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Evaluating the necessity for thermal treatment in clay-based metal immobilization techniques as an environmentally acceptable sediment remediation process

  • SEDIMENTS, SEC 5 • SEDIMENT MANAGEMENT • RESEARCH ARTICLE
  • Published:
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Abstract

Purpose

The objective of this research was to apply the same immobilization (stabilization/solidification) clay-based treatments to sediment contaminated with different metals (Pb, Cd, Ni, Zn, Cu, Cr) with different distributions and availabilities in sediment. We also examined the possibility of using clay as an immobilization agent without the application of thermal treatment, in order to reduce the economic cost of this expensive remediation procedure.

Materials and methods

Clay from a canal in Vojvodina, Republic of Serbia, was used as the immobilization agent in a stabilization/solidification treatment to remediate metal-contaminated sediment. Semi-dynamic and toxicity characteristic leaching tests were conducted to assess the effectiveness of the nonthermal and thermal immobilization treatments with clay, and the long-term leaching behavior of these metals was determined using the following parameters: cumulative percentage of metals leached; diffusion coefficients; leachability indices; and toxicity characteristic leaching test concentration.

Results and discussion

Based on these parameters, both clay-based treatments were effective in immobilizing metals in the contaminated sediment. Results suggest that both heating temperature and clay proportion in the sediment–clay mixture impact the degree of metal immobilization.

Conclusions

Clay-based products are potentially good immobilization materials for metal-contaminated sediments, with the distribution of metals in the original sediment not influencing the efficacy of the treatments. Even without the thermal treatment, the metals were effectively immobilized. The leaching of metals was largely inside the regulatory limits and the treated samples can be regarded as nonhazardous materials. This justifies the choice of not applying the more expensive thermal treatment during remediation, especially when treating sediments containing a mixture of pollutants.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia (grant nos. III43005 and TR37004).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Sciences, Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Environmental Protection, University of Novi Sad, Trg Dositeja Obradovica 3, 21000, Novi Sad, Serbia

    Dejan Krcmar, Milena Dalmacija, Bozo Dalmacija & Jelena Trickovic

  2. Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Trg Dositeja Obradovica 6, 21000, Novi Sad, Serbia

    Miljana Prica

  3. Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Trg Dositeja Obradovica 3, 21000, Novi Sad, Serbia

    Elvira Karlovic

Authors
  1. Dejan Krcmar
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  2. Milena Dalmacija
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  3. Bozo Dalmacija
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  4. Miljana Prica
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  5. Jelena Trickovic
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  6. Elvira Karlovic
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Correspondence to Dejan Krcmar.

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Responsible editor: Trudy J. Estes

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Krcmar, D., Dalmacija, M., Dalmacija, B. et al. Evaluating the necessity for thermal treatment in clay-based metal immobilization techniques as an environmentally acceptable sediment remediation process. J Soils Sediments 13, 1318–1326 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-013-0722-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-013-0722-2

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