Cost-competitive, Environmentally-friendly Fixatives with Embedded Intelligence for Dust Management at Contaminated Sites

The Department of Energy is seeking the development of a cost-effective, versatile alternative to water for dust suppression at hazardous sites during remediation activities such as demolition, construction, soil/sediment excavation and trucking. While water is abundant and cheap, frequent applications are required. Water is also ineffective to lock-down the loose surface contamination in place. Consequently, wind and rain transport hazardous contaminants into the air or groundwater, far from the source. These pose regulatory and health concerns to site personnel and the general public, as well as the cost burden of cleanup to the tax payer. During the proposed project, the company will develop DustSafe as a very effective fixative for airborne and loosely held contaminants on any surface. The embedded additives would increase the efficiency of trapping the contaminant into the coating and help visualizing their presence through distinct color formation. DustSafe can be customized for specific hazards, targeting use in other nuclear or hazardous remediation sites by simple modifications to the additives. The coated surface will be durable to wind and rain erosion, and mechanical fracture, to ensure dust or contaminants fixed to the surface are not released or airborne. In Phase I, the company will screen DustSafe formulations with additives targeted to improve capture and visual indication of toxic contaminants like chromium and uranium. Benchmarking will be done with water and one commercial dust suppressing fixative. Tests will be designed to evaluate the spray/mist characteristics, wetting, cure time and adhesion. Dust suppression efficacy will be evaluated by generating aerosols with simulated dust followed by spray application of the suppressants. Color formation will be tested using soil contaminated with soluble salts of chromium or uranium and analyzed for binding efficiency. Coated powder samples will be tested for durability against wind, rain and mechanical impact to demonstrate DustSafe feasibility for further development and rigorous field testing in Phase II.