Study on the Properties of Waste Apatite Phosphogypsum as a Raw Material of Prospective Applications

Kazimierz Grabas,Wiesław Stręk,Adam Pawełczyk,Eligiusz Szełęg,Sven Stręk

doi:10.1007/s12649-018-0316-8

Abstract

This paper presents the results of the study on chemical and the physical properties of waste phosphogypsum (PG) of apatite origin from the former chemical plant Wizow, Poland which are important for further processing and economic use. The research was carried out to verify whether the waste might be useful as a raw material for rare earth elements (REE) recovery and the manufacture of building materials. The following methods were chosen: X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy with an energy-dispersive X-ray detector, atomic absorption spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma spectrometry, differential thermal analysis, thermogravimetry, and gamma spectrometry with natural radioactive contamination analyzer. It has been proven that the chemical physical properties of phosphogypsum provide an opportunity to utilize this waste material as a source of REE and raw material for building purposes. PG contains an overall amount of REE in the interval of 0.343–0.637% by mass and does not show radioactivity level which would exclude it from construction purposes. The presented results serve as the basis for currently available technological directions in the management of apatite PG for useful trade products, which creates a chance for the elimination of its storage necessity by further processing.Graphical

Highlights

Nowadays, rare earth elements (REEs) have a great impact on the development of new technologies, e.g., strategic economy sectors [1,2,3] are considered to be the flywheel of modern economics and serve as the basis for technological developments
REEs are treated as critical raw materials and have been put on a list of raw materials that are crucial for the European Union (EU) economy [3, 6, 7]
PG waste dumps from the former chemical plant Wizow, which collects waste from the production of phosphoric acid made by wet methods from apatite raw materials, contains dihydrate calcium sulfate as a main compound and impurities such as phosphates, sulfates, fluorides, heavy metals, aluminum, iron, silica, and strontium compounds, as well as REE and naturally occurring radionuclides

Summary

Introduction

Rare earth elements (REEs) have a great impact on the development of new technologies, e.g., strategic economy sectors [1,2,3] are considered to be the flywheel of modern economics and serve as the basis for technological developments. Raw material accessibility and the security of supply influence the economics; the increasing demand and limited raw material resources enforce the search for new REE deposits [2,3,4,5]. REEs are treated as critical raw materials and have been put on a list of raw materials that are crucial for the European Union (EU) economy [3, 6, 7]. The new Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament on the 2017 list of Critical Raw Materials for the EU updates the 2014 list of critical raw materials. The list is used by the Commission as a supporting element when negotiating trade agreements, challenging trade-distortive measures, developing research and innovation actions, and implementing the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (COM(2017) 490)

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Conclusion