Assessing the suitability of using the by-product Petrit-E from steel production as agricultural fertilizer

Due to the growing population, waste generation and food supply industries need to move towards a circular economy and take advantage of by-products. Metallurgical slag is a main by-product during steel production which contains several valuable minerals and can be used for several further applications, including water purification and agriculture. This thesis has a focus on the issue(s) that need to be assessed to be able to determine the suitability of Petrit-E steel slag from Höganäs AB for agricultural use after it has been used for water purification. This slag by-product has been tested and it was successful to purify wastewater from phosphorus (P). The use as a fertilizer is most promising because it contains the major fertilizer substances and it contains P which is a limited resource. Calculations were done for the mean value and standard deviation of the substances for three years and after for Cr (chromium) and Ni (nickel) contents in Petrit-E because these two metals that are present in the slag and are regulated in the regulation for limit values. The total contents of Cr and Ni were higher than the limit values so there are these two metals that need to be assessed further. Since Petrit-E is not a sludge and not a virgin material either, it requires other methods such as leaching tests by accredited laboratories. These tests are suitable for risk assessments and to estimate the amounts of metal availability for leaching. Leaching tests based on the site specific (local) chemical and physical processes and characteristics in the soil are necessary to estimate the suitability of Petrit-E