| Abstract Title: | Complexities and Methods for Treating Mercury Contaminated Wastes from the Decommissioning of Chlor-Alkali Plants |
| Presenter Name: | David Hunter |
| Company/Institution: | Batrec Industrie AG |
| Session: | Mercury in Contaminated Sites |
| Day and Session: | Thursday 28th July - Session Two |
| Start Time: | 10:00 UTC |
| Co-Authors: | David Hunter |
Abstract Information :
The Minamata Convention calls for signatory parties to phase out mercury-based chlor-alkali production by 2025. The decommissioning process has been under way in Europe for the last 15 plus years and will continue globally for the foreseeable future. It is important to learn from and share experiences in dealing with complex mercury contaminated wastes from this industry to continue good practice going forward.
Huge volumes of liquid mercury have been removed from Chlor-Alkali sites across Europe. The elemental mercury which has come to Batrec has been stabilised as HgS and is stored in a salt mine in Germany.
There are wastes, however which pose unique treatment challenges due to the form that they take or the type of contamination they hold. A more detailed approach to understand the most cost and technically efficient way to safely and effectively treat these mercury wastes is needed.
A series of case studies will be presented, each explaining a mercury containing waste product from the decommissioning of Chlor-Alkali plants, its source and the treatment methods (from high pressure water jetting to thermal treatment) used to separate and collect the mercury from these complex wastes.
