Neutralization of high pH and alkalinity effluent from recycled concrete aggregate by common subgrade soil

Abstract

Use of recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) as highway basecourse material conserves virgin aggregate, reduces energy consumption and CO2 emissions, and may also decrease costs during construction. However, concerns remain over possible negative environmental impacts associated with high pH (>11) effluent from RCA in contact with water. This study examines the reactive transport of high‐pH and high‐alkalinity water, modeled on RCA leachate, through model subgrade soils. By developing an understanding of the reactions controlling effluent neutralization, this study aims to quantify the change in pH from the discharge site through surrounding subgrade soils. Four types of subgrade soils with a range of mineral composition, Atterberg limits, and cation exchange capacities (CECs) are examined. They include a clayey sand (SC10), low‐plasticity clays (M14, SC25), and a high‐plasticity clay (CH38). Batch reaction experiments are used to develop kinetic parameters describing the neutralization of high‐pH and ‐alkalinity leachate by clay minerals through mineral dissolution and reprecipitation. Given this information, a reactive transport model incorporating advection, diffusion, and reaction is used to model the change in pH as a function of distance traveled through model subgrade soils and is applied to laboratory‐scale column experiments. The rate at which the high pH front travels is directly related to a soil's clay mineral content. Soils with high CECs effectively delay the propagation of hydroxide front by the dissolution of clay minerals. This study demonstrates that common subgrade soils with moderate clay content will effectively neutralize high pH leachate initially produced by RCA.