Shaoqing Guo

By Shaoqing Guo

Coal gangue is one of the largest industrial residues. It has high ash content, low carbonaceous content, and heating value. Meanwhile, it has some trace elements. Large quantities of coal gangue cause serious environmental problems by polluting the air, water, and soil as well as occupying a tremendous amount of land. Now, coal gangue utilization is a matter of great concern and has attracted wide interest. However, some toxic trace elements in coal gangue should be paid more attention during the utilization of coal gangue. In this article, the modes of occurrence and the leaching characters of trace elements in coal gangue were introduced according to the result of the sequential extraction method and the leaching method. The release character of trace elements during combustion of coal gangue and the environmental implication of trace elements in coal gangue were also discussed. The sulfide-bound trace elements are dominant form in coal gangue. Leaching behavior of trace elements from coal gangue is affected by many factors. Different trace elements presented different transformation behaviors. Trace elements in coal gangue could release out and produce environmental implication in various degrees, depending on the type of trace elements.

Part of the book: Contributions to Mineralization