Removal of Heavy Metals from Acid Mine Drainage by Red Mud–Based Geopolymer Pervious Concrete: Batch and Long–Term Column Studies

Abstract

Various metal ions in acid mine drainage (AMD) cause environmental pollution. Due to the unique advantages of heavy metal treatment and gelling properties, previous concretes incorporating red mud have attracted extensive attention in AMD passive treatment, which utilises naturally occurring chemicals to cleanse contaminated mine waters with low operating costs. This study aims to develop red mud–based geopolymer pervious concrete as an eco–friendly method to remove heavy metals in AMD. Compared with raw pervious concrete, red mud–based geopolymer pervious concrete improves the purification efficiency of heavy metals. The high rate of acid reduction and metal removal by the geopolymer is attributed to the dissolution of portlandite in red mud. Precipitation of metal hydroxides seems to be the dominant metal removal mechanism. Under optimal conditions (influent pH = 4.0 and the hydraulic retention time = 24 h), red mud–based geopolymer pervious concrete could completely remove Cu(II), Mn(II), Cd(II) and Zn(II) by up to 10 mg/L, 10 mg/L, 1.6 mg/L and 16 mg/L, respectively. When the influent pH is 2.5, the hydrolysis of Fe(III) released from red mud increases the consumption of OH−. Moreover, when the influent pH is 4.0, the precipitation of CaSO4 promotes the dissolution of portlandite and metal removal. Therefore, red mud has demonstrated feasibility in the manufacturing of geopolymer–based pervious concrete for purification AMD.