Setting up of a pilot unit for the treatment of storm-water sediments

Storm-water sediments are often polluted with trace elements and hydrocarbons. The objective of this study is the treatment of these sediments in order to allow their recycling. Characterization tests show that metallic and organic pollutants are in the fine fractions. Some of the fine particles are easily separable by physical sorting, whereas others are conglomerated requiring a further treatment (attrition) to be separated from the coarse,fractions. The set up treatment consists in concentrating the pollutants in a reduced fraction of the sediment (the fine particles), which can be separated allowing the re-use of other fractions. To achieve this purpose, a pilot plant unit was set up for the treatment of various pond and street sweeping sediments. Chemical and geotechnical tests are carried out on the different fractions to determine their possibilities of re-use.