Comparison of Four <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sesbania</Emphasis> Species to Remediate Pb/Zn and Cu Mine Tailings

A 6-month greenhouse pot trial was performed, aimed at screening appropriate Sesbania species for remediation of Pb/Zn and Cu mine tailings. Performances of young seedlings of four Sesbania species (S. cannabina, S. grandiflora, S. rostrata, and S. sesban) were compared with and without inoculation of rhizobia. Seedlings were planted in two types of tailings amended with garden soil or garden soil mixed with river sediment. The results indicated that inoculated plants generally produced a higher biomass than samples without inoculation. Pb/Zn mine tailings containing rather high concentrations of total and water-soluble Cu, Pb, and Zn were toxic to plant growth compared with Cu mine tailings, according to the growth performance of the four species. Sesbania sesban and S. rostrata showed superior growth performance, compared to the other two species. Thus, they can serve as pioneer species to modify the barren environment, by providing organic matter and essential nutrients such as nitrogen, upon decomposition, in a relatively short period of time. This is especially true for S. rostrata, which is an annual plant that forms both stem and root nodules. However, a longer-term field trial should be conducted to investigate if superior species can beneficially modify the habitat for the growth of subsequent plant communities.     

WATER USE AND WATER CONSERVATION BY THE COPPER MINING INDUSTRY1

ABSTRACT: This paper examines the use of water by copper mines for treating low grade ores. The froth flotation process for treating sulphide ore and the heap leaching process for treating oxide ore are described, and ways of reducing the amount of water used in these processes are discussed. Estimates of the costs reducing water consumption are given. Finally, the circumstances in which it would be desirable for a copper mine to reduce its level of water consumption are considered.     

矾土尾矿载体双活性组分甲苯催化燃烧催化性能研究

利用矾土尾矿制备催化剂载体,采用浸渍法将双活性组分氧化物载于催化剂载体,研究甲苯催化燃烧性能.结果表明,当Cu、Mn物质的量比为1∶2、负载量为14％、焙烧温度为500℃、焙烧2h时CuMn/ZrO2整体催化剂催化活性高,起燃温度为210℃,完全燃烧温度为230℃,有效降低了甲苯催化燃烧的起燃温度和完全燃烧温度.     

Contamination and vertical distribution of As,Cd, Cr,Cu, Pb,Tl, and Zn in paddy soil irrigated with untreated leachate from tailings retention ponds

The contamination and vertical distribution of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Tl, and Zn in paddy soil irrigated with untreated leachate from the tailings retention pond were investigated. As, Cr, Cu, and Zn were slightly contaminated in the surface soil and hence their vertical distribution was not obvious. However, Cd and Pb were highly contaminated in the surface soil, while their concentrations decreased with depth, being negatively correlated with pH and positively with total organic matter. Tl was considerably contaminated in the surface soil and a V-shaped vertical distribution was observed where the concentration increased to a maximum at about 30 cm depth and decreased thereafter. The findings revealed that the regular irrigation with untreated leachate from the tailings retention ponds could cause considerable contamination of Cd, Pb, and Tl, and thus tailings should be stringently treated before disposal to minimize their potential environmental impacts on the surroundings.     

Impact of mining activities on soils in a semi-arid environment: Sierra Almagrera district, SE Spain

Field and laboratory-column studies were undertaken in order to investigate soil contamination derived from past mining activity in the Sierra Almagrera (SA) district in southeast Spain. The tailings, soil and sediment samples that were collected showed high concentrations of Ag, As, Ba, Cu, Pb, Sb and Zn when analyzed. The mean concentrations of these elements in the tailings were 29.8, 285.4, 54000, 57.7, 2687.5, 179.0 and 2269.0 ppm, respectively. In the soil samples these decreased to 14.3, 96.9, 24700, 37.5, 1859.1, 168.5 and 815.7 ppm, respectively. Geochemical analyses demonstrated high levels of As, Pb and Zn which were above the intervention values set forth in the Andalusian Regulations for Contaminated Soils for As (>50 ppm), Pb (>500 ppm) and Zn (>2000 ppm). Column experiments and mineralogical studies suggest that the dissolution of sulfates and other secondary phases, accumulated in soils and waste-sites during the dry season, acts to control the mobility of metals. The elution curves obtained from column experiments showed a mobilization of Ba, Cu, Pb and Zn, while a low mobility was seen for Ag, As and Sb.     

Germination,Growth, and Nodulation of Sesbania rostrata Grown in Pb/Zn Mine Tailings

Sesbania rostrata in pure and amended Pb/Zn tailings. About 90% of seeds of S. rostrata germinated in pure Pb/Zn tailings, which contained high concentrations of Pb, Zn, Cu, and Cd. Although seedling growth suffered from the adverse environment of Pb/Zn tailings, they became established on tailings stands, in the greenhouse, as well as on the actual tailings dam, and completed their life cycle in 4 months. Dry matter production and nitrogen accumulation was 3200 kg/ha and 69.4 kg/ha, respectively in the actual tailings dam. Applying inorganic fertilizer to Pb/Zn tailings led to no obvious improvement in growth and nodulation of S. rostrata, while tailings amended by river sediment or domestic refuse rich in organic matter improved the growth and nodulation of the species. Azorhizobium caulinodans survived and formed N-fixing stem and root nodules in S. rostrata grown in pure Pb/Zn tailings with a nodule biomass exceeding 300 mg fresh matter per plant.     

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF TAILINGS DISPERSAL FROM A URANIUM MINE USING TOXICITY TESTING PROTOCOLS1

ABSTRACT: Toxicity testing is a means of establishing the environmental risk of a uranium tailings release. It is valuable in designing tailings containment structures because it assists in setting acceptable levels of risk for the design. This paper presents details of toxicity tests of the tailings from Ranger Uranium Mine, Northern Territory, Australia. The results suggest that the non-radiological toxicity of the tailings is low. The environmental risk of a tailings release is more likely to be related to the physical impacts of the tailings, including infilling of billabongs and changes in the sedimentology of riparian ecosystems rather than their biogeochemical impact. Two major results were: (1) water from treatment with washed tailing fines were not toxic to Hydra viridissima, and (2) mixtures of washed tailings fines and natural floodplain sediment (overlying water or elutriates) were not toxic to Hydra viridissima or Moinodaphnia macleayi.     

基于重构相空间充填体变形规律的灰色预测研究

尾砂胶结充填体是非线性力学介质,其变形是能量耗散的复杂过程,必须研究其内在变形规律,才能正确预测采矿过程中充填体的稳定性.对不同配比的尾砂胶结充填体进行力学试验,得出了其应力-应变规律,对安庆铜矿高阶段充填体变形进行了监测.采用自适应滤波原理,研究基于重构相空间的测量数据去噪处理方法.用灰色理论研究充填体变形在相空间中相点距离的演变规律,建立了重构相空间的灰色预测模型.为减小预测误差,对预测结果采用残差模型修正.应用建立的模型,对安庆铜矿高阶段充填体变形进行分析,确定了采场合理回采周期.结果表明,充填体变形具有非线性混沌特性,不同配比的充填体表现出不同的非线性动力学行为,重构相空间能充分展示充填体变形的内在规律.     

降雨对尾矿库渗流场的动态影响

尾矿库能否安全运行的影响因素之一就是渗流问题。而降雨又是影响尾矿库渗流场的一个重要因素。运用ANSYS有限元软件的热力学模块建模,计算了3种干滩长度、3种降雨量及7种雨型,共计63种组合工况。分析计算发现,降雨时干滩长度越长,尾矿库出口节点渗透压上升越高。由此可知降雨时,如果尾矿库干滩面未做防渗排水防护措施,那么干滩长度越长对坝体的稳定越不利。建议尾矿库工程设计过程中考虑在干滩面设置防渗排水设施。     

基于三角模糊理论的尾矿库风险评价研究

根据尾矿库的特点和我国现行的尾矿库安全生产监督管理法律法规及标准规范的要求,构建了尾矿库风险评价指标体系。综合考虑评价指标对风险发生可能性及后果严重程度的不同影响来确定指标权重,同时考虑到权重确定和指标赋值中的模糊性和不确定性等问题,选用三角模糊理论建立了尾矿库风险评价模型,并以本溪某尾矿库为例进行说明。理论分析和实例计算表明,该方法对尾矿库风险评价有很好的适用性。