Stabilization of lead and copper contaminated firing range soil using calcined oyster shells and fly ash

A stabilization/solidification treatment scheme was devised to stabilize Pb and Cu contaminated soil from a firing range using renewable waste resources as additives, namely waste oyster shells (WOS) and fly ash (FA). The WOS, serving as the primary stabilizing agent, was pre-treated at a high temperature to activate quicklime from calcite. Class C FA was used as a secondary additive along with the calcined oyster shells (COS). The effectiveness of the treatment was evaluated by means of the toxicity characteristic leaching procedure (TCLP) and the 0.1 M HCl extraction tests following a curing period of 28 days. The combined treatment with 10 wt% COS and 5 wt% FA cause a significant reduction in Pb (>98 %) and Cu (>96 %) leachability which was indicated by the results from both extraction tests (TCLP and 0.1 M HCl). Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX) analyses are used to investigate the mechanism responsible for Pb and Cu stabilization. SEM-EDX results indicate that effective Pb and Cu immobilization using the combined COS-FA treatment is most probably associated with ettringite and pozzolanic reaction products. The treatment results suggest that the combined COS-FA treatment is a cost effective method for the stabilization of firing range soil.