United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Air and Energy Engineering
Research Laboratory
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
Research and Development
EPA/600/S7-86/008 Apr. 1986
&EPA Project Summary
Coal-Waste Artificial Reef
Program
P. M. J. Woodhead, J. H. Parker, H. R. Carleton, and I. W. Duedall
For utilities in coastal urban areas,
converting coal ash and scrubber
sludge into artificial ocean reefs can be
an economically attractive, environ-
mentally acceptable means of coal-
waste disposal. This innovation in coal-
waste management has an added
benefit—the reefs create a sheltered
habitat for fauna and fish.
This Project Summary was developed
by EPA's Air and Energy Engineering
Research Laboratory, Research
Triangle Park, NC, to announce key
findings of the research project that is
fully documented in a separate report of
the same title (see Project Report
ordering information at back).
Introduction
In urban areas such as the industrial
Northeast, disposal of coal combustion
by-products poses serious economic and
environmental problems. Because few
land disposal sites are close to power
plants, utilities usually transport wastes
to remote facilities. Consolidating wastes
with additives and curing the mixture into
blocks to construct artificial ocean reefs
may be an economical alternative.
Approach
After analyzing several combinations
of coal-waste materials, the research
team selected stabilized blocks of coal
ash and scrubber sludge for further study.
In field and laboratory investigations,
they measured how blocks exposed to
seawater changed in mineral content,
chemical composition, and characteris-
tics such as strength, porosity, and
permeability. Bioassays determined
whether leachates from the blocks were
harmful to marine organisms. Cement
block machinery converted wastes from
plants operated by Columbus and
Southerm Ohio Electric Company and
Indianapolis Power and Light Company
into 15,000 blocks. In September 1980,
the blocks were placed in a reef in the
Atlantic Ocean off Long Island. For 3
years, researchers monitored the
structural integrity of the blocks, tested
for possible trace metal leaching, and
observed local marine life.
Results
Despite 3 years of seawater exposure,
the physical integrity of the reef remained
intact. In fact, the coal-waste blocks
showed compressive strengths and
densities either the same or greater than
when they were fabricated. The reef had
no adverse effect on local fish
populations because elements in the reef
that might harm sensitive marine
organisms proved to have very slow or
negligible leaching rates. The study also
demonstrated that the organisms on
which these fish populations feed will
colonize on the blocks. Engineering and
economic evaluations indicate that, for
utilities in the urban Northeast, the
production, transportation, and
construction costs associated with coal-
waste reefs are competitive with
comparable expenses for other disposal
methods. These evaluations also
emphasize the importance of locating the
reefs away from commercial trawler
routes and in sufficiently deep water to
prevent obstruction to navigation.
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P. Woodhead. J. Parker. H. Carleton. and I. Duedall are with the Marine Sciences
Research Center, State University of New York, Stony Brook, NY 11794.
Julian W. Jones is the EPA Project Officer (see below).
The complete report, entitled "Coal- Waste Artificial Reef Program," (Order No. DE
85-010 8377AS; Cost: $16.95, subject to change) will be available only from:
National Technical Information Service
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield, VA 22161
Telephone: 703-487-4650
The EPA Project Officer can be contacted at:
Air and Energy Engineering Research Laboratory
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Center for Environmental Research
Information
Cincinnati OH 45268
Official Business
Penalty for Private Use $300
EPA/600/S7-86/008
0000329 PS
U S EWVIR PROTECTION AGENCY
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