Sônia Denise Ferreira Rocha

Evaluation of untreated coffee husks as potential biosorbents for treatment of dye contaminated waters.

The objective of this work was to propose an alternative use for coffee husks (CH), a coffee processing residue, as untreated sorbents for the removal of methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solutions. The effects of solution temperature, pH, biosorbent dosage and contact time on MB removal were investigated. The experimental adsorption equilibrium data were fitted to both Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption models. The biosorption kinetics was determined by fitting first and second-order kinetic models to the experimental data, with the second-order model providing the best description of MB adsorption onto coffee husks. pH variations did not present a significant effect on MB removal. Evaluation of thermodynamics parameters indicated that the adsorption is spontaneous and endothermic. The experimental data obtained in the present study demonstrated coffee husks to be suitable candidates for use as biosorbents in the removal of cationic dyes.

Scorodite encapsulation by controlled deposition of aluminum phosphate coatings

A new stabilization process for scorodite (FeAsO(4).2H(2)O) solids based on the concept of encapsulation by controlled deposition of mineral coatings immune to pH or redox potential variations is described. The stability of the encapsulated scorodite with aluminum phosphates under simulated anoxic and oxic environments is demonstrated. Encapsulation experiments were carried out at 95 degrees C using 50 g/L scorodite in acidic sulphate solution containing 0.16 mol/L of P(V) with Al(III) to P(V) molar ratio of 1 and precipitation pH of 1.7. The encapsulated particles were characterised by XRD, SEM, TOF-SIMS and TOF-LIMS. The coating was crystalline AlPO(4).1.5H(2)O ranging in thickness from 2.5 to 3.5 microm. Encapsulation of scorodite particles with hydrated aluminum phosphate appears to be effective in controlling/suppressing the release of arsenic under both oxic and anoxic conditions by more than one order of magnitude.

Aspectos do coprocessamento de resíduos em fornos de clínquer

The practice of co-processing of residues has increased due to the requirement of environmental and social friendly disposal of dangerous wastes from several industrial processes. The aim of this work was to perform a revision of co-processing of residues in Brazil and in the world, aiming at process optimization and also to identify the aspects already studied as well as those which still request research efforts. Social, environmental, and technological aspects of co-processing were discussed in the present work as well as the life cycle analysis (LCA) in the cement production and the technical and scientific literature about co-processing.

Alternativas para o tratamento de efluentes da indústria galvânica

Os metodos de precipitacao quimica, cristalizacao e extracao liquido-liquido foram aplicados visando propor alternativas para o tratamento de efluentes liquidos gerados pela industria de galvanoplastia. Efluentes de diversas empresas do setor, localizadas no estado de Minas Gerais (Brasil), foram coletados e caracterizados. O efluente estudado, proveniente de empresa de galvanizacao de zinco a quente, continha cerca de 90 g/L de ferro total, 35 g/L de zinco e menores quantidades de Al, Ni e Cu, em meio acido cloridrico (pH = 0,6). A separacao seletiva entre ferro e zinco nao se mostrou eficiente por precipitacao, sendo a tecnica adequada somente no tratamento do efluente, ao contrario da cristalizacao e extracao liquido-liquido utilizando-se TBP como agente extratante. A integracao destas tecnicas ainda requer estudos mais detalhados visando a otimizacao de custos e das condicoes operacionais.Separation methods such as chemical precipitation, crystallization and liquid-liquid extraction have been investigated aiming to treat effluents generated by the galvanic industry. Effluent samples generated by several companies located in the state of Minas Gerais (Brazil) were collected and chemically characterized. For this work, a typical zinc hot-dip galvanizing effluent containing about 90 g/L of total iron, 35 g/L of zinc and minor amounts of Al, Ni, Cu, in HCl medium (pH = 0.6) was treated. A selective separation between metals zinc and iron was not achieved by chemical precipitation, which was found adequate to threat water only. On contrary, zinc and iron was separated very efficiently by crystallization and liquid-liquid extraction using TBP as extractant agent. The integration of these methods to recover zinc and iron from effluent still requires more detailed studies.

Water recovery from saline streams produced by electrodialysis

Advances in technologies to enable water reuse in industry have been the objective of many research efforts, mainly due to the need to reduce the use of natural resources and due to factors related to their availability. This paper evaluates the crystallization of salts from petrochemical saline waste to achieve zero water discharge by the recovery of water and dissolved salts as a solid mixture. In line with process symbiosis, the recovered water should be suitable for use as cooling water in heat exchangers. Vacuum evaporative crystallization, at the batch scale, was used to remove the salts present in the concentrated stream from reverse electrodialysis of pretreated wastewater by a biological process. The partition of organic compounds in the feed solution between the condensate and the mother liquor was obtained from measurements of the total organic carbon and total nitrogen in the solutions. The solid phases formed experimentally are compared with those predicted by chemical modelling by PHREEQC. The recovered water presented almost 50 times less total dissolved solids than the feed stream (from 2100 to 44 mg/L). Calcium sulphate hydrate, calcium sulphate and sodium chloride were the majority crystalline phases formed, in accordance with the modelling by PHREEQC.

Utilization of Magnesium Hydroxide Produced by Magnesia Hydration as Fire Retardant for Nylon 6-6,6

The present work investigates the use of magnesium hydroxide, produced by magnesia hydration, as a fire retardant in polymers. The hydration was carried out in an autoclave, at temperature of 130°C for 1 hour, and the product was further submitted to cominution in a jet mill. The solids were characterized with regard to their chemical composition, particle size distribution, surface area and morphology. The performance evaluation of the hydroxide as a flame retardant for a copolymer of nylon 6-6,6 was carried out according to the UL94 specifications for vertical burning tests. V-0 flammability rating at 1.6 mm (60% magnesium hydroxide-filled nylon composite) and at 3.2 mm (40% magnesium hydroxide filled nylon composite) were achieved. Mechanical properties were maintained at the desired values. These results indicate that the hydroxide obtained from magnesia hydration can be successfully employed as a fire retardant for nylon 6-6,6.

Chapter 11 Equilibrium FCC catalyst performance simulation based on mixtures of hydrothermal deactivated samples

Abstract This paper proposes a simple methodology for simulation of equilibrium FCC catalyst (e-cat) performance, employing techniques such as metal impregnation followed by hydrothermal deactivation and laboratory catalyst evaluation. The laboratory evaluation of samples deactivated under different conditions including the e-cat were used in an optimization algorithm, to determine the mixture that best mi overall e-cat performance in terms of activity and main product yields. The proposed methodology may be used in order to establish a specific deactivation protocol for any particular FCC unit.

Fixed-bed study for bone char adsorptive removal of refractory organics from electrodialysis concentrate produced by petroleum refinery

ABSTRACT Water reuse in industrial processes has been an increasing need encouraged in recent years. However, as the streams are recycled, solutes accumulate, thus requiring purification techniques. Membrane processes (reverse osmosis and electrodialysis) have been implemented and in order to increase the reuse of water at its highest level, crystallization has been evaluated to remove salts from the concentrate produced and get a feasible disposal. Nevertheless, contaminants affect the crystallization performance, thus making the removal of residual organics important for both the efficiency of crystallization and the increase of water reuse. In this context, aiming at establishing a sustainable virtuous circle, bone char (0.5–1.4 mm particle size, mesoporous structure) was used to remove refractory organics from an electrodialysis concentrate effluent (C-EDR) from a Brazilian petroleum refinery, at a lab-scale, in a fixed-bed adsorption column. Bone char selectively and partially removed the refractory organics, a complex mixture of long-chain hydrocarbons, aromatic compounds, carboxylic acids, amines and amides. The maximum adsorption capacity increased with the increase in bed depth and reduction in flow rate. A maximum removal of 35.60 mg g−1 was achieved for the highest bed depth evaluated (12.9 cm). The breakthrough curves indicated that bone char could adsorb part of the organic compounds from the C-EDR. The scaling up was possible for the C/C0 ratios of 0.55, 0.60 and 0.65, providing a service time at about 16 days for 45% removal efficiency for typical real operational conditions used in the refinery.

Alkali Metals Removal from Radioactive Wastewater by Combined CO 2 Capture and Adsorption onto Bone Char

Radioactive wastewaters from nuclear source of electrical energy production need to be treated and disposed of properly. Sr, Ca, Mg and Ba are common elements in this effluent, which can cause incrustation in process equipments and being unsafe to human health (90Sr). Fixation of CO2 can be applied to remove the ions mentioned before and to provide a solution where CO2 is sequestered and the deleterious elements precipitated, becoming one of the possible steps to reuse the water into the process. Moreover, removal of several metals from distinct wastewater has been evaluated using bone char through adsorption. The chemical similarity between calcium and strontium makes the exchange of these two metals favorable in the hydroxyapatite structure contained in bone char. This paper evaluated the combined action of precipitation and adsorption process with injection of CO2 and bone char addition in simulated nuclear wastewater. Removal levels of 89.0% (Sr) and 83.3% (Ca) were obtained in the combined process. The presence of bone char as seed increased the precipitation kinetics, allowing a Sr removal of 85.2% in five minutes, higher than 75.3% obtained in absence of seeds. However, removal of 91.6% (Sr) and 89.8% (Ca) were obtained in absence of seeds at 24 h. Analysis of solids have evidenced that CO2 was consumed to precipitate the metals as carbonates, since the hydroxides are formed at higher pH’s.

The Kinetic of Atmospheric Acid Leaching of Brazilian Lateritic Nickel

Atmospheric processing of nickel lateritic ores with low costs has been encouraged. In this work the kinetic of atmospheric acid leaching of a northern-Brazilian ore with 1.63% Ni and large amount of fine particles (d50 ≈ 0.075 mm and 40% below 0.038 mm) is presented. Chemical analysis showed a trend of Ni and Fe concentration in finer fraction (−0.075 mm) and Si and Mg in the coarsest one (−0.500 + 0.150 mm) associated to distinct mineral phases. Nickel is widespread in the mineral matrix. Distinct behaviors were observed as a function of particle size associated to the distribution of silicates and iron oxides in the ore. The kinetic modeling indicated that leaching is controlled by porous layer diffusion at 65 °C, but at 95 °C exhibits a mixed control by porous layer diffusion in initial minutes (60 min) and by chemical reaction or diffusion through the pore layer in final minutes (60–240 min) depends on metal evaluated.