Mine Waste Hydrogeochemistry

Mine Waste Hydrogeochemistry covers all the fundamental properties and principles associated with metal mining and coal mining wastes, their environmental consequences, and their remediation. It provides a solid scientific basis for planning and managing solid and liquid wastes from mining activities which will inform students, researchers, engineers, and mine managers. The degradation of air quality, water quality, and soil and sediment quality from mining activities involves complex processes involving physics, chemistry, microbiology, fluid dynamics, and mineralogy and mineral processing. This subject matter is complex and requires technical skill in laboratory work, field work, and theoretical calculations. This book provides the most up-to-date synthesis of the numerous papers and studies on this subject available in one book for students, instructors, consultants, and researchers. Mine Waste Hydrogeochemistry is intended to fill that void. Covers the basic scientific principles necessary to understand mine waste contamination Includes real-world examples of remediation activities and their successes and failures Synthesizes information gained from hundreds of studies including tailings and waste piles worldwide, stream and river studies affected by mine drainage, and mineralogical characterization combined with water compositions

This book is not designed to be an exhaustive work on mine wastes. It aims to serve undergraduate students who wish to gain an overview and an understanding of wastes produced in the mineral industry. An introductory textbook addressing the science of such wastes is not available to students despite the importance of the mineral industry as a resource, wealth and job provider. Also, the growing imp- tance of the topics mine wastes, mine site pollution and mine site rehabilitation in universities, research organizations and industry requires a textbook suitable for undergraduate students. Until recently, undergraduate earth science courses tended to follow rather classical lines, focused on the teaching of palaeontology, cryst- lography, mineralogy, petrology, stratigraphy, sedimentology, structural geology, and ore deposit geology. However, today and in the future, earth science teachers and students also need to be familiar with other subject areas. In particular, earth science curriculums need to address land and water degradation as well as rehabili- tion issues. These topics are becoming more important to society, and an increasing number of earth science students are pursuing career paths in this sector. Mine site rehabilitation and mine waste science are examples of newly emerging disciplines. This book has arisen out of teaching mine waste science to undergraduate and graduate science students and the frustration at having no appropriate text which documents the scienti?c fundamentals of such wastes.

Nowhere is the conflict between economic progress and environmental quality more apparent than in the mineral extraction industries. The latter half of the 20th century saw major advances in the reclamation technologies. However, mine water pollution problems have not been addressed. In many cases, polluted mine water long outlives the life of the mining operation. As the true cost of long-term water treatment responsibilities has become apparent, interest has grown in the technologies that would decrease the production of contaminated water and make its treatment less costly. This is the first book to address the mine water issue head-on. The authors explain the complexities of mine water pollution by reviewing the hydrogeological context of its formation, and provide an up-to-date presentation of prevention and treatment technologies. The book will be a valuable reference for all professionals who encounter polluted mine water on a regular or occasional basis.

This book addresses the processes related to mine abandonment from a hydrogeological perspective and provides a comprehensive presentation of water management and innovative tracer techniques for flooded mines. After an introduction to the relevant hydrogeochemical processes the book gives detailed information about mine closure procedures. The book also includes case studies and hints, and some new methodologies for conducting tracer tests in flooded mines.

In the late 18th century, Neptunists and Plutonists had controversial opinions about the formation of the Earth and its lithological units. The former believed that rocks formed from the crystallization of minerals in the early Earth’s oceans, the latter believed that rocks were formed in fire. Both theories ignored the importance of continuous water-rock interaction processes at Earth ́s surface and underground, which can enhance and define the type of volcanic activity, can cause the formation of secondary hydrothermal minerals and respective ore deposits, or simply alter the natural landscape by weathering. Although not visible at first glance, water-rock interaction plays a significant role in the daily life of humans. Many primary necessities of modern society, such as the availability of high-quality drinking water, the supply of fossil fuel and renewable energy types, the abundance of precious minerals, the remediation of contaminated natural sites, and the reconnaissance of geological hazards require a profound understanding of physicochemical processes interacting between liquid, solid and gas phases. Since 1974, when the first Water-Rock Interaction Symposia (WRI-1) was held in Prague (Czechoslovakia, now the Czech Republic), the Working Group on Water-Rock Interaction of the International Association of GeoChemistry (IAGC) has organized an international meeting every three years to present and discuss the most recent results in geochemical technologies. In 2010, WRI-13 attracted about 300 geoscientists affiliated with universities, research institutions, regulatory agencies and from private industry, from 35 countries to Guanajuato, Mexico. The 231 papers published in this volume describe novel advances in research related to interactive processes between the hydrosphere and the lithosphere. Innovative field-based studies, theoretical approaches and small-scale lab experiments are applied to reconstruct and combine pieces of the complex hydrological puzzle, and to confront society ́s impact on the environment. The papers reveal details on high-temperature reactions during the formation of hydrothermal ore deposits and geothermal reservoirs, practical case studies on groundwater quality and karst systems, environmental issues by mine tailings, novel technologies for the attenuation and remediation of contaminated sites, water/mineral interfacial processes on a micro- to macroscopic scale, the kinetics of weathering during low temperature conditions, examples for the advanced modeling of flow and transport processes as well as for CO2 reservoir injection, biochemical factors in surface and underground media, and the application of novel isotope techniques in rock/water/gas systems. Special emphasis in many papers is given on environmental concerns in abandoned mining districts, the occurrence and hazards of non-metals (especially arsenic) in exploited groundwater systems, and an increasing interest in mitigating CO2 emission by its injection into underground reservoirs. The papers in this volume are of wide-ranging interest to professionals and students in Earth sciences, including geochemistry, hydrochemistry, hydrology, geology, mineralogy, volcanology and environmental sciences, but also to decision-makers and engineers involved in the management of energy and natural resources, as well as professionals concerned about environmental issues.

The Treatise on Geochemistry is the first work providing a comprehensive, integrated summary of the present state of geochemistry. It deals with all the major subjects in the field, ranging from the chemistry of the solar system to environmental geochemistry. The Treatise on Geochemistry has drawn on the expertise of outstanding scientists throughout the world, creating the reference work in geochemistry for the next decade. Each volume consists of fifteen to twenty-five chapters written by recognized authorities in their fields, and chosen by the Volume Editors in consultation with the Executive Editors. Particular emphasis has been placed on integrating the subject matter of the individual chapters and volumes. Elsevier also offers the Treatise on Geochemistry in electronic format via the online platform ScienceDirect, the most comprehensive database of academic research on the Internet today, enhanced by a suite of sophisticated linking, searching and retrieval tools.

The single most important factor for the successful application of a geochemical model is the knowledge and experience of the individual(s) conducting the modeling. Geochemical Modeling for Mine Site Characterization and Remediation is the fourth of six volumes in the Management Technologies for Metal Mining Influenced Water series about technologies for management of metal mine and metallurgical process drainage. This handbook describes the important components of hydrogeochemical modeling for mine environments, primarily those mines where sulfide minerals are present—metal mines and coal mines. It provides general guidelines on the strengths and limitations of geochemical modeling and an overview of its application to the hydrogeochemistry of both unmined mineralized sites and those contaminated from mineral extraction and mineral processing. The handbook includes an overview of the models behind the codes, explains vital geochemical computations, describes several modeling processes, provides a compilation of codes, and gives examples of their application, including both successes and failures. Hydrologic modeling is also included because mining contaminants most often migrate by surface water and groundwater transport, and contaminant concentrations are a function of water residence time as well as pathways. This is an indispensable resource for mine planners and engineers, environmental managers, land managers, consultants, researchers, government regulators, nongovernmental organizations, students, stakeholders, and anyone with an interest in mining influenced water. The other handbooks in the series are Basics of Metal Mining Influenced Water; Mitigation of Metal Mining Influenced Water; Mine Pit Lakes: Characteristics, Predictive Modeling, and Sustainability; Techniques for Predicting Metal Mining Influenced Water; and Sampling and Monitoring for the Mine Life Cycle.

Understand the Environmental Processes That Control Groundwater QualityThe integration of environmental isotopes with geochemical studies is now recognized as a routine approach to solving problems of natural and contaminated groundwater quality. Advanced sampling and analytical methods are readily accessible and affordable, providing abundant geoc

Environmental Geochemistry: Site Characterization, Data Analysis and Case Histories, Second Edition, reviews the role of geochemistry in the environment and details state-of-the-art applications of these principles in the field, specifically in pollution and remediation situations. Chapters cover both philosophy and procedures, as well as applications, in an array of issues in environmental geochemistry including health problems related to environment pollution, waste disposal and data base management. This updated edition also includes illustrations of specific case histories of site characterization and remediation of brownfield sites. Covers numerous global case studies allowing readers to see principles in action Explores the environmental impacts on soils, water and air in terms of both inorganic and organic geochemistry Written by a well-respected author team, with over 100 years of experience combined Includes updated content on: urban geochemical mapping, chemical speciation, characterizing a brownsfield site and the relationship between heavy metal distributions and cancer mortality

Environmental Mineralogy and Bio-Geochemistry of Arsenic provides a comprehensive understanding of arsenic geochemistry in the near-surface environment. Topics covered include the mineralogy, thermodynamics, geochemistry, analysis, microbiology, and bioavailability of arsenic, with emphasis on implications for arsenic toxicity, geochemistry in natural ground waters, and mine-associated impacts and possible mitigation options. This volume is useful for those seeking to understand arsenic geochemistry and biological interactions in the near-surface environment, Clay Minerals does not use an online manuscript tracking/submission system. as well those working for mining companies, the chemicals industry, NGO’s or government bodies concerned with reducing the impact of arsenic on the environment.