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British Columbia Mine Reclamation Symposium
Low-cost self-cladding of coal dumps : the Fungcoal Process Horan, M.P.; Rose, P.D.
Abstract
The cladding of waste and production coal dumps to prevent combustion and rainfall infiltration, with attendant acidic seepage, has long presented challenges with the high-cost of clay and soil liner systems. The associated environmental damage in sourcing cladding materials can also be severe. Here, we report the development of a biotechnological self-cladding process in which fungal inocula are used to degrade coal and establish a humic soil-like layer on the coal dump surface. The layer supports the growth of grass plantations and the sealing of the dump in this way controls ingress of oxygen and rainfall penetration. This form of cladding is self-generating and thus is not easily prone to permanent erosion damage and loss of the dump cover characteristic of soil/clay liners. Initial fundamental studies on the biodegradation of hard bituminous coals by mycorrhizal fungal strains is described and also how the development of the process has been scaled up from laboratory through piloting to field scale applications. The paper reports economic modeling of the Fungcoal Process which has shown a favourable potential cost benefit in comparison to conventional clay and soil liners.
Item Metadata
Title |
Low-cost self-cladding of coal dumps : the Fungcoal Process
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Creator | |
Contributor | |
Date Issued |
2013
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Description |
The cladding of waste and production coal dumps to prevent combustion and rainfall infiltration,
with attendant acidic seepage, has long presented challenges with the high-cost of clay and soil
liner systems. The associated environmental damage in sourcing cladding materials can also be
severe. Here, we report the development of a biotechnological self-cladding process in which
fungal inocula are used to degrade coal and establish a humic soil-like layer on the coal dump
surface. The layer supports the growth of grass plantations and the sealing of the dump in this
way controls ingress of oxygen and rainfall penetration. This form of cladding is self-generating
and thus is not easily prone to permanent erosion damage and loss of the dump cover
characteristic of soil/clay liners. Initial fundamental studies on the biodegradation of hard
bituminous coals by mycorrhizal fungal strains is described and also how the development of the
process has been scaled up from laboratory through piloting to field scale applications. The paper
reports economic modeling of the Fungcoal Process which has shown a favourable potential cost
benefit in comparison to conventional clay and soil liners.
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Subject | |
Genre | |
Type | |
Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2013-10-17
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0042644
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URI | |
Affiliation | |
Peer Review Status |
Unreviewed
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Scholarly Level |
Other
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Rights URI | |
Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Citations and Data
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International