Determination of influence of pH on reaction mixture of ferritation process with electromagnetic pulse activation on the processing of galvanic sludge

This paper considers prospects for increasing the level of environmental safety of industrial enterprises as a result of the implementation of resource-saving technology of processing galvanic sludge using the ferritization method. The effectiveness of the use of electromagnetic pulse discharges for resource-saving activation of the ferritization process with the extraction of heavy metal ions from sludge (Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn) has been confirmed. The influence of key parameters of the process such as the pH value of the reaction mixture and the initial concentrations of metals in the solution on the quality of processing galvanic sludge by ferritization has been experimentally investigated. It was determined that with an increase in the pH value from 8.5 to 10.5 the residual concentrations of metal ions decrease to the values of 0.1÷0.25 mg/dm3 regardless of the total initial concentrations. It has been established that the technique of electromagnetic pulse activation ensures an adequate degree of extraction of metal ions of 99.9 %; it also has indisputable energy advantages compared to the thermal method: energy costs are reduced by more than 60 %. That indicates the suitability of purified water for reuse in galvanic production in terms of the requirements for the content of heavy metal ions in it. In addition, the structural studies of ferritization sediment samples have been carried out. The sediment is characterized by the maximum content of crystalline ferromagnetic phases of ferrite. It was established that an increase in the pH of the initial reaction mixture leads to an increase in the ferrite phase in sedimentation: at pH=10.5, phases were detected, which are characterized by a maximum ferrite content (exceeding 76 %). The proposed resource-saving ferritization process prevents environmental pollution, ensures efficient and rational utilization of raw materials and energy in the industry; it also makes it possible to obtain commodity products from industrial waste