Fly Ash as an Ingredient in the Contaminated Soil Stabilization Process

Abstract

Fly ash is the main by-product of coal combustion characterized by a large specific surface area. In addition to oxides, it also contains unburned coal and trace elements. This study aimed to investigate the possibility of using fly ash from pit-coal combustion (CFA) for the treatment of benzene-contaminated soil (S). The CFA was used as a mixture with Portland cement (PC) (70% PC + 30% CFA). The soil was treated with a PC-CFA mixture in amounts of 40, 60, and 80% of soil mass. During the process, the concentration of benzene was monitored with the flame-ionization detector. Produced monoliths (S+(PC-CFA)x) were tested for compressive strength and capillary water absorption. The experiment confirmed that the PC-CFA mixture limited benzene emission. The highest reduction in benzene concentration (34–39%) was observed for samples treated with the PC-CFA mixture in an amount of 80% (S+(PC-CFA)80). The average compressive strength of monoliths S+(PC-CFA)40, S+(PC-CFA)60, and S+(PC-CFA)80 was 0.57, 4.53, and 6.79 MPa, respectively. The water absorption values were in the range of 15–22% dm.