Leaching of nutrient salts from fly ash from biomass combustion

Methods to selectively leach nutrient salts from fly ash, while leaving cadmium un-dissolved were studied. Temperature, pH, water to fly ash ratio are all expected to influence the kinetics and the equilibrium boundaries for this process. Three different leaching methods were investigated. The first method was a counter current moving bed process in four stages. The ash was kept in filter bags and leached with water that was introduced into the bags at 40-50°C. In the second method, fly ash and water was brought into contact in a partially fluidized bed. The third method was a counter current moving bed process with agitation/centrifugation. It was found that a satisfactory leaching of the nutrient salts could be achieved with the third method using only two or three stages, depending on the water to fly ash ratio. It is an advantage to perform the process at temperatures above 50°C as the amount of water used for leaching at this temperature can be reduced compared to the amount of water needed at 25°C.