Characterization of a fluidized-bed combustion ash to determine potential for environmental impact. Final report

A 440-megawatt, circulating fluidized-bed combustion (CFBC), lignite-fired power plant is planned for construction in Choctaw County north of Ackerman, Mississippi. This power plant will utilize Mississippi lignite from the first lignite mine in that state. Malcolm Pirnie, Inc., is working with the power plant developer in the current planning and permitting efforts for this proposed construction project. In order to accommodate Mississippi state regulatory agencies and meet appropriate permit requirements, Malcolm Pirnie needed to provide an indication of the characteristics of the by-products anticipated to be produced at the proposed plant. Since the Mississippi lignite is from a newly tapped mine and the CFBC technology is relatively new, Malcolm Pirnie contacted with the Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC) to develop and perform a test plan for the production and characterization of ash similar to ash that will be eventually produced at the proposed power plant. The work performed at the EERC included two primary phases: production of by-products in a bench-scale CFBC unit using lignite provided by Malcolm Pirnie with test conditions delineated by Malcolm Pirnie to represent expected operating conditions for the full-scale plant; and an extensive characterization of the by-products produced, focusing on Mississippi regulatory requirements for leachability, with the understanding that return of the by-product to the mine site was an anticipated by-product management plan. The overall focus of this project was the environmental assessment of the by-product expected to be produced at the proposed power plant. Emphasis was placed on the leachability of potentially problematic trace elements in the by-products. The leaching research documented in this report was performed to determine trends of leachability of trace elements under leaching conditions appropriate for evaluating land disposal in monofills, such as returning the by-products to the mine site.