Avsättningsmöjligheter för slaggrus från avfallsförbränning vid Åmotfors Energi
The incineration of waste is steadily increasing in Sweden and so is the production ofashes. The bottom ash has for many years been used as construction material inlandfills. Now many of the nation's landfills are closed and there is a great need to findanother beneficial use for the ash. Bottom ash is a gravel-like material and with itsmaterial properties it can replace natural gravel in parts of roads and surfaceconstructions. Today this use is only approved within landfill areas where leachate iscollected and checked. Outside the landfill area, authorities are uncertain of theenvironmental impact of the bottom ash and of what future risks it entails.The aim of this work was to investigate market opportunities for bottom ash fromÅmotfors Energy, with the goal to be a background basis for an application of the use ofbottom ash outside the landfill area.The results of analyzes shows that the bottom ash from Åmotfors Energy is comparablewith bottom ash from the rest of Sweden regarding both the total concentrations andenvironmental aspects.When the values from the analyses of the ash are compared with the standard values fortotal allowed concentrations announced by the Environmental Protection Agency, theguideline values for almost all parameters are exceeded. If you instead look at theleaching from bottom ash - almost all parameters pass the guidelines. The reason whythe guideline values for leaching may be withheld while the guideline values for totalconcentrations exceeded is that ash has a capacity to bind substances stronger than earthmaterials and waste, which the guideline values are set for.It is possible to find an application for use of bottom ash from Åmotfors Energi outsidethe landfill area. It is important to choose a project where the bottom ash is suitable as aconstruction material. Examples of these include surface construction near industries orroad constructions where there is no contact with groundwater. Near Åmotfors thenational road 61 is under reconstructions and if bottom ash from Åmotfors Energiwould be allowed in the construction, about 130 000 ton could be useful. This is about13 years of production. Bottom ash can also be used in parking spaces near shoppingcenters which are continuously being expanded in Eda Municipality. For a normalparking space of 20 000 square meters about 20 000 tonnes of bottom ash is needed.The results of interviews with landfills in neighboring municipalities gave indicationsthat there could be a need for bottom ash as a construction material on two of thelandfills. The need was estimated to 5000 - 10 000 tonnes per year over the next fewyears.The ash from Åmotfors Energi is, like bottom ashes from other waste incinerationplants to be seen as a resource. Today, metal is extracted from the ashes because of theeconomic benefits, but in the future it is possible that we will see bottom ash as aresource that can replace of virgin and non-renewable materials.