Science in Practice Portal

The Bureau of Land Management - Helium Operations has developed a cost-effective procedure to convert a water-soluble industrial waste bearing significant concentrations of toxic metals into a material that is environmentally compliant with the Resources Conservation and Recovery Act. A mixture of fly ash and Thio-Red was used to mitigate a chromium-bearing amine/glycol solution, a waste by-product of the gas treatment system at the Exell Helium Plant. The procedure was tested and proven to render the metals non-toxic according to performance-based treatment standards in 40 CFR 270.1(2)(vii) and 30 TAC 335.41(d)(3). Toxic Characteristic Leaching Procedure tests on composite samples were used to verify the environmental compliance.