Passive remediation of metal and sulfate-rich acid mine drainage using a sulfate reducing bioreactor
Acid mine drainage (AMD) is an environmental pollution that needs to be treated for sustainable environment in the future. Sulfate reducing bioreactor is one of the promising AMD treatments which can improve the health and conditions of mine water in an economical and sustainable way. The char...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2016
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/67341/1/FPAS%202016%2012%20UPM%20IR%20.pdf |
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| Summary: | Acid mine drainage (AMD) is an environmental pollution that needs to be treated for
sustainable environment in the future. Sulfate reducing bioreactor is one of the promising
AMD treatments which can improve the health and conditions of mine water in an
economical and sustainable way. The characterization of the treatment media used for
AMD remediation was done for spent mushroom compost (SMC), limestone, and
activated sludge. The SMC greatly assisted the removals of sulfate and metals and also
acted as an essential carbon source for bacterial sulfate reduction (BSR). A column
experiment was conducted to evaluate the performance of sulfate-reducing bioreactor in
a continuous flow system in anoxic condition. The treatment media that composed of
40% crushed limestone, 30% SMC, 20% activated sludge and 10% woodchips were used
in the column experiment. Generally, Fe, Pb, Cu, Zn, and Al were effectively removed
in the treatment with 87 to 100% removals. However, Mn was not successfully removed
from the treatment at the end of experiment despite initial Mn reduction during the early
phase of the experiment. It was found from the column experiment that the first 15 days
of treatment was an essential phase for the removal of most metals where contaminants
were primarily removed by the BSR in reducing condition, in addition to calcite
dissolution function. The treatment condition was favored by the availability of sufficient
carbon source from the organic materials to enable bacterial sulfate reduction to occur
effectively. The importance of bacterial sulfate reduction mechanism in the presence of
organic materials was also supported by the metal accumulation analysis in the treatment
substrates that primary metal accumulation occurs mainly through metal adsorption onto
the organic matter and Fe/Mn oxides fractions. |
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