Analysis of mine waste by geocheimical and geophysical methods (a case study of the mine tailing dump of the Salair ore-processing plant)

Demand growth for metallic minerals has been faced with the need for new techniques and improving technologies for all mining life-cycle operations. Nowadays, the exploitation of old tailings and mine-waste facilities could be a solution to this demand, with economic and environmental advantages. The Panasqueira Mine has been operating for more than a century, extracting tungsten and tin ore. Its first processing plant, “Rio”, was located near the Zêrere river, where mineral-processing residues were deposited on the top hillside on the margin of this river in the Cabeço do Pião tailings dam. The lack of maintenance and monitoring of this enormous structure in the last twenty years represents a high risk to the environment and the population of the surrounding region. A field-sample campaign allowed the collection of data, and resulted from laboratory tests to use regression optimization. Re-mining the tailings by hydrometallurgical methods was considered to satisfy the two conditions of metal demand and environmental risk. The metal content in Cabeço do Pião was shown be enough for environmental restoration. The re-mining solution was studied, taking into account the technical, economic, social, and environmental aspects.

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Assessment of Metal Pollution Sources by SEM/EDS Analysis of Solid Particles in Snow: A Case Study of Žerjav, Slovenia

Microscopy and Microanalysis ◽

10.1017/s1431927613013202 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 19 (6) ◽

pp. 1606-1619 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Miloš Miler ◽

Mateja Gosar

Keyword(s):

Mine Waste ◽

Solid Particles ◽

Particle Analysis ◽

Processing Plant ◽

Melting Points ◽

X Ray ◽

Eds Analysis ◽

Ore Minerals ◽

Waste Deposit

AbstractSolid particles in snow deposits, sampled in mining and Pb-processing area of Žerjav, Slovenia, have been investigated using scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDS). Identified particles were classified as geogenic–anthropogenic, anthropogenic, and secondary weathering products. Geogenic–anthropogenic particles were represented by scarce Zn- and Pb-bearing ore minerals, originating from mine waste deposit. The most important anthropogenic metal-bearing particles in snow were Pb-, Sb- and Sn-bearing oxides and sulphides. The morphology of these particles showed that they formed at temperatures above their melting points. They were most abundant in snow sampled closest to the Pb-processing plant and least abundant in snow taken farthest from the plant, thus indicating that Pb processing was their predominant source between the last snowfall and the time of sampling. SEM/EDS analysis showed that Sb and Sn contents in these anthropogenic phases were higher and more variable than in natural Pb-bearing ore minerals. The most important secondary weathering products were Pb- and Zn-containing Fe-oxy-hydroxides whose elemental composition and morphology indicated that they mostly resulted from oxidation of metal-bearing sulphides emitted from the Pb-processing plant. This study demonstrated the importance of single particle analysis using SEM/EDS for differentiation between various sources of metals in the environment.

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Geophysical Exploration of a Historical Stamp Mill Dump for the Volume Estimation of Valuable Residues

Journal of Environmental and Engineering Geophysics ◽

10.2113/jeeg19-080 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 275-286

Author(s):

Tina Martin ◽

Kerstin Kuhn ◽

Thomas Günther ◽

Rudolf Kniess

Keyword(s):

Mine Waste ◽

Geophysical Methods ◽

Field Measurements ◽

Volume Estimation ◽

Silty Sand ◽

Small Scale ◽

Residual Body ◽

Waste Dumps ◽

Ore Processing ◽

Clayey Silt

We present an approach for the estimation of ore processing residue volumes in historical mine waste dumps by the use of different geophysical methods in combination with mineralogical investigations. The stamp mill dump in the Harz mountains, Germany was examined with the methods electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), ground penetrating radar (GPR) and spectral induced polarization (SIP) flanked by mineralogical studies at many drilling points. The mineralogical results were used to calibrate the geophysical results and to distinguish between valuable and non-valuable waste material. With SIP we investigated individual profiles and took lab samples. These lab results emphasize the differences between the fine-grained tailings of clayey silt to silty sand in the top layer and the sandy tailings underneath in both resistivity and phase. From the GPR results we can distinguish between different layers and various backfillings in the first two meters due to the much higher resolution than the other methods. From ERT we achieved an overview about the dimension and inner structure of the dump and the boundary between the sandy residual material and the host rock. To estimate the volume of the residual body we carried out 2D inversion of all ERT profiles followed interpolation between the inverted profiles. From the drilling interpretation, the SIP lab results and the ERT field measurements we defined a resistivity threshold of 350 ohm-m for the ore processing residues to achieve a 3-dimensional body of the dump. The volume of this body was then corrected by a factor due to consideration of uncertainties, e.g., forest areas, inaccessible dump sections, small-scale anomalies (geological or different anthropogenic nature) and inversion coverage. As a result, we were able to calculate the volume of the ore processing residues which can be used further for the determination of the economic potential (remaining metal content).

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363. Manganese Dioxide Exposures and Neurological Screening of Workers at a Pyrolusite Ore Processing Plant

10.3320/1.2763219 ◽

1999 ◽

Author(s):

K. Hanley ◽

M. Kawamoto

Keyword(s):

Manganese Dioxide ◽

Processing Plant ◽

Ore Processing

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A LOOK INTO THE EARTH: EVALUATING THE USE OF MAGNETIC SURVEY IN AFRICAN ARCHAEOLOGY

Journal of African Archaeology ◽

10.3213/1612-1651-10018 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 49-63 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Carlos Magnavita ◽

Norbert Schleifer

Keyword(s):

Geophysical Methods ◽

Field Research ◽

Archaeological Sites ◽

Magnetic Survey ◽

The Past ◽

Common Technique ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Prehistoric Settlements ◽

Present Case Study

In the last decades, geophysical methods such as magnetic survey have become a common technique for prospecting archaeological sites. At sub-Saharan archaeological sites, however, magnetic survey and correlated techniques never came into broad use and there are no signs for an immediate change of this situation. This paper examines the magnetic survey undertaken on the Nigerian site of Zilum, a settlement of the Gajiganna Culture (ca 1800-400 BC) located in the Chad Basin and dated to ca 600-400 BC. By means of the present case study, we demonstrate the significance of this particular type of investigation in yielding complementary data for understanding the character of prehistoric settlements. In conclusion, we point out that geophysical methods should play a more important role in modern archaeological field research, as they furnish a class of documentation not achievable by traditional survey and excavation methods, thus creating new perspectives for interpreting the past of African societies.

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Geochemical and Mineralogical Characterisation of Historic Zn–Pb Mine Waste, Plombières, East Belgium

Minerals ◽

10.3390/min11010028 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 28

Author(s):

Srećko Bevandić ◽

Rosie Blannin ◽

Jacqueline Vander Auwera ◽

Nicolas Delmelle ◽

David Caterina ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Grain Size ◽

Mine Waste ◽

Geophysical Methods ◽

Grain Size Analysis ◽

Size Analysis ◽

Mine Wastes ◽

Metallurgical Waste ◽

High Concentration ◽

Geochemical Properties ◽

Potential Applications

Mine wastes and tailings derived from historical processing may contain significant contents of valuable metals due to processing being less efficient in the past. The Plombières tailings pond in eastern Belgium was selected as a case study to determine mineralogical and geochemical characteristics of the different mine waste materials found at the site. Four types of material were classified: soil, metallurgical waste, brown tailings and yellow tailings. The distribution of the mine wastes was investigated with drill holes, pit-holes and geophysical methods. Samples of the materials were assessed with grain size analysis, and mineralogical and geochemical techniques. The mine wastes dominantly consist of SiO2, Al2O3 and Fe2O3. The cover material, comprising soil and metallurgical waste is highly heterogeneous in terms of mineralogy, geochemistry and grain size. The metallurgical waste has a high concentration of metals (Zn: 0.1 to 24 wt.% and Pb: 0.1 to 10.1 wt.%). In the tailings materials, Pb and Zn vary from 10 ppm to 8.5 wt.% and from 51 ppm to 4 wt.%, respectively. The mining wastes comprises mainly quartz, amorphous phases and phyllosilicates, with minor contents of Fe-oxide and Pb- and Zn-bearing minerals. Based on the mineralogical and geochemical properties, the different potential applications of the four waste material types were determined. Additionally, the theoretical economic potential of Pb and Zn in the mine wastes was estimated.

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