low-carbon S/S”has captured extensive interest in recent years,which could treat hazardous wastes and enable resource recycling in a sustainable way.This article introduced the state-of-art low-carbon S/S strategies for MSWI FA treatment.The immobilization mechanisms of pollutants in various matrices were also discussed.Prospects were raised to foster the actualization of sustainable management of MSWI FA.

Release behavior of soluble salts in MSWI bottom ash used as road basement materials under continuous rainfall conditions

The bottom ash is increasingly used as a substitute aggregate material in road construction in China,and road salting is the major salt source in groundwater.Continuous rainfall releases soluble salts from the bottom ash subgrade into the surrounding soil and groundwater,resulting in potential hazards.Different methods were employed to simulate and collect runoff water during rainfall events,including batch leaching test,dynamic leaching test and constant head test,to assess environmental impact of bottom ash as road basement materials under continuous rainfall conditions.This study simulated the seepage of bottom ash backfill roads under different rainfall intensities,rainfall times,and rainfall pH values.A comprehensive sampling and laboratory testing program was undertaken to characterize the environmental impact of soluble salts from bottom ash.The obtained results reveal that the leaching concentrations of Cl^(−)and SO_(4)^(2−)exceed the limit specified in the class V standard of surface water,which are 2.06–2.17 times and 1.08–1.25 times,respectively.By examining the long-term environmental influence under the condition of continuous rainfall,the leaching of Cl^(−)mainly occurs in the early leaching stage,and the maximum leaching concentration reaches 19,700 mg/L.The release concentration of Cl^(−)begins to be lower than the class V standard of surface water when continuous rainfall approaches the total rainfall for 13 months.The cumulative release of Cl^(−)in the bottom ash is 2.8–5.4 mg/g.Both rainfall intensity and rain pH affect the release of Cl^(−).The obtained results derived from the constant head tests indicate that stagnant water caused by rainfall deteriorates the release of soluble salt into the groundwater in only 1 day,especially at the early stage of 12 h.This work provides some basic information about how to minimize damage to the surrounding environment caused by the leaching of salt in bottom ash.

Effect of Atmosphere on HCI Releasement during MSWI Fly Ash Thermal Treatment

Municipal solid waste incineration(MSWI)fly ash constitutes a hazardous waste.Melting disposal has been verified to be prospective for stabilizing heavy metals and dioxins.Release of contaminant HCl during MSWI fly ash thermal treatment leads to potential environmental risks.The behavior and transformation of chlorine are critical to the disposal strategy of MSWI fly ash.In this study,the pathway of HCl formation in MSWI fly ash thermal treatment under complex atmosphere was revealed.Results show that CaOHCl in fly ash was first decomposed to CaCl_(2),CaO and H_(2)O below 550°C,which provides H for HCl generation.Then,CaCl_(2),NaCl or KCl were reacted with H_(2)O to release HCI,during which process H_(2)O and O2 promote HCl formation,CO inhibit HCl production since H_(2)O is consumed in water-gas reaction.The initial temperature of HCl generation affected by the concentration of H_(2)O in the atmosphere.When temperature up to 1250°C,almost all NaCl or KCl were volatilized,HCl mainly from the reaction of chlorine-containing minerals with H_(2)O,such as Ca_(19.2)Mg_(2.8)(Si_(0.75)Al_(0.75))8 O36Cl_(2),Ca4(SiO4)(SO4)Cl_(2)and Ca10(SiO4)3Cl_(2)in N_(2),CO and air atmosphere separately.Moreover,in a reducing atmosphere,metals are more easily chlorinated by HCI,resulting in further consumption of HCI.The order of atmosphere for reducing HCl emissions should be CO>N_(2)>Air>>H_(2)O.

Effect of the MgO/SiO_(2) ratio on MgO–silica binders solidifying MSWI fly ash

To improve the effect of MgO–SiO_(2) binders solidifying municipal solid waste incineration fly ash(MSWI FA),MSWI FA solidified bodies with five MgO/SiO_(2) ratios(0.41~3.77)were investigated.The leaching behavior of solidified bodies was evaluated by leaching toxicity tests and pH-dependent experiments.In addition,hydration products in solidified bodies were analyzed by thermodynamic modeling and microstructure characterizations.The results showed that the variation in the MgO/SiO_(2) ratio had a significant effect on the leaching toxicity of the solidified bodies,because it affected the leachate pH and the composition of the hydration products of the solidified bodies.The acid and alkali resistance of the MSWI FA was enhanced through solidification with MgO–SiO_(2) binders.MgO can improve the alkalinity of the solidified bodies and facilitate the chemical precipitation of heavy metals.Moreover,silica fume,an industrial waste,can serve as a cost-effective measure.Overall,MgO–SiO_(2) binders demonstrated great potential as promising candidates for encapsulating MSWI FA.

Detoxifying PCDD/Fs and heavy metals in fly ash from medical waste incinerators with a DCdouble arc plasma torch

Medical waste incinerator （MWI） fly ash is regarded as a highly toxic waste because it contains high concentrations of heavy metals anddioxins, including polychlorinateddibenzo-p-dioxins （PCDDs） and polychlorinateddibenzofurans （PCDFs）. Therefore fly ash from MWI must be appropriately treated before beingdischarged into the environment. A melting process based on adirect current thermal plasma torch has beendeveloped to convert MWI fly ash into harmless slag. The leaching characteristics of heavy metals in fly ash and vitrified slag were investigated using the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure, while the content of PCDD/Fs in the fly ashes and slags was measured using method 1613 of the US EPA. The experimental results show that thedecomposition rate of PCDD/Fs is over 99% in toxic equivalent quantity value and the leaching of heavy metals in the slag significantlydecreases after the plasma melting process. The produced slag has a compact and homogeneous microstructure withdensity of up to2.8 g/cm3 .

Preparation of glass–ceramics from high-chlorine MSWI fly ash by one-step process

Municipal solid waste incinerated(MSWI) fly ash contains heavy metals and chloride,which is urgent to be disposed via an effective method.Herein,glass-ceramics,one of the recycling waste materials based on MSWI fly ash with high chloride content,have been developed from one-step process.MSWI fly ash and waste glass have been utilized as calcium and silicon sources,respectively.Glass-ceramics were successfully prepared by the one-step process.It is found that the increase in MSWI fly ash promotes the fracture of glass mesh(Si-O)and the generation of non-bridging oxygen,reducing the polymerization degree of glass network structure,which leads to the decrease in glass stability.The difference between glass transition temperature(T_(g)) and crystallization temperature(T_(c)) was narrowed,and crystallization activation energy of basic glass was reduced,which promoted crystallization.With lower crystallization activation energy(E=217.56 kJ·mol^(-1)) and high utilization rate of 50 wt% MSWI fly ash,the optimal glass-ceramics with spherical diopside,cuspidine and glass phase,excellent hardness of 7.97 GPa and bending resistance of 114.86 MPa are achieved.It is worth mentioning that most of the high content of chlorine in MSWI fly ash will evaporate during vitrification process;the residual chlorine as well as heavy metals can be present steadily in crystalline grains.Therefore,this study not only increases the attachment value of MSWI fly ash,but also eliminates the problems caused by high chlorine and heavy metals in MSWI fly ash.

Agronomic effectiveness of recovered phosphate fertilizer produced from incinerated sewage sludge ash

Phosphorus(P)recovery from incinerated sewage sludge ash(ISSA)has been extensively investigated,but insufficient research has been conducted to evaluate the effect of different kinds of recovered phosphate fertilizers(RPFs)on plant growth with respect to the P and heavy metal contents of RPFs.In this study,three kinds of RPFs,precipitated calcium phosphate fertilizer(CaP),struvite phosphate fertilizer(SP),and P-loaded biochar(BP),produced from ISSA were characterized,and their agronomic effectiveness was verified by hydroponic and soil cultivation.In addition to the three kinds of RPFs,a control group(mono-phosphate fertilizer in hydroponic group/compound fertilizer in soil cultivation group)and a blank control group(BC,with zero P)were tested on choy sum and ryegrass at the same time.SP has the highest P purity(76.0%of struvite)while the BP has the most complex P species(P was co-exist with Fe,Al,and Mg).Plant growth results showed that the RPFs greatly facilitated plant growth and demonstrated superior/comparable effects to those of control group.In hydroponics testing,SP showed the best effect(shoot length of 17.0 cm,chlorophyll content of 2.05 mg/g)due to the Mg involved and the high P purity of SP,while BP performed the best(shoot length of 13.7 cm,chlorophyll content of 2.42 mg/g)in the soil testing system among all of the groups because of the additional nutritional elements and the high P availability of BP.Additionally,the accumulation of heavy metals in the plants under all conditions did not exceed the limits stipulated in the regulations.These results indicate that recovering P from ISSA is an attractive technology to produce P fertilizers,which can alleviate both the scarcity of phosphate resources and the burden of ISSA management.