Threshold response of benthic macrofauna integrity to metal contamination in West Greenland

Sediment metal chemistry and benthic infauna surveys have been conducted over 33 years following a BACI protocol in relation to submarine tailings deposition (STD) from a lead-zinc mine in a western Greenland fjord system. We found clear predictable changes of benthic fauna composition in response to STD both temporally and spatially. Faunal re-colonization 15 years after mine closure, was slow and the impacted areas were still dominated by opportunistic species, although the most opportunistic ones (e.g. Capitella species) had decreased in importance. Concentration-response relations between sediment lead and faunal indices of benthic community integrity (e.g. the AMBI and DKI indices) indicated a threshold of ca. 200mg/kg, above which deterioration of faunal communities occurred. Above this threshold, diversity decreased dramatically and dominance of sensitive and indifferent species was substituted by tolerant or opportunistic species. Disposal of metal contaminated tailings may have long lasting effects on the biological system.     

初期坝渗透性对尾矿库浸润线位置影响的定量分析

基于对云南某拟建尾矿库渗流场的数值模拟,统计分析了初期坝与堆积坝不同渗透系数之比下浸润线位置,发现初期坝渗透性与尾矿库浸润线的埋深并不是简单的线性增长关系,而是当初期坝渗透系数高出堆积坝三个数量级以上时,浸润线埋深趋于稳定,并由此建立了二者的关系函数。经过正、反验证计算,证明该关系函数是正确的,为尾矿坝的设计施工提供了依据。     

Catastrophe revisited – disastrous flow failures of mine and municipal solid waste

Catastrophic flow failures have occurred with alarming frequency in mine tailings dams and dumps of discards and other mine waste. In recent years, catastrophic flow failures have also occurred in dumps of municipal solid waste and even in what were intended to be carefully controlled and well-engineered landfills. Apart from the environmental devastation caused by these flows, they are also dangerous to human life and society. Examples include the Buffalo Creek disaster in the USA in 1972 (Vick, Planning, Design and Analysis of Tailings Dams, Wiley, 1983) that killed 118 people, made 4000 homeless and destroyed 50 million US dollars worth of property and facilities. The flow slide that occurred in the Umraniye– Hekimbasi refuse dump in Turkey in 1993 (Kocasoy and Curi, Waste Management and Research, 13, 1995, 305) killed 39 people, destroying their homes in the process. This paper will briefly review some of the more notable flow slides in waste materials, analyzing conditions necessary for a flow failure to occur and pointing to ways of preventing this type of failure by a combination of sound design and operating procedures.     

金川铜镍矿山尾矿砂酸溶性实验研究

为研究金川铜镍矿山酸性废水溶解尾矿砂实现综合治理废液与废固的可能性,进行了尾矿砂在硫酸中的溶解实验。结果表明,尾矿砂在硫酸浓度大于3mol/L、温度保持90℃以上并在液固比6.0下强力搅拌,能够较好地溶解于硫酸中,生成无定形二氧化硅;300℃的马弗炉焙烧4h有助于尾矿砂中绿泥石的溶解,对透闪石的溶解影响不大。尾矿砂中橄榄石、蛇纹石和透辉石较容易被硫酸溶解,透闪石、斜长石则比较难溶解,这与尾矿砂中矿物性质有密切关系。     

氧化亚铁硫杆菌促进金川铜镍硫化矿尾矿砂提取有价金属实验研究

金川铜镍硫化矿尾矿砂数量巨大,其中Ni、Cu和Co等有价金属种类较多,含量较为丰富,蕴含着巨大的经济价值。本文研究了氧化亚铁硫杆菌对金川铜镍尾矿砂提取有价金属效果的影响,在选取金川新尾矿库中心钻孔尾矿砂样品与氧化亚铁硫杆菌作用不同时间的基础上进行化学酸溶,利用电感耦合等离子体发射光谱仪(ICP-AES)分析了溶液中Cu²⁺、Ni²⁺、Co²⁺含量,并通过离子浸出率来表征微生物对尾矿中有价金属提取的影响效果。结果表明,尾矿砂直接化学酸溶后Cu²⁺、Ni²⁺浸出率分别为73.78%和69.87%,Co²⁺浸出率仅为39.57%;而氧化亚铁硫杆菌先与尾矿砂作用后再进行硫酸酸溶,其Cu²⁺、Ni²⁺总浸出率均可达到90%以上,Co²⁺总浸出率也可达到70%以上。实验结果证明氧化亚铁硫杆菌的参与促进了尾矿砂中Cu²⁺、Ni²⁺、Co²⁺的浸出。     

安徽铜陵杨山冲浅层富硫化物尾矿中砷的赋存状态

含硫化物尾矿常常释放大量的酸性排水和重金属,污染地下水、地表水和土壤,破坏生态系统,因此日益成为人们关注的焦点。本文以安徽铜陵杨山冲尾矿库浅层富硫化物尾矿为研究对象,利用扫描电镜(SEM)、电子探针(EPMA)、粉末X射线衍射(XRD)、拉曼光谱(Raman)、光电子能谱(XPS)和同步辐射近边吸收精细结构谱(XANES)等方法,系统分析了尾矿中砷的赋存形式,发现尾矿中的砷有3种价态: As(-Ⅰ)、As(Ⅲ)、As(Ⅴ)。在风化较弱的下部尾矿中,砷以As(-Ⅰ)、As(Ⅲ)和As(Ⅴ)的形式赋存;而强烈风化的表层尾矿中只检测到As(Ⅴ)的存在。从下部到表层,从低价态的As(-Ⅰ)和As(Ⅲ)逐渐变为高价态的As(Ⅴ)。下部尾矿中的砷主要赋存于黄铁矿中,而表层尾矿中的砷主要赋存在铁的(氢)氧化物和硫酸盐中。     

渗流与地震作用下铁矿尾矿坝稳定性分析

尾矿坝有别于传统的挡水坝体,其堆积材料具有松散性、非均匀性及填筑质量不可控性等特点,常常在地震、强降雨等不利因素作用下发生溃坝灾害,严重危及人民生命财产安全。合理评判尾矿坝坝体在不同工况下的稳定性状是科学防灾减灾的前提。本文以内蒙古包钢集团某铁矿尾矿坝为研究对象,通过现场勘察与室内外试验,初步评价尾矿坝堆积体的稳定性,获取稳定性分析所需的物理力学参数;考虑强降雨渗流及地震作用,分别采用Geo-studio及STAB土质边坡稳定性分析软件,基于极限平衡法进行天然工况、暴雨工况、地震工况及暴雨+地震工况下的稳定性计算;基于有限元强度折减法,采用ABAQUS软件针对上述工况进行尾矿坝体稳定性对比计算;综合分析了三种稳定性计算方法在潜在滑带识别及稳定性计算成果等方面的差异,建议了极限平衡法与有限元分析相结合的复杂工况下尾矿坝稳定性分析方法。分析结果表明:渗流与地震作用下某铁矿2#尾矿坝段处于欠稳定状态,其余坝段处于稳定状态,为该尾矿库溃坝危险性评价提供了科学依据。     

铝土矿选矿尾矿特性

运用X射线衍射、N2吸附实验、扫描电子显微分析、等离子光谱等多种测试方法对铝土矿选矿尾矿特性进行了研究,揭示了尾矿一些不被关注的性质,诸如铁矿物的嵌布粒度、比表面积随煅烧温度的变化、煅烧对尾矿及其中各矿物化学反应活性的影响以及各主要矿物对磷酸根离子的吸附能力等。这些性质可望在研究废水处理、尾矿增白时得到应用。     

The nature and engineering behavior of carbonate soils at Bombay High,India

Abstract

This paper presents the results of a laboratory investigation undertaken to study the nature of two submarine carbonate soils from Bombay High off the west coast of India, as well as to study the shear and plasticity behavior of their sand and silt‐clay fractions, respectively. Scanning electron micrographs reveal that the carbonate content in both soils is comprised primarily of nonskeletal particles of various types. X‐ray diffraction and infrared absorption analyses indicate that in one soil the carbonate fraction consists of calcite and aragonite minerals, whereas in the other soil dolomite is also present. The non‐carbonate fraction of both soils is comprised primarily of quartz and feldspar, and also some clay minerals. The nature of the carbonate fraction of the two soils indicates that they were formed by different depositional processes.

During drained triaxial shear the nonskeletal sand grains of both soils exhibit a lower degree of crushing when compared with that of the skeletal carbonate sands, and thus appear to be stronger foundation material.

Although the carbonate contents of the silt‐clay fractions of the two soils are similar, they exhibit markedly different plasticity characteristics . This is probably because of the microlevel cementation produced by carbonate material in one soil.

This study leads one to the conclusion that carbonate content alone should not be treated as a parameter which controls the engineering behavior of submarine soils; the nature and form of carbonate material must also be identified.     

Heavy metals speciation analysis as a tool for studying mine tailings weathering

A sequential extraction procedure derived from Tessier et al. (1979) was applied in the area west of Montevecchio to abandoned mine tailings which give rise to a neutralised drainage highly contaminated by heavy metals. The results were compared with mineralogical studies of the weathering processes. The proposed sequential extraction procedure confirms the general alteration modalities observed in the area through mineralogical studies: i.e., a relatively easy dissolution of Zn and Cd and strong immobilisation of Fe, Mn, Cu and Ni. The behaviour of Pb and Co is intermediate.A generalization of a chemical approach to the comprehension of the weathering process is outlined, though an improvement of the methodology should include a more appropriate sequential extraction procedure capable of distinguishing siderite from iron oxyhydroxides, of leaching anglesite in a single step and of including calcium and magnesium among the analysed elements because of the role of their carbonates in buffering the drainage.