Evaluation of the leaching characteristics of wood ash and the influence of ash agglomeration

Abstract

The release of mineral nutrients and other species from untreated and stabilised wood ash has been investigated. Stabilisation is applied with the aim to modify the solubility of ash components and the ash particle size, i.e. to form dense ash particle agglomerates. This process induces the formation of several secondary minerals. The most important reaction is the transformation of Ca(OH) 2 into CaCO 3 which lowers the calcium leaching rate significantly. A significant fraction of the alkali metals, K and Na, is present in salts which are rapidly released. The short-term release of these salts, as simulated in laboratory experiments, was not reduced by the stabilisation methods applied. Generally, low leaching rates were observed for the important plant nutrients P and Mg as well as for Fe and other metals from both untreated and agglomerated ashes. Thermodynamic equilibrium modelling of the hardening process showed that in addition to the transformation of Ca(OH) 2 to CaCO 3, formation of the mineral ettringite is possible at a high pH. Experimental results have confirmed this. As the pH in the pore solution decreases during long-term leaching ettringite will be transformed into calcium carbonate and gypsum. In accordance with the experimental results, no formation of secondary solubility controlling potassium or sodium minerals was indicated by the modelling results.