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Abstract
Two fly ashes from biomass combustion have been analysed regarding cadmium speciation
and mobility. A fly ash from straw combustion contained 10 mg Cd/kg dry matter, and
around 50% of the cadmium was leachable in water. The possible main speciation of
cadmium in this fly ash was CdCl2. When adding this fly ash to agricultural soil a
threat for groundwater contamination and plant uptake is existing. A fly ash from
wood chip combustion had 28.6 mg Cd/kg dry matter. In this fly ash, the cadmium was
bound more heavily, with only small amounts of cadmium leached in mild extractants.
A possible speciation of cadmium in this fly ash was as oxide or as CdSiO3. Long-term
effects and accumulation of cadmium could be a problem when adding this fly ash to
agricultural or forest soils.