The mechanisms of heavy metal stabilization of calcium-based dry scrubber residue using soluble
PO4
3- were
investigated. This stabilization technology is presently
used
in the U.S. and Japan to reduce metals leaching from
municipal solid waste combustion residues. At an
experimental dose of 1.2 mol of H3PO4/kg of
residue and using
a relatively dry mixing system, the reduction in the
operationally
defined fraction available for leaching (using the Dutch
Total Availability Test) is 38% for Cd, 58% for Cu, 99% for
Pb,
and 28% for Zn. pH-dependent leaching (pH 4, 6, 8)
showed
that the treatment was able to reduce equilibrium
concentrations by 0.5−2 log units for many of these
metals,
particularly Pb and Zn. Depth profiling of particles
using
secondary ion mass spectroscopy suggests that
stabilization is by precipitation of metal phosphate
reaction
products rather than by adsorption of metals to phosphate
particle surfaces. Bulk and surface spectroscopies
show
that the insoluble reaction products are nanometer-sized,
crystalline and amorphous calcium phosphates, tertiary
metal
phosphates, and apatite family minerals. The
geochemical
thermodynamic equilibrium model MINTEQA2 was
modified to include both extensive phosphate minerals
and simple ideal solid solutions for modeling pH-dependent
solid phase control of leaching. Both apatite family
and
tertiary metal phosphate end members and ideal solid
solutions
act as controlling solids for Ca2+, Zn2+,
Pb2+, Cu2+, and
Cd2+. The prevalence of small, nanometer-sized
reaction
products suggest that Ostwald ripening and precipitate
maturation has not completely occurred during initial
mixing.
Nevertheless, soluble phosphate is an effective
stabilization
agent for divalent heavy metals in waste materials such
as scrubber residues.
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