Preparation of Coal Gangue-Based Artificial Soil and Investigation of the Mechanism of Aggregate Structure Formation

Weinan Gong, Helong Hui, Shuhua Ma (), Jianbing Ji and Hongtao Jiang ()
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Weinan Gong: College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
Helong Hui: CAS Key Laboratory of Green Process and Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
Shuhua Ma: CAS Key Laboratory of Green Process and Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
Jianbing Ji: College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China
Hongtao Jiang: College of Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 8, 1-17

Abstract: Coal gangue (CG) has become a critical environmental challenge in China, with nearly one billion tons produced annually. To address this challenge while simultaneously supplementing soil resources during mine ecological restoration, a novel process is proposed to convert CG into CG-based artificial soil (CGAS) using a microbial treatment method. This study examined the effects of local microbial agents (LMAs), commercial microbial agents (CMAs), and fly ash (FA) on key soil properties of CGAS, such as organic matter (OM) content, humic acid (HA) content, and water-holding capacity. Additionally, the mechanisms underlying aggregate formation in CGAS were investigated. The results showed that the synergistic effect of LMAs and FA significantly enhanced the essential quality properties of CGAS. In particular, the HA content increased by 2.06 times compared with untreated CG, the proportion of water-stable macroaggregates increased to 11.46%, and the bulk density decreased by 39.71%, achieving an optimal level of 1.30 g/cm 3 . Analysis of phase compositions, surface functional group characterization, and microstructural examination indicated that organic binders such as HA, inorganic binders such as calcium carbonate and gypsum, and the bonding effect of spherical particles of FA played significant roles in forming a stable and healthy soil structure in CGAS.

Keywords: coal gangue; artificial soil; microbial method; soil aggregate (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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