@article{10902/28322,
year = {2023},
month = {2},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/10902/28322},
abstract = {The management of spent pickling acids (SPA) is an environmental challenge for the hot-dip galvanizing (HDG) industry. Bearing in mind its elevated content of iron and zinc, SPA can be regarded as a source of secondary materials in a circular economy approach. This work reports the pilot scale demonstration of non-dispersive solvent extraction (NDSX) in hollow fiber membrane contactors (HFMCs) to perform the selective zinc separation and SPA purification, so that the characteristics needed for use as a source of iron chloride are achieved. The operation of the NDSX pilot plant, which incorporates four HFMCs with a 80 m2 nominal membrane area, is carried out with SPA supplied by an industrial galvanizer, and consequently technology readiness level (TRL) 7 is reached. The purification of the SPA requires of a novel feed and purge strategy to operate the pilot plant in continuous mode. To facilitate the further implementation of the process, the extraction system is formed by tributyl phosphate as the organic extractant and tap water as the stripping agent, both easily available and cost-effective chemicals. The resulting iron chloride solution is successfully valorized as a hydrogen sulfide suppressor to purify the biogas generated in the anaerobic sludge treatment of a wastewater treatment plant. Additionally, we validate the NDSX mathematical model using pilot scale experimental data, providing a design tool for process scale-up and industrial implementation.},
organization = {This research was co-funded by the European LIFE Program, project LIFE2ACID Towards a sustainable use of metal resources in the galvanic industry, grant number LIFE 16 ENV/ES/000242. The authors are grateful to Julia Beleña and Eva Pozo (Galvanizadora Valenciana S. L.) for providing SPA batch samples. We also acknowledge Leandro Morante and Ana Fernández (MARE S. A.) for their assistance with the on-site tests at the WWTP dealing with the valorization of purified SPA. The research behind this paper would not have been possible without the participation of Isabel Ortiz, Germán Santos, and Andrés del Castillo (APRIA Systems S. L.) in the operation of the pilot plant.},
publisher = {Royal Society of Chemistry},
publisher = {RSC Advances, 203, 13(10), 6481-6489},
title = {Circular economy in hot-dip galvanizing with zinc and iron recovery from spent pickling acids},
author = {Arguillarena Maza, Andrea and Margallo Blanco, María and Arruti Fernández, Axel and Pinedo Alonso, Javier and Gómez Rodríguez, Pedro Manuel and Ortiz Uribe, Inmaculada and Urtiaga Mendia, Ana María},
}