Environmental control technology for coal cleaning wastes Page: 2 of 19
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ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL TECHNOLOGY
FOR
COAL CLEANING WASTES
P. Wagner, R. C. Heaton, L. E. Wangen,
A. M. Nyitray and M. M. Jones
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos, NM 87545
INTRODUCTION
Mineral wastes from coal preparation and mine development constitute a
major environmental problem. More than three billion tons of these materials
have accumulated in the U. S. and the current annual production exceeds 100
million tons. The t'A ' number of coal waste dumps is estimated to be between
3000 and 5000, of which half pose some type of health, environmental or safety
problem. As part of an effort to address these problems we initiated a research
program at the Los Alamos National Laboratory several years ago with the ultimata
aim of delineating solutions to control of the drainages from coal waste piles.
In the pursuit of this program we have adopted a general and straight-
forward approach to the solution of this type of problem. Coal waste samples
were first thoroughly characterized both chemically and mineralogically. Then
they were leached with water and the compositions of the resulting leachates
determined. With this information we were able to develop an understancing
of the environmental behavior of the coal wastes. The exact natures of the
problems were determined and their sources and causes evaluated. With this
as a basis, solutions to the problems were devised and evaluated. This
approach is applicable to virtually any water pollution problem. In addition
it provides a substantial data base which will ultimately lead to the develop-
ment of a predictive capability as regards the environmental behaviors of solid
wastes. In the following discussion we shal' briefly touch the highlights of
our coal waste program and show how this approach has lead us to the various
control options which we suggest.
DISCUSSION
Lct us consider first the leachates. Figure 1 shows in a simplistic
manner the results of analyses for fifty elements in the leachates from high
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Wagner, P.; Heaton, R. C.; Wangen, L. E.; Nyitray, A. M. & Jones, M. M. Environmental control technology for coal cleaning wastes, article, January 1, 1981; New Mexico. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1105049/m1/2/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.