Effects of liquefaction time and temperature on heavy metal removal and distribution in liquefied CCA-treated wood sludge

Wood liquefaction was studied as a recycling method for chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-treated wood waste. The effects of liquefaction temperature and time on the removal of the heavy metals and their distribution in liquefied CCA-treated wood sludge were investigated. The residue content decreased as the temperature increased from 120 to 180 °C regardless of the reaction time. It decreased gradually with the increase of reaction time under liquefaction temperatures 120 and 150 °C. But it decreased as the reaction time increased from 30 to 60 min then increased when the reaction time increased to 90 min under liquefaction temperature 180 °C due to the re-condensation of decomposed wood components. The total concentrations of arsenic, chromium, and copper in the sludge samples increased, while the percentage of the removed metals decreased, with increasing liquefaction temperature, which could be related to the changes of wood residue content and the fate of the heavy metals under different liquefaction conditions. The exchangeable/acid extractable fraction of all three heavy metals decreased as the liquefaction temperature increased. At the same time, Cr and As increased in both oxidizable and reducible fractions. The amount of Cr in the oxidizable fraction increased 40% as the liquefaction temperature increased from 120 to 180 °C. The major change of Cu distribution was the increase in reducible fraction with the increase of liquefaction time. The results of this study suggested that high liquefaction temperature tends to inhibit the heavy metal recovery when liquefaction is used as a recycling method for CCA-treated wood waste.