Spinel formation for stabilizing simulated nickel-laden sludge with aluminum-rich ceramic precursors

Kaimin Shih, Tim White, James O. Leckie*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

87 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The feasibility of stabilizing nickel-laden sludge from commonly available Al-rich ceramic precursors was investigated and accomplished with high nickel incorporation efficiency. To simulate the process, nickel oxide was mixed alternatively with γ-alumina, corundum, kaolinite, and mullite and was sintered from 800 to 1480 °C. The nickel aluminate spinel (NiAl 2O4) was confirmed as the stabilization phase for nickel and crystallized with efficiencies greater than 90% for all precursors above 1250 °C and 3-h sintering. The nickel-incorporation reaction pathways with these precursors were identified, and the microstructure and spinel yield were investigated as a function of sintering temperature with fixed sintering time. This study has demonstrated a promising process for forming nickel spinel to stabilize nickel-laden sludge from a wide range of inexpensive ceramic precursors, which may provide an avenue for economically blending waste metal sludges via the building industry processes to reduce the environmental hazards of toxic metals. The correlation of product textures and nickel incorporation efficiencies through selection of different precursors also provides the option of tailoring property-specific products.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)5077-5083
Number of pages7
JournalEnvironmental Science and Technology
Volume40
Issue number16
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Aug 15 2006
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus Subject Areas

  • General Chemistry
  • Environmental Chemistry

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