Redox chemistry of sulphate and uranium in a phosphogypsum tailings dump

Papanicolaou, Fanos; Antoniou, Stella; Pashalidis, Ioannis

doi:10.1016/j.jenvrad.2010.03.006

Cited by 13 publications

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“…Anaerobic environments where such dissolution may occur include UMT under soil and vegetative covers (see (Papanicolaou et al, 2010) for an analogous case with a phosphogypsum dump). Solubilized Ra may later be precipitated in barite or other solid sulfate phases such as jarosite [KFe 3 (SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 ]; both minerals are commonly found in oxic acid-mine drainage systems (e.g., (Jambor et al, 2000;Romano et al, 2010)).…”

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Biogeochemical aspects of uranium mineralization, mining, milling, and remediation

Campbell¹,

Gallegos²,

Landa

2015

Applied Geochemistry

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aspects of uranium mineralization, mining, milling, and remediation" (2014 U is overwhelmingly the most abundant at greater than 99% of the total mass of U. Prior to the 1940s, U was predominantly used as a coloring agent, and U-bearing ores were mined mainly for their radium (Ra) and/or vanadium (V) content; the bulk of the U was discarded with the tailings (Finch et al., 1972). Once nuclear fission was discovered, the economic importance of U increased greatly. The mining and milling of U-bearing ores is the first step in the nuclear fuel cycle, and the contact of residual waste with natural water is a potential source of contamination of U and associated elements to the environment. Uranium is mined by three basic methods: surface (open pit), underground, and solution mining (in situ leaching or in situ recovery), depending on the deposit grade, size, location, geology and economic considerations (Abdelouas, 2006). Solid wastes at U mill tailings (UMT) sites can include both standard tailings (i.e., leached ore rock residues) and solids generated on site by waste treatment processes. The latter can include sludge or ''mud'' from neutralization of acidic mine/mill effluents, containing Fe and a range of coprecipitated constituents, or barium sulfate precipitates that selectively remove Ra (e.g., Carvalho et al., 2007). In this chapter, we review the hydrometallurgical processes by which U is extracted from ore, the biogeochemical processes that can affect the fate and transport of U and associated elements in the environment, and possible remediation strategies for site closure and aquifer restoration. This paper represents the fourth in a series of review papers from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) on geochemical aspects of UMT management that span more than three decades. The first paper (Landa, 1980) in this series is a primer on the nature of tailings and radionuclide mobilization from them. The second paper (Landa, 1999) includes coverage of research carried out under the U.S. Department of Energy's Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Program (UMTRA). The third paper (Landa, 2004) reflects the increased focus of researchers on biotic effects in UMT environs. This paper expands the focus to U mining, milling, and remedial actions, and includes extensive coverage of the increasingly important alkaline in situ recovery and groundwater restoration.Ó 2014 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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“…This 210 Pb would likely be immobile in sulfate-reducing environments, as noted above. However Papanicolaou et al (2010) have noted the possible facilitated transport of colloid sized metal(II) sulfide particles as a possible mobilization mechanism for these elements.…”

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Biogeochemical aspects of uranium mineralization, mining, milling, and remediation

Campbell¹,

Gallegos²,

Landa

2015

Applied Geochemistry

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“…This industry is usually located on coastal areas, whereas the waste is transported and deposited nearby, e.g., on redoxdynamic estuarine salt-marsh systems. Redox fluctuations affect the stability or leaching of phosphogypsum-related contaminants by controlling the oxidation states of many compounds (e.g., sulphur, iron and uranium) associated with these wastes and thus, their mobility (Papanicolaou et al, 2010). Large phosphogypsum disposal stacks could exhibit different redox gradients with depth as the upper unsaturated zones are likely to be subjected to oxidizing conditions, particularly in stacks supported directly on organic matter-rich marsh soils (Lottermoser, 2007;Pérez-López et al, 2011).…”

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Effects of redox oscillations on the phosphogypsum waste in an estuarine salt-marsh system

et al. 2020

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Salt marshes are natural deposits of heavy metals in estuarine systems, where sulphide precipitation associated with redox changes often results in a natural attenuation of contamination. In the present study, we focus on the effects of variable redox conditions imposed to a highly-polluted phosphogypsum stack that is directly piled over the salt marsh soil in the Tinto River estuary (Huelva, Spain). The behaviour of contaminants is evaluated in the phosphogypsum waste and in the marsh basement, separately, in controlled, experimentally-induced oscillating redox conditions. The results revealed that Fe, and to a lesser extent S, control most precipitation/dissolution processes. Ferric iron precipitates in the form of phosphates and oxyhydroxides, while metal sulphide precipitation is insignificant and appears to be prevented by the abundant formation of Fe phosphates. An antagonistic evolution with changing redox conditions was observed for the remaining contaminants such as Zn, As, Cd and U, which remained mobile in solution during most of experimental run. Therefore, these findings revealed that high concentrations of phosphates inhibit the typical processes of immobilization of pollutants in salt-marshes which highlights the elevated contaminant potential of phosphogypsum wastes on coastal environments.

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Minerogenic Dust and Human Health

Prasad¹

2023

Medical Geology

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Redox chemistry of sulphate and uranium in a phosphogypsum tailings dump

Cited by 13 publications

References 12 publications

Biogeochemical aspects of uranium mineralization, mining, milling, and remediation

Biogeochemical aspects of uranium mineralization, mining, milling, and remediation

Effects of redox oscillations on the phosphogypsum waste in an estuarine salt-marsh system

Minerogenic Dust and Human Health

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