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Arsenic waste management : Kinetics of arsenic release from orpiment

British Columbia Mine Reclamation Symposium; University of British Columbia. Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering

Preventing arsenic release from mine waste materials, i.e., source control, is the preferable option for controlling arsenic discharge to the environment. Designing effective source control requires comprehensive knowledge on the leaching behavior of arsenic from its bearing minerals. To determine the release kinetics of arsenic, we carried out leaching experiments using crystalline arsenic trisulfide known as orpiment as one model arsenic sulfide mineral. The effect of pH, the dissolved oxygen concentration, and temperature on the release rate of arsenic was investigated using a fully controlled batch reactor system. In general, the arsenic release rate increased with pH, the dissolved oxygen concentration, and temperature. A kinetic equation was derived from the leaching data to describe the release rate as a function of the three leaching parameters. The kinetic equation derived serves as a useful tool for pinpointing the key factors that can be manipulated to prevent arsenic release from mine waste materials.

Conference Paper

eng

Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library

10.14288/1.0402428

Applied Science, Faculty of; Materials Engineering, Department of

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