Along with the essential importance of the metallurgical sector, one must recognise that it is also one of the largest sources of environmental pollution. In particular, the problem of electric arc furnace (EAF) dusts is of a growing concern due to the increase in popularity of EAF steelmaking. This dust is classified as a hazardous product due to the elevated content of toxic metals (e.g., Cr). / Studies on the properties of EAF dusts are sparse. Experiments were performed in order to determine the chemical and physical characteristics of the dust. It was determined that EAF dust is constituted of randomly distributed agglomerations of homogeneously nucleated particles and entrained particles. The main elements present within the particular dust were iron and chromium, the latter due to the fact that the dust used was formed within a stainless steel mini-mill. The main phases present within the dust were Fe2O3/Fe 3O4 and Cr2O3. / Thermal remediation experiments were then carried out in a computer controlled thermogravimetric system. The parameters studied during the tests included temperature, residence time and heating rate. In addition, the behaviour of the EAF dust during remediation was studied; in terms of weight and volume loss, gas evolution, particle morphology and resulting leachability of the treated product. Furthermore, it was observed that at temperatures greater than 1200°C metal leachability decreased significantly due to a decrease in toxic metal concentration within the treated product and the formation of a resistant, dense, plate-like morphology. At 1600°C, no toxic metals leached out of the remediated EAF dust and volume reduction was significant, resulting in a product that would be safe and more economical to landfill.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.30239 |
| Date | January 1999 |
| Creators | D'Souza, Neil S. |
| Contributors | Kozinski, J. A. (advisor), Szpunar, J. A. (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Engineering (Department of Mining and Metallurgical Engineering.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001746020, proquestno: MQ64215, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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