Abstract
Biological neutralisation of pH, driven by the microbial fermentation of added organic carbon substrates such as glucose, has recently emerged as a promising technique for remediation of bauxite residue, dropping pH from >11 to <8 in five days. Here, we report on a glasshouse experiment combining this novel microbially-driven pH neutralisation technology with other existing (abiotic) remediation approaches, including addition of gypsum, sewage sludge, and irrigation. Scaling up the bioremediation treatment by three orders of magnitude from previous laboratory trials to these glasshouse trials was successful. Adding bioremediated residue (5Â cm thick) at the residue surface significantly enhanced pH neutralisation to depth, decreasing pH from 13 to ~10 as far as 25Â cm below the residue surface. Increasing irrigation and tillage frequency accelerated salt removal. Combining our microbial bioneutralisation treatment with fortnightly tillage and daily irrigation provided the best opportunity to rapidly decrease pH and salinity, and is currently being trialled at field scale.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Light Metals, 2019 |
| Editors | Corleen Chesonis |
| Place of Publication | USA |
| Publisher | Springer International Publishing AG |
| Pages | 69-77 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 978-3-030-05864-7 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9783030058630 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2019 |
| Event | Light Metals Symposium held at the TMS Annual Meeting and Exhibition, 2019 - San Antonio, United States Duration: 10 Mar 2019 → 14 Mar 2019 |
Publication series
| Name | Minerals, Metals and Materials Series |
|---|---|
| ISSN (Print) | 2367-1181 |
| ISSN (Electronic) | 2367-1696 |
Conference
| Conference | Light Metals Symposium held at the TMS Annual Meeting and Exhibition, 2019 |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| City | San Antonio |
| Period | 10/03/19 → 14/03/19 |
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Accelerating bauxite residue remediation with microbial biotechnology. / Santini, T. C.; Warren, K.; Raudsepp, M.; Carter, N.; Hamley, D.; McCosker, C.; Couperthwaite, S.; Southam, G.; Tyson, G. W.; Warren, L. A.
Light Metals, 2019. ed. / Corleen Chesonis. USA : Springer International Publishing AG, 2019. p. 69-77 (Minerals, Metals and Materials Series).Research output: Chapter in Book/Conference paper › Conference paper
TY - GEN
T1 - Accelerating bauxite residue remediation with microbial biotechnology
AU - Santini, T. C.
AU - Warren, K.
AU - Raudsepp, M.
AU - Carter, N.
AU - Hamley, D.
AU - McCosker, C.
AU - Couperthwaite, S.
AU - Southam, G.
AU - Tyson, G. W.
AU - Warren, L. A.
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Biological neutralisation of pH, driven by the microbial fermentation of added organic carbon substrates such as glucose, has recently emerged as a promising technique for remediation of bauxite residue, dropping pH from >11 to <8 in five days. Here, we report on a glasshouse experiment combining this novel microbially-driven pH neutralisation technology with other existing (abiotic) remediation approaches, including addition of gypsum, sewage sludge, and irrigation. Scaling up the bioremediation treatment by three orders of magnitude from previous laboratory trials to these glasshouse trials was successful. Adding bioremediated residue (5Â cm thick) at the residue surface significantly enhanced pH neutralisation to depth, decreasing pH from 13 to ~10 as far as 25Â cm below the residue surface. Increasing irrigation and tillage frequency accelerated salt removal. Combining our microbial bioneutralisation treatment with fortnightly tillage and daily irrigation provided the best opportunity to rapidly decrease pH and salinity, and is currently being trialled at field scale.
AB - Biological neutralisation of pH, driven by the microbial fermentation of added organic carbon substrates such as glucose, has recently emerged as a promising technique for remediation of bauxite residue, dropping pH from >11 to <8 in five days. Here, we report on a glasshouse experiment combining this novel microbially-driven pH neutralisation technology with other existing (abiotic) remediation approaches, including addition of gypsum, sewage sludge, and irrigation. Scaling up the bioremediation treatment by three orders of magnitude from previous laboratory trials to these glasshouse trials was successful. Adding bioremediated residue (5Â cm thick) at the residue surface significantly enhanced pH neutralisation to depth, decreasing pH from 13 to ~10 as far as 25Â cm below the residue surface. Increasing irrigation and tillage frequency accelerated salt removal. Combining our microbial bioneutralisation treatment with fortnightly tillage and daily irrigation provided the best opportunity to rapidly decrease pH and salinity, and is currently being trialled at field scale.
KW - Bioneutralisation
KW - Biotechnology
KW - pH
KW - Salinity
KW - Tillage
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85064874772&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-3-030-05864-7_10
DO - 10.1007/978-3-030-05864-7_10
M3 - Conference paper
SN - 9783030058630
T3 - Minerals, Metals and Materials Series
SP - 69
EP - 77
BT - Light Metals, 2019
A2 - Chesonis, Corleen
PB - Springer International Publishing AG
CY - USA
ER -