A series of pot trials were undertaken to test the growth of indigenous grasses (Themeda triandra and Cynodon dactylon) on mine capping soil, treated with various soil ameliorants. The capping soils were obtained from open cast coal mines (Optimum Mine and Syferfontein Mine) in the Mpumalanga Highveld, south of Witbank. However, because mine soil was not available at the commencement of the project, the initial pot trial used soil from the Umlazi Landfill in Durban. The trials were the Umlazi Landfill Trial, Microbe Trial, Legume Trial and Fly Ash Trial. For the Umlazi Landfill Trial, landfill top and subsoil was used along with fertilizer, sewage sludge, K-humate, lime and microbes. The soil ameliorant treatments for the Microbe trial were Trichoderma harzianum (Eco'T), Bacillus subtilis Strain 69 (B69) and Bacillus subtilis Strain 77 (B77), for the Legume Trial, Medicago sativa, phosphorus and/or potassium were applied. For the Fly Ash Trial, lime and fly ash were introduced. From the Landfill trial it was shown that fertilizer and sewage sludge significantly increased the above ground, below ground and total biomass of T. triandra, further, there were no significant treatment differences between fertilizer and sludge. The lime treatment for this trial, surprisingly, significantly reduced below ground biomass but the application of microbes (B69 and BcoT) alleviated this negative effect. However, in the Microbe Trial the microbes (BcoT, B69 and B77) had a negative or no effect on the biomass of T. triandra and C. dactylon. In the Legume Trial it was shown that the above ground biomass of T. triandra was significantly reduced when grown with M. sativa. The Fly Ash Trial revealed that the lime and fly ash treatments had no effect on the biomass of M. sativa and T. triandra, and they did not maintain a reduction in soil acidity. The results therefore indicated that either organic fertilizer or sewage sludge could be used to significantly improve the growth of T. triandra. It was also suggested that lime not be applied to soils with an acid saturation of approximately 1%, as this could retard plant growth. The application of microbes and the growth of a legume with grass, although both have been recorded to have beneficial effects in aiding plant growth, in the short-term however, the application of T. harzianum, B. subtilis Strain 69 and 77 applied to the soil while growing T.triandra and C. dactylon and the growth of M. sativa with T. triandra is not recommended. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

Ensåsengruvan is a mine situated within Ljusdals municipality in central Sweden. Themine was in use from 1984 to 1991 and has since been undergoing a remediation program. Mine tailings from sulfide rich ore is a potential environmental hazard due to its tendency to cause acid waters and heavy metal leakage. Lake Ensjön is situated one kilometer from the mine area. Due to the hydrological conditions it was not expected to receive inflowing water from the mining area. A study done in 2005 showed high amounts of heavy metals in the lake. In this study water and sediments was analyzed to confirm the results from the 2005 study. Water was sampled two times during summer 2006 from the lake and adjoining streams. Sediment samples were collected with a core sampler at ten different locations within the lake. The water and sediment samples were analyzed for heavy metal content. Sub-samples from different depths in the sediment core were extracted so that conclusions on the contamination history could be drawn. The sediments were dated trough Cs-137 analyses. The depth in the profile with the highest Cs-137 content can be dated to the time of the Chernobyl fallout (1986). After dating, relevant samples were analyzed for metal content. The results show that Ensjön is contaminated by a local source. The surface sediments are high in copper, zinc, nickel and cadmium content. The content is high both compared to the samples from deeper in the sediment core and the surface sediments analyzed in the reference study done in 1980. The amounts of heavy metals are also high relative to the standards set by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. The water from the stream adjoining the lake from the mining area is high in content of the previously mentioned metals. The methods used, including sediment dating and metal analyses together with water analyses, has proven to be useful in investigating a suspected contamination from a point source. It can be concluded that Lake Ensjön is contaminated with water from the mine waste. No other sources in the catchment area can be the source of the enriched amounts of heavy metals. Focus should in further work be put upon finding the exact source of leakage from the mining area. / Från Enåsengruvan i Ljusdals kommun utvanns ur sulfidmalm guld, silver och koppar under åren 1984 till 1991. Avfall från sulfidmalmsgruvor medför miljöproblem genom försurning och läckage av tungmetaller. Vanligtvis täcks avfallet med jordmassor eller vatten för att förhindra påverkan på naturen. De studier som genomfördes under prospekteringen visade på att Ensjön, som är belägen inom en kilometers avstånd från gruvområdet, inte skulle påverkas av gruvan men en provtagning under 2005 visade på höga halter av tungmetaller i sjön. I denna studie har Ensjöns vattenkvalitet undersökts genom vatten och sedimentanalyser. Vattenprover i sjön och dess inlopp togs två gånger under sommaren 2006 och sedimentprover togs vid ett tillfälle på tio olika lokaler i sjön. En djupprofil av sedimenten analyserades för att föroreningshistoriken från innan gruvan togs i bruk till nutid skulle kunna kartläggas. För att datera sedimenten analyserades de med avseende på Cs-137. De högsta halterna av Cs-137 kan härledas till nedfallet från Tjernobylolyckan 1986. Efter datering valdes lämpliga prover ut för metallanalys. Resultaten visar på förhöjda halter av koppar, zink, nickel och kadmium. Halterna i ytsedimenten är höga både jämfört med de halter som återfinns på större djup i sedimentprofilen, motsvarande avsättning innan gruvdriften och vad som uppmättes i referensstudien från 1980. Halterna är även höga relativt de jämförvärden som Naturvårdsverket satt upp. Vattenanalyserna visar på att vattnet i inflödet från gruvområdet innehåller höga halter av de tidigare nämnda metallerna. Metoden med Cs-137-datering och analys med avseende på metaller av sediment har visat sig fungera väl för kartläggning av en nutida förorening från en punktkälla. Tillsammans med kompletterande vattenprover ger det en bra bild av den rådande situationen. Då resultaten visar att Ensjöns vatten är påverkat av en punktkälla och alla andra källor kan uteslutas får det anses klarlagt att sjöns vatten är påverkat av dränagevatten från gruvområdet. Fortsatta studier bör fokusera på att klarlägga den exakta källan till läckaget från gruvområdet.

The municipality of Västervik, with support from Envipro Miljöteknik AB, is carrying out a main study of the minefields at Gladhammar. Mining of iron, copper and cobalt under different periods from the 16th century until the end of the 19th century has led to discharges of metals to the lakes situated downstream. The aim of the main study is to investigate the possibilities to reduce the environmental load on the surrounding ground and water caused by heavy metals from the mine. The present report is a part of the main study. The aim of the work is to investigate the geochemistry of the groundwater. As a starting point, questions concerning affected areas, occurring metals and possible processes for propagation and limitation of the pollutants, have been posed. The work is based on data from a pre-study and of the main study. In total, there are 25 groundwater pipes in the area. A subset of these pipes has been chosen in order to delimit the task at hand. The number of analysed measurements for each groundwater pipe range from five to 15. The data material has been compiled and subsequently evaluated with respect to natural background, variation in time, correlation with precipitation, depth and other measured parameters. Geochemical modelling using the computer code PHREEQC has also been conducted. The waste of the minefields at Gladhammar is constituted of waste rock, slag and tailings. Arsenic, cobalt, copper, lead and zinc are the prevailing metals in the area. Iron, manganese and sulphur control the behaviour of heavy metals in water to a great extent and they have, as well as the prevailing metals, therefore been in focus for the study. The data compilation shows that pipes in the proximity of slag and waste rock have the highest content of cobalt and copper. The groundwater is affected, with respect to guideline-values, by, above all, cobalt and copper, but also to a certain extent by lead. The content of arsenic and zinc is classified as low to moderate. The groundwater is most affected in the areas of Holländarefältet and Torsfall. The data analysis shows that out flush of secondarily retained metals is a likely pollutant process. Primarily, this is valid for cobalt and copper. The pollution propagation is likely limited by precipitation of secondarily minerals as well as adsorption to iron, manganese and aluminium particles. The groundwater in the pipes close to waste rock and slag most certainly consists of surface water that runs off from the heaps on top of the hill. This is demonstrated by the high metal content of the surface run off. According to calculations on mixing, the groundwater at the shore is made up by a mixture of lake water and mine entrance water.

Mining activities have a large impact on the environment, for example by the release of heavy metals from acid mine drainage and erosion of mine waste. North-eastern Estonia has the largest commercially exploited oil-shale deposit in the world. Waste from the mining processes have led to contamination of groundwater and streams polluted by phenols, oil products, sulphates and heavy metals. This thesis concerns the metal mobility from oil-shale mines in north-eastern Estonia, through water flow in the drainage system directed into Lake Nõmmejärv, which acts as a sedimentation basin for the mining water. A sediment core along with lake bottom surface samples were retrieved and analysed for heavy metals associated with mining. Water samples were collected and analysed for TOC. The sedimentary records show distinctively the change with the high inflow of water. The analysis of heavy metal content does not suggest a high impact on the environment, possibly because of a buffering effect by the limestone bedrock. The contents of heavy metals are somewhat elevated compared to background contents in Swedish lake sediments, but only cadmium and nickel levels are in the range that can be hazardous for the survival of organisms.

Waste rock piles from coal mining of tertiary bituminous coal in Longyearbyen, Svalbard, show sulfide oxidation and subsequent acid mine drainage (AMD) production. The aim was to establish deeper understanding of AMD prediction based on Mineralogy and Geochemistry of coal and AMD samples. Mineralogical investigation of both coal and rock samples was performed with Automated SEM (ZEISS-Sigma VP300-Mineralogic System) as well as RAMAN. ICP-MS analysis was performed on solid and water samples. The pH from in situ measurements of AMD between 2,5-7,0. Eh varied from 222-569 mV (corresponding pe value of 3,7-9,6). This study showed that time of AMD in an oxidative environment was a key factor in iron concentration and iron speciation the AMD. This could not however be concluded in terms of age of mine site but rather the site-specific setting. The main minerals found in coal samples were pyrite (FeS2), siderite (FeCO3), calcite (CaCO3) and apatite (Ca5(PO4)3). Pyrites were identified with framboidal and euhedral textures and were found inside the maceral matter and in over- and underlying rocks respectively. SEM analysis of coal samples indicated that the modes of mineral formation was changing over the course of the Longyear seam. This study found that framboidal or euhedral textures of pyrite had different impacts in the AMD production. Framboidal pyrite was found to generate a greater amount of acidity than euhedral pyrites due to larger specific surface area and could therefore pose larger problems in AMD management.

The demand for metals is great for the purpose of developing green technologies, and EU has listed 30 metals and minerals that are of critical importance for the maintenance and evolving of today’s society, so called critical materials. However, mining of raw materials generates mine waste which can have adverse effect on human health, ecosystems, and surrounding areas. To be able to prevent the release of toxic levels of elements from mine waste, an understanding of how different elements behave in the secondary environments is necessary in order to use the most successful methods for mining remediation. It is common that secondary minerals, such as gypsum and/or HFOs (hydrous ferric oxides), forms in mine waste or in downstream environments, depending on the geochemical conditions. From prior studies, it is well established that trace elements are sorbed by HFO. But studies are scares regarding co-precipitation of elements with secondary gypsum formation, and few studies investigates the possibility of critical elements to be captured by secondary minerals. In this study, a prior unknown white precipitation along with tailings material from the Smaltjärnen tailings beach in Yxsjöberg, Sweden, has been investigated by combining mineralogical studies (SEM-EDS and DXRD analysis) with sequential extraction. The aim with the study was to identify the precipitation and to examine if critical elements had co-precipitated with the precipitation and HFOs within the sample. From the results it was possible to prove that the white precipitation was gypsum (CaSO4*2H2O), and it was indicated that some of the critical elements (beryllium for instance) showed affinity for gypsum, and that bismuth, tungsten, and chromium were sorped by HFOs. The combining of chemical analysis with mineralogical studies was of great importance for determining in which mineral phases the leached elements were situated, and the study has shown that secondary gypsum formation can be an important sink for some critical elements. More studies should be performed within this field of research to further investigate the importance of secondary minerals for scavenging of elements, not only to prevent toxic levels to be leached, but also to capture these elements in the purpose of re-mining. / Idag är behovet av metaller stort inom användningsområden för att utveckla gröna teknologier. EU har därför listat 30 metaller och mineral (kritiska material) som anses vara kritiska för att underhålla och utveckla dagens samhälle. Men brytning av råmaterial resulterar i generering av gruvavfall där avfallet potentiellt kan utgöra en risk för att skada bland annat människors hälsa och ekosystem. För att kunna förhindra att giftiga halter av grundämnen släpps ut från gruvavfall så krävs en förståelse om hur olika ämnen beter sig i sekundära miljöer, för att på så sätt kunna tillämpa de mest framgångsrika metoderna för sanering och återställning av gruvområden. Det är vanligt förekommande att sekundära mineraler (såsom gips och järnhydroxider) fälls ut i gruvavfallet och/eller nedströms om gruvområdet beroende på de geokemiska förhållandena. Tidigare studier har visat att spårämnen kan binda till järnhydroxider, men endast ett fåtal studier undersöker samutfällning av olika spårämnen tillsammans med sekundärt gips. Hur specifikt kritiska metaller kan fångas upp av sekundära mineral är ännu inte välstuderat. I denna studie har en vit, tidigare okänd, utfällning provtagits från en av deponierna med anrikningssand i den historiska volframgruvan i Yxsjöberg. Utfällningen identifierades genom att kombinera mineralogiska studier (SEM-EDS och DXRD analys) med kemiska lakvattenanalyser från en sekventiell lakning. Målet med studien var att mineralogiskt karaktärisera den okända utfällningen och att undersöka om kritiska ämnen möjligen samutfällts tillsammans med de sekundära mineralen. Studien visade att utfällningen var sekundärt gips (CaSO4*2H2O) och det kunde påvisas att vissa kritiska metaller visade affinitet för gipset (exempelvis beryllium) och att andra kritiska metaller samutfällts/adsorberats av järnhydroxider. Att kombinera dom olika metoderna visade sig att vara till stor nytta för att kunna påvisa vilka mineral dom olika grundämnena var bundna till, och studien har även visat att sekundärt gips kan vara en sänka för vissa kritiska metaller. Mer studier bör utföras inom detta forskningsområde i framtiden för att vidare undersöka hur sekundära mineral kan binda kritiska metaller, inte endast för att förhindra att giftiga halter av metaller släpps ut, utan också för att undersöka möjligheten att återvinna gruvavfallet för utvinning av kritiska metaller.

ii SUMMARY This master thesis deals with selectivity assessment of an arsenic sequential extraction procedure for evaluating mobility in mine wastes. A modified sequential extraction procedure was designed on the basis of preliminary tests of extraction efficiency and selectivity for the synthetic As mineral phases (scorodite, amorphous iron arsenate, schwertmannite, goethite, jarosite) and five natural samples (Kaňk, Dlouhá Ves, Giftkies, Roudný) that were previously characterized for As concentration and speciation. The modified sequential extraction has five steps. The first leaching step was performed in nitrogen-purged deionized H2O for 10 hours; next step involved 0.01M NH4H2PO4 leaching for 16 hours. Phases in the third step were dissolved with 0.2M Tamm`s reagent in darkness for 2 hours. The fourth step was represented by 0.2M of Tamm`s reagent heated in water bath at 80řC for 4 hours. Strong acid solutions HCl/KClO3/HNO3 were used to leach sulphide phases in the last step. The testing of the sequential extraction procedure using model mixtures showed a good discrimination of several fractions: adsorbed arsenic, arsenic associated with poorly crystalline oxyhydroxide, hydroxosulfate and arsenate phases (amorphous iron arsenate, schwertmannite, ferrihydrite), arsenic associated with crystalline...

<p>Thallium is a highly toxic element that humans are exposed to mainly by consumption of drinking water and vegetables grown in soil with high thallium content but also through inhalation of particles in the air. Thallium is also present in fossil fuels, alloys, and in electronic utilities. The increasing use of the element and emissions from notably energy production has lead to a higher load on the surface of the Earth. This study aims at increasing the knowledge about the behaviour of thallium in aquatic environments. Focus has been on the redox chemistry of thallium in relation to its mobility, which is of great importance because Tl(I) and Tl(III) have very different properties in this respect.</p><p>The relationship between Tl(I) and Tl(III) in surface waters from contaminated and uncontaminated environments was examined by ion chromatography connected on line to ICP-MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry). It was found in controlled systems that even though Tl(III) is thermodynamically unstable under fresh water conditions Tl(I) was oxidised in the presence of light and iron(III). This was also confirmed in field studies. When lake water samples were exposed to light, Tl(I) was oxidised and thallium was lost from the solution. The most likely explanation for this was adsorption of thallium to particle surfaces.</p><p>The concentration of thallium in Swedish lakes and soil were measured. In unpolluted lakes the concentration ranges between 4.5-12 ng/l, the sediment concentration was 0.07-1.46 mg/kg. The anthropogenic load was found to have increased since the end of the Second World War although concentrations above background were found since the early industrialisation. In contaminated areas the concentration in soil ranges from 0.64-88 mg/kg, high concentrations were found in systems with alum shale and in soil exposed to runoff from a lead and zinc enrichment plant.</p><p>The mobilisation of thallium from solid phases in contaminated areas was dependent on pH and about 50% of the leachable content was mobilised already at pH 5-6. Once it had been released to water it was highly mobile. These conditions suggest that in a large part of the Swedish environment a high mobility of thallium can be expected.</p>

D. Tech. Chemistry / The increase in industrialisation in South Africa has led to an increase in coal mining and coal utilisation in Mpumalanga. This has resulted in the deterioration in the quality of water upstream of Loskop Dam. Little or no information is available on the occurrence or fractionation of trace metals in sediments, which are reservoirs for pollutants. Furthermore, no information is available concerning the occurrence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), known for their carcinogenic and mutagenic effects, in rivers in the area. The possible impact of leaching of elements and organic compounds from South African coals has not been exhaustively researched. The general objectives of the study were to: 1) assess the impact of potentially toxic metals and organic compounds leaching from coal, on the quality of surface waters via simulated leaching experiments; 2) determine the extent of pollution by trace metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of the Olifants, Klein Olifants and Wilge rivers, at selected points in the upper catchment area; and 3) identify and apportion sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the sediment samples from the study area.

Syfte: Rödfyr är gruvavfall från förbränning av alunskiffer. Materialet finns i naturen på många platser i Västra Götaland. Fram till 80-talet användes rödfyren som utfyllnadsmaterial men numera är användningen begränsad då materialet lakar tungmetaller. Mängden avfall som går till deponi skall minskas. Möjligheten att deponera rödfyrsmassor är därmed begränsad då områden med rödfyrshögar skall bebyggas. Syftet med denna studie är därför att öka kunskapen om hur rödfyrsmassor kan hanteras på ett miljömässigt och ekonomiskt sätt. Målet är att ge förslag på användningsområden och hanteringsmetoder för rödfyrsmassor för att bidra till bättre miljö och ekonomiska och förutsättningar. Genom att utreda vilka krav som ställs på användning av rödfyr, söktes svar på möjliga användningsområden och konstruktionslösningar för att minska lakningen. Denna studie är ett examensarbete som genomförts i samarbete med Skövde kommun. Metod: Valda metoder för datainsamling är litteraturstudie, dokumentanalys samt semi-strukturerade intervjuer. I litteraturstudien studerades litteratur om avfall, rödfyr, och efterbehandlingsmetoder. I dokumentanalysen studerades miljöutredningar för rödfyr för att erhålla kunskap om lakningen. Intervjuerna gav information om tillståndsmyndigheternas arbete med rödfyr, och sakkunnigas förslag på hur rödfyr bör användas och hanteras. Resultat: Studien visade att det finns andra användningsområden än deponi, samt att det finns metoder för att begränsa rödfyrens lakning. Det måste finnas kunskaper om hur rödfyrens spridning sker vid omröring och flytt. Att förhindra lakning kan uppnås genom att kapsla in rödfyren med hjälp av olika tätskikt. Detta innebär att rödfyren kan nyttjas som en resurs, ytor blir tillgängliga för exploatering, samt att rödfyren inte är tillgänglig för människor, och att lakningen till grundvattnet minskas. Konsekvenser: Rödfyr kan användas som utfyllnadsmaterial vid mindre känslig markanvändning, såsom industriområden och vägar. Detta är under förutsättning att övertäckning av massorna sker för att undvika lakning. Asfaltsytor, i kombination med ett tätskikt på ovansida, samt vertikala sidor, begränsar lakningen avsevärt. Överytan kan då utnyttjas för exploatering. Transportsträckan är ofta ekonomiskt avgörande för om rödfyren kan flyttas eller inte. Om rödfyren kan nyttjas för utfyllnadsändamål minskar kostnaden för inköp av material, och nya uttag av massor belastar inte miljön. Begränsningar: Den rödfyr som studerats är den som finns i Skövde Kommun. Studien bör dock kunna tillämpas på övriga länet. En begränsning är att intervjustudien inte genomfördes så omfattande. Ytterligare hade genomförande av skaktester i studien kunnat bidra med kunskap. På grund av den tid som krävs för detta var det ej möjligt. Dock erhölls bekräftande svar från de olika metoderna, och slutsatser kunde därmed trianguleras. / Purpose: Burnt alum shale is mining waste derived from combustion of the same rock. It exists in several places in Västra Götaland. Alum shale was previously used as filling but nowadays the use is limited thus the material is leaching heavy metals. The amount of waste normally put in landfills shall now be diminishing. Therefore the possibility to landfilling alum shale is limited. The purpose of this study is to increase the knowledge of how alum shale can be dealt with in an environmentally safe and economically beneficial way. The goal is to bring out suggestions for applications of use and ways of handling the excavations to contribute to a better environment and to achieve better financial conditions. By investigate what claims need to be achieved for the possibility of using Alum shale, useful areas of use and suitable management where brought forward. This study has been composed as a mean to get a bachelor degree in engineering, with the benefitial partner Skövde kommun. Method: Literature study, document analysis and interviews where used as research methods. Research on waste, alum shale and remediation techniques where studied in the literature study. In the document analysis, environmental study were analysed to retain knowledge of leachate. The interviews presented information of the authorities work with alum shale and experts’ suggestions of how alum shale can be used and handled. Findings: This study showed that there is other applications than landfills, and that there is methods to limit the leachate. If to be used, knowledge of the alum shale’s propensity of spreading due to stirring and relocation must be known. To inhibit leachate van be achieved by encapsulate the alum shale by waterproofing. This means that the alum shale can be used as a resource. Areas will be available for exploitation, it will not affect people in the surroundings, and the leachate to the groundwater will diminish. Implications: At minor sensitive land use, alum shale can be used as filling material, such as industrial areas and roads. This implicates waterproofing of the material. Asphalted surface, in combination of waterproofing the top surface and the vertical sides limits the leachate of metals considerably. The haul is often ruling the possibility to relocate the shale. If the alum shale, at disposal, could be used for filling purposes, the cost of purchasing new material, and outlet of new raw material does not need to burden the environment. Limitations: The alum shale studied is the one of Skövde County. The study should though be applicable to the whole of Västra Götaland. Not having the time to expand the interviews and include more people with research experience and expertise, is one of the limitations of this study. Also, carry out leachate tests could have contributed with more knowledge.