Electrochemical Remediation at Laboratory Scale of the Coal Dump in Paz de Rio (Colombia)

Abstract

Paz de Rio, municipality of the North of the department of Boyacá (Colombia), has a coal waste dump for the residues of washing of the coal produced by the preparation of this commodity and locates them without any treatment, action that originates the sterilization of the soil. The big volume produced of the waste causes environmental problems and a health risk for the nearby populations because the toxic metals contained, which flow and polluted the waters of the rivers Soapagua and Chicamocha, and decreases the suitable land for the agricultural uses. In consequence, it is necessary to apply a treatment that decreases the negative effects over the water and soil resources of the region. By this reason, it is required a treatment of the waste, such as the electrokinetic remediation, for applying a voltage gradient for a time (Zhou, 2004). The electric current acts as an agent that moves the contaminants to the anode or the cathode, in agreement with their charges and direction of flux (Acar y Alshawabkeh, 1993). This way, the research found the ability of the electrochemical remediation to handle 6 Kg of the waste, with a humidity of 30 %, applying a voltage of 30-40V.Keywords: coal waste, electro-remediation, toxic metals, polarography. IntroducciónPaz de Río es un municipio de Colombia ubicado al noreste del departamento de Boyacá. En éste se encuentra la Planta Lavadora de Carbón Santa Teresa, donde se realizan la limpieza del carbón que se extrae en este municipio y en sectores aledaños como Samacá, Socha, Socotá y Tasco. En la planta se realiza una serie de procesos de separación del carbón de las impurezas que lo acompañan, con generación de una corriente de agua residual cargada de minerales metálicos (magnetita) y partículas finas en suspensión (arcillas del carbón). Se vierte ésta a