Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
5~
Bac~kground of the Invention
T~e presenk invention relates to a method of producing a
carbon-rich fully matuxed humus materia~ with self fertil-
i7er-generatinq characteristics, and the product produced
by practicing the method.
Soil buildina oon~tituents deemed essential in broad soil-
building applioations (æuch a~ hortioultuxe, agriculture;
silverculture, and the rehabilitation of humus and fertilizer
deple~ed~ di~turbed or devaætated soils) are mixture~ of
biolo~ically-active humus, nitrogen fertilizers and trace
minerals.
Agricultural scientist~ are shifting emphasis from the
advocation of mor~ and more chemical` ertili-ers to a more
balanced view ofthevalue of organic substanoes. So that when
or~anic matter is applied to the soil, its purpos~ will not
be to feed plants but to feed and condition the soil.
Canadian prairie virgin soil had an original humus content
of about 7 per cent with a nitro~en content of 0~35 per c~nt.
Constant croppinq cau~ed a drop in h~mus to 5 per cent and
a lo~ in nitroqen reserves of about 1 ton per acr~-
Th~se instances tend to show that in nitrogen ~ixation
there is an equilibrium reached which corresponds to the
humu~ content, and it logically follows that by adding humus
to the soil, the nitrogen f ixing or~anisms are stimulated
unti~ the equ~ rium point is again reached~
It is we}l known that the mo~t important organi6ms in
nitrog~n fixation are the clostridia and the azotobacter.
Both these are d~pres~ed by the addition of nitrat~ to the
~oil9 and under the~e circumstances ni~rogen fixation does
n~t occur.
5~
Nitrogen fertilizer~ are of natural or synthetic origin.
Nitroaen is at once an abundant element, making up alm~st
80 percent of the earth~ atmosphere, and at the same time
a ~carce nutri~ional resource. Thi6 i~ because nitrogen
can enter biolo~ical æy~tems only when it ha~ been~fixed~
or combined with certain other element~9 ~uch as hydrogen
or oxygen.
While natural nitrogen was an effective source of plant
nutrients ~ince the early days in the development of our ;~
planet, it has fallen far behind in its ability to hasten
the growth of a sufficient amount of p~ant foodstuffs to
feed the rapidly increafiing population of our world. While
synthetic nitrogen fertilizer produ~t~ are presently helping
to ful~ill thi~ need they are considerably more costly ( and
out of reach of thoc~ fa~ine ridden peoples needing them mo6t)~
and require highly-sophiæticated ener~y~intensive manufact~
uring equip~ent for their production~ in an energy ~hort
world. Al~o, whi~e ~ynthetic nitrogen fertilizer products
provide quick growth and are ea~y to ~pply the ~tructural
integrity of a 90il may be deqraded by its use in various
way~. In tho~e areas which have been ~ubjected to intengive
crop producing practices to further increase the yields
o~ crop~ (~uch afi the canadian and U.S. p~airies)~ ~oil~
over a great por~ion of these land~ may ~xhibit early
si~ns of exhau~tion brought about by the ~ontinuous dep
letion of their natural biological, humus and nit~ogen
content, and are ther~fore, re~dily ~usceptible to 80il
erosion and degradation of the loo~ely bonded soil part
icles (thereby leadin~ to the phenomenon kno~n a9 t'desert-
ification'')g
- 2 _
Acid rain, which ha~ resulted in the proqressive deterior-
at;on of our ~tream~, lake~, ~oil~ and our oceans ha~ b~en
~ith U8 since the ~tart of the so-called indu~trial revolution
a hundred year~ or more ago. Recently. it ha~ been announced9
that dioxin an extremely toxic poison ha~ been found in the
eggs of birds from all parts of Lake Ontario, this sugge~ts
that ~cid rain may be a mixture of many dangerous pollutants
and the reaction pxodu~ts therefrom~ other than ~ulphur diox-
ide and nitrogen oxides- :
Fo~sil-fuel plants, and in particular coal burning plants,
discharge very high amounts of sulphur dioxide into the air.
Thi~ combines with other pollutant~ including nitrogen oxides,
in the atmo~phere, and mixe~ with the water vapor and can be
distributed thousands of miles away.
Coal burning i~ recognized as a major ~ource of the sulphur :
dioxide pollution re~ponsible for the damaging acid_rain
that is ~lowly ~illing off fi~h and animal life and resulting
in the pro~re6sive destruction and deva8tation of forest and
t:roplands all over the world.
The burning of the ~oal doe~ not cause the pyrolysis (mean-
ing the chemical decomposition of subætanc~s by the action of
heat~ of the pollutants in the coal, th~refore the coal poll-
utants are di~charged into the atmosphere with the sulphur
dioxide forming thereby,further reaction produ~t~ and by-
products to further compound ~nd culminate the lethal effect
of the acid rain on fi~h, animal, forest and croplands-
55~
,
In the ca~es re~erred to above, the contamination of thesoil is due to natural and artificially applied air, vapor,
and water carried pollutants, and the degradation of the
soil structure and the exhau~tion of the ~oil iæ duq to the
continuous removal from the soil of its natural soil building
con~tituents and defence mechanisms such as its residual
content of humus, nitro~en, and beneficial soil bacteria ~such
a~ decay9 nitro~en-fixin~, and soil ammonifiersl by depletion
and decimation, If this contamination, depletion and deci~-
ation were to be arrested, and the natural 50il buildin~proce~ses were to be re-started, and augmented, and the natural
fertility of the soil could be increased sufficlently at a
reasonable increase in cost, which would not negate the e~on-
omic advant~ges of using improved natural nitrogen-fixation
and fully matured humu6 addition as oppo~ed to synthetic nit-
rogen fertllizer addition, a superior ~oil amending and soil
building mixture would be produced at a con~iderable savings
in both co~t and energy consumption over commercially produced
synthetic nitrogen fertilizerc~
By the same token, the problem of dispo8ing of domestic, ind-
ustrial, agricultural, manufacturing and other or~anic wastes,
and the alkaline liquid organic effluents therefrom, is b~-
oming more acute, becauæe of public concern and objections over
it~ potential hazard to health and aesthetic considerations.
Alkaline organic-~o}id~ ~iquid wast~s and di~charging alkaline
liquid ~ffluents therefrom repre~ent a valuable source of wat~r
and fertilizer nutrients which may be utilized to advantage
in neutralizing natural~y acid or artificially a~idified ~oil~,
and with humus addition ~erve to replenish ~oil~ depleted of
30 humus and ~ertilizer con~tituents. The degree of risk assoc-
iated with effluent utilization is related to the microbial
and the heavy metal ~ontent of the ~ntreated e~fluent~causing
_ ~ _
well water to becsme contaminated wi~h toxic heavy metal~ and
other pollutants and cause a heavy build up of such metals in
fish, animal~ and vegetatiQn. Furthermore, both primary and
secondary stages of sewaqe treatment are designed to ~ause
the proliferation of ~ewage bacteria to efect maximum organic-
matter breakdown. Therefore~ when the treated organic effluents
ar~ discharged from l~goons or holding area~ for land or silver~
culture irrigation or application they still contain the major
portion of their original content of hea~y me~als, suspended
organic matter, diææolved fertiliæer and other substance~ and
a ~reatly increased bacterial population (including harmful
pathogenic bacteria). There is a very di~tinct po~sibility~
therefore, that when treated ~ewage effluent is d.ischarged
to the surrounding environment widespread contamination of
water, air and/or 80il may reæult th~reErom. There~orP~ a
carbon-rich fully matured humus malterial ~hich can effectively
prevent lagooned or confined sewage effluent from becoming
septic thereby maintaining the stored sewage effluents in an
odour-free ~tate7 provid~.an environment unfavo~able ~or the
20 continued existence of pa~hogenic bacteria therein, thereby
enhancing the lagooning process of pathogen removalz remove
and stor~ by sorptive proce~e~ the fertili~.er values there~
from, utilize the succe~sive groups of degradation bactexia
therein for the further production of absorbabl~ amounts of
fertilizer sub~tance3, and utilize the carbon-rich ~ubstance~
of the n~wly-exposed ancient original fully-makured-humus a~
a food and energy source needed by nitrogen-fixing micro-oxg-
anism~: and soil-ammonifiers in the furthe~ produ~tion of nit~
rogen product~ and b~r~product~;~, will negat~ th~ po~æibili ty of
30 large scale contamination from sewage, indu~trialg agricult~
ural and other form~ c~f organic ~aE3te effluerits and pollutant~,
effect ben~fic~ally the trea~ment to a grF~ater d~gree9 provide
low C06t treatment, and ~uperior ~oil building mate~ials-
~553~
Summary of the Invention
In the present inventionp a method of producing a sorptivefully mat~red humus with carbon-rich fertilizer-generatin~
characteristics i8 dipclosed which comprises the æteps of
separatinq densely structured low grade coal material~ into
first and second portion~, both first and second portions
being subjected to one or more wetting and drying cycles
followed by a thorouah leaching with one or a combination of~
heated air, hot or cold water, ~team, an acid, a base, and
a base then ~n acid. The first and ~econd por~ions are cru~hed
and ~creened to produce a first portion fine-particulate
sorptive humus material havin~ a maximum diameter pas~ing
through a 200 me~h ~creen and a ~econd portion larqer sized
sorptive humus material having a maximum diameter of 3~4 of an
inch. ~ither or both of the first portion ~ine particulat~
sorptive humu~ material and the lar~er sized sorptive humus
materials may be stockpiled in low flat-topped pile~ expo~ed
to elemental, and solar liaht and heat force~ for a sufficient
period of ti~e to effe~t the natural inoculation of the ~oxp-
tive humus materials by intru~ive nitroqen-fixin~ micro-
orqanisms and soil ammonifiers, whereby the original carbon-
rich expo~ures of ancient sorptive-humuæ carbon containing
therein the requi~ite food and enerqy values needed by the
micro-organisms for the production:of, and ab~orption of,fert-
ili~er nitrogenou~ product~ and by-produ~ts therefsom~
In a first embodiment of the present invention, a ~orptive
fully matured humus suitable for utilization in the rehabllit~
ation of soil~ of larqe humus and nitrogen-depleted and cont-
aminated areas, is produced. In the fir~t em~odimsnt, the
first portion fine particula~e sorptive humu~ material i~
added as a biologically and ~olar aetuated additiv~ in
a ~urface applica~ion after normal seedinc~ or plantin~ to a
typical humus~fertillzer-depleted and/or ce~ntaminated soil
being rehabilitated, with the fine particulate sorptive humus
material being added in dust form or as a humus-in~water slurry
mixture, ~uch that an exposed biologically and solar-activated
sorptive-humus cover havin~ neutralizing properties is formed
over the soil ~ ace~ to a depth of not less than one millim-
eter, or from betwe~n two to ten pounds (dry humuæ weight~ per
square yard. The ~oal materials are selected from a gro~p con-
8igting of coal9 bone ~oal, coal ~hale~ bituminous shale. ~layeycoal, near coal, leonardite~ oxidized coal, fly ash, bottom ash,
coal wastes in burned and unburned form, bituminou~ coal, ~ub-
bituminous coal, li~nite and brown coal. coal mat~rials commonly
contain a combu~tible content and a non-combustible contentO
The Combustible content of coal con~ist~ of carbon and volat
ile~, and the non-combustible content of coal consists of
moi~ture, ash and water soluble substances- The com~ustible
and non-combustible content of the coal material 3S mined
combine to form an almost impenetrable den6ely-structured
2Q coal-80l1d material. The conversion of the coal-solid material
into sorptive fully-matured humus is advantageously practiced
by the r~moval of the volatile gases-content of the coal mat-
erial combu~tibles and the removal of the non-combustible ~ :
content of the ~oal-solids material~ an~ i~ a~compli~hed by
the a~orementioned u~ttin~, drying and lea~hing procedures.
A ~econd embodiment of the pre~ent invention result~ in a sorp-
tive-humus and alka~ine or~anic-matter mix~ure whi~h is ~uit-
able ~or neutralizing a~idi~ied soils and adsorbing the poll-
utants therefrom, as well as absorbing and storing ~ertilizer
30 value2; for residual 80i'1 am~nding purposes and slo~ relea~;e
there~rom in a form readily availabl~ to plants- In the second
-- 7
embodiment, the second portion lar~er ~ized ~orptlve humu~
materialc are provided as a filter medium through which i8
directed an alkaline or~anic-~olid liquid stream. ~fter the
alkaline oraanic-~olid~ and fertilizer values have been entr-
apped and ab~orbed upon and within the ~econd portion larqer
~ized sorDtive-humus filter medium to a predetermined requi~ite
amount, the ~orptive-alkaline humu~ and orqanic matter mixture
i~ comminuted to produce a particle ~izing ~imilar to that of
the firfit portion fine particulate sorptive humu~ material.
The comminuted mixture i8 then thorouqhly intermixed in its
wet condition, in a conventional type mixer-aqitator, at a
temperature o~ not le~ than 4SF. and no~ more than 120 F.
The ~orptive-alkaline humus and orqanic matter mixture may
then be ~tored in a confined area expo~ed to elemental,and
~olar light and heat ~orce6 for a ~ufficient period o~ time
to ef~ect the complete breakdown o~ the orqanic-matt~r portion
o~ the mixture, brou~ht about by ~ucce~8ive group~ of de~ay,
nitro~en-fixinq and ~oil ammonifier~. The ~oil microbes dec~
ompoRe the orqanic matter with the resultant liberation of
~imple chemical sub~tance~, which are in turn ab~orbed upon
and within th~ humu~ portion of the mixture and ~tored until
their r~leage by the ~low oxidation of the humus material. The
fine particulate soxptive and alkaline humu~-or~anic-matter
mix'cur~ of the ~;econd embodiment may be utili~ed to neutralize
naturally a~d or artif icially acidified ~oil6 being re~habil-
itated and~or p~ovide a remedial humus and ~ertilize~ source
available for immediate utilization by ~rowing plants or the
build-up of re~idual humu~ and fer~ilizer value~ in the cont
aminated, depleted, di~turbed or deva~tated ~oils hein~ re-
habilitatedO The ~orptive-alkaline humu~ and organic matter
-- 8 --
mixture may be applied to the æoils being re-habilitated in
a dust or wa~cer-ælurry form ~:imilar to the prs~cedure outl ined
in the first embodiment, or may be applied in granulated or
pelletized form, after first removing the bacterial populatiQn
therefrom. A proce~ for the removal of the bacterial popul-
ation of the humus-organic mixture may involve a method sim-
ilar to a dryinq-pa~teurizinq proces~ sin~e pasteurization i~
a proce~ of ster~lizinq or partially sterilizing organic
mixture~ without fusing the carbon or altering its chemical
10 proDertieR. The pa~:teurization proces~ ; caxried out at a
temperature of betveen 143F. to 145F. for not less than
30 minutes.
. ~`
In a third e~bodiment of the pre~ent invenSion, the ~ir~t
portion fine particulate 60rptive humus material is added
as a pre-wetted humus-in-water slurry to discharging alkaline
liquid organic effluent , originating from the filtering medium ~:
of the second embodiment, sueh that the fine particulate ~orp-
tive humu~ be~omes thoroughly intermixed ~ith the alkaline
liquid org~nic effluent and in ~u~pension therewi~hin. The
fine particulate ~orptive-humu0-material slurry may be~t be
added to the alkaline liquid-orqanic-effluent at the plant
site at the point of origin, or may be introduced into the
effluent conduit pipe leading to a holding lagoon, or in its
carriage therefrom to an application site. The addition of
the ~arbon-rich humus portion of the mixture to the alkallne
liquid-organic-effluen prevent~ the effluent from becoming
~eptic for an extended period of time thereby creating an
unfavorable environment for the continued survival of harmful
micro-organi~m~ when the effluent is lagooned7 thus materially
enhancing the demi~e of pathogenic bac~eria ~xought about in
the effluent lagovning procedure.
iS3~
~ he ~orptive and alkaline humuæ-organic~liquid efflu~nt mix-
tuxe is an odour-free liquid by rea~on of the carbon-rich
content of the ~orptive humu~ ~ortion of the mix~ure.when util-
ized for the re-habilitation of contaminated ~oil~ ~uch aæ
naturally acid or artiEicially acidified soils, or for the
treatment of other form~ of soil pollutant~ the liquid mixture
æerveæ as an effe~tive neutralizing agent, and as an effective
adsorbent and ab~orbent media. In addition to ~erving as an
anti-pollutant the liquid mixture can provide a valuable æource
lQ of water and fertilizer values to the soil~ on application to
the ~oil (in designated environmentally safe areaæ~ the æorp-
tive humus and alkaline liquid-organic-effluent mixture is
added thereto æuch that not les~ than one inch of the mixture
is added aæ a ~urface irriqatinq applicationO In some surface
irrigating appli~ation~ it may be found beæt to pond the mixture,
thiæ may be done by formin~ a rai~ed b~rm around the area to
be ponded, to a ~ufficient height to allow one or more incheæ
of the liquid mixture to be ponded therein. A one inch applic-
ation of the alkaline liquid organi~ efEluent portion of the
20 mixture will ~upply the fertilizer equivalent of about 750 lbs.
of a typical 10-5-14 fertilizer mixture, whi~e the sorptive
humus portion o~ the mixture will supply original fully mat-
ured humuæ, to the ~oils being re-habilitated.
It i~ eætimated that the use of the method of the pre~ent
invention in either one or all of the three foregoing embod-
iment~ will increa~e the available and residual humu~ and
fertilizer content of depletedp di~turbed or devasted æoils
by a factor greater than that removed from the soil annually
by enforced cropping practice~t
- 10 --
5 S~b~
The polluted discharging effluent resulting from the removal
of the non-combu~tible and extxaneous combustible content Of
the low grade coal material~ is ~reated to remove the pollut-
ants there~rom prior to its recycling for reuse, by arran~ing
filterinq enclosures comprised of sorptive asphalt-aggregate
filter media in predetermined sizings, and then pa~sing the
polluted liquid effluent ~herethrough. when spent the aggrega~e-
pollutant mixture i~ d~ied, then encapsulated within an imp-
roved asphalt mixture acf~ording to a known process, and may
be ~ormed into compre~ed æhape~ or agpha~t paving mixtures
for safe long term ~tora~e of the pollutantæ therefrom.
Erief De~cription of the Dr~wing~
Figure 1, i~ a flow diaqram showing the variou~ facets of the
proceæ~ for producinq a carbon-rich fully matured ~orptive
humus material of the Pirst embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2, i~ a flow diaqram showing the variou~ facet~ of the
proce~s for producina a ~orptive humus and alkalinP organic-
~ol~ oil amending mixture according to the second embod-
iment of the precent invention~
Fiqure 3, i~ 3 flow diagram showing the variou~ facetæ of the
proceæc for producinq a æorPtiVe humus and alkaline liquid-
organic-effluent ~oil amendinq mixture according to the third
embodiment of the pre~ent invention.
-- 11 --
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments
In ~racticinq the present invention and with reference to
Fiaure~ 1, 2 and 3, any type of low grade, low carbon cont~nt
coal material may be utilized. Such coal~ may have little or
no commercial value for their B.T.U. content~ but are espec-
ially useful to the pre~ent invention. Such coal materials
typically contain a~ much as 50X by weight of non combustible
material, in~ludinq moisture, dirt and aæh, a~ ~ell as a high
percentage of combu~tible ~a~e~ and extraneous matter. Coal
materials which have been found acceptable in practicing the
present invention include coal9 bone coal~ coal shale, clayey
coal, near coal, burned and unburned coal ~aste~, ~ly ash,
bituminous shale, bottom ash, lignite coal, bituminous c~al,
subbituminous coal, leonardite, oxidized coal, and brown coal.
The coal waste~ may re~ult from the mining and proce~ing of
any kind of coal material. The more valuable coal material~
(such a~ anthracite coal) are less desirable due to th~ir
hardn~ss and lower content of non-carbon materials. Th~ I
ancient carbon-rich material# of the original fully-compo~ted
20 humus are expo~ed by r~moving the non-combustible con~tit-
uent~ and the combustible gaæe~ and extraneous matter from -~
the densely-~tructured 1~ qrade coal-~olid materials.
The coal mat~rial i~ ~eparated into fir~ and second port-
ion~ whose internal and eacternal surface areas are to be
expand~d and leached. The coal material i~ crushed and sized
the ~i~ing resulting in a ~ir~t portion fine particulate coal
material having a m~xi~um particle diameter pa~sing through,
a 200 mesh s~r~en ~with no minimum diameter)g and a second
portion lar~er sized coal material havin~ a mini~um diameter
~ufficient to be retained upon a 200 me~h ~reen, and a ma~
imum diameter of approximately 3,~4 of an inc~h. The ~oal
-- 12 --
`'
materials ma~ be cru~3hed and gized F:rior to expanàing and
leac~hina, or ~3ubsequen~ to th~e proee~;se~. Due to the diff-
iculty in handlina the fin~ particulate coal material, it .
may be easier to produce the f irgt and second portions as
humus material~; prior to crushing and ~;iZing the coal mater-
ials. It will be under~tood that th~ first portion fine
particulate coal ma~erials after e~cpanding and leaching
are utilized as humus material~ in both the fir~t embodiment
and the third embodiments, and that the second portion laxger
10 ~ize coal material6 after expanding and leaching are utilized
a~ humus materialæ in the second ~mbodiment of the present
inven~ion~
In ~racticing the present lnvention and with reference to
Figure 2, any type of bio-degradable organic material may be
utilized. Such organic matter may have little or no commercial
value in their preæent raw material state for ~heir fertil~
~ r ~enerating potential, but are of partieular value to
the pre~ent invention~ Organic mat~er which has been found
acceptable in practicing the pre~ent invention includes all
form~ of green manure (a term well kno~n in the art meanin~;
crop~ ploug~ed under the ~oil to provide degradable raw humu~
materials thereto)g manure, vegetative matter, digested ~ew~ ;
age ~l~dge, and mo~t other forms of fibrou~ organic de~rad- '
able ma~rial~ occurring a~ a product or re6ulting from manuf- :
a~turin~ or proce~in~ in variou~ dome~tic, horticultualD
agriculturalg indu~trial and fiilverculture activitle~.
In pra~ticing the pre~ent in~ention and with referen~e
to Fi~ure 3~ any type of treated or untreated organlc ~iquid
effluent may be utilized that has been found ~;uitable~ for
application ~n designated areas. ~uch orga~i~ liquid ef~luent~
have little or no ~ommercial value in their pre~ent ~tate
for th~ir fertili~er and ~ater ~ontentJ but are of parti~-
13 _
ular value to the present invention. Organic liquid ef~luentwhich have been ~ound acceptable in practicing the present
invention includes most forms of animal and poultry manures,
liquid sewage ef~luentg and most okher forms of liquid org-
anic effluent regulting ~rom dome3~;~ic, agriculturall, manuf-
acturing, proces~;lng and silverc~lture ac~tivities-
Tbe followin~ examples are illustratlve of the inventionbut are not in'cended to be limiting in any manner.
Example 1
10 An inve~tigation wag carri~d out to a~;sess the effective-
nes~ of lo~r grade coal~ ~or water pollution abatement- During
this invegtigation, it wa~ learned tha'c low grade coal, ~oll-
owing an activation proces~ or partial pyrolysi~, showed
ad~orptivity to~ard~ methylene blue about on~-third of that
shown by activatecl char~oal Methylene blue i6 an organic
dye commonly u!3ed Sor s~reening te~3t6 of activat~d charcoal~-
A con~non high grade coking coal, on the other hand~ ~howed
es~entially zero ad~orptivity following the ~ame activation
proce~e~.
20 To e-valua~e ~oal material~3 suit~ble fc3r cQnv~rsion by an
activation proce~ into mature humus material a low grade Hat
Creek ~oal material and a high grade Vicary Creek coal mat~r~
ial vere u~ed~ In te~ts to determine the a~mount of non-comb-
uætible and combustible materials ~hich CC)Uld be removed by
an activatlon process from the diffe~nt ~oal-material types~
a pretreatme2lt involving aqueou~; Soxhlet extraction was
selec t~d9 ~in~e hot water wag expected to remove all mat~r-
ials that would be extracted during shaking at room t~mper-
ature~
- 14
The coal i~ample~: were f iri~ ground and ~i~ed by ~ieving
to produce fractions of the! followin~ particle 6iZe rangesO
Tyler 5cale Particle sizet mm
-42/60 30
-60~115 0. 20
-115 0~ 1 o
The coal material fraction~i were then subjected to Soxhlet
extraction and dried before weighing; the re~ults are shown
in the ~ollowing table.
10 Results of Soxhlet Extraction of Hat Cr~2ek and Vicary Creek Coal
Hat Cree}c Coal Vicary Creek Coal :.
Me~h Si:ze %w E~ctracted~ Extracted
-60/115 21.4 3.7
16 hours
-60/llS
24 hos~r~ 23.3 1.3
-42/60
4~ hour~ 15. 6 - .
21~ -115
48 hour~ 14. 5 -
The te~ts 6how that the ~ater e~tractible frac~ion for f~at
Creek low grade coal ranS~es from about 15% to ju~t QVer 23%~
while the water extrac'cible fraction of the high grade Vicary
Creek c!oat was considerably lower, about 1%,
Proximate Analy~is of Hat Creek Coal and Vicary Creek coals
Hat Cr ek Coal Vicary Cre~k Coal
Moi~ture Content %w 24. 0 3 . 9
A~h %w 28~0 13,1
Volatile Matte~ %w 27.1 20.1
30Fixed Carbon by Difference
%w ~2.7 62~,9 ,
-- 15 --
., . ~. .
It i~ evident from the fore~oing te~t~ that low grade coal
materials are more adaptable for conversion to humus material~
than high grade coal material~ by ~he me~hod of the present
inventlon, by reason of the qreater amou~t of extractible
materials therefrom.
To determine if a sufficient amount of extractible materials
could be remoYed from low grade coal material without fusing
the coal carbon ~urface areas therein~ ~o tha~ it could be
classed as a fully mature type o humus, an att~mpt was made
to discover whether thix goal could be achieved by reducing
the particle size of the coal material~. The following
Example 2, outlines the findin~s and con~lu6ions of the testsO
~xample 2
Low grade coal materials w~re crushed and the pulp~ screened
to produce ~raction~ of the following particle si~e range~.
-1/8" to ~20r -20 to 440, -40 to ~60, ~60 to ~80, -80 to ~100,
-100 to 4200~ -200 and und~r.
Effect of Particle Size on Sorptive Properties
An attempt wa8 made to discover if decrease in paxticle size
gave an increa~e in ~orptive activ~ty in exce~s of that expec-
ted from normal ~urface ar~a con~iderations.
Ea~h portion was te~ted ~eparately for its actiYity under
identical temperature condition~ and time periods. To e~tab~;
li~h the ultimate degree of sa uration for the carbon a ~uit-
able reference substance which was easi~y determinable in
concentration~ experienred in the tests,was choæen. An acid-
if ied OolM solution of Potassium P~rma~anate was chosen as
the adsorbent. Y~ro serieæ o~ test~3 were run in order to ascer~
tain i the sorptive ac~ ity of the carbon could be increaæed
by artificial me~n~ such aæ w~atherinq pro~e~se~. Th~ pxoced~re
~ 16 -
adopted for 7~weathering" the materia~ comprised a fi~e minute
pre-boiling step and gub~equent filtration. It i~ thou~ht
tha~ this process may ope~ and expo~e fresh surfaces upon
which the 60rption may take place.
The results are tabulated comparing the weathered to the
unweathered mat~rial as ~ollows-
WEATHERED MATERIAL
Pota~ium Permanganate 2ml = lOml of O.lN F.A.S.Particle size Back Titre O-lN Initial KMnO4 cc KMnO~ ml
_
l Q F . A S .
~0 10.0 10 8~00
~40 10.0 10 8.00
~60 64.0 25 12.20
~80 700 25 23~60
~100 107 50 28.60
4200 58 50 38.40
-200 2 900 900
UNWE~THERED MATE~IAL
Particle Slze Back Titre O-lN Initial KMnO4_~ KmnO4 ml
F.A.~.
.
~20 10.1 10 7.~98
~40 9.~ 10 8,04
~6~ 68 25 11.40
480 7.2 ~5 23.56
~100 115 50 27.00
4200 ~8 5~ 37~00
-200 245 100 51~00
- 17 -
Conclusions
The coal ~ample~ tested were found to have similar and in
certain cases, ~uperior adsorptive propertie~ to conventional
active carbon~ pr eviou~ly evaluated.
It has been ~ho~n by the tests outlined in Example 1~ that when
the densely stru~tured low grade coal-~olid samples of the
pre~nt invention a-re crushed and sieved to a -115 me~h size
and exposed to a hot water extraction proces~, that a~ much
as 23% per cent of the water soluble materials contained the
rein can be removed a~ compared with 1 per cen~ r~moved from
10 the high grade coal materials. Furth~rmor~, as outlined in
Example 2, when these sam~ low grade coal materials are
cru~hed and sieved to produce a smaller than -200 mesh si~e
a great~y increa~ed change in sorptive properties of the
fine coal particles takes place and the coal material~ after
a hot water treatment process will ab~orb more than 14 ~imes
their own weight~ It may be seen therefore> that the cru~hing,
.si.eY~n~Wetting~ dryinq and leaching method of the present
inv~ntion can produce a fully matur~ humu~ product wit~ many
desirable characteristc~ inher~nt in the original humu~ of
the coal mater lal-
It is known that about thres-quarter~ of British Columbia' fi
coastal fore~t land i~ deficient in nitrogen. IE fertiliza~ion
~ith an economical fertilizer proved vlable, wood yield could
be areatly increa~ed in these areas~ It haæ been reported~ that
if yields ca~ be increa~ed by a~ little as 10~, or about 7 ~uO
ft. per acr~ annually, allowable cut on the coast would incr~
e~e by more than 50,000,000 cu~ ft. per ye~r~ This would be
~uff~cient to supply a pulp mill with a capacity o~ 750 t.p.d,
- 1~
If an economi~al fertilizer material were available, and
viable for this appl;cation, a favourable an~wer may be worth
many millions of dollars to ~he economy of 8ritish Columbia
in terms of employment and revenue- It could for instance,
increa~e the annual tree crop per acre, and mo~t importantly~
reduce the crop-rotation period, which i8 now about 90 years
in the coastal areas of the province.
The following example shows, in a practical example, how
the carbon-rich exposures of the fully m~ture humu~ of the
presen~ invention can be utilized to reduce the a~ove mentioned
crop rotation period by a number of years-
Example 3
To determine the growth rate of Balsam trees which were
naturally bedded in a coal-fines waste pile~ out of direct ~.
contact with the 50il and without the aid of any ~ynthetic
fertilizer additive~, the following te~ts were made. ~:
Te~t Procedures
-Diameter tape and increment borer æize of 1/2 diameter of
-largest tree.
-Drill to just over 1/2 diameter ~traight to the core-
-Remove boring.
-Count r ing~ to core (dark).
-~dd ~our years to age to get to 4~ ft~ ~chest heiyht
-Measure tree diameter.
Two tree~ were tested and after ~xamination by the local
forester~wère graded #2 wood~
1 9 ~
The dramatic growth of treeE; which have been bedded natur-
ally in coal-f ines waste and ~ancien~ coal dirt iE~ ~:h~wn in
the following photographs and de~;criptive data~ The coal f ine
materials refiult from a coal wa~hery plant and are stockplled
to a depth o~ Qver 75 ~eet in a ravine, out of direct contact
with the soil. The material~ have been stockpil~d at this
location for over 75 year~ and the ~;ince the old mines cloed
down the coal wa~3te has been ~ubjected to a natural wetting,
dryin~ and leaching proce~9 by the elemen~s over ~hat period
10 of t ime .
Balsam Irees 13oring ~3ample~3 #1 & #2.
Test Resul t~ ~ ;
Tree #1 Diameter 26 inches age 36 yea~s
~ree #2 Diameter 34 inc~hes ag@ 52 year~
The growth had 610wed do~n in tree #2 for the last ~0 year~
or ~og according to ths forester.
~ he Balsam tree~ te~ted in the foregoing example are "living~
p~oo that trees can be grown by the sil~erculture indu~try
wi~hout the aid of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer~J and in
about half the normal crop-rotation p~riod~ by means of the
fully matured humus of the pre~ent invention.
- ~0
EXAMPLE 4
Three studie~; were made of the ~eaæibi~ity of using ~orp~ive
coal material~ for the removal of ~ulfu:rous 1?roduct~ from air,
water and 1 iquid~
1. A studY wa~ made o* the feasibility of using coal material
a6 an ad~orbent material ~or the removal of su~phur dioxide
from ~tack gases emmitted to the atmo~phere by different
indu~trie~O
The ~tudy show~ that the ad~orptive capacity of sulphur
dioxide on coal varie~ but ~lightly from one coal to another
and that when coal i9 u~ed and re-u~ed through numexou~ ~440)
~ycle~, its effectiveness a~ an adsorbent for sulphur dioxide
i~ not areatly reduced.
2- A study was made to determine the ability of low qrade
sorptive coal to remove ~ulphate from water solution~.
One of the unusual properties of the sorPtive coal is its
apparent ability to adsorb a variety of inorganic ions- The
procedure followed in te~ting the ad~orption properties of
the coal involve~ (1) preparation o~ s~andard ~olution; (2)
sievin~ of the carbon to a 1/4'~ to 1/16~ par~icle siZe; ~3)
three different wa~hing pro~edure~ involvin~ (a) di~tilled
water wa~h, (~) a ~aOH ~a~e wash, (c) a HCl acid wa~h, (d)
a ba~e th~n acid wash; (4~ ~oal dried at 160C; ~5) treat 200
aram~ of coal with 100 ~rams of solutions (6) mea~ure chan~es
in concentration of ion u~ing colourimetric method6. The
result~ are a~ fol~ow~.
- 21 -
~5~
Inorgani~ Ion Adsorption
Final Concentration (PPM)
(PPM) Neutral ~cid Base Base then Contact
Initial Con- wa~h Wa~h Wash Acid Times (hrs.)
centration
Sulf~ate 200 250~00 12Q-0 150.0 1~0
Pho~phate 50 3~.50 33.8 13.~ 1.0
Phosphate 50 6.0 llrl 3~0
Nitrate 200250.00120.0 ~5000 1.0
Th~ a~ove resul~, clearly show a strong adsQrption tendency
. .
toward~ mo8t cation~ and the anionæ, CN-, CrO~ and to some
extent P04. Both nitrate and phosphate have been reported to
be significantly removed by the coal when a biological com-
munity i~ developed. The acid and ba~e treated coals appear
to have ~nhan~ed ability to ad~orb nitrat~sJ pho~phate~, and
8ul fateæ-
3. The followina ~tudy to determine change~ in the chemicalcompo~ition o~ mine waste leachate after sewaqe efflu~nt and
~ludge irriqation.was done.
rhe mine waste was extremely toxic, having a pH in the
range of 2 ~ O to 3 . 0, and wag largely COmpQSed of coal mine
shale- The wa~te stockpile had supported no vegetation at all
for 23 years.
The treated ~ewage effluent and liquid digested sludge ~;
were anali~ed to determine their chemical composition~ On~ of ;~
the most noticeable propertieæ of the effluent i~3 it~: ~;lightly
alkaline pH. The irrigation of the acid mine waste wi~h two
inche~ of alkaline effluent per w~e~ has a considerable
flushinq effect on a~id waste leachate in the upper rootin~
~one of the w~te pile.
This flushinq of acid leachate wi~h alkaline effluent should
improve the chance~ fox survival of qra~ and lequm~ æpecies
susceptible to the acid condition~ found in many mine waæte
pile~. Effluent total nitroqen a~erages 20.1 mq/l; very low
compared to that of the ~ludqe, but each two inch application
supplied about 10 pounds of nitro~en per acre. Concentration~
of manganese, iron, boron and aluminum wexe very low, all less
than 1 mq/l and weil below levels toxic to mo~t plants.
~ he sludge was ~lightly more alkaline than the effluent, and
would have a similar neutralizing effect on acid ~onditions
in the mine wa~te. In addition, mean values for total nitrogen
reach nearly 500 m~/l with a considerable amount in the organic
form, valuable in ~oil building proces~es. The greate~t amount
of sludqe nitroaen waæ ammoniacal.
9ince the ~ludge waæ anaerobically di~eæted, one ~ould not
expect to find much ni~rate nitroqen present. The small amount
found was p~b~bly formed after delivery to the ~torage pond.
Hbwever, the reduced acidity in the ~urface mine waste layers
re~ultinq from the alkaline efEluent and æludge would create
a mo~e fa~ourable environment for such autotrophs as Nitro-
somonas and Nitrobacter, Under these condltions, the proces~
of nitrific~tion may take place re~ulting in the pxoduction
of nitrates.
nne inch effluent applicationæ æupp~ied the fertilizer equiv-
alent of 750 pounds of a 10-5-14 fertilizer while the one inch
~ludne applications æupplied the equivalent of 39 955 pound~
of a 20~ 7 fertilizer. The ælud~e had roughly 25 tlmes
thP fertilizer value of the ef~luent in nitrogen and P205,
on an equal volume application basis~
23 -
s~
Improved Soil Amending ~orptive Humu6
When the oriainal low qrade coal material is proce~sed to
thi~ condition, with the first portion having ~ine particulate
sorptive humus material and the second portion having larger
sized ~orptive humus material, the humus materialg ~ay be
utilized in either one or all of three different methods. In : ::
the first embodiment of the present invention~ only the fine
parti~ulate ~orptive humus material~ are used, being stored
prior to u~e in low flat-topped piles e~po~ed to the elements
and æolar light and heat forces, for a period of time suffic~
ient to effect the inoculation of the ~orptive humus by intr-
usive ~oil, air and water micro-organisms (such as decay, nit-
rogen-fixing and soil ammonifieræ) ~eeking available bacterial
food and energy values inherent in the carbon-xich exposures
of the expanded ~urface areaæ and porous ætNct~re of the fully
matured sorptive humus material- The stcred sorptive humus
material i8 ~prinkle-irrigated with water to provide a moist
warm environment for the bacterial population therein. The
humus materials are turned over periodically to ensure that
even the lowermoRt humus materials receive a requi~ite amount
o~ moiæture, bacterial inoculation and potential benafit from
expo~ure to the elemental, and golar light and heat for~es~ ~he
bacterial ino~ulation of the sorptive humus material, its exp-
anded ~urface areas~ and the availability of bacterial food
and energy ~ubstances in the carbon-rich expo~ures therewithin,
provide the means by which plant ~ertilizer products and by-
productæ are produced9 absorbed and 6tored, and releas~d there~
from in a controlled manner by the slow oxidation of the sorp-
tive humus material .
-- 24 --
The inoculated f ine particulated F~orptive humus materials
are best added to the soil surfa~e, in ~i~her du~t or a~ a
humu~-in-wa~er ~lurried mixture, immediately after seeding or
planting of the crop- ~he hlamus material~;- are applied such that
a solar-actuated 80rptive humu~ cover i~ formed covering the ~:
entire area bein~ re-habilitated. In for~ing a solar-ac~uated
sorptive humuæ covering for the soil utilizing fine partic-
ulate sorptive humus in dust form, the humus dust i~3 applied
by mean~ of a conventional type blower or dis~ributor device,
10 ~uch that a 90rptive humu~ layer of not les~ than 1 millim-
eter i~ formed covering the entire area being treated~ If the
fin~ particulate ~orptive humu~ material is to b~ added to
the ~3oil as a humug-in water slurried mixture, it should first
be pre-wetted 80 that on addition to the water it will immed-
iately go into,and stay in su8pengion therein. The ~lurried
humu6-in-water mixture ig applied to the soil ~uch that a
solar-actuated sorptive humus covering is formed over the
entire area being re-habilitated by conventionaldistribution
mean~s to a depth of not le~!3 than one inch. The slurried hwnu~;
7 mixture is best ponded to retain the liquid mixture and is acc
omplished by formin~ a raised berm around the ponding area~ of
a ~ufflcient hei~ht to retain one or more inches of the ~lur~
ried fine particulate sorptive hu~ux mixture~
In naturally or artif ic~ially acidif ied soil~, it has b~en
found over a period of ~ome year~, that the addition of fine
particulat~ sorptive humu~ materlal~ to the soil tends to
sweet~n th~ soil~ this is due in part to the adsorptive prop-
erties of the ~orptive humu~ and also to the normal oalciurn
~ontent of the original low grade ~oal material.
3~ ~t has been foundgthat acidified 90il~ retain their acldity
by reason of the 108S therefrom of their natural alkaline
constituent~ by leaching- This t~nd~ to lndica~-e ~hat the 80il
- 25 -
- struc~ure is deficient in water holding constituent parts, thu~
allowinq the ~oil modi~ying constituent parts to be leached
there~rom~ down to a point below that of the root zone, thus
making unavailable such soil nutrients to ~rowing plants.
It will be evident that the fine particulate sorptive humu~
materialg of the pre~ent invention9 becau~e of theix low
~pe~ific ~eight, high surface area, and 60rptive propexties
will have a profound effect upon the phy~ical properties of
mineral soil~ with re~ard to improved soil structure~ water
intake and re~ervoir capacity, ability to resist eroæion9 and
the ability to hold hold chemical elements in a form readily
acce~sible to plants. Treating con~aminated, and humuOE and
nitrogen-depl~ted disturbed or devasted soil~ with fine part-
iculate sorptive humus materials provides the water holdinq
con~tituent parts lacking in naturally acid ~oils ~o aid in
their re-habilitation, while at the same time helping replen-
i~h such ~oils with badly needed re~idual humu~ and fertilizer
values. In artificially acidified goil~;, the fine particulate
~orptive humu~ material~ when added thereto serve to aid
20 in neutralizing the acidified ~oil by mean~ of the adsorptiYe
properties of the h~nus and it~3 inherent ca~ci-wn content~
while a~ the same time helping repleni~h such soils with badly
needed reæidual humus and fertili:~er ~alue~;.
Be~ause the carbon~rich sorptive humus ha~ a considerably
~reater mature humus content -than ~onventional raw humus-
making grePn manur~3, much le~;OE i8 needed over a ~iven area
to produce the æame or better rasults withou~ the aid of exp-
en~ive and energy wasteful, ~ynthetic nitrogen fertilizerx~
It ha~ been estimated, that the use of the fine particulate
sorptive humus of ~he present invention w~uld reduca the cost
per acre of soil amending by approximately 90 per cent as
compared to conventional ~oil amending and building methods.
- 26 -
~5~i~3~
Improved Fertilizer ~tora~e And controlled Slow Release
.. . . ..
The second embodiment oE the ~re~ent invention embodies a
novel method for the removal, stora~e and slow relea~e of
fertilizer value~ from organic pollutant~ whether they be
~olidæ, ~uspended solid~ or di~olved substances therefxom.
After the coal materials of the fir~t and second portions
have been expand~d and leached, and crushed to fine particul-
ate æorptive-humus materials, and larger sized sorptive humu~
material (with a maximum diameter of 3/4 of an inch~ the lar-
ger ~zed 90r~tiVe humus ma~erials of the second portion areutilized a~ filter medium to extract orqanic pollutants from
an organic liquid-effluent stream~ The larger sized ~orptive
humus material~ from the second portion are arranged su~h that
a liquid organi~ effluent stream may be dir~cted therethrough.
While it is recognized that the primary absorption of organic
pollutants occurs in the larger ~ized sorptive humus material
of the second portion, the filter medium may also contain the
fine particulant ~orptive humu~ materials of the fir~t portion
and ~ome orqanic pollution absorption will undoubtedly occur
thereon. It ha~ been experimentally determined that, in an
operatin~ ~orptive humus filter bed treating the liquid or~-
anic effluent from an abattoir, that 99.50% NH3-N~ 86.17%
orqanic N, 92.76 ~ P04 P, and 93.02% X may be removed by a
filter medium of the pre~ent inv~ntion. It was found that the
liquid oraanic e~fluent was alkaline havina a p~ of 7.6.
It may be preferable to effect the entrappment and ab~orption
o~ organic ~olid~ pollutants and fertilizer value0 therefrom~
within the sorptive humus filter medium at ~he source o~ the
organic pollution, 80 that after comminutin~ the sorptive humus
and alkaline humus-or~anic-matter pollutant mixture recovered
from the fi~terinq area, and subje~in~ the mixture to a mixing,
then drying pa~teurizin~ procedure (to remove pathogenic bact-
-- 27 --
5~
eria ~here~rom), they may be transported in a 6afe, dry and~olid condition as oppo~ed to a liquid state~ Alternatively,
the entire proce~s of the ~e~ond embodiment may occur at the
alkaline organic-po~lutant source, since comminuting,screening
and mixer-aaitator equipment form an essential part of most
or~anic waste effluen~ treatment-pxoce~inq operations.
When the 60rptive humus filter medium has entrapped the al~-
aline organic pollutant effluent (~uch a~ liquid di~ested sew-
age sludge~ to a predetermined requisite amount9 the combined
sorptive humus and entrapped alkaline organic-po~lutant-solidg
materials are comminuted in their wet state, to produ~a there-
from a fine particulate ~orptive-humuæ and alkaline or~anic- ~`
pollutant-solids mixture havin~ a maximum parti~le diameter
passing throu~h a ~00 mesh screen. The comminuted mixture is
then added to a conventional type mixer-a~itator,and intermixed ;
therein, at a te~perature o~ no~ les~ than 45F. and not more
than 120~. for at least 3 minutes, with extended s~orage at
this temperature increasing the rate and degree of ~ertilizer
p~oduction and absorption upon and within the sorptive humus
materials therein, brou~ht about by the bacterial degradation
of the organic-pollutant solids portion of the comminuted
mixture. After the mixture i8 removed from the ~torage area,
it may be subjected to a drying-pa~teurizing procesæ (a procès~
which enables the bacterial population to be removed without
altering its chemical nature, and without the fu~ion of t~e
humus material therein), and then formed into a ~oil amending9 ~ ;
and ~oil neutralizing du~ 9 granular ox pelle~îzed produ~t~
According to the condition of the soil being re-habilitated
the method and produ~ts!of the present invention may be util--
izèd to remove toxi~ pollutants from contaminated ~oils bysorptive proces6es, neutralize natuLally acid or artificially
acidified soil~ by the addition thereto of sorPtive and alk-
- 28 -
aline mixture~; thereto, and repleni~;h humu~ and nitrogen
depleted, disturbed or devasted ~oils with both immediate
and residual fertilizer values needed the~ein for increa~ed
natural crop production.
Improved Resource con~ervation and re-Utilization
_
The third embodiment of the pre~ent invention embodies a
novel method for the control, conservation and re-utilization
of polluted or~anic liquid effluent resultin~ from the treat-
ment of or~anic matter (such a~ liquid digested s~wage ~ludge,
vegetable processing or the like), minimizing the potential
hea~th hazards therefrom, and con~erving the valuable water and
fertili~er re~ourcefi therefrom. After the coal materials of the
fir~t portion have been expanded and leached, and crushed to
fine particulate sorptive-humus material~, they may be inter-
mixed wi~h alkaline liquid organic effluent and utili~ed in
the re-habilitation of soils contaminated with toxic pollutants,
the neutralization of naturally acid or artificially acidified
soils, or aæ a water and fertilizer ~ource for the ~urface
irrigation of humus and fertiliæer depleted~ disturbed or
devastated agricultural or fore~ted land.s. Most available~
alkaline liquid or~anic effluents which i~ found to he econ-
omically suitable and viable, indigenous to the area to be
re-habilitated may be u~ed. The fine particulate sorptive
humus material has a fineness enabling it to stay in ~u pen-
sion in the alkaline liquid organlc effluen~ when added thereto,
but must first be pre-wetted prior to ~uch addition. The fine
particulate sorptive humus material i~ admixed with the alkr
aline liquid organic ef~luent a~ter pre-wetting in a convent-
ional type mixer-agitator,the addition i~ made in a proportion
of approximately 5% first portion ~ine particula~e ~orptive
humus material to 95~ alkaline liquid organic effluentg and
- 29 -
33
is optimal for ease of txan~portation and application, with
the fine particulate sorptive humus material bein~ equal to
between 3 to 6% of the total weight o~ the sorptive humus and
alkaline liquid or~anic-effluent mixture. ~he fine particulate
humus is best added to the alkaline organic-liquid-effluent
at it~ point of origin, or to the 0ffluent discharge pipe
leading to the laqooninq or storage area. Advantage is taken
of the tendency of bacterial and pathogenic populations to
be decimated over a holding period in the lagooning proces~-
When the la~oon~d effluent is intermixed with the fine part-
iculate ~orptive humus of the present invention an environment
unfavourable to the continued welfare of ~uch bacterial and
pathogenic organism~ a~ is evidenced by the non-septic cond-
ition prevailing in the la~oon, is created ~hereby increa~ing
the demi~e of such population~. The re~ult i8 an odour-free
agooning operation.
The present invention, has not as yet,been applied for in
any other country
- 30 -
,
