Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Enrichment of trace elements in the clay size fraction of mining soils

  • Contamination related to anthropic activities. Characterization and remediation
  • Published:
Environmental Science and Pollution Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Reactive waste dumps with sulfide minerals promote acid mine drainage (AMD), which results in water and soil contamination by metals and metalloids. In these systems, contamination is regulated by many factors, such as mineralogical composition of soil and the presence of sorption sites on specific mineral phases. So, the present study dedicates itself to understanding the distribution of trace elements in different size fractions (<2-mm and <2-μm fractions) of mining soils and to evaluate the relationship between chemical and mineralogical composition. Cerdeirinha and Penedono, located in Portugal, were the waste dumps under study. The results revealed that the two waste dumps have high degree of contamination by metals and arsenic and that these elements are concentrated in the clay size fraction. Hence, the higher degree of contamination by toxic elements, especially arsenic in Penedono as well as the role of clay minerals, jarosite, and goethite in retaining trace elements has management implications. Such information must be carefully thought in the rehabilitation projects to be planned for both waste dumps.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Acosta JA, Faz A, Arocena JM, Debela F, Martínez-Martínez S (2009) Distribution of metals in soil particle size fractions and its implication to risk assessment of playgrounds in Murcia City (Spain). Geoderma 149:101–109

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Acosta JA, Martínez-Martínez S, Arocena J (2011) Accumulations of major and trace elements in particle size fractions of soils on eight different parent materials. Geoderma 161:30–42

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Arocena JM, Rutherford PM, Dudas MJ (1995) Heterogeneous distribution of trace elements and fluorine in phosphogypsum by-product. Sci Total Environ 162:149–160

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Augustithis S (1995) Atlas of the textural patterns of ore minerals and metallogenic process. Walter de Gryter & Co, Berlin, 669p

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Bigham JM, Fitzpatrick RW, Schulze DG (2002) Iron oxides. In: Dixon JB, Schulze DG (eds) Soil mineralogy with environmental applications, vol 7, SSSA Book Series. SSSA, Madison, pp 323–367

    Google Scholar 

  • Cox R, Lowe DR, Cullers RL (1995) The influence of sediment recycling and basement composition on evolution of mud rock chemistry in the southwestern United States. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 59:2919–2940

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fernández-Caliani JC, Barba C, González I, Galán E (2008) Heavy metal pollution in soils around the abandoned mine sites of the Iberian Pyrite Belt (Southwest Spain). Water Air Soil Pollut. doi:10.1007/s11270-008-9905-7

    Google Scholar 

  • Gomes P (2011) Processos de reabilitação natural em escombreiras de minas abandonadas - estudo de casos. MSc thesis, Univ. Porto, Porto, 121 p

  • Hardy M, Cornu S (2006) Location of natural trace elements in silty soils using particle-size fractionation. Geoderma 133:295–308

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kabata-Pendias A, Pendias H (1984) Trace elements in soils and plants. CRC Press, Boca Raton, 315 p

    Google Scholar 

  • Kohut C, Warren C (2002) Chlorites. In: Dixon JB, Schulze DG (eds) Soil mineralogy with environmental applications, vol 7, SSSA Book Series. SSSA Madison, WI, pp 531–553

    Google Scholar 

  • Kataeva MN, Alexeeva-Popova NV, Drozdova IV, Beljaeva AI (2004) Chemical composition of soils and plant species in the Polar Urals as influenced by rock type. Geoderma 122:257–268

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Luo XS, Yo S, Li XD (2011) Distribution, availability, and sources of trace metals in different particle size fractions of urban soils in Hong Kong: implications for assessing the risk to human health. Environ Pollut 159:1317–1326

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Malpas J, Duzgoren-Aydin NS, Aydin A (2001) Behavior of chemical elements during weathering of pyroclastic rocks, Hong Kong. Environ Int 26:359–368

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Martínez-Martínez S, Faz Á, Acosta JA, Carmona DM, Zornoza R, BüYükkiliç A, Kabas S (2010) Heavy metals distribution in soil particle size fractions from a mining area in the southeast of Spain. 19th World Congress of Soil Science, Soil Solutions for a Changing World. Brisbane, Australia

  • Moore JN, Brook EJ, Johns C (1989) Grain size partitioning of metals in contaminated, coarse-grained river floodplain sediment: Clark Fork River, Montana, U.S.A. Environ Geol Water Sci 14:107–115

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ni S, Ju Y, Hou Q, Wang S, Liu Q, Wua Y, Xiao L (2009) Enrichment of heavy metal elements and their adsorption on iron oxides during carbonate rock weathering process. Prog Nat Sci 19:1133–1139

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Santos Oliveira JM, Farinha Ramos J, Matos JX, Ávila P, Rosa C, Canto Machado MJ, Daniel FS, Martins L, Machado Leite MR (2002) Diagnóstico ambiental das principais áreas mineiras degradadas do país. Boletim de Minas Lisboa 39(2):67–85

    Google Scholar 

  • Silva LFO, Vallejuelo SF, Martinez-Arkarazo I, Castro K, Oliveira MLS, Sampaio CH, Brum IAS, Leão FB, Taffarel SR, Madariaga JM (2013) Study of environmental pollution and mineralogical characterization of sediment rivers Brazilian coal mining acid drainage. Sci Total Environ 447:169–178

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sposito G (1989) The chemistry of soils. Oxford University Press, New York, 277 p

    Google Scholar 

  • Sarmiento AM, Caraballo MA, Sanchez-Rodas D, Nieto JM, Parviainen A (2012) Dissolved and particulate metals and arsenic species mobility along a stream affected by Acid Mine Drainage in the Iberian Pyrite Belt (SW Spain). Appl Geochem 27:1944–1952

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Thornton I (1996) Impacts of mining on the environment: some local, regional and global issues. Appl Geochem 11:355–661

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Valente T (2004) Modelos de Caracterização de Impacte Ambiental para Escombreiras Reactivas; Equilíbrio e evolução de resíduos de actividade extractiva. PhD thesis, Univ. Minho. Braga. 301 p

  • Valente T, Leal Gomes C (2009) Occurrence, properties and pollution potential of environmental minerals in acid mine drainage. Sci Total Environ 407:1135–1152

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Valente T, Gomes P, Pamplona J (2011) Natural remediation of mine waste-dumps. Mapping the evolution of vegetation cover in distinctive geochemical and mineralogical environments, Geophysical Research Abstracts, Vol. 13, EGU2011–4230; EGU General Assembly 2011

  • Valente T, Gomes P, Pamplona J, de la Torre ML (2012) Natural remediation of mine waste-dumps – evolution of the vegetation cover in distinctive geochemical environments. J Geochem Explor 123:152–161

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Valente T., Grande J.A, de la Torre M.L., Santisteban M., Cerón, J.C., (2013) - Mineralogy and environmental relevance of AMD-precipitates from the Tharsis mines, Iberian Pyrite Belt (SW, Spain). Appl Geochem, 39, 11–25.

  • Wong CSC, Li XD, Thornton I (2006) Urban environmental geochemistry of trace metals. Environ Pollut 142:1–16

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Earth Sciences (ICT), Pole of the University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal

    Patrícia Gomes, Teresa Valente & M. Amália Sequeira Braga

  2. CIPIMS, Universidad de Huelva, Campus de la Rábida, Huelva, Spain

    Patrícia Gomes, Teresa Valente, J. A. Grande & M. L. de la Torre

Authors
  1. Patrícia Gomes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Teresa Valente
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. M. Amália Sequeira Braga
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. J. A. Grande
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. M. L. de la Torre
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Teresa Valente.

Additional information

Responsible editor: Zhihong Xu

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Gomes, P., Valente, T., Braga, M.A.S. et al. Enrichment of trace elements in the clay size fraction of mining soils. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23, 6039–6045 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4236-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4236-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation