Kg Of Copper Research Articles

Waste Assessment of 1.275 MWP PV Plant: Case of Northern Cyprus

PV technologies gained significant importance during the last 2 decades by providing clean and renewable electricity. However, PV panels complete their operational life in 25-30 years and transform into hazardous waste for both human health and environment. Management of PV Waste is an important environmental issue which requires a detailed inventory of the PV Waste. In this study, the PV Waste inventory of 1.275 MWP PV Plant installed in Serhatköy Region of Northern Cyprus, on May 2011, is investigated. Results showed that, this plant will complete its operational lifetime in 13-18 years and generate the first bulk PV Waste in Northern Cyprus. Inventory analysis of the Serhatköy PV Plant revealed that 63476 kg of glass,16807 kg of aluminum, 9230 kg of steel, 6640 kg of EVA, 807 kg of silicon, and 746 kg of copper can be recycled and recovered. Also, this study revealed that Northern Cyprus can catch the PV Waste Management targets of the European Union with a down-cycling PV Waste Strategy.

A participatory approach to involve winegrowers in pesticide use reduction in viticulture in the south-western region of France

Viticulture involves high pesticide use. While methods to reduce this use have been proposed by researchers, they have not yet been widely implemented by winegrowers. Involving winegrowers in the participatory design of new management strategies could encourage the adoption of these methods to reduce pesticide use. In this study, we designed and tested a participatory approach to reducing pesticide use that would be acceptable to winegrowers from a South-Western cooperative (i.e., not ‘pioneering’ winegrowers). The approach was composed of three main steps: A) co-design of the management strategies, B) implementation of the management strategies, and C) co-evaluation of the performances of the implemented management strategies. Winegrowers, researchers, advisors and engineers were involved in the study. The application of this participatory approach enabled the co-design and testing of two management strategies: IPM for Integrated Pest Management [50% reduction of pesticide treatment frequency index (TFI) as compared to the French High Environmental Value reference (HEV)], and ORG2kgCo for organic farming system with a maximum of 2 kg of copper/ha/year. These two management strategies were implemented by 11 winegrowers in three vineyards in South- Western France. In both management strategies, two main technical levers were selected to reduce pesticide use: a Decision Support System to optimise the use and substitution of pesticides by biocontrol products. The implementation of the IPM management strategy resulted in a significant reduction of TFI (from -14% to -57%, with an average of -25%, for all pesticides combined) compared to HEV, and the winegrowers who tested ORG2kgCo managed to not exceed the limit of 2 kg of copper per year. This original participatory approach, combining co-design workshops, on-farm experimentation and co-evaluation workshops, highlighted the benefits of involving winegrowers in the reduction of pesticide use.

Reusable laryngoscope blades: a more eco-responsible and cost-effective alternative

IntroductionConsumption of single-use medical devices has increased considerably, contributing to the excessive wastage produced during surgical procedures. The present study aimed to describe a methodology to assess the transition from single-use blades (SUB) to reusable laryngoscope blades (RUB) and to assess the ecological and economic impact of the switch. MethodsThe ecological analysis was based on the life cycle assessment method. Based on 30 operating rooms in a single tertiary university hospital, the economic analysis compared the usual SUB supplier with four RUB suppliers considering different costs: blade purchasing and depreciation, reprocessing, logistics and waste management. ResultsIn 2021, 17,200 intubations were performed requiring about 147 RUBs. Switching from SUB to RUB led to an annual saving of 26.5 tons of CO2eq (global warming impact), equivalent to 120 000 km by car. It avoids the extraction of 6.6 tons Oileq (petroleum) and 579 kg of copper (mineral resources) per year. This action also leads to a land occupation reduction of 626 m2 per year and water savings of 221.6 m3 per year. The average cost per intubation varies from 3.16 [3.15–3.16] for SUB to 2.81 [2.77–2.85] for RUB, representing an average saving of 0.35 per intubation leading to 5783.50 annual gain [5074.00–6192.00]. RUB are preferable from 3 and 86 uses from an ecological and economic viewpoint, respectively. ConclusionIn a model of 17,200 intubations /year, switching SUD to RUB would save 26.5 tons of CO2eq and 6.6 tons of Oileq with 5783.50 annual gain. RUBs are ecologically and cost-effective after 3 and 86 uses, respectively.

Factors and guidelines of recycling economics in Russia and building up the waste management system

The article deals with the problem of processing, utilization and recycling of the waste household appliances and electronics and the potential scenarios of its solution. Firstly, the topicality of the problem is connected with the fact that an average computer contains 0.09 g of gold, up to 1.1 g of silver, 0.4 kg of aluminum, 0.2 kg of copper as well as iron and plastic. The materials mentioned can be regarded as a valuable resource. Also there are dangerous materials which should not enter the environment. On the other hand, the cost of recycling and extraction of these materials exceeds their value. The article also studies how the general economic and innovative development of the country and the degree of the government intervention in the innovation area affect the development of the new economics model. The authors reveal the difference of priorities for developed and developing countries during the transition to the closed loop economics. They also study the features of legislation in the European countries and those of the Asian region. To stimulate the development of the recycling industry the authors suggest using income tax allowances.

Ecoresponsible actions in operating rooms: A health ecological and economic evaluation

BackgroundIn the current context of climate change, actions must be taken to improve the hospital's ecological footprint, particularly in the operating room, which is a major consumer of medical devices. MethodsThis prospective pilot study assessed the ecological and economic impacts of sustainable actions targeting medical devices designed by a multidisciplinary working group and implemented in the 24 operating rooms of a University Hospital over one year. The ecological analysis was based on the life cycle assessment method and categorized in seven impacts. The economic impact was assessed by a micro-costing analysis and divided in four main expense items: human and material resources, logistics, and waste management. ResultsIn total, 13 actions were implemented with the aim of reducing waste volume, improving waste sorting, and increasing eco-responsible purchases. In one year, these 13 actions allowed avoiding the emission of 203 tons eq CO2. The environmental and human toxicity benefits were 707.8 and 156.2 tons of 1.4 dichlorobenzene, respectively. Concerning non-renewable resources, these actions avoided the extraction of 9 tons of oil (petroleum) and 610 kg of copper per year. These actions led to a land occupation reduction of 1071.3 m2year and to water saving of 552 m3. From the economic side, the implementation of these actions brought a gain of €3747.9 for the first year and of €5188.2 for the following years. ConclusionThe integration of sustainable measures in operating rooms leads to important ecological benefits and also generating savings. This more eco-responsible approach should be considered in all healthcare establishments that generate a significant annual volume of waste.

Prospective life cycle assessment of metal commodities obtained from deep-sea polymetallic nodules

Sustainable metal supply will be essential to achieve climate and sustainability goals (e.g., Paris agreement), for instance by providing the necessary raw materials for renewable energy infrastructure systems. The potential exploitation of mineral resources from the deep sea (e.g., polymetallic nodules) can play a major role in this supply. A holistic environmental analysis is needed, in order to consider the entire value chain of the products obtained out of deep-sea exploitation. Therefore, the objective of this study was to perform a prospective life cycle assessment (LCA) of deep-sea-sourced commodities and compare it to equivalent products obtained from terrestrial mining. It considered as reference flow one tonne of (dry) nodules, using a cradle-to-gate approach up to the final metal commodities, analyzing the delivery to the market of 10.5 kg of copper, 12.8 kg of nickel, 2.3 kg of cobalt and 311.3 kg of ferromanganese. Three environmental impact categories were analyzed, i.e., climate change, acidification and photochemical oxidant formation. Overall, onshore activities (e.g., hydrometallurgical processing) are the main hotspots for environmental impacts of metals sourced from the deep sea; offshore activities play a minor role in the value chain. While photochemical oxidant formation impacts would be similar to terrestrial alternatives, the deep-sea-sourced commodities can bring environmental gains in the order of 38% for climate change and up to 72% for acidification. As this study shows, a strategic selection of the location for onshore processing of the polymetallic nodules is key to target cleaner production, not only because of the distance from the nodules site, but especially because of the available energy mix. The results should be interpreted with care, though, due to intrinsic limitations of the LCA study, e.g., the prospective nature of this study, the limited access to terrestrial mining data, amongst others. Nonetheless, regardless the limitations a prospective LCA imposes, this study highlights some important potential benefits that commodities from deep-sea polymetallic nodules can bring to society with respect to three important environmental impacts.

Investigation of the metal content in the sediment of Oskarshamns harbour

In the period 1995 to 1998 have several investigations been performed in regard to the metal content in the sediment of Oskarsharnns harbour and the connected leakage to the Kalmar sund and the Baltic Sea. The investigations suggest that a total of approximately 600.000 m3 of the sediment is contaminated and in need of remediation. The contamination is dominated by 1.000 kg of cadmium, 200.000 kg of copper, 100.000 kg of lead and 400.000 kg of zinc. The studies also show that the on-going transport of metals out from the harbour is not connected with the modem input. The yearly transport from the harbour is calculated to be 100 kg Cd, 7.000 kg Cu, 3 .000 kg Pd and 10.500 kg Zn.

Sulfuric acid leaching for capturing value from copper rich converter slag

In this research, a hydrometallurgical method for recovery of copper from copper rich converter slag is investigated. The main copper containing phases of the slag are cuprite (Cu2O), delafossite (CuFeO2) and metallic copper (Cu). The study investigates the effect of particle size, temperature, acid concentration, agitation and leaching time under oxidizing conditions. The results showed that at optimized conditions (40 °C, 2 M H2SO4, 60 min leaching time, 0.26 kW/m3 mixing power, and 2000 mL/min oxygen flow rate), ca. 100% extraction of copper from slag into the solution was obtained. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis consolidated the experimental results by confirming that no Cu containing phases were present in the leach residue. Results also showed that temperature ≤40 °C had the larger influence on Cu and Fe yield, whereas higher temperature (>40 °C) favored Ni and Zn dissolution. The acid consumption of the optimized leaching process was found to be 23.7 mol of H2SO4 per kg of copper.

Le bois de l’Enfer à Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte (Manche, France) : un nouveau dépôt de lingots plano-convexes et quelques éléments de réflexion sur la présence d’indicateurs spatiaux au-dessus des dépôts métalliques

Le bois de l’Enfer à Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte (Manche, France) : un nouveau dépôt de lingots plano-convexes et quelques éléments de réflexion sur la présence d’indicateurs spatiaux au-dessus des dépôts métalliques

Sustainability of Agro-Gray Soil to Pollution and Acidification, and its Biodiagnostics

The aim of investigations is to study the resistance of agro-gray heavy loamy soil to heavy metal pollution and acidification on the basis of determining corresponding parameters of buffering, as well as microbiological activity, as a biological diagnosis of fertility potential under stress conditions.The object of investigations is the agro-gray soil of different cultivation degrees: fertile and infertile. In fertile soil, the humus content in barren soil was 2.2-2.5 % and that in fertile soil was 5.4 %.A model of soil resistance to heavy metals and acidification has been developed. The low level of stability of the agro-gray soil appears when the maximum Langmuir adsorption value is less than 91 mM / kg for zinc, less than 104 mM / kg for copper, less than 93 mM / kg for lead, and less than 61 mM / kg for cadmium. The average level of stability is provided for zinc, copper and lead in the range from 91 to 143 mM / kg, 104 - 130 mM / kg and 61 - 132 mM / kg, respectively. A high level of soil stability is guaranteed if the maximum adsorption value exceeds 93 - 143 mM / kg. Bio diagnostics included a series of experiments with imitation of pollution and acidification. Soil pollution was modeled by adding 200 and 600 mg / kg of copper to it (experiment 1). In experiment 2, soil was polluted by cadmium at the rate of 10, 30 and 100 MAC. The exposition was 1, 10, 35 and 57 days.Acidification of the soil was simulated by adding dilute sulfuric acid at a rate of 0.018, 0.044, and 0.120 mM / l (experiment 3).In experiment 4, the effect of zinc on the activity of azotobacter in barren and fertile soil was studied. The dose of zinc was 50 and 100 mg / kg.It was established that when the content of humus is not less than 5 %, the average decrease in activity for all groups of microorganisms was not more than 20 % as compared with clean samples. When the humus content was below 3 %, the microbiological activity decreased by more than 30 %.

Drawing down the remaining copper inventory in a leach pad by way of subsurface leaching

A significant amount of metal inventory can reside in a leach pad due to unfavorable metallurgical and hydraulic conditions. Continued leaching using surface irrigation will likely be unsuccessful at recovery in any reasonable time frame. In this work, we investigate how subsurface leaching (SSL), using wells to facilitate the delivery of barren solution, could potentially increase recovery and drawdown the inventory in a shorter period of time. An initial characterization campaign of the leach pad using drilling and assaying along with geophysical methods showed that inventory was high because the ore remained dry from compaction. Other areas were also shown to have preferential flow paths as a means to drain solution out of the leach pad. Assaying results taken from sonic coring and auger cuttings, and extrapolated across the leach pad, revealed a potential of 37×106kg of acid soluble copper.Our investigation covers the first 1000days of SSL, with 110 PVC wells distributed across five main areas. During this time, we estimate production at 2.26×106kg of copper based on the amount of solution introduced through the wells multiplied by the average copper grade from a number of sources, including monitoring wells and newly formed side slope seeps. Some areas performed better than others, especially where assays revealed that acid soluble copper was greater than 50% of total copper. The SSL program is expected to continue for at least another 1000days, and we expect an additional 7×106 to 15×106kg will be withdrawn from inventory.

Metal deposition of copper and lead bullets in moose harvested in Fennoscandia

ABSTRACTFragments from bullets used for moose (Alces alces) hunting contaminate meat, gut piles, and offal and expose humans and scavengers to lead and copper. We sampled bullets (n = 1,655) retrieved from harvested moose in Fennoscandia (Finland, Sweden, and Norway) to measure loss of lead and copper. Concordant questionnaires (n = 5,255) supplied ballistic information to complete this task. Hunters preferred lead‐based bullets (90%) to copper bullets (10%). Three caliber classes were preferred: 7.62 mm (69%), 9.3 mm (12%), and 6.5 mm (12%). Bullets passed completely through calves (76%) more frequently compared to yearlings (63%) or adults (47%). Metal deposition per bullet type (bonded lead core, lead core, and copper) did not vary among moose age classes (calves, yearlings, and adults). Average metal loss per bullet type was 3.0 g, 2.6 g, and 0.5 g for lead‐core, bonded lead‐core, and copper bullets, respectively. This corresponded to 18–26, 10–25, and 0–15% metal loss for lead‐core, bonded lead‐core, and copper bullets, respectively. Based on the harvest of 166,000 moose in Fennoscandia during the 2013/2014 hunting season, we estimated that lead‐based bullets deposited 690 kg of lead in moose carcasses, compared with 21 kg of copper from copper bullets. Bone impact increased, whereas longer shooting distances decreased, lead loss from lead‐based bullets. These factors did not influence loss of copper from copper bullets. In conclusion, a significant amount of toxic lead from lead‐based bullets is deposited in the tissue of harvested moose, which may affect the health of humans and scavengers that ingest it. By switching to copper bullets, Fennoscandian hunters can eliminate a significant source of lead exposure in humans and scavengers. © 2017 The Wildlife Society.

Выбор методики расчета и исследование электрических характеристик индукционных тигельных печей с проводящим тиглем

The known procedures for calculating induction crucible furnaces with a conductive crucible are reviewed and compared with one another. It is shown that the electric and power performance characteristics of furnaces of this type can be efficiently calculated and theoretically studied by computer simulation based on the finite element method and implemented in the ELCUT universal software package. The results from electric calculation of a laboratory furnace with a graphite crucible and with aluminum alloy charge carried out using different methods are compared with one another, and the effectiveness of using the ELCUT software package has been demonstrated from that comparison. A laboratory electrical processing facility comprising an induction crucible furnace with a conductive crucible, an adjustable high-frequency transistor inverter serving as a power supply, a microprocessor control system, and a data acquisition system has been set up. The techniques for measuring electrical quantities at high frequency that have been implemented in the laboratory setup are described. The modelling has been carried out at the experimental setup fitted with the necessary instrumentation. The calculation results are compared with the physical experiment data, and adequacy of the theoretical investigation has been confirmed by experiment. The laboratory furnace equipped with a graphite crucible intended for melting 1 kg of copper by heating it to 1100 °C using a current frequency of around 22 kHz has been calculated. The electromagnetic wave penetration into the furnace charge presenting a double-layer conductive body (with the conductive crucible forming the external layer and the metal being melted forming the inner layer) has been investigated. The effect the presence of the charge inner layer on the furnace electrical and power performance characteristics has been investigated. The dependences of electric and power performance characteristics on the frequency, inductor current and temperature, as well as the distribution of magnetic field intensity over the radius and specific volumetric power release in the crucible and charge for the empty crucible and the crucible with liquid copper have been studied. The calculation results were also compared with the experimental data. The performed investigations form the basis for designing induction crucible furnaces with a conductive crucible and also for constructing the control system.

Pilot Plant Conversion of Blackcurrant Seeds into New Micronutrient Fertilizer Biocomponents via Biosorption

A new approach for micronutrient fertilizer biocomponent production based on blackcurrant seeds is presented. Blackcurrant seeds constitute a by-product from the production of jellies, jams, and juices. New environmental-friendly fertilizers with micronutrients were produced in the pilot plant as alternative sustainable fertilizers to conventional options. Post-extraction residues, obtained after supercritical CO2 extraction was conducted on blackcurrant seeds, were used. In each process, 15 kg of biosorbent was used. Good sorption capacity was achieved (6.48 mg/g for Zn(II), 13.9 mg/g for Cu(II) and 5.88 mg/g for Mn (II)). The adsorption kinetics was described using different kinetic models; the most suitable were the Nelson-Yoon and Thomas models. The new preparation has application-friendly form (micro-granules) and is nontoxic. For a dose of 2.5 kg of zinc, 1 kg of manganese, and 0.5 kg of copper per hectare (often used in vegetable fertilization), approximately 600 kg of mixed end product is required. The cost of fertilization with current scale technology will be about four times higher than that of conventional technology (including depreciation of equipment), but with process scale-up, it is possible to reduce costs even twice over.

Biofortification of maize grains with micronutrients by enriched biomass of blackcurrant seeds

Abstract Effect of the application of blackcurrant seed post-extraction residues (BS) enriched via biosorption with Zn(II), Mn(II) and Cu(II) was examined in field tests on maize. As a nominal dose (100%), 2.5 kg of zinc, 1 kg of manganese and 0.5 kg of copper per hectare, were applied. The preparation was applied, also, in higher doses (150%, 200%). Crop yield and quality were assessed and multielemental analysis of grains was conducted. Grain yield obtained for maize treated with different doses of micronutrients (7.3 and 7.2 Mg ha-1 for BS 100% and BS 200%, respectively) was higher than in control group (6.2 Mg ha-1) and similar to a commercial reference product (7.1 Mg ha-1). Bioavailability of micronutrients from BS was shown to be higher than from reference commercial fertilizer. The highest content of micronutrients delivered to plants was observed for groups fertilized with BS in nominal dose of micronutrients (1.79, 7.08 and 28.55 mg kg-1 for Cu, Mn and Zn, respectively). The content of each micronutrient was 5.6% (Cu) 12.1% (Mn) and 12.6% (Zn) higher than in untreated group and 8.9% (Cu) 9.7% (Mn) and 8.7% (Zn) higher than commercial reference micronutrient fertilizer. New biocomponents are cheap and biodegradable carriers of nutrients which can be released in controlled way.

Deep well rinsing of a copper oxide heap

A subsurface irrigation test, using a series of four rinse wells, was conducted on a copper oxide heap leach pad over a three week period. The pad has been significantly underperforming due to difficult drainage conditions imposed by a high degree of fine-grained material. The test was to determine whether it would be feasible to conduct the directed leaching method across the entire pad assuming that enough copper is liberated to pay for the upscaled well field installation. The rinse wells were connected directly to an existing raffinate line. Validation of the test included 1) hydraulic monitoring to ensure sufficient solution flow and coverage in the formation and 2) metallurgical monitoring of solution samples extracted from nearby monitoring wells to ensure copper liberation. The results showed that the mean flow rates to each rinse well exceeded expectations by a factor of at least 1.5 for an extended period of time, that radial solution coverage for optimal operating conditions was approximately 17m, and copper grade was upwards of three times the anticipated grade. The test was then extended for an additional two months on a single well, where the copper grade remained approximately two times higher than that from surface irrigation. By the end of the testing, it was calculated that at least 191,000kg of copper was liberated. The upscaled program is to include 170 additional wells spaced 31m apart and the potential for 12 wells to be rinsed simultaneously, which would allow the program to be completed in less than three years.

Material flow analysis and energy requirements of mobile phone material recovery processes

Proper recycling of mobile phones and other electronic products is important in order to reduce the generation of large amounts of hazardous waste, lessen environmental and social problems associated to the extraction of minerals and primary production of materials, and also minimize the depletion of scarce materials that are often difficult to substitute. Current material recovery processes are used to recycle electronic waste of various compositions. Based on a review of the recycling processes and material flow analysis (MFA), we attribute the material and energy required to recover metals from 1 tonne of discarded mobile phones. We estimate that the recovery rates of gold, palladium, silver, copper, nickel, lead, antimony, and tin from the recycling processes described are 80 to 99 % (16.4 % of the phone in weight). The two main industrial processes used at present time (pyrometallurgical and combined pyro-hydrometallurgical) have similar energy consumptions (7,763 and 7,568 MJ/tonne of mobile phones, respectively). An average tonne of used mobile phones represents a potential of 128 kg of copper, 0.347 kg of gold, 0.15 kg of palladium, 3.63 kg of silver, 15 kg of nickel, 6 kg of lead, 1 kg of antimony, and 10 kg of tin as well as other metals that are not yet profitable to recover but might be in the future. We find that the energy consumed to recover copper from mobile phones is half of that needed for copper primary extraction and similar or greater energy savings for precious metal refining. Nevertheless, only 2.5 % of mobile phones arrive to industrial recovery facilities. There is a great potential to increase the amount of metals being recovered, thereby reducing energy consumption and increasing resource efficiency.

Enhancement of Mass Transfer Rate and Diminution of the Power Consumption of Copper Cementation Using Electromagnetic Field

Mass transfer rate is the main controlling parameter in the cementation process. Due to the economical aspects, iron is the most popular sacrificing metal. Accordingly, during the cementation process, electromagnetic field can be utilized to improve the motion of Fe ions in the aqueous solution. In the present study, the rate of copper (II) cementation from copper sulfate solutions on a rotating iron cylinder subjected to a magnetic field was studied to demonstrate the effect of electromagnetic field on the rate of cementation. The application of electromagnetic field (EMF) strongly enhances the rate of cementation process as 88% of copper was removed after 15 minutes when EMF was used in a direction parallel to the iron cylinder. The results showed that without EMF, the rate of mass transfer was correlated by the equation Sh = 1.18Re 0.94 Sc 0.33 and by equation Sh = 2.29Re 0.95 Sc 0.33 with applying the EMF. This work illustrates that the enhancement of copper recovery in presence of EMF is due to the induced motion of Fe +n in the solution which is limited in the range of cylinder rotation speed of 300–900 rpm. Moreover, the experimental results indicated that applying the EMF leads to reduce the power consumption for the recovery by 36% per kg of copper.

Substance flow analysis as a tool for urban water management

Human activity results in the production of a wide range of pollutants that can enter the water cycle through stormwater or wastewater. Among others, heavy metals are still detected in high concentrations around urban areas and their impact on aquatic organisms is of major concern. In this study, we propose to use a substance flow analysis as a tool for heavy metals management in urban areas. We illustrate the approach with the case of copper in Lausanne, Switzerland. The results show that around 1,500 kg of copper enter the aquatic compartment yearly. This amount contributes to sediment enrichment, which may pose a long-term risk for benthic organisms. The major sources of copper in receiving surface water are roofs and catenaries of trolleybuses. They represent 75% of the total input of copper into the urban water system. Actions to reduce copper pollution should therefore focus on these sources. Substance flow analysis also highlights that copper enters surface water mainly during rain events, i.e., without passing through any treatment procedure. A reduction in pollution could also be achieved by improving stormwater management. In conclusion, the study showed that substance flow analysis is a very effective tool for sustainable urban water management.

Pilot-scale electrokinetic treatment of a Cu contaminated red soil

A pilot-scale experiment for electrokinetic treatment of 700 kg of copper contaminated red soil was conducted using a constant voltage of 80 V. Dynamic removal percentages of Cu from the soil and energy consumption during the treatment were evaluated together with changes of soil pH, electrical conductivity and soil microbial functional diversity before and after the electrokinetic treatment. The results indicate that 76% of Cu was successfully removed from the soil after 140 d of treatment when lactic acid was used as enhancing reagent for adjusting the catholyte pH and dissolving soil Cu by complexation, and the pilot-scale electrokinetic experiment consumed electric energy of 224 kW h t −1 soil. The post-treatment soil pH values decreased about 0.1–1.6 units compared with the initial value (pH 4.8), and soil electrical conductivities in most of soil sections also significantly decreased. Soil microbial functional diversity varied after the electrokinetic treatment, particularly the increase of substrate richness index, which is possibly due to the stimulation of lactic acid that was introduced into the soil column during the experiment.