The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is blessed with a wide array of...

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is blessed with a wide array of water resources, with a total state-wide stream mileage surpassed only by Alaska. Unfortunately, an immense amount of mining has polluted over 2,800 miles of streams in PA to the point of inhabitability. This contamination is caused by the exposure of pyrite to air and water, resulting in the formation of Sulfuric acid, which results in metals contamination and lower pH (increased acidity). It is estimated that it would cost the state $35 billion to mitigate this problem. The SAC continually partners with local watershed groups to fund and construct treatment facilities to mitigate the impacts of Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) and to reinvigorate our streams. While developing treatment strategies with project partners, it became apparent to the SAC that the dissolved metals found in AMD waters could be valuable resources. Metals such as aluminum, manganese, iron, and cadmium exist in these streams and have potential for marketability.

The Resource Recovery initiative originally received funds from the Heinz Endowments to explore the potential for business creation as it relates to metal recovery. The initial work involved inventorying discharges and quantifying potential metal yields. Subsequent work was funded by U.S. Congressman John Murtha via three sequential phases for the initiative. Phase I focused on further quantification and qualification of chemical and analytical data. Phase II involved implementing projects for both demonstration and benchscale. This phase provided hard data that technologies exist to successfully extract the mineral resources. Damariscotta, Inc. and Hedin Environmental both provided positive results in applying technology to recover aluminum and iron oxide. We are now in the third round of funding, earmarked Resource Recovery III. This phase is focused on developing markets for these recovered resources. In essence, the goal is to connect the scientific community (technology developers) with the business industry (resource consumers).

Please follow the links below to track the progress of Resource Recovery III:

Damariscotta- Continuing Treatment at Metro (Manganese Recovery)
Rationale: The goal of this proposal is to develop an effective and efficient steel slag
based means of recovering manganese from coal mine drainage in a form pure enough for
sale as a commercial resource. Manganese is a critical component of iron and steel
production, and has nonferrous applications including dry cell batteries, fertilizers, feed
stocks, and some colorants.
Results: Deliverable work items will include an implemented, slag based,
manganese treatment and recovery system, findings of (MnO2) analytical results,
market potential for final manganese products, and a report which will include asbuilts
and a guidance document on slag based manganese treatment and recovery.

BioMost (Manganese Recovery)- Similar to Damariscotta’s request
Paul C Rizzo & Associates- Continuation of Monitoring (Topper Run Discharge)
Rationale: The goal of this proposal is to provide continued monitoring of the
Topper Run Discharge in St Michael, Cambria County, PA. This discharge is
associated with 30% of the pollution in the Little Conemaugh River and is a high
priority for treatment.
Results: Deliverables will include the construction of new weirs, additional gaging and
monitoring sites, and empirical data related to the flow and chemical make-up of the
discharge water.

Concurrent Technologies Corporation (Metallurgical Analysis of AMD Sludges)
Rationale: CTC will prepare a metallurgical evaluation of up to 8 or 10 sludges that will
be recommended by Fraunhofer and by two other organizations who will supply
electrocoagulation samples and cavitation samples of sludges ( innovative technologies
being funded via RR III funds). CTC will first characterize the sludges, including
metallurgical property evaluation, such as particle morphology phases and potential,
micro structure (particle size and distribution), and crystal structure. We plan to downselect
from 8-10 samples the best candidates for laboratory testing.
The lab testing will include mixing and powder consolidation studies, sintering of the
blends, heat treatment studies, micro structure characterization, and mechanical testing
(tensile and compressive tests, hardness, and wear properties) specifically aimed at
potential use for bearing materials. We will also make recommendations for other
potential metallurgical applications, in addition to self lubricating bearings which is the
initial focus of our proposal.
Results: Report and analysis information related to the applicability of AMD sludges for
the use of powdered metal processing and a complete analysis of how different treatment
technologies impact the metallurgical properties of the AMD sludges. It is hoped that
this analysis will provide the SAC and the PA DEP with a basis for choosing treatment
technologies based not only on their effectiveness, but also based on the marketability of
the sludges that they produce.

United State Geological Survey ( Ozonator, 101 Discharge Report, Chemical Report)
Rationale: The USGS will provide an investigation into ozone treatment technologies
and its applicability to AMD treatment as well as provide two separate studies related to
the chemical composition and make-up of AMD. The first report will summarize past
work related to the 101 Discharge Report. The second report is aimed at quantifying the
potential extraction of precious metals such as gold from AMD water and provide a basis
for determining the economical impacts and environmental benefits of such an extraction.
Results: Information related to the effectiveness of ozone in treating AMD and two
reports that will assist in creating potential revenue streams to offset the costs of AMD
treatment.

Davis Technologies International Corp (Cavitation Demonstration)
Rationale: Sludge generated treating AMD water is very wet. The drying costs and
procedures for making a ‘dry’ sludge is very expensive. Current practices for AMD
treatment utilizing passive treatment mechanisms do not address the issue of dewatering.
This technology utilizes aeration to produce the sludge at the surface of the treatment unit
instead of settling the metals and precipitating them at the bottom of the treatment
system. This demonstration is intended to prove the applicability of this technology in
the realm of Resource Recovery.
Deliverables: Information related to the process, treatment parameters, raw data, and
AMD sludge for evaluation.

Fraunhofer Institute for the Environment (Sludge Evaluation & Market Research)
Rationale: Fraunhofer will provide evaluation of sludges generated with various forms of
technology and neutralizing agents. Suggestions and reports will be made to SAC
denoting the most marketable sludges in terms of how they were generated.
Additionally, subcontracted work provided by the USDA Penn State will provide SAC
with an evaluation of AMD sludge effectiveness in treating agriculture nutrient problems.
Deliverables: Raw data and reports

Virotec (Demonstration of Bauxsol Technology)
Rationale: Virotec will batch treat water at Topper Run in St Michaels. The treatment
will utilize Virotec’s Bauxsol technology and will demonstrate its effectiveness on
AMD. The USDA in conjunction with Fraunhofer will utilize sludges produced in this
process and determine its applicability to the market, in particular the agricultural
market. This proposal will not only demonstrate the effectiveness on treating AMD, but
also demonstrate that residual Bauxsol can sequester phosphorus in agricultural settings.
Lab work will be conducted to illustrate the sequestration of heavy metals from the
AMD.
Deliverables: 50 lbs of residual sludge for testing, raw data, and a final report on the
technology