• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.27-38
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• 2003

Arsenic contamination around Au-Ag mining areas occurs mainly from the oxidation of arsenopyrite which is frequently contained in mine tailings. In weathered tailings, oxidation of sulfide minerals typically results in the formation of abundant ferric (oxy)hydroxides or (oxy)hydroxysulfates near the tailings surface, and arsenic may be associated with these secondary precipitates. In this study, solid phases of arsenic in weathered tailings of some Au-Ag mines were investigated through the SEM/EDS and sequential extraction analyses. The stability of As solid phases and the leaching potential were assessed with the variation of pH and Eh conditions. Oxidation of sulfides in the tailings samples was indicated by depletion of S molar concentrations compared to As and heavy metals. Under XRD examinations, jarosite as an Fe-oxyhydroxysulfate was found in the tailings of Deokeum, Dongil and Dadeok, and scorodite as an As-bearing crystalline mineral was identified from Dadeok which has the highest concentration of As (4.36 wt.%). Beudantite-like phases and some Pb-arsenates were also found under SEM/EDS analysis, and most of As phases were associated with Fe-(oxy)hydroxides and (oxy)hydroxysulfates despite a few arsenopyrite from Samgwang and Gubong. Sequential extraction analysis also showed that As was present predominantly as coprecipitated with Fe hydroxides from Dongil, Dadeok and Myungbong (72∼99%), and as sulfides (58%) and Fe hydroxide-associated forms (40%) from Samgwang and Gubong. In the tailings leaching experiment, As was released with high amounts by the dissolution of As-bearing Fe(oxy)hydroxysulfates in the lowest pH (2.7) conditions of Deokeum, and by desorption under alkaline conditions of Samgwang and Gubong. Higher leaching rates of arsenite(+3) were found under acidic conditions, which pose a higher risk to water quality. Changes in pH and Eh conditions coupled with microbial processes could influence the stabilities of the As solid phases, and thus, time amendments or landfilling of weathered tailings may result in enhanced As mobilization.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.137-147
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• 2018

The aim of this study was to leach penalty elements, such as Bi and As, effectively through microwave leaching of a gold concentrate sample containing penalty elements with nitric acid solution. For this purpose, the time effect of microwave leaching, nitric acid concentration effect, and sample addition effect in a microwave were examined. The experiment, demonstrated that the leaching rate of penalty elements increased as microwave leaching time and nitric acid concentration increased and concentration addition decreased. When a microwave heating experiment was carried out on the concentrate and ore minerals, Bi was removed by as much as 90%, and the phase of arsenopyrite was transformed in the order of arsenopyrite (FeAsS), pyrrhotite (FeS), and hematite ($Fe_2O_3$). When the X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis was carried out with solid residue, elemental sulfur and anglesite were identified. The intensity of the XRD peaks of elemental sulfur and anglesite increased, and the peaks were sharper when the microwave leaching time was 12 min instead of 1 min, the nitric acid concentration was 4 M in rather than 0.5 M, and the concentration addition was 30 g rather than 5 g. This was probably because more elemental sulfur and anglesite were generated in the leaching solution as the leaching efficiency increased. Bi can be leached as valuable elements in the leaching solution through microwave leaching processes while they are released to the environment through a microwave heating processes.

• The Journal of the Petrological Society of Korea
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• v.11 no.3_4
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• pp.259-270
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• 2002

A small granodiorite-quartz monzonitic stock containing sericitic and propylitic alteration assemblages hosts a Cu-W breccia-pipe deposit in the southeastern Cyeongsang basin. The mineralized breccia-pipe contains angular to subangular brecciated fragments of granitic rocks showing clast-supported textures. An assemblage of quartz, tourmalines, sulfide minerals (mainly chalcopyrite, arsenopyrite and pyrrhotite) and calcite was precipitated as a hydrothermal cement between the brecciated fragments. A tourmaline aureole surrounds the breccia pipe. Extensive tourmalinization of the granitic rocks near and within the pipe and no tourmalinization in the sedimentary and volcanic rocks. The tourmalines are marked by Fe-rich, black charcoal-like schorl (80 mol% schorl relative) nearer the schorl-dravite solid solution. The chemical changes in the hydrothermal fluid are reflected by variations in compositional Boning from cores to rims. They generally contain cores with low values of Fe/(Fe+Mg) and high values of Na/(Na+ca) relative to rims. This is because of an increase Fe and Ca contents toward rims. The main trend of these variations is a combination of the exchange vectors Ca(Fe, Mg) $(NaAl)_{- }$ $_1$ and $Fe^{3}^{+}$ $Al_{[-10]}$ $_1$ It is thought that boiling causes the loss of $H_2$ into the vapor phase resulting in the oxidation of Fe in the aqueous phase. pH of the melt would be one of important controlling factors for the tourmaline stability. The tourmalines could be precipitated when the system evolved to the acidic hydrothermal regime as most hydrothermal brines and acidic gases exsolved from the magma. The Ilgwang tourmaline crystallization is products of hypogene orthomagmatic hydrothermal processes that were strongly pipe-controlled.