Conversion of CCA-treated wood to ethanol: a method to reduce leaching of metals from disposed treated wood prior to disposal

The objective of this paper is to evaluate the feasibility of producing ethanol from CCA-treated wood that is highly leachable. Following the initial tests, CCA-treated wood was hydrolysed and fermented and the results showed not only that ethanol was produced during the fermentation process but that metals were taken up by the yeast. Toxicity characteristic leaching procedure tests of the hydrolysed wood leached less than 4 mg/L of As while minimal amounts of Cr and Cu remained in the hydrolysed wood which makes landfilling of hydrolysed wood acceptable and less hazardous. A slightly lower amount of ethanol from CCA-treated than untreated wood was produced (6 and 7 g/L, respectively). In general, it suggests that production of ethanol as a source of energy from a hazardous waste (CCA-treated wood) is feasible.