Identification of the Origin and Behaviour of Arsenic in Mine Waste Dumps Using Correlation Analysis: A Case Study Sarcheshmeh Copper Mine

Knowledge of the probable origin and behaviour of arsenic certainly gives valuable insights into thepotential for transfer in the environment and of the risks involved in mining sites. Sequentialextraction analyses are common experiments often used to study the origin and behaviour ofpotentially toxic elements. The method, however, presents some deficiencies, including laborintensiveprocedure, interferences of phases, being impractical for testing large number of samples inheterogeneous environment as well as inability for determining the individual minerals as source orsink terms for toxic elements. This study attempts to determine the origin and behaviour of arsenic inwaste dump using correlation analysis approach. To this end, sixty samples were collected from twowaste dumps at the Sarcheshmeh Copper Mine in Kerman Province, Iran. The statistical results alongwith previous experimental investigations and also sequential extraction experiment revealed thatadsorption on muscovite is the main source, and that oxy hydroxides of iron and manganese are themain adsorbent minerals which control the concentrations of arsenic in the waste dumps of theSarcheshmeh copper mine.

Keywords:

Acid mine drainage , bioavailability , paste pH experiment , sequential extraction analysis