Treatment of stormwater sediments: Efficiency of an attrition scrubber – laboratory and pilot-scale studies

The purpose of this research is to present the efficiency of an attrition scrubber in the decontamination of stormwater sediments. Application of the attrition process serves to remove fine particles and contaminants from the surface of materials, i.e. sediment in the present case. This mechanical method has been evaluated both on the laboratory scale and at a pilot plant; the two treatments display different operating parameters. This article will introduce a ratio, defined as (R = mass% of pollutant/total mass%), to quantify the effect of attrition on the removal of pollutants (organic matter and trace elements). Screening and attrition have made it possible to concentrate pollutants into the fine fractions at ratio R, extending from 1.9 to 6.6. These results show that an attrition scrubber can remediate contaminated sediment and moreover that the remediation of stormwater sediment is indeed possible.