EXAFS of heavy metal coordination in acid mine drainage sediments
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States)
- Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States)
- Stanford Univ., CA (United States)
- Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States)
We use extended x-ray adsorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy to examine the chemical environment of zinc (1-2 wt. %), lead (300-600 ppm) and cadmium (50-200 ppm) in complex acid mine drainage sediments from the Tri-State Mining District (KS, MO, OK). The sediments in streams draining tailings piles and open mine shafts are dominated by quartz or amorphous iron hydroxides; accessory minerals include calcite. The bulk water chemistry is buffered by the limestone geology and is undersaturated with respect to pure heavy metal carbonates and hydroxides. EXAFS spectra of the sediment samples were taken at SSRL with a fluorescence detector at low temperature ({approximately}10 K). Heavy metals do not form pure carbonate or hydroxide phases, nor do they appear to sorb to quartz surfaces. In sediments near the mine source, the metals are present primarily as sulfides, the original host mineral. With increasing distance from the source, second-neighbor backscattering from Fe indicates that the metals leached from the sulfides are taken up with amorphous iron hydroxides.
- OSTI ID:
- 126524
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-950402-; TRN: 95:006086-0508
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 209. American Chemical Society (ACS) national meeting, Anaheim, CA (United States), 2-6 Apr 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of 209th ACS national meeting; PB: 2088 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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