A C O M M E R C I A L A P P L I C AT I O N O F VIROFLOW TECHNOLOGY

CASE STUDY T R E AT M E N T O F C H R O M I U M C O N TA M I N AT E D S O L I D WA S T E AT T H E TA S M A N S H E E P S K I N TA N N E R Y
ViroFlow Technology using ViroChrome reagent has proved to be highly successful in the treatment of tannery sludge at the Tasman Sheepskin Tannery.

ViroChrome reagent being delivered to site

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PROBLEM
The Tasman Sheepskin Tannery, near Brisbane, Australia, had a long-standing problem with the storage of large volumes of chromium contaminated residues in open dams. Not only could the chromium potentially be leached into nearby soil and groundwater but the sludge in the dams had an objectionable odour and hosted large populations of microbes, including potential pathogens. Because of the large volumes of sludge involved, and its high moisture content, removing it from the dams and transporting it to a hazardous waste repository was not an economically desirable option. Removal of the sludge to a sewage treatment plant (STP) was also not an option because the high chromium load would have interfered with normal operation of the STP. The tannery was originally established in a rural area beyond the outer suburbs of Brisbane, but continuing urban growth has meant that residential areas are now close by and there is increasing pressure from both residents and regulatory authorities to resolve potential environmental and odour problems associated with the sludge dams. To resolve their waste management problems the Tasman Sheepskin Tannery asked Virotec Global Solutions to determine whether Virotecs patented ViroFlow Technology could provide an effective and economically viable solution. Following successful treatment trials, Virotec Global Solutions was contracted by the Tasman Sheepskin Tannery to implement ViroFlow Technology as a key component of a total solution for their residue management problems.

BACKGROUND
The Tasman Sheepskin Tannery treats about 6,000 hides per month and specialises in the production of lamb and sheep skins for medical use, floor rugs, car seat covers, and baby care rugs, as well as skins for boot and coat manufacture. The tannery normally operates sixteen hours per day for five days per week. As part of its normal operations, the tannery uses a simple wastewater treatment system to remove chromium and suspended solids from the wastewater produced in the tanning process. The wastewater is contaminated with reactive organic matter, sulphates, suspended solids and chromium that can be easily leached from the solid residues. The treatment system is based on primary settling with some microbial decomposition of organic matter. Most of the particulate matter settles in the primary settling pond, which has been dredged at regular intervals over the last 20 years to remove accumulated sludge. The sludge is transferred to a clay-lined dam and allowed to decompose and dewater naturally over time. The sludge has a high chromium content (about 5% based on previous reports) and a significant proportion of this chromium can be easily leached from the solid matter.Although use of the claylined

Sludge Dam Prior to Treatment

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holding dam means that the stored sludge poses no immediate environmental threat, despite its unpleasant smell, the classification of the untreated sludge means that the operators of the tannery retain a significant environmental liability. Furthermore, any future sale of the business or change of ownership of the land or the nature of activities carried out on it could be impeded by continued classification of the sludge as a hazardous waste. To minimise existing environmental liability and to avoid possible future problems, the tannery operators decided to treat the sludge using ViroFlow Technology because it provides a cost effective solution and enables several sludge reuse applications to be considered. The tannery had previously used ViroFlow Technology for the past 2 years to reduce chromium and odour from the waste water. The key objective of the ViroFlow Technology solids treatment was to immobilise the chromium in the solid waste by procedures that are consistent with Queensland EPA guidelines and Virotecs licence to treat solid wastes contaminated with heavy metals. The Queensland EPA landfill acceptance limit for chromium mobilised by the U.S. EPAs Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) is 5 mg/L. Achieving TCLP test values below 5 mg/L would permit disposal to landfill, but more importantly, it means that the treated sludge could be reused. Previous plot trials conducted at the site by Virotec had confirmed the ability of ViroFlow Technology to immobilise chromium in the solid residue.

TRIAL TREATMENT DETAILS

Five plot areas, each 5 m x 5 m, were treated with differing amounts of ViroChrome reagent to determine the optimum reagent application rate. The ViroChrome reagent was thoroughly mixed with the solid waste using a rotary hoe to a depth of 100 mm. Samples were subsequently taken from each plot at two monthly intervals and analysed to determine both total chromium and leachable chromium concentrations.

TREATMENT DETAILS
The optimised ViroFlow Technology treatment involved addition of appropriate quantities of ViroChrome reagent and thorough mixing of the reagent with the contaminated sludge. ViroChrome reagent is Virotecs proprietary reagent for the treatment and immobilisation of chromium in contaminated solid waste. For the full-scale treatment, the ViroChrome reagent was mixed with the sludge using an excavator. Table 1 summarises the treatment specifications. The Virotec Total Solution includes the bench-scale testing and pilot-scale testing before application and ensures that each solids treatment application provides a custom-designed treatment solution that will meet all regulatory limits.

Test Plots within the Sludge Dam Prior to Treatment

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TABLE 1: VIROFLOW TECHNOLOGY TREATMENT SPECIFICATIONS

Details Soil Volume (approx.) Method of Mixing Period of Mixing Quantity 3,900m3 Excavator 5 days ViroChrome reagent being

Nine samples were taken before and after treatment at roughly equal intervals across the delivered to site surface of the sludge dam.

The samples were analysed by Richmond Water Laboratories, a NATA certified laboratory, for TCLP chromium concentration.

RESULTS FOR FIELD TRIAL

The TCLP data for the samples, collected roughly every two months are shown in Table 2 and Figure 5. These data show that, for the waste solids treated in the field trials, there is a clear and substantial decrease in the leachable chromium concentration over time.The low leachability of the chromium in the treated plots is particularly significant when compared with the very high total chromium content of the solid wastes (Table 3). For all types of contaminated materials at this site,ViroFlow Technology provided an effective and economic solution for contaminant control and site remediation.

TABLE 2: CHROMIUM TCLP DATA (MG/L)

Plot

23 October 2003 30.1 22.9 37.7 32.2 40.7

20 November 2003 10.6 11.2 13.2 8.3

5 February 2004 11.5 10.4 9.1 6.9

2 April 2004 2.7 8.1 -

22 June 2004 4.8 5.9 6.7 6.2

6 September 2004 3.5 2.8 4.7 4.3

Plot 1 Plot 2 Plot 3 Plot 4 Plot 5

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Figure 5:TCLP data for all trial plots showing the dramatic decrease in leachable chromium concentrations over time following treatment with the ViroChrome reagent.

50 40 30 20 10 0
23/10/2003 20/11/2003 5/02/2004 2/04/2004 22/06/2004 6/09/2004

Plot 2 Plot 3 Plot 4 Plot 5

TABLE 3: TOTAL CHROMIUM CONCENTRATIONS (MG/KG) FOR THE SOLID WASTES IN THE FIVE TRIAL PLOTS
Total Chromium (mg/kg) Plot 1 Plot 2 Plot 3 Plot 4 Plot 5 52,500 35,050 43,150 56,000 56,000

RESULTS FOR FULL-SCALE TREATMENT

The results for nine samples taken before and nine samples taken after the treatment are shown in Table 4. The leachable chromium concentrations for all samples collected after treatment were well below the allowable limit for TCLP leachable chromium of 5 mg/L and the results of the previous field trial indicate that the TCLP leachable chromium concentration is likely to decrease further over time. Additionally, it was noted that within about 24 hours of completing the treatment the objectionable odours had been almost completely eliminated leaving a dull earthy aroma.

Treatment was applied using an excavator

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TABLE 4: ANALYSIS OF TREATED SOLIDS

TCLP Concentration Before ViroFlow Technology Treatment (mg/L) 18 11 1.1 4.8 Chromium 4.3 28 5.2 8.6 4.2 TCLP Concentration After ViroFlow Technology Treatment (mg/L) 0.62 0.58 0.66 1.4 4.0 0.9 2.4 0.53 0.89 5.0

Analyte

TCLP Limit (mg/L)

As required by Tasman Sheepskin Tannery operators, the treated solids were spread evenly over the existing clay-lined containment area and allowed to naturally revegetate.

CONCLUSION
ViroFlow Technology using ViroChrome reagent has proved to be highly successful in the treatment of tannery sludge at the Tasman Sheepskin Tannery. Despite very high total chromium concentrations, leachable chromium concentrations were rapidly lowered to well below the regulatory limit of 5 mg/L and previous trials indicate that these concentrations will decrease further over time. Application ofViroChrome reagent to treat the tannery residues is both environmentally sustainable and economically viable. Furthermore, the treated residues can later be used as a compost or soil conditioner to facilitate revegetation at this or other contaminated sites; revegetation of the treated solids could be commenced immediately following treatment.

2011 Virotec Global Solutions Pty Ltd. All rights reserved. 667/MKT/11 01.08.11

Treated solids after ViroFlow Technology application

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