Electrodialytic remediation of municipal solid waste incineration residues using different membranes

- Municipal Solid Waste Incineration (MSWI) residues are common in western countries.
- Four membrane brands are compared to treat MSWI residues using electrodialysis.
- Element leaching is generally reduced regardless the membrane used.
- Leaching of some elements in the treated residues varies depending on the membrane.

In the present work, three different commercial membrane brands were used in an identical electrodialytic cell setup and operating conditions, in order to reduce the leaching of metals and salt anions of two types of municipal solid waste incineration residues: air pollution control residues of a semi-dry flue-gas cleaning system and fly ashes from a plant with wet flue-gas cleaning system. The results showed a general reduction of the leaching in both residues after ED remediation. For the following elements, the leaching was found to be different after ED treatment depending on the membrane used, with statistical significance:
- Air pollution control residues of the semi-dry flue-gas cleaning system: Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn;
- Fly ashes from a plant with wet flue-gas cleaning system: Al, Ba, Cu, Ni, Zn, Cl, SO4.Final leaching values for some elements and membranes, but not the majority, were below than those of certified coal fly ash (e.g. Al or Cr), a material which is commonly used in construction materials; at the same time, some of these values were reduced to below the Danish law thresholds on the use of contaminated soil in constructions. These results show the potential of ED as a technology to upgrade municipal solid waste incineration residues.