The geochemistry of water near a surficial organic-rich uranium deposit, northeastern Washington State, U.S.A.

Zielinski, Robert A.; Otton, James K.; Wanty, Richard B.; Pierson, C.T.

doi:10.1016/0009-2541(87)90091-x

Cited by 29 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Higher concentrations were observed at many places all over the world including Canada, Finland, Norway, the USA, Australia (WHO, 2012) and recently Mongolia (Nriagu et al, 2012). These are often of a geogenic origin and commonly associated with high concentrations of bicarbonate or total mineralization (Merkel and Sperling, 1998;Zielinski et al, 1987), which explains the high mobility caused by complexation.…”

Section: Uranium In Aqueous Environmentmentioning

confidence: 94%

Uranium in groundwater — Fertilizers versus geogenic sources

Liesch

Hinrichsen

Goldscheider

2015

Science of The Total Environment

119

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Section: Uranium In Aqueous Environmentmentioning

confidence: 94%

Uranium in groundwater — Fertilizers versus geogenic sources

Liesch

Hinrichsen

Goldscheider

2015

Science of The Total Environment

119

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“…Numerous studies of the hydrogeochemical behavior of uranium in the geosphere have been undertaken (Zielinski et al, 1987;Dekkers et al ., 1989;Meunier et al, 1992), many of which have had particular application for uranium exploration (Boyle, 1982;Giblin and Snelling, 1983). These studies have generally focused on the nature of uranium distributions in rock , with less attention being given to its behavior in groundwater .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater geochemistry in the Koongarra ore deposit, Australia (I): Implications for uranium migration.

Yanase¹,

Payne

Sekine³

1995

Geochem. J.

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Groundwater geochemistry at the Koongarra uranium ore deposit was investigated in order to gain a detailed understanding of the migration of uranium in a highly weathered water-rock system . Koongarra groundwaters are quite dilute with the total dissolved solids usually below 200 mg/1. The pH is slightly acidic or neutral, and the major chemical characteristics are dominated by magnesium and bicarbonate . Partial pressures of CO2 in the deeper groundwaters are substantially elevated relative to those of surface waters. Groundwater in the mineralized zones exhibits elevated levels of uranium up to three orders of magnitude above background levels. Total organic carbon levels are generally low , suggesting that uranium complexation by organic species plays a minor role. Due to the high bicarbonate concentration , uranium appears to be mobile in the weathered zone as uranyl carbonate complexes . Other inorganic uranium complexants are not present at levels sufficient to influence uranium speciation , with the possible exception of phosphate.On the basis of chemical and isotopic evidence, there are two major inputs of groundwater to the system. The first of these is flows from the vicinity of the Koongarra fault into the Cahill formation , which hosts the uranium mineralization. A second major source is infiltrating waters which permeate downward from the surface, and cause a gradual mixing and dilution of the characteristics of groundwaters from the mineralized zone. The migration of uranium in groundwater is not only perpendicular to the fault, but includes a component at an angle to it . In the vicinity of borehole C 1 (due south of the ore zone), uranium concentrations are comparatively high , given the distance from the orebody. Moving away from the ore zone to the south-east, there is a gradual decrease of groundwater uranium concentrations t o b ackground levels over approximately 200 meters , which coincides. with the uranium distribution in the solid phase. Therefore, at Koongarra, uranium seems to have migrated over distances of approximat ely 200 m toward the south-east over a time period estimated to be 1 to 1 .5 million years.

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“…The apparent enrichment factor in the sediments represents the ratio of these two concentrations, which, in this case, ranges from 10 3 to 10 4 . In previous studies, Zielinski et al (1987) reported an enrichment factor of U in peat of 10 4 , Owen and Otton (1995) reported an enrichment factor of U in wetland ranges of between 1 and 10 4 , and Plater et al (1992) reported an enrichment factor of U in river sediment of 1. Thus, the enrichment factor of U in the present sediments is similar to that reported previously from wetlands, and shows a high affinity for U. )…”

Section: Difference In U Load Between August 2004 and August 2005mentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Other studies have considered the uptake of U in wetlands, reporting a positive relation between organic material and U (Zielinski et al 1987Zielinski and Meier 1988;Plater et al 1992;Owen and Otton 1995). Moreover, Salim et al (1994) and Hu et al (2002) reported that tree leaves are effective in removing heavy metals from wastewater; however, to the best of our knowledge, no study has investigated how sediments that contain organic material, such as decomposing leaves, can maintain heavy metals, such as U, in sediment environments, similar to wetlands, located behind dams constructed along rivers and streams.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Uranium sorption onto natural sediments within a small stream in central Japan

et al. 2008

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In this study, we surveyed the uranium (U) load in stream water within a humid forest in Japan, and clarified the fact that changes in U load depended on the amount of sediment accumulated behind dams constructed along the stream. To elucidate the relationship between U and the accumulated sediments, we conducted U sorption experiments in the laboratory using stream water and sampled sediments. The chemistry of the stream water was analyzed in the field for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and temperature, as well as laboratory analyses via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). We determined the amount of organic material, amorphous material, and total U contents in the sediments. Following the sorption experiments, we analyzed the pH and U concentrations in experimental solutions and determined the distribution coefficients of U for the sediments. The logarithm value of the distribution coefficients of U for amorphous material shows a positive correlation with pH, while the logarithm value of the distribution coefficients of U for organic material is independent of pH (4.7-6.9). Although the logarithm value of the distribution coefficient of U for amorphous material was 0.1-0.5 units larger than the value for organic material, U was effectively removed from the stream water by sorption onto organic material (humic substances and decomposing leaves), because the amount of organic material exceeded that of amorphous material.

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The geochemistry of water near a surficial organic-rich uranium deposit, northeastern Washington State, U.S.A.

Cited by 29 publications

References 26 publications

Uranium in groundwater — Fertilizers versus geogenic sources

Uranium in groundwater — Fertilizers versus geogenic sources

Groundwater geochemistry in the Koongarra ore deposit, Australia (I): Implications for uranium migration.

Uranium sorption onto natural sediments within a small stream in central Japan

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