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Hulshof, A. H. M., Blowes, D. W., & Douglas Gould, W. (2006). Evaluation of in situ layers for treatment of acid mine drainage: A field comparison. Water Res, 40(9), 1816–1826.
Abstract: Reactive treatment layers, containing labile organic carbon, were evaluated to determine their ability to promote sulfate reduction and metal sulfide precipitation within a tailings impoundment, thereby treating tailings effluent prior to discharge. Organic carbon materials, including woodchips and pulp waste, were mixed with the upper meter of tailings in two separate test cells, a third control cell contained only tailings. In the woodchip cell sulfate reduction rates were 500 mg L-1 a-1, (5.2 mmol L-1 a-1) this was coupled with the gradual removal of 350 mg L-1 Zn (5.4 mmol L-1). Decreased δ13CDIC values from -3‰ to as low as -12‰ indicated that sulfate reduction was coupled with organic carbon oxidation. In the pulp waste cell the most dramatic change was observed near the interface between the pulp waste amended tailings and the underlying undisturbed tailings. Sulfate reduction rates were 5000 mg L-1 a-1 (52 mmol L-1 a-1), Fe concentrations decreased by 80–99.5% (148 mmol L-1) and Zn was consistently <5 mg L-1. Rates of sulfate reduction and metal removal decreased as the pore water migrated upward into the shallower tailings. Increased rates of sulfate reduction in the pulp waste cell were consistent with decreased δ13CDIC values, to as low as -22‰, and increased populations of sulfate reducing bacteria. Lower concentrations of the nutrients, phosphorus, organic carbon and nitrogen in the woodchip material contribute to the lower sulfate reduction rates observed in the woodchip cell.
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Evangelou, V. P. (2001). Pyrite microencapsulation technologies: Principles and potential field application. Ecological Engineering, 17(2-3), 165–178.
Abstract: In nature, pyrite is initially oxidized by atmospheric O2, releasing acidity and Fe2+. At pH below 3.5, Fe2+ is rapidly oxidized by T. ferrooxidans to Fe3+, which oxidizes pyrite at a much faster rate than O2. Commonly, limestone is used to prevent pyrite oxidation. This approach, however, has a short span of effectiveness because after treatment the surfaces of pyrite particles remain exposed to atmospheric O2 and oxidation continuous abiotically. Currently, a proposed mechanism for explaining non-microbial pyrite oxidation in high pH environments is the involvement of OH- in an inner-sphere electron-OH exchange between pyrite/surface-exposed disulfide and pyrite/surface-Fe(III)(OH)n3-n complex and/or formation of a weak electrostatic pyrite/surface-CO3 complex which enhances the chemical oxidation of Fe2+. The above infer that limestone application to pyritic geologic material treats only the symptoms of pyrite oxidation through acid mine drainage neutralization but accelerates non-microbial pyrite oxidation. Therefore, only a pyrite/surface coating capable of inhibiting O2 diffusion is expected to control long-term oxidation and acid drainage production. The objective of this study was to examine the feasibility in controlling pyrite oxidation by creating, on pyrite surfaces, an impermeable phosphate or silica coating that would prevent either O2 or Fe3+ from further oxidizing pyrite. The mechanism underlying this coating approach involves leaching mine waste with a coating solution composed of H2O2 or hypochlorite, KH2PO4 or H4SiO4, and sodium acetate (NaAC) or limestone. During the leaching process, H2O2 or hypochlorite oxidizes pyrite and produces Fe3+ so that iron phosphate or iron silicate precipitates as a coating on pyrite surfaces. The purpose of NaAC or limestone is to eliminate the inhibitory effect of the protons (produced during pyrite oxidation) on the precipitation of iron phosphate or silicate and to generate iron-oxide pyrite coating, which is also expected to inhibit pyrite oxidation. The results showed that iron phosphate or silicate coating could be established on pyrite by leaching it with a solution composed of: (1) H2O2 0.018-0.16 M; (2) phosphate or silicate 10-3 to 10-2 M; (3) coating-solution pH [approximate]5-6; and (4) NaAC as low as 0.01 M. Leachates from column experiments also showed that silicate coatings produced the least amount of sulfate relative to the control, limestone and phosphate treatments. On the other hand, limestone maintained the leachate near neutral pH but produced more sulfate than the control.
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Foucher, S., Battaglia-Brunet, F., Ignatiadis, I., & Morin, D. (2001). Treatment by sulfate-reducing bacteria of Chessy acid-mine drainage and metals recovery. Chemical Engineering Science, 56(4), 1639–1645.
Abstract: Acid-mine drainage can contain high concentrations of heavy metals and release of these contaminants into the environment is generally avoided by lime neutralization. However, this classical treatment is expensive and generates large amounts of residual sludge. The selective precipitation of metals using H2S produced biologically by sulfate-reducing bacteria has been proposed as an alternative process. Here, we report on experiments using real effluent from the disused Chessy-les-Mines mine-site at the laboratory pilot scale. A fixed-bed bioreactor, fed with an H2/CO2 mixture, was used in conjunction with a gas stripping column. The maximum rate of hydrogen transfer in the bioreactor was determined before inoculation. kLa was deduced from measurements of O2 using Higbie and Danckwert's models which predict a dependence on diffusivity. The dynamic method of physical absorption and desorption was used. The maximum rate of H2 transfer suggests that this step should not be a limiting factor. However, an increase in H2 flow rate was observed to induce an increase in sulfate reduction rate. For the precipitation step, the gas mixture from the bioreactor was bubbled into a stirred reactor fed with the real effluent. Cu and Zn could be selectively recovered at pH=2.8 and pH=3.5, respectively. Other impurities such as Ni and Fe could also be removed at pH=6 by sulfide precipitation. Part of the outlet stream from the bioreactor was used to regulate and maintain the pH during sulfide precipitation by feeding the outlet stream back into the bioreactor. The replacement of synthetic medium with real effluent had a positive effect on sulfate reduction rate which increased by 30-40%. This improvement in bacterial efficiency may be related to the large range of oligo-elements provided by the mine-water. The maximum sulfate reduction rate observed with the real effluent was 200 mgl-1 h-1, corresponding to a residence time of 0.9 day. A preliminary cost estimation based on a treatment rate of 5 m3 h-1 of a mine effluent containing 5 gl-1 SO42- is presented.
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Burgess, J. E., & Stuetz, R. M. (2002). Activated Sludge for the Treatment of Sulphur-rich Wastewaters. Miner. Eng., 15(11), 839–846.
Abstract: The aim of this investigation was to assess the potential of activated sludge for the remediation of sulphur-rich wastewaters. A pilot-scale activated sludge plant was acclimatised to a low load of sulphide and operated as a flow-through unit. Additional sludge samples from different full-scale plants were compared with the acclimatised and unacclimatised sludges using batch absorption tests. The effects of sludge source and acclimatisation on the ability of the sludge to biodegrade high loads of sulphide were evaluated. Acclimatisation to low-sulphide concentrations enabled the sludge to degrade subsequent high loads which were toxic to unacclimatised sludge. Acclimatisation was seen to be an effect of selection pressure on the biomass, suggesting that the treatment capability of activated sludge will develop after acclimation, indicating potential for treatment of acid mine drainage (AMD) by a standard wastewater treatment process. Existing options for biological treatment of AMD are described and the potential of activated sludge treatment for AMD discussed in comparison with existing technologies. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd.
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Godard, R. R. (1970). Mine Water Treatment – Frick-district. Min. Congr. J., 56(3), 36–&.
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