Effective Use of Cementitious Materials, Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag, and Bentonite in Treating Contaminants on Polluted Land

This study focuses on pollutant stabilisation by the formation of less mobile, less toxic and less bio-available contaminant binding forms which protects humans, health and the environment. This treatment involves mixing a binding agent into the contaminated media by immobilizing hazardous constituents within the treated material. Cementitious materials such as CEM I, ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), and bentonite are the predominant material choices because of their low associated processing costs, compatibility with a wide variety of disposal scenarios, and the ability to meet stringent processing and performance requirement. The aim requires selection of immobilising agents based on: (1) a set of physico-chemical tests designed to provide understanding of the processes involved in a particular stabilisation scheme; (2) durability of its products; and, (3) environmental impacts. Laboratory treatability studies are a fundamental part of the design process to assess mix, design and demonstrate that a binder can be selected to achieve remedial objectives for the design life of the remediation. The composition of the mixes was similar, but the difference is the percentage of water applied. A more comprehensive treatability study is proposed for ensuring that the study accurately reflects anticipated on-site conditions and the chosen binder satisfies the remedial objectives.