Water washing turns toxic waste into safe material for reuse.
The researchers tested a water washing process to improve the quality of waste incineration ash for safe reuse or disposal. The process successfully removed harmful heavy metals, making the ash non-toxic. The ash samples treated with this method met regulatory standards for safe disposal. Using the treated ash in cement mixtures improved compressive strength, with the best results seen at 55% ash replacement. This study shows that pre-treating waste incineration ash can make it safe for industrial use.