Removal of heavy metals using waste eggshell

The removal capacity of toxic heavy metals by the reused eggshell was studied. As a pretreatment process for the preparation of reused material from waste eggshell, calcination was performed in the furnace at 800℃ for 2 h after crushing the dried waste eggshell. Calcination behavior, qualitative and quantitative elemental information, mineral type and surface characteristics before and after calcination of eggshell were examined by thermal gravimetric analysis （TGA）, X-ray fluorescence （XRF）, X-ray diffraction （XRD） and scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, respectively. After calcination, the major inorganic composition was identified as Ca （lime, 99.63%） and K, P and Sr were identified as minor components. When calcined eggshell was applied in the treatment of synthetic wastewater containing heavy metals, a complete removal of Cd as well as above 99% removal of Cr was observed after 10 rain. Although the natural eggshell had some removal capacity of Cd and Cr, a complete removal was not accomplished even after 60 rain due to quite slower removal rate. However, in contrast to Cd and Cr, an efficient removal of Pb was observed with the natural eggshell rather than the calcined eggshell. From the application of the calcined eggshell in the treatment of real electroplating wastewater, the calcined eggshell showed a promising removal capacity of heavy metal ions as well as had a good neutralization capacity in the treatment of strong acidic wastewater.

Waste Activated Sludge Alkaline Fermentation Liquid as Carbon Source for Biological Nutrients Removal in Anaerobic Followed by Alternating Aerobic-Anoxic Sequencing Batch Reactors

Activated sludge process has been widely used to remove phosphorus and nitrogen from wastewater. However,the nitrogen and phosphorus removal is sometimes unsatisfactory due to the low influent COD.Another problem with the activated sludge process is that large amount of waste activated sludge is produced,which needs further treatment.In this study,the waste activated sludge alkaline fermentation liquid was used as the main carbon source for phosphorus and nitrogen removal under anaerobic followed by alternating aerobic-anoxic conditions,and the results were compared with those using acetic acid as the carbon source.The use of alkaline fermentation liquid not only affected the transformations of phosphorus,nitrogen,intracellular polyhydroxyalkanoates and glycogen, but also led to higher removal efficiencies for phosphorus and nitrogen compared with acetic acid.It was observed that ammonium was completely removed with either alkaline fermentation liquid or acetic acid as the carbon source. However,the former resulted in higher removal efficiencies for phosphorus(95%)and nitrogen(82%),while the latter showed lower ones(87%and 74%,respectively).The presence of a large amount of propionic acid in the alkaline fermentation liquid was one possible reason for its higher phosphorus removal efficiency.Exogenous instead of endogenous denitrification was the main pathway for nitrogen removal with the alkaline fermentation liquid as the carbon source,which was responsible for its higher nitrogen removal efficiency.It seems that the alkaline fermentation liquid can replace acetic acid as the carbon source for phosphorus and nitrogen removal in anaerobic fol- lowed by alternating aerobic-anoxic sequencing batch reactor.

Removal of high concentrated ammonia nitrogen from landfill leachate by landfilled waste layer

The landfill of municipal solid waste(MSW) could be regarded as denitrification reactor and involved in ammonia nitrogen biological removal process. In this research, the process was applied to municipal solid waste collected in Shanghai, China, which was characterized by high food waste content. The NH + 4 removal efficiency in the system of SBR nitrifying reactor followed by fresh and matured landfilled waste layer in series was studied. In the nitrifying reactor, above 90% of NH + 4 in leachate was oxidized to NO - 2 and NO - 3. Then high concentrated NO - 2 and NO - 3 were removed in the way of denitrification process in fresh landfilled waste layer. At the same time, degradation of fresh landfilled waste was accelerated. Up to the day 120, 136.5 gC/(kg dry waste) and 17.9 gN/(kg dry waste) were converted from waste layer. It accounted for 50.15% and 86.89% of the total carbon and nitrogen content of preliminary fresh waste, which was 4.42 times and 5.17 times higher than that of reference column respectively. After filtering through matured landfilled waste, BOD 5 concentration in leachate dropped to below 100 mg/L, which would not affect following nitrification adversely. Because the matured landfilled waste acted as a well methanogenic reactor, 23% of carbon produced accumulatively from fresh landfilled waste degradation was converted into CH 4.

Open pit waste removal optimization through equipment fleet scheduling

A neighborhood search algorithm was proposed to simultaneously schedule the waste removal quantity and the equipment fleet profile over the mine life for open pit mines.An initial search domain was first defined and a good schedule was obtained as the current best schedule by searching in this domain.Then,progressively narrower neighborhood search domains were constructed around the current best schedule to search for better schedules.The objective is to minimize the present value of waste removal costs over the mine life.The resulting schedule from this algorithm provides a complete fleet profile for each year over the mine life:the selected equipment models,the number of equipment units of each model,the age of each unit,as well as the quantity of waste removed.A numerical example of application was provided to demonstrate the feasibility and merits of the algorithm.

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

Hydrochloric acid leaching, chloride evaporation, acetic acid leaching, and biological leaching were evaluated and compared as processes of heavy metal removal for municipal solid waste incineration fly ash(MSWFA). Six factors, namely, energy consumption, process efficiency, process handling, process cost estimation, cost reduction potential, and study progress, were used in order to find out their advantages and disadvantages and to help develop a better recovery process of heavy metals from MSWFA in terms of treatment of the waste material. Hydrochloric acid leaching process was found to be most balanced among the evaluated processes. It showed superiority on energy consumption, process cost estimation, and study progress. On the other hand, despite of its excellency in process efficiency, chloride evaporation process was most unfavorable mainly due to heavy energy dependence. Biological process, with huge potential of cost reduction, was concluded to be the second best process.

A Study on the Structure and Behavior of Sinter-free Material for Phosphorous Removal from Waste Water

Oyster shell and cement were taken as the major raw materials to fabricate hollow, tubular and recoverable material for phosphorous removal （P removal） from waste water without sintering. In this paper, the effects of different affecting factors on the sample P removal ratio were discussed to select optimal P removal process conditions. SEM and XRD were used to characterize the microscopic structures and composition of samples, and molybdenum blue spectrophotometry was applied to determine the P content in waste water. Results showed that at 30 ℃ for 2 d, the P removal ratio reached 93.3% when the cement content was 10 wt% and oyster shell powder was 90 wt%. SEM analysis revealed a flaky structure consisting of phosphorus-containing compound in the samples after P removal, and it piled on and maintained the porous structure. In addition, the results also suggested that raising the ambient temperature was benefit to the P removal. The P removal ratio of the material was optimal under neutral and alkali conditions.

Arsenic removal from acidic industrial wastewater by ultrasonic activated phosphorus pentasulfide

Arsenic is one of the main harmful elements in industrial wastewater.How to remove arsenic has always been one of the research hotspots in academic circles.In the process of arsenic removal by traditional sulfuration,the use of traditional sulfurizing agent will introduce new metal cations,which will affect the recycling of acid.In this study,phosphorus pentasulfide (P_(2)S_(5)) was used as sulfurizing agent,which hydrolyzed to produce H_(3)PO_(4) and H_(2)S without introducing new metal cations.The effect of ultrasound on arsenic removal by P_(2)S_(5) was studied.Under the action of ultrasound,the utilization of P_(2)S_(5) was improved and the reaction time was shortened.The effects of S/As molar ratio and reaction time on arsenic removal rate were investigated under ultrasonic conditions.Ultrasonic enhanced heat and mass transfer so that the arsenic removal rate of 94.5%could be achieved under the conditions of S/As molar ratio of 2.1:1 and reaction time of 20 min.In the first 60 min,under the same S/As molar ratio and reaction time,the ultrasonic hydrolysis efficiency of P_(2)S_(5) was higher.This is because P_(2)S_(5) forms ([(P_(2)S_(4))])^(2+)under the ultrasonic action,and the structure is damaged,which is easier to be hydrolyzed.In addition,the precipitation after arsenic removal was characterized and analyzed by X-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscope-energy dispersive spectrometer,X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.Our research avoids the introduction of metal cations in the arsenic removal process,and shortens the reaction time.

Removal of tin and extraction of indium from acid-dissolved solution of waste indium-tin targets

The recovery of indium from waste indium tin oxide （ITO） target has great significance for the economy and environment.Based on our previous study on the optimization of acid leaching technique,the present study focuses on tin removal via zinc substitution and indium recovery from a tin-free leach solution.The results show that when the amount of added zinc powder and reaction time increase,the tin removal effect can be improved.The optimal conditions obtained are as follows：additional content of zinc powder from 20 g/L to 25 g/L,reaction temperature of 60 ℃,and reaction time from 3 h to 4 h.Under this condition,the tin removal rate exceeds 98%,and the tin content in the tin removal solution is lower than 0.05 g/L.After tin removal,the substitution time could be reduced from 3-5 d to 1-2 d by neutralizing the residual acid by using alkaline residue and maintaining the pH value less than 2.The indium recovery rate is also improved when this condition is used.The indium content in the tin residue is reduced to lower than 0.1% and the acid-insoluble β-SnO2 could be obtained via the strong nitric acid leaching of the indium-containing tin residue.Indium could be recovered from ITO with a high purity of 99.995% via electrorefining.

Simultaneous removal of cesium and strontium using a photosynthetic bacterium, <i>Rhodobacter sphaeroides</i>SSI immobilized on porous ceramic made from waste glass

This study investigated practical and simultaneous removal of cesium (Cs, initial concentration of 5 mg/L) and strontium (Sr, initial concentration of 5 mg/L) using a photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodobacter sphaeroides SSI, immobilized on recovery-type porous ceramic made from glass waste. When 4 - 8 pieces /L of SSI immobilized ceramic were added to synthetic sewage wastewater containing glucose, almost 100% of Cs and 57% - 61% removal of Sr was observed after 3 day’s aeration treatment. The high potassium (K) concentration in wastewater suppressed Cs removal, but did not affect Sr removal. Other substrates such as lactic, acetic, and propionic acids were useful for Cs and Sr removal. But, removal efficiencies were lower than about 50%. When the practical outdoor removal experiment carried out using1 m3 vessel, almost 100% of Cs and 51% of Sr were removed like a laboratory experiment after 3 day’s aerobic treatment. After treatment, the SSI immobilized ceramic was recovered easily from water using an electromagnet. This SSI immobilized ceramic seem to remove radioactive Cs and Sr from water environments of Fukushima,Japan.

A Kind of Lean Approach for Removing Wastes From Non-Manufacturing Process With Various Facilities

It is important to identify and remove the wastes not only from manufacturing process, but also from nonmanufacturing process. In the last several decades, significant research achievements and practice benefits have been achieved about removing wastes from manufacturing process. Since the1990 s, some researchers and lean practitioners have paid more attention to removing waste from non-manufacturing process.Based on the authors' research work and industrial practice, the paper introduces a kind of lean approach for removing waste from non-manufacturing process. In its case study, the order handling process in a value chain is described with respect to a factory and its downstream distribution centers(DCs). The paper proposes a lean approach solution for creating the improved order handling process, and analyze how great improvements in performance can be achieved. As a result, the significant achievement has created a win-win scenario for both the nonmanufacturing process in a factory and non-manufacturing facilities(like DCs) across the value chain. It demonstrates that improvements have been made by removing waste from the non-manufacturing process that takes place within a factory as well as with external participants through the whole value chain. Likewise, the proposed lean approach has helped the case companies to achieve greater levels of efficiency and more benefits. Finally, some conclusions are drawn.

Synthesis of platy potassium magnesium titanate and its application in removal of copper ions from aqueous solution

Platy potassium magnesium titanate (K0.8Mg0.4Ti1.6O4, KMTO) was synthesized by a flux method. The potential application of KMTO in removing copper ions from water pollutants was investigated. The crystal phases of specimens were identified by XRD. The morphology and structural information were characterized by SEM and TEM. The adsorption behavior under different conditions was investigated, including different pH values and different initial copper ion concentrations. The results show that the maximum adsorption capacity of Cu(II) ions is 290.697 mg/g, and almost 99.9% of Cu(II) ions can be removed, which is much higher than that of other sorbents reported. The kinetics of KMTO for the adsorption of Cu(II)ions was studied and the best fit can be obtained by the pseudo-second-order model. Adsorption isothermal data can be well interpreted by the Freundlich equation (R2=0.991). In conclusion, this study highlights that KMTO is a potential material for the efficient removal of heavy metal ions in polluted water. It also opens up a new opportunity for the applications of platy KMTO.

Reduction process and zinc removal from composite briquettes composed of dust and sludge from a steel enterprise

In this study, composite briquettes were prepared using gravity dust and converter sludge as the main materials; these briquettes were subsequently reduced in a tube furnace at 1000-1300℃ for 5-30 min under a nitrogen atmosphere. The effects of reaction temperature, reaction time, and carbon content on the metallization and dezincification ratios of the composite briquettes were studied. The reduced com- posite briquettes were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, and energy-dispersive spectroscopy （EDS）. The results show that the gravity dust and converter sludge are combined into the composite briquettes and a reasonable combination not only improves the performance of the composite briquettes, but also leads to the reduction with no or little reductant and flux. As the re- action temperature is increased and the reaction time is extended, the metallization and dezincification ratios of the composite briquettes in- crease gradually. When the composite briquettes are roasted at 1300℃ for 30 rain, the metallization ratio and dezineification ratio reaches 91.35% and 99.25%, respectively, indicating that most of the iron oxide is reduced and the zinc is almost completely removed. The carbon content is observed to exert a lesser effect on the reduction process; as the C/O molar ratio increases, the metallization and dezincification ra- tios first increase and then decrease.

PHOSPHORUS REMOVAL USING STEEL SLAG

Steel slag is a byproduct produced in large amounts in the steel-making process. It is an important resource that can be effectively utilized. An experiment was described in which steel slag was tested as an adsorbent for the removal of phosphorus from waste water. Phosphorus removal depended on the amount of steel slag added, the pH value, the contact time, and the initial concentration. Under laboratory conditions when the added slag was 7.5g/L, the contact time 2h, and the pH value was equivalent to 6.5, over 99% of the phosphorus was removed; the experimental data on steel slag adsorption of phosphorus in the water fitted the Freundlich isotherm model. Steel slag was found to be very effective in adsorbing phosphorus.

Application of UASB Reactor in Leachate Treatment of Beijing Asuwei Waste Sanitary Landfill Site

The UASB reactor was used to reconstruct leachate treatment project of Beijing Asuwei Waste Sanitary Landfill Site,and the commissioning with the UASB reactor was executed.Water quality indicators were determined in the debugging process,and the results showed that the VFA content in the anaerobic tank was controlled within 600 mg/L,which indicated that the water quality did not have the acidified phenomenon.The COD removal efficiency was 50%approximately and NH_3-N concentration showed as light decline when operation stability in anaerobic system.

Smelting chlorination method applied to removal of copper from copper slags

In order to reasonably utilize the iron resources of copper slags, the smelting chlorination process was used to remove copper from copper slags. Higher holding temperature and O2 flow rate are beneficial to increasing copper removal rate. However,the Cu2O mode is formed by the reaction of surplus O2 and CuCl with O2 flow rate increasing over 0.4 L/min, causing CuCl volatilization rate and copper removal rate to decrease. The resulting copper removal rate of 84.34% is obtained under the optimum conditions of holding temperature of 1573 K, residence time of 10 min, Ca Cl2 addition amount of 0.1(mass ratio of CaCl2 and the copper slag) and oxygen flow rate of 0.4 L/min. The efficient removal of copper from copper slags through chlorination is feasible.

Preparation of Dicarboxyl Cellulose Nanocrystals from Agricultural Wastes by Sequential Periodate-Chlorite Oxidation

Agricultural waste straw is the renewable resource with the highest annual yield in the world.In value-added applications of agricultural waste,dicarboxyl cellulose nanocrystals(DCCs)are prepared from rice,wheat,and corn straw by sequential periodate-chlorite oxidation.In this study,DCCs from rice,wheat,and corn straw were characterized by transmission electron microscopy(TEM),Fourier transform infrared spectrometer,X-ray diffractometer(XRD),and thermal gravimetric analysis(TGA).The carboxyl content of the DCCs was also investigated.XRD results show that the crystallinity index decreased after sequential periodate-chlorite oxidation;however,the cellulose I structure was maintained.TEM results show that rod-shaped DCCs with an average length and width of 287.0 nm and 9.9 nm,respectively,were successfully prepared by sequential periodate-chlorite oxidation.The carboxyl content of the DCCs was around 3.9 mmol/g,and not affected by the type of straw.Experiments to study the removal of copper ions in aqueous medium were performed with the prepared DCCs.The adsorption capacities of copper ions were 131,162,and 144 mg/g for DCCs prepared from rice,wheat,and corn straws,respectively.The results show that DCCs prepared from rice,wheat,and corn straws by sequential periodatechlorite oxidation have potential for the removal of copper ions from aqueous medium.

Dechlorination Behavior of Mixed Plastic Waste by Employing Hydrothermal Process and Limestone Additive

The usage of plastic-impregnated waste derived solid fuel in conventional combustor is hindered by many technical factors, especially its organic chlorine content. In this paper, experimental study of hydrothermal treatment on mixed plastic waste using the mixture of polypropylene, polystyrene, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride （PVC） has been performed to observe the dechlorination effect of hydrothermal treatment on the waste. The system was generally applying saturated steam at around 2.4 MPa in a stirring reactor for about 90 minutes. After undergoing the process, the organic chlorine in treated plastic waste was reduced to 1,700 ppm level while the inorganic chlorine content was increased, suggesting an organic chlorine conversion phenomenon to inorganic chlorine, accompanied with low pH due to dehydrochlorination process. Additional limestone （Ca（OH）2） in subsequent experiment showed that the similar phenomenon was occurred but with higher pH and lower chlorine content in the condensed water, suggesting the production of inorganic salt rather than hydrochloric acid. Laboratory scale experiment was also performed to confirm the dechlorination phenomena especially for PVC, and the result showed that the main parameter which affected the dechlorination phenomena was the amount of water in hydrothermal process rather than limestone addition. It is suggested that a combination ofhydrothermal process and alkali addition would produce a low-chlorine solid product from plastic waste, promoting its usage as alternative solid fuel.

Adsorption Kinetics of Cupric Ions on Mixture of Modified Corn Stalk and Modified Tomato Waste

The water crisis is an increasingly severe global problem that may be reduced by reusing wastewater after suitable treatment methods. Nowadays, biosorption is one of the main parts of environmental technology which could adsorb heavy metals. This paper describes the adsorption of Copper(II) ions from aqueous solution using a mixture of corn stalk and tomato waste which were oxidized with nitric acid. Kinetic and isotherm studies were carried out by studying the effects of parameters such as concentration dosage, time and pH. It was found that the maximum sorption capacity of the mixture of modified corn stalk and modified tomato waste (qm = 25 mg/g) was higher than the modified corn stalk (qm = 20.8 mg/g). Analysis indicated that pseudo-second-order kinetics controlled the adsorption rate and it has been proposed to correlate the experimental data well.

Effective Removal of Nitrates Ions from Aqueous Solution Using New Clay as Potential Low-Cost Adsorbent

In the present study, we investigated the performance of clay mineral originated from a dam situated in Morocco (Agadir city), as natural, low-cost, alternative and eco-friendly adsorbent for removal of nitrates ions from aqueous solution within a batch process. The clay was characterized by X-ray diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Dispersive Energy of Spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and surface area analysis (BET). The effects of various experimental parameters are examined such as contact time, initial concentration of pollutant, adsorbent mass and solution pH. The removal of nitrate was 71.89% at natural pH (pH = 5.1) using 1 g/l of adsorbent in 500 ml of nitrate solution having initial concentration of 300 mg/l (effect of contact time). Adsorption kinetic study revealed that the adsorption process followed first order kinetic. Theoretical correlation of the experimental equilibrium adsorption data for the Nitrate-New Clay system was properly explained by the Langmuir isotherm model. The maximum adsorption capacity was Qm, exp = 244.06 mg/g at 20℃ and at natural pH (with Qm, cal = 250 mg/g). An increase in adsorbent dosage increased the percent removal of nitrate, R = 1 g/l was considered as optimum dose and was used for further study. The pH heavily affected the adsorption capacity, and the percentage removal was found to decrease with increase in pH. The obtained results indicated that this New Clay (NC) was very good adsorbent for NO3-, interesting alternative material with respect to more costly adsorbent used, and could be used as a highly efficient adsorbent for the separation of nitrate from drinking or waste water.

A disposal strategy of industrial hazardous wastes in the Three Gorges Region

A large quantity of industrial hazardous wastes (IHWs) accumulates in the Three Gorges Region. This study found that approximately 15 000 t IHWs were piled in the region by October 2001. These IHWs came from various sources and were complex in composition, mostly toxic and difficult to be disposed. IHW is regarded as a potential threat to the ecological environment, water resources and survival of local residents. It is important and indispensable to dispose the waste properly. To meet the regulation requirements on the disposal of IHWs and to minimize environmental effects on the Three Gorges Region, a disposal strategy is proposed, according to which approximately 600 t of the IHWs can be disposed by chemical stabilization, incineration and other treatment measures, and the rest need be stockpiled in safe and reliable places situated above the 177 m impoundment line of the Three Gorges dam.