Effects of Weathering on Treatment of Lead Contaminated Soils
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 131, Issue 1
Abstract
Treatment of lead-contaminated material focuses on the reduction of leached lead concentrations in laboratory leaching tests. There has been little study on the chemical stability of treated materials after waste disposal. To investigate the effects of weathering on several solidification/stabilization chemistries, lead-contaminated soil was treated with various agents (cement, phosphates, dithiocarbamate, calcium hydroxide, calcium carbonate, and metallic iron) and subjected to natural weathering for one year. Lead concentrations and pH values in field percolates and leachates from toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) and water leaching tests were used to evaluate changes in the treatment effectiveness. Weathering altered the treatment chemistry of several additives—alkaline additives were neutralized, while reduced additives were oxidized. Lead concentrations in field percolates from the untreated soil were around , and did not vary over one year of weathering time. After one year of weathering, lead concentrations in field percolates from most samples were reduced to low levels (<0.15 mg/L). Weathering also affected lead concentrations in the TCLP and water leach test leachates from the treated wastes. Treated wastes in which the alkaline additives were neutralized or reduced additives oxidized gave higher TCLP lead concentrations after weathering than before, in contrast to the decreasing lead concentrations in the field percolates. Water leaching tests on the alkaline treated wastes had lower lead concentrations after weathering than before.
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Acknowledgment
The support of the National University of Singapore, from Research Grant No. RP960628, is gratefully acknowledged.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 131 • Issue 1 • January 2005
Pages: 38 - 48
Copyright
© 2004 ASCE.
History
Received: May 21, 2002
Accepted: Mar 1, 2004
Published online: Jan 1, 2005
Published in print: Jan 2005
Notes
Note. Associate Editor: Mark J. Rood
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