Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

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 Tar Creek site in Oklahoma http://ouwatercenter.blogspot.com/.

Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive
treatment
technologies

2
 Tar Creek site in Oklahoma http://ouwatercenter.blogspot.com/.

Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Assignment

Select a picture you like

Go to an assigned breakout room

Describe about your picture to your group (2 minutes)

Get some comments about your picture from the group (30 seconds)

Repeat the process with all group members

Once you are done, come to the main class room

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 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Passive treatment processes for AMD rely on natural biological, geochemical, and physical
processes to improve water quality.
• Natural Wetlands
• Constructed Wetlands
Sedimentation ponds and aeration units
Aerobic wetlands
Biological Anaerobic wetlands
Compost wetlands
Reducing and Alkalinity Producing System (RAPS)
• Bioreactors
• Chemical Passive Treatment
Geochemical Anoxic Limestone Drains (ALD)
Oxic Limestone Drains and Open Limestone Channels (OLC)
• Successive Alkalinity Producing Systems (SAPS)
Combined • Permeable Reactive Barrier
• Other Passive Treatment options 4
Tremblay & Davé, (2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Different mechanisms
• Precipitation of metal hydroxides or oxides

• Microbial sulphate reduction forming metal sulphides

• Microbial reduction of dissolved Fe3+ and Fe hydroxides

• Complexation and adsorption onto organic matter

• Adsorption of metals by iron hydroxides

• Ion exchange with other cations on negatively charged sites

• Direct uptake by plants

• Neutralization by carbonates

• Attachment to substrate materials

• Adsorption and exchange of metals onto algal mats

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• Filtering suspended and colloidal material from water (modified from Younger et al. 2002 and Gusek & Figueroa 2009)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Acidity and Alkalinity in mine water treatment

Acidity is a measure of a water’s capacity to neutralize additions of a base
Main contributors-
protons and metal ions that has potential to generate protons by hydrolysis

Alkalinity is a measure of a water’s ability to neutralize acid additions

Main contributors-
alkaline materials such as calcitic limestones and microbial sulfate reduction

Both acidity and alkalinity are generally expressed as a CaCO3 equivalent mass https://de.123rf.com/photo_114627608
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converted to concentration or loading.
(Kirby and Cravotta 2005a, b)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

How to select an appropriate passive system ?

• Water chemistry
• Flow rate
• Local topography
• Site characteristics
• Other important parameters

DO : Dissolved Oxygen
RAPS : Reducing and alkalinity producing system
ALD : Anoxic limestone drain
OLC : Open Limestone channel 7
SRB : Sulfur reducing bacteria
(Modified after Hedin et al. 1994a and Skousen et al 1998, 2017)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

How to select an appropriate passive system ?

• Water chemistry
• Flow rate
• Local topography
• Site characteristics
• Other important parameters

DO : Dissolved Oxygen
RAPS : Reducing and alkalinity producing system
ALD : Anoxic limestone drain
OLC : Open Limestone channel 8
SRB : Sulfur reducing bacteria
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Why passive treatment should be considered?
Overall treatment costs are much less than compared to an active system with comparable treatment efficiency.

Passive systems are very robust and hard to destroy physically, whereas active systems are prone to be subject to
vandalism or even equipment/metal theft or “salvaging” (particularly relevant in economies where people are poor).

Maintenance of a passive system is easy and requires no professional personnel, which creates possibilities for
community involvement at the actual site.

The economic structure of passive systems facilitates external funding. Donors can easier be motivated to support a
project with relatively finite costs (system implementation) rather than to support a project where financial input has
to be distributed over 20 years or more (system operation).

Many passive systems, (e.g. in particular wetland type systems), can add significant amenity value to an area and
contribute to the tourist or community usage value of an area as well as to the ecological/biodiversity value by
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providing a wildlife habitat.
Tremblay & Davé, (2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Natural wetlands

• Water-saturated soils or sediments

• Supporting vegetation adapted to reducing

conditions in their rhizosphere

• Neutralization of any acidity and the

removal (precipitation) of metals

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 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Aerobic constructed wetlands
• Engineered structures - control flow
direction

• Barrier of waterproof sediment or synthetic

liners- prevent seepage

• Hydraulic retention time and water level and

soil- support the roots of the vegetation

• higher the iron content - more aeration

steps

• Aeration may be further enhanced by

cascades, riffles or falls between individual 11

cells Modified from Wildeman et al. 1993, Kadlec & Wallace 2008, mineclosure.gtk © GTK 2014
Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Aerobic constructed wetlands
Horizontal flow wetlands Vertical flow wetlands

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(Modified from Wallace & Knight 2006, Vymazal 2010, mineclosure.gtk © GTK 2014)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Anaerobic constructed wetlands

• Based on microbial sulphate reduction

• Water flows mainly subsurface

• Anoxic conditions due to high BOD

• Most effective at pH ~2.5

• Water quality is further improved by filtration

of suspended solids and colloids

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(Modified from mineclosure.gtk © GTK 2014)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Anoxic limestone drains (ALD)
• Most suitable for net acidic mine waters
with low DO, Fe3+ and Al3+

• Clogging is limited to the first 10-15% of

the limestone bed (Younger et al.,2002)

• Average life span 15- 20 years

(Wolkersdorfer, 2008)

• Limestones are always flooded to

maintain the anoxic condition

• Burying the cells can increase the pCO2

level (MEND, 1996) 14

The cross section of ALD system. (Adapted from e.g. Hedin et al. 1994a, Skousen et al. 1998). mineclosure.gtk © GTK
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Passive treatment technologies

Reducing and alkalinity producing systems (RAPS/SAPS)

First remove DO by aerobic microbes

In anoxic conditions
Fe3+ Fe2+

Anaerobic microbes
Al3+  Al(OH)3
SO42-  S2-

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The cross section of RAPS system- from mineclosure.gtk © GTK

 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Constructed Wetland system at the Pöhla Mine

Located in the Ore Mountains in South-Eastern Germany

The mine water treatment plant was installed in 1995 by WISMUT. (tailored to the specific properties of mine water)

It was based on a
1. Selective precipitation/-flocculation process (uranium adsorption on a polymeric flocculent)
2. Co-precipitation of radium
3. Arsenic removal via FeCl3
4. Iron and manganese oxidation
5. Sludge dewatering and disposal in dry parts of the mine

Soon after the commissioning of the plant, it became clear that for long-term treatment, a passive or semi-
passive alternative is desirable. After the installation of a pilot treatment plant, the concept for a full-scale
application was developed and implemented.
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(Kunze et al. 2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Constructed Wetland system at the Pöhla Mine

Site conditions
• The water is net-alkaline
• Problematic concentrations were U, Ra, As, Fe, and Mn.
• Since flooding was completed in 1995, the concentrations constantly decreased, so after 10 years elements
significantly exceeding the discharge limits are iron, arsenic and radium.
• Geochemical modelling predicted that treatment should be continued for another 15 years.
• Conventional treatment cost is about 4 EUR/m3 at flow rates around 17 m3/h.

Main components of the Pölha mine effluent (Kunze et al. 2007) 17

 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Constructed Wetland system at the Pöhla Mine

Treatment solution
A possible treatment system at the site had to remove iron, radium and arsenic from the mine water.
To accomplish these goals, a constructed wetland system preceded by an aeration cascade was identified to
be the most suitable approach.

The structure of the treatment system:

1. Aeration cascade
2. Settlement pond
3. Pond with floating mats
4. Pond with Characeae algae
5. Polishing pond
6. Adsorption filters
- aerate the water
- iron precipitates (Arsenic strongly binds to iron precipitates)
- to provide sufficient colonization area for microorganisms,
- accumulating considerably high radium
- final pH adjustment and polishing
- intercept radium and granulated ferric hydroxide for reducing
arsenic concentration

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(Kunze et al. 2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Constructed Wetland system at the Pöhla Mine

Treatment solution

1. Aeration cascade
2. Settlement pond
3. Pond with floating mats
4. Pond with Characeae algae
5. Polishing pond
6. Adsorption filters

Two parallel lines that work

independent from each
other.
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(Kunze et al. 2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Constructed Wetland system at the Pöhla Mine

Treatment solution

1. Aeration cascade
2. Settlement pond
3. Pond with floating mats
4. Pond with Characeae algae
5. Polishing pond
6. Adsorption filters

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(Kunze et al. 2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Constructed Wetland system at the Pöhla Mine

Treatment solution

1. Aeration cascade
2. Settlement pond
3. Pond with floating mats
4. Pond with Characeae algae
5. Polishing pond
6. Adsorption filters

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Tremblay & Davé, (2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Constructed Wetland system at the Pöhla Mine

Perfomance

On a yearly basis, the system manages to remove 1400 kg of iron, 300 kg of arsenic and 600 MBq of radium.
Operating cost for the first years of passive operation: approximately 2 EUR/m3
Operating cost for long-term, steady passive operation: approximately 1 - 1.50 EUR/m3

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(Kunze et al. 2007)
 Mine water 1 - Theory and application

Additional videos for widen your knowledge about AMD treatment

• Extracting Rare Earth Elements from Acid Mine Drainage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJYajqhW7-g

• Proven Acid Mine Drainage Treatment Technology

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRqY7cvyoNg

• Bates Hunter Mine | Water Treatment Plant Process

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rMBWr9-yjM

• CSIR Mine Water Treatment Technology

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnDn-nu26OY&list=PLaUEK1LHD8aay-TQIy7W5SiGyAM2JrY3j&index=1

• P2W - Wastewater Treatment Solutions for the Mining Industry

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piCgiutdVwE&list=PLaUEK1LHD8aay-TQIy7W5SiGyAM2JrY3j&index=2

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Questions?