Preliminary studies of the physico-chemical properties of basalt rock flour from the Męcinka mine in Lower Silesia for agriculture

Abstract

During prospecting, exploration and processing of basalts, mining waste and fractions which are hard to dispose are produced. Environmental protection and economic reasons make it necessary to manage as much of the extracted mineral as possible. There are various actions taken to use this raw material in many sectors of economy. Increasing the use of the natural soil remineralizer, produced of basalt rock flours, can reduce the accumulation of mining waste. The results of the researches on the physical and chemical properties of basalt rock flour from the Męcinka mine in Lower Silesia are described in this paper. The research was carried out to evaluate the soil remineralizer produced from rock material in agriculture. It turned out that the tested rock material contains significantly lower concentration of heavy metals than can be entered into the soil (lead, cadmium, arsenic and mercury). The rock material contains different microelements (Al, Si, S, Ti, Fe, Cu, Zn, Ba, Mn, Se, Mo), which are important components of cell molecules, necessary for proper growth and development of plants. The pH is alkaline, therefore a soil remineralizer produced from rock flour should be used mainly in acidic soils. The results of the granulometric tests of the rock flour grains showed that the rock material should be ground to a smaller fraction (i.e., 0.063 mm). It was found that adding basalt flour to soil improves respiration of soil microorganisms.