Comparison of the Characteristics of Fly Ash Generated from Bio and Municipal Waste: Fluidized Bed Incinerators

Abstract

European solid waste incinerator plants still primarily use grate furnace technology, although circulating fluidized bed (CFB) technology is steadily expanding. Therefore, few investigations have reported on the environmental assessment of fly ash from fluidized incinerators. This research project aims to integrate information on fly ash derived from the combustion of municipal solid waste (FA1) and biomass (FA2) in fluidized bed incinerator facilities. Fly ash samples were comparatively analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) to study the mineralogy, morphology, total heavy metal content, and leaching behavior, respectively. The analysis revealed that the two types of fly ash differ in their characteristics and leaching behavior. The concentration of most of the heavy metals in both is low compared to the literature values, but higher than the regulatory limits for use as a soil conditioner, whereas the high contents of Fe, Cu, and Al suggest good potential for metal recovery. The leaching ability of most elements is within the inert waste category, except for Hg, which is slightly above the non-hazardous waste limit.