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Item type:Publication, Dissolution kinetics and solubilities of copper sulfides in cyanide and hydrogen peroxide leaching: applications to increase selective extractions(Elsevier, 2021-11-01)Accurate quantification of secondary and primary sulfide minerals is fundamental for resource evaluation, ore processing, and long-term sustainability of mining operations. In addition to visual mapping and automated mineral quantification, chemical analysis can also be harnessed to characterize the mineralogy of ore deposits. By evaluating the conditions in which certain minerals can be selectively dissolved from others, a chemical evaluation could provide geochemical speciation data of low-abundance minerals, such as copper/iron sulfides present in low-grade copper ores. The selective dissolution of copper sulfide minerals is, however, understudied. Here, we evaluate the use of potential selective dissolution conditions to differentiate supergene copper sulfides from hypogene copper sulfides. By characterizing the dissolution kinetics of chalcocite, covellite, bornite, enargite, chalcopyrite, and pyrite concentrates, we found that alkaline cyanidation (and not hydrogen peroxide or acid leaching in the presence of oxidizing agents) selectively dissolves supergene copper sulfides, which can be applied in a sequential extraction scheme to estimate the sulfide mineralogy of tailings samples. Cyanide completely dissolved chalcocite and covellite within 5–15 min, whereas dissolution in acid oxidative media only partially dissolved copper sulfides. Pyrite, chalcopyrite, enargite, and bornite under 0.5% KCN leaching (1 mg/mL) for 10 min showed approximately 1, 10, 30, and 40% of copper recovery, respectively. Cyanide leaching applied in sequential extractions of porphyry copper tailings samples from the Piuquenes impoundment, La Andina, Chile, improved the selective dissolution of secondary sulfides compared to a previously proposed hydrogen peroxide dissolution method, thus allowing their differentiation from primary sulfide minerals. The selective leaching of supergene sulfides by cyanidation provides a cheap and efficient method to estimate the copper sulfide mineralogy in copper ores, facilitating the sustainability and resource evaluation of mining operations. - Some of the metrics are blocked by yourconsent settings
Item type:Publication, Release of trace elements during bioreductive dissolution of magnetite from metal mine tailings: potential impact on marine environments(Elsevier, 2021-09-20)Adverse impacts of mine tailings on water and sediments quality are major worldwide environmental problems. Due to the environmental issues associated with the deposition of mine tailings on land, a controversial discussed alternative is submarine tailings disposal (STD). However, Fe(III) bioreduction of iron oxides (e.g., magnetite) in the tailings disposed might cause toxic effects on coastal environments due to the release of different trace elements (TEs) contained in the oxides. To study the extent and kinetics of magnetite bioreduction under marine conditions and the potential release of TEs, a number of batch experiments with artificial seawater (pH 8.2) and a marine microbial strain ( Shewanella loihica ) were performed using several magnetite ore samples from different mines and a mine tailings sample. The elemental composition of the magnetite determined in the tailings showed relatively high amounts of TEs (e.g., Mn, Zn, Co) compared with those of the magnetite ore samples (LA-ICP-MS and EMPA analyses). The experiments were conducted at 10 °C in the dark for up to 113 days. Based on the consumption of lactate and production of acetate and aqueous Fe(II) over time, the magnitude of Fe(III) bioreduction was calculated using a geochemical model including Monod kinetics. Model simulations reproduced the release of iron and TEs observed throughout the experiments, e.g., Mn (up to 203 μg L −1 ), V (up to 79 μg L −1 ), As (up to 17 μg L −1 ) and Cu (up to 328 μg L −1 ), suggesting a potential contamination of pore water by STD. Therefore, the results of this study can help to better evaluate the potential impacts of STD.