Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

The Long-Term Fate of Cu2+, Zn2+, and Pb2+ Adsorption Complexes at the Calcite Surface: An X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy Study

Journal Article · · Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta

In this study, the speciation of Zn{sup 2+}, Pb{sup 2+}, and Cu{sup 2+} ions sorbed at the calcite surface was monitored during a 2.5-year reaction period, using extended X-ray absorption spectroscopy to characterize metal speciation on the molecular scale. Experiments were performed using pre-equilibrated calcite-water suspensions of pH 8.3, at metal concentrations below the solubility of metal hydroxide and carbonate precipitates, and at constant metal surface loadings. The EXAFS results indicate that all three metals remained coordinated at the calcite surface as inner-sphere adsorption complexes during the 2.5-year ageing period, with no evidence to suggest slow formation of dilute metal-calcite solid solutions under the reaction conditions employed. All three divalent metals were found to form non-octahedral complexes upon coordination to the calcite surface, with Zn{sup 2+} adsorbing as a tetrahedral complex, Cu{sup 2+} as a Jahn-Teller distorted octahedral complex, and Pb{sup 2+} coordinating as a trigonal- or square-pyramidal surface complex. The non-octahedral configurations of these surface complexes may have hindered metal transfer from the calcite surface into the bulk, where Ca{sup 2+} is in octahedral coordination with respect to first-shell O. The use of pre-equilibrated calcite suspensions, with no net calcite dissolution or precipitation, likely prevented metal incorporation into the lattice as a result of surface recrystallization. The results from this study imply that ageing alone does not increase the stability of Zn{sup 2+}, Pb{sup 2+}, and Cu{sup 2+} partitioning to calcite if equilibrium with the solution is maintained during reaction; under these conditions, these metals are likely to remain available for exchange even after extended sorption times.

Research Organization:
Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) National Synchrotron Light Source
Sponsoring Organization:
Doe - Office Of Science
DOE Contract Number:
AC02-98CH10886
OSTI ID:
914119
Report Number(s):
BNL--78687-2007-JA
Journal Information:
Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, Journal Name: Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta Journal Issue: 11 Vol. 70; ISSN GCACAK; ISSN 0016-7037
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

Sorption of divalent metals on calcite
Journal Article · Sat Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1991 · Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta; (United States) · OSTI ID:5890969

XAFS study of the coordination and local relaxation around Co{sup 2+}, Zn{sup 2+}, Pb{sup 2+}, and Ba{sup 2+} trace elements in calcite
Journal Article · Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 1999 · American Mineralogist · OSTI ID:684591

Dynamic Surface Incorporation of Pb2+ Ions at the Actively Dissolving Calcite (104) Surface
Journal Article · Thu Sep 05 00:00:00 EDT 2024 · Environmental Science and Technology · OSTI ID:2567004