Utilizing Recycled concrete aggregate for treating Acid mine drainage

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A1 Alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä

Date

2023-09

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en

Pages

13

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Cleaner Materials, Volume 9

Abstract

This study focuses on treating Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) using Recycled Concrete Aggregate (RCA) as a cost-effective and environmentally friendly material. RCA is utilized, considering its availability at low cost, to reduce heavy metal and sulfate concentration in AMD and neutralize its acidity in batch experimental mode. To that end, the adsorptive properties of RCA were characterized before and after adsorption by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), elemental mapping, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area measurements, and X-ray Diffraction. Furthermore, the organic functional groups of the tested materials were identified by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR). Adsorption parameters such as dosage, contact time, the grain size distribution of adsorbent particles, and the solution pH, were optimized for enhancing the removal performance. The pH point of zero charges for the RCA sample was defined. The results revealed that RCA is a potential eco-friendly material for AMD treatment. The concentration of sulfate in the tested AMD water was reduced by approximately 84%, while that of the metal elements declined as follows: iron 100%, manganese 95%, copper 66%, zinc 97%, and lead 76%. Also, the pH value of AMD water increased rapidly and reached neutral by using small quantities of RCA (≤1g/L).

Description

Funding Information: This research was funded by the Maa- ja Vesitekniikan Tuki, Helsinki, Finland. The authors would like to acknowledge the assistance of Aino Peltola, Marina Sushko, and Heikki Särkkä in the laboratory work, of Abdelaziz Ramzy with the SEM-EDS measurements, of Akseli Torppa with the XRD measurements, of Benjamin Wilson for giving access to the facilities provided by the Academy of Finland's RawMatTERS Finland Infrastructure (RAMI-FIRI) program, of Afsoon Farzan in FT-IR analysis, of Jani Pieksemä for providing the material, and of Arto Pullinen in collecting samples from the site. Advisory support from Roza Yazdani and Sami Häkkinen is appreciated. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors

Keywords

Acid mine drainage, Heavy metal removal, Mine water treatment, Recycled concrete aggregate, Sulfate, Sustainability

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Citation

Brooshan, E, Kauppila, T, Szlachta, M, Jooshaki, M & Leveinen, J 2023, ' Utilizing Recycled concrete aggregate for treating Acid mine drainage ', Cleaner Materials, vol. 9, 100205 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clema.2023.100205