• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.321-329
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• 2012

Laboratory tests for measuring absorption, porosity, P-wave velocity and uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) were performed to examine weathering characteristics of ilmenite by microorganism. Physical property changes were quantitatively estimated with comparing culture period on the condition of abiotic oxidation without microorganism and biooxidation with microorganism. As a result, the measured pH during 45 days was distributed in the range from 3.82 to 4.26, on the other hand, biooxidation showed the range from 2.20 to 2.57. The measured absorption according to microorganism and culture period represented 0.052% at final stage in the case of abiotic oxidation and 0.073% in the case of biooxidation. Porosity showed 0.206% at final stage in the case of abiotic oxidation and 0.281% in the case of biooxidation. In general, the values by biooxidation showed higher than that by abiotic oxidation. Change range of P-wave velocity with culture period showed that the measured value as 1410 m/s at final stage in the case of biooxidation was lower than 1886 m/s of that in the case of abiotic oxidation. The UCS was decreased with increasing culture period in all specimens and represented 241.1 MPa at final stage in the case of abiotic oxidation and 140.0 MPa in the case of bioxidation. In conclusion, it implies that influence of physical property on ilmenite by biooxidation related with microorganism was larger than that by abiotic oxidation.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
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• 2001.10a
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• pp.159-164
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• 2001

A novel fluidized-bed reactor was designed and installed for bioleaching in a semi-continuous way, by which a process for bioleaching-cyanidation of Guangxi Jinya refractory gold arsenical concentrate was studied. An arsenic extraction rate reaches 82.5% after 4-day batch biooxidation of the concentrate under the optimized condition of pH 2.0, ftrric ion concentration 6.5g/L and pulp concentration 10%. And leaching rate of gold in the following gold cyanidation is over 90%. The parameters of three series fluid-bed reactors exhibit stability during the semi-continuous bioleaching of the concentrate. Arsenic in the concentrate can be got rid of 91% after 6-day leaching. Even after 4 days, 82% of arsenic extraction rate was still obtained. The recovery rates of gold are 92% and 87.5% respectively in cyaniding the above bioleached residues. The results will provide a base for further commercial production of gold development.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.331-346
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• 2010

This study was carried out to leach valuable metals from galena using indigenous bacteria with no optimum pH conditions at room temperature. Even in these conditions, the rod-shaped indigenous bacteria, ranging from $0.4{\times}0.2{\mu}m$ to $0.5{\times}1.7{\mu}m$, were attached to the surface of the galena. For the 19 days of the bioleaching experiment, the content of Ph, Fe, Zn ions was found to be 347, 222 and 1.7 times higher than that of the control leaching agent, respectively. Numerous hexagonal column crystals were observed on the surface of galena. Those crystals may be formed from the biooxidation of galena by the indigenous bacteria. XRD analysis showed the peaks of anglesite observed in the bioleached galena. It is expected that more valuable elements can be leached out of the galena, if the bacteria is used under optimum pH and temperature conditions in future bioleaching experiments.