Section 11.  COMMERCIAL WASTE TREATMENT
OPERATIONAL EXPERIENCE OF A REGIONAL WASTE MANAGEMENT
AND LAND RECLAMATION CENTER.   A CASE HISTORY
Steven I. Taub, Vice President
Process and Development Engineering
Stablex Corporation
Radnor, Pennsylvania 19087
BACKGROUND
Stablex Corporation has, since 1974, operated land reclamation centers in the United
Kingdom and Japan. Raw materials necessary to produce Stablex, an inert rocklike land
reclamation material, can be found in several areas as a result of industrial activity. These
raw materials are produced by various industries as waste by-products of their operations.
Most of these, some of which are potentially toxic or hazardous, are often disposed of
indiscriminately in an environmentally unacceptable manner.
In the early 1970s, Stablex group researchers and engineers discovered and developed
what is now a patented process that converts many of these by-product wastes to valuable
land reclamation material that exhibits exceptionally good environmental compatibility
and structural integrity.
The process through which Stablex material is manufactured relies on a crystal capture
mechanism wherein waste by-product raw materials form chemical bonds with additives
creating a polymerlike matrix of a rocklike substance.
Through its Sealosafe Service, Stablex Corporation offers both industry and surrounding communities an unusual opportunity. For the former, a method to eliminate a problem in an effective manner with utmost safety, and for the latter, a way to reclaim and
return to productive use otherwise derelict land.
REGIONAL PLANT DEVELOPMENT
Stablex Corporation proposes to establish its Sealosafe Service throughout various parts
of the United States. Facilities will be erected to manufacture Stablex material from process additives and compatible pretested raw materials, including those considered to be
potentially toxic and hazardous waste. The Stablex material will be used to reclaim
derelict land in areas contiguous to the conversion facility. Of major importance in the
successful conversion of potentially toxic and hazardous waste materials to inert product
is the screening and determination of the materials' compatibility with the process. As
with all processes, it is of crucial importance to make certain that only materials of
suitable quality are received so that the end product produced meets all desired specifications. As is normal with production processes, raw material quality control must be
maintained. Therefore, prior to agreeing to accept a particular material for conversion
to the Stablex land reclamation product, a series of preprocess tests are performed to
ensure the materials compatibility with the process and to ensure that it can be successfully converted to high-quality land reclamation material.
When materials are received at the facility, checks are made to determine that the
materials received are similar to those already contracted for. This aids in the quality
control of the final product and aUows personnel at the plant to direct the material to
the proper storage facilities. From temporary storage, various materials are brought together in a stock preparation area in which pretreatment additives are added to ensure
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