Abstract
Elevated concentrations of dissolved solids in groundwater near a fly ash disposal facility were shown to be naturally occurring, and probably unrelated to fly ash leachate, by using a suite of geochemical approaches. Typical comparative statistical approaches produced equivocal results for the same set of data. Leachate is clearly distinguishable from naturally poor water quality from ratios of major and minor dissolved metals, low cost isotopic analyses, and direct groundwater age determinations. Specifically: (1) the ratios of major metals (Ca, Mg, Na) in leachate are completely different than that of the native groundwater; (2) the isotopic content of leachate show the marked effects of evaporation, whereas the isotopic content of underlying groundwater does not; (3) the groundwater age under the site is older than the site itself, precluding leachate contamination; (4) the sulfur isotopic signature of shallow groundwater is different than that of high-sulfur bearing natural groundwater and leachate; and (5) Eh and pH of the leachate prevents the mobilization of iron and other trace metals.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 256-259 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Proceedings of the American Power Conference |
Volume | 54 |
Issue number | pt 1 |
State | Published - 1992 |
Event | Proceedings of the 54th Annual Meeting of the American Power Conference - Chicago, IL, USA Duration: Apr 1 1992 → Apr 1 1992 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Nuclear Energy and Engineering
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering