Ammonium Sorption from Landfill Leachates Using Natural and Modified Zeolites: Pre-Tests for a Novel Application of the Ion Exchanger Loop Stripping Process

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Abstract

Ammonium (NH4 +) is a main constituent of landfill leachates (50–2200 mg L −1) which has to be removed prior to indirect (<200 mg L −1) or direct discharge (<10 mg L −1) during landfill operation and aftercare, i.e., for more than 100 years after the end of waste disposal. In this study, lab-scale experiments regarding the sorption of NH4 + from landfill leachates using natural and modified clinoptilolite (Ca0.5,Na,K)6(Al6Si30)O72·20H2O) were conducted to assess the applicability of the innovative ion exchanger loop stripping (ILS) process for ammonium recovery. Samples of 20 g clinoptilolite after different pre-treatments (Ca loading, Na loading, natural loading) were shaken with 500 mL of each leachate from ten Austrian landfills (75 mg L −1 < c(NH4 +) < 2805 mg L −1; 7.7 < pH < 8.7) for 24 h. Between 13% and 61% of the dissolved NH4 + was adsorbed to the clinoptilolite, which remained stable during the experiment. In summary, our study indicates that the ILS process is highly promising with respect to NH4 + recovery from landfill leachates, but further research is needed to reach threshold values for direct discharge.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number471
Number of pages10
JournalMinerals
Volume9.2019
Issue number8
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 31 Jul 2019