A comparative evaluation of minerals and trace elements in the ashes from lignite, coal refuse, and biomass fired power plants

Coal being a limited source of energy, extraction of energy from other sources like lignite, coal-refuse, and biomass is being attempted worldwide. The minerals and inorganic elements present in fuel feeds pose different technological and environmental concerns. Lignite ash, refuse ash, and biomass ash collected from Indian power plants burning lignite, coal-refuse, and mustard stalk, respectively, were analyzed for physicochemical characteristics and trace elements. The lignite ash has high SiO2, CaO, MgO, Al2O3, and SO3; the refuse ash has high SiO2 and Fe2O3, but low SO3; the biomass ash has high SiO2 (but low Al2O3), and high CaO, MgO, K2O, Na2O, SO3, and P2O5. A substantial presence of chloride (2.1%) was observed in the biomass ash. Quartz is the most abundant mineral species. Other minerals are mullite, hematite, gehlenite, anhydrite, and calcite in the lignite ash; orthoclase in the refuse ash; albite, sanidine, gehlenite, anhydrite, and calcite in the biomass ash. Ashes with high concentrations (>100 mg/kg) of trace elements are: lignite ash (V