Regulating the mobility of Cd, Cu and Pb in an acid soil with amendments of phosphogypsum, sugar foam, and phosphoric rock

When acid soil has been contaminated by metals as a result of industrial discharges, accidental spills, or acid mine drainage it may be desirable to retain the metals in the soil rather than allow them to leach away. We have investigated the potential of phosphogypsum (PG), sugar foam (SF), and phosphoric rock (PR) to regulate the availability and mobility of Pb, Cd and Cu. We have also identified changes in attenuation during incubation for 1 year and the effect of aging on metal speciation in amended soils. We studied miscible displacement in columns of undisturbed soil previously treated with solutions of the amendments and soluble metals and, subsequently, single and sequential chemical metal extractions. All amendments increased the soil's metal retention capacity. This, in turn, increased the amount of metal extractable by diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA). However, over time the amounts of DTPA‐extractable metal decreased, particularly for Cu and Pb. Both Cu and Cd were held preferentially within the acetic acid‐extractable fraction (operationally defined exchangeable fraction – EX fraction), whereas Pb was associated mainly with the hydroxylammonium‐extractable fraction (operationally defined bound to Fe and Al hydroxides – OX fraction). Both Pb and Cu in the oxide and organic fractions increased in the PG‐ and SF‐treated soils. In general, the distribution of metal did not change in the PR‐treated columns after the incubation. Finally, scanning electron microscopy in back‐scattered electron mode (SEM–BSE) showed the formation of Al‐hydroxy polymers which provides the soils with additional cation sorption capacity. In the PG‐ and PR‐treated columns, P and S were associated with these formations. The three metals were associated with the Al polymers, probably through direct coordination or the formation of ternary complexes with the inorganic ligands phosphate and sulphate.