Effect of modified fly ash on environmental safety of two soils contaminated with cadmium and lead

In this study, a low-temperature roasting and hydrothermal methods were used to modify the fly ash resulting in two new types of adsorption materials -modified fly ash (MFA) and artificial zeolite (ZE). These modified fly ashes, as well as a natural zeolite (ZO) were applied to two types of contaminated soils to explore their effects and mechanisms on the behavior of Cd and Pb through leaching column experiments. The bioavailable of Pb, Cd, pH, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), organic matter, as well as the microbial community changings were detected. The results showed that, 2% ZE has a significant stabilizing effect on Cd and the bioavailable fraction contents in Guanzhong (GZ) and Hunan (HN) soils decreased by 40.5% and 53.2%, respectively. However, for Pb, the 2% MFA showed a better result than that of ZE and ZO; the contents of bioavailable Pb in HN and GZ decreased by 48.3% and 30%, respectively. Furthermore, based on the Illumina NovaSep sequencing platform, 18 soil samples of GZ and HN were sequenced for microbial communities. As compared to the control blank(CK) treatment, the abundance of soil microbial communities was significantly improved in the amended soils.

Automated summary

The study found that artificial zeolite has a significant stabilizing effect on Cd, while modified fly ash performs better in reducing the bioavailability of Pb. Additionally, there was a significant improvement in the richness of soil microbial communities in the amended soils.