Laboratory simulation of natural leaching processes of eastern USA oil shale

Raw and retorted spent oil shales from Kentucky, as well as soil and overburden materials, were subjected to laboratory and field leaching tests. Standard batch leaching tests grossly undervalue the amount of dissolved ions as measured in the field, being too brief to enable slow reactions of the mineral matrix, such as hydrolysis and oxidation of sulfides or reactions of acidic leachates with soluble components of the clays. Laboratory column tests, devised to closely simulate natural leaching processes, achieved concentration levels and elemental release patterns similar to those found in field tests. The column tests provide a reliable means to assess the leachability of metals in these materials.