Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2006OH32B

Use of fluidized bed slag reactors for passive treatment of acid mine drainage

Institute: Ohio
Year Established: 2006 Start Date: 2006-03-01 End Date: 2007-06-30
Total Federal Funds: $36,698 Total Non-Federal Funds: $73,536

Principal Investigators: Guy Riefler

Project Summary: Seepage of acid mine drainage (AMD) continues to significantly impair surface water quality in the coal bearing regions of southeast Ohio. Water that infiltrates abandoned mine shafts dissolve pyrite and other minerals, resulting in leachate with high levels of acidity, iron, and aluminum. These continuous pollution sources can kill a stream for miles and result in large quantities of unappealing iron ochre. This proposal tests a novel treatment technique to raise the pH of AMD and remove iron and aluminum. Slag, a waste product from the iron smelting industry, is extremely alkaline, raising the pH of clean natural water up to 11. However, when treating AMD the slag becomes coated with iron and aluminum, quickly rendering it ineffective. In this proposal we will test using slag in a fluidized bed reactor. The fluidized slag bed will prevent the armoring of slag through abrasion of the particles and allow for easy separation and harvesting of the lighter iron floc. Further, many mine shafts release water with significant head allowing this technology to be implemented without any energy input.