Dewatering Rock Crushing Fines Using Geotextile Tubes

A study on dewatering rock crushing fines using geotextile tubes was conducted. Rapid dewatering tests and hanging bag tests were used to evaluate the dewatering efficiencies of the geotextiles as well as the effectiveness of chemical flocculants. Settling ponds are currently the predominant method used to dewater rock crushing fines. Settling ponds effectively dewater the material, but they are relatively slow and require large amounts of land. Recent studies by Kutay and Aydilek (2005), Liao and Bhatia (2005), and Kutay et al. (2005) showed that geotextile tubes can be used to dewater high water content materials. These studies did not address dewatering rock crushing fines. The objective of this study was to assess the dewatering and filtration characteristics of geotextile tubes specifically for rock crushing fines. Tests showed that geotextile tubes effectively dewater rock crushing fines and retain the solid particles. The filter cake forming in the geotextile tube dominates the filtration behavior. The chemical flocculants tested did not improve the dewatering efficiency or the filtration efficiency of the geotextiles.