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Agronomy of ‘Metal Crops’ Used in Agromining

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Agromining: Farming for Metals

Part of the book series: Mineral Resource Reviews ((MIRERE))

Abstract

Agromining involves growing selected hyperaccumulator plant species (‘metal crops’) on low-grade ore bodies or mineralized (e.g. ultramafic) soils, or anthropogenic metal-rich materials (e.g. contaminated soils, mine spoils, industrial sludge), followed by harvesting and incineration of the biomass to produce a ‘bio-ore’ from which target metals or salts may be recovered. This chapter begins with an introduction section that clarifies the concepts of phytomining and agromining. We then acknowledge the role of agronomy in enhancing the metal yield of ‘metal crops’, with emphasis on Ni. Highlighted are the selection of sites section, potential agromining substrates and discussion of the role of metal phytoavailability in economic agromining. We present the criteria for selecting potential ‘metal crops’ and possible regions where these species are most suited for successful agromining operations. We then discuss thoroughly the experimentally demonstrated soil and plant management practices that have been proposed to increase biomass and the metal yield of ‘metal crops’. We report also on progress of the pioneering tropical agronomic trials. Finally, we provide a conclusion and present an outlook on the agronomy of ‘metal crops’ that may be used in agromining.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation, Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

    Philip Nti Nkrumah

  2. Chaney Environmental, Beltsville, MD, 20705, USA

    Rufus L. Chaney

  3. Laboratoire Sols et Environnement, UMR 1120, Université de Lorraine, INRAE, 54518, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France

    Jean Louis Morel

Authors
  1. Philip Nti Nkrumah
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  2. Rufus L. Chaney
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  3. Jean Louis Morel
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Correspondence to Philip Nti Nkrumah .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation, Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Antony van der Ent

  2. School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia

    Alan J.M. Baker

  3. Laboratoire Sols et Environnement, Université de Lorraine, INRAE, Nancy, France

    Guillaume Echevarria

  4. Laboratoire Réactions et Génie des Procédés, Université de Lorraine, CNRS, Nancy, France

    Marie-Odile Simonnot

  5. Laboratoire Sols et Environnement, Université de Lorraine, INRAE, Nancy, France

    Jean Louis Morel

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Nkrumah, P.N., Chaney, R.L., Morel, J.L. (2021). Agronomy of ‘Metal Crops’ Used in Agromining. In: van der Ent, A., Baker, A.J., Echevarria, G., Simonnot, MO., Morel, J.L. (eds) Agromining: Farming for Metals. Mineral Resource Reviews. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58904-2_2

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