Characteristic fly-ash particles from oil-shale combustion found in lake sediments

• Published in: Water, air, and soil pollution air, and soil pollution, 1998-05, Vol.104 (1-2), p.149-160
• Main Authors: ALLIKSAAR, T, HÖRSTEDT, P, RENBERG, I
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air pollution; Applied sciences; Atmospheric pollution; Atmospheric pollution deposition; Coal; Combustion; Combustion and energy production; Earth sciences; Earth, ocean, space; Engineering and environment geology. Geothermics; Environmental monitoring; Exact sciences and technology; Fly ash; Fossil fuels; High temperature; Lake sediments; Lakes; Oil; Pollutant deposition; Pollution; Pollution sources. Measurement results; Pollution, environment geology; Power plants; Scanning electron microscopy; Sediments; Shale; Shales; Soil and sediments pollution; Spatial distribution; Statistical analysis; Trends
• ISSN: 0049-6979; 1573-2932
• DOI: 10.1023/a:1004918419356

Fly-ash particles accumulate in sediments and can be used to assess spatial distribution and temporal trends of atmospheric deposition of pollutants derived from high temperature combustion of fossil fuels. Previous work has concerned fly-ash derived from oil and coal. Oil-shale is the main fossil fuel used in Estonia and a major source of atmospheric pollution in the Baltic states. To assess if oil-shale power plants produce specific fly-ash particles, we used scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) to compare fly-ash particles from oil-shale combustion with particles from oil and coal combustion. Two types were analysed, large black (10-30 mu m) and small glassy (