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Geochemical stability of potentially toxic elements in porphyry copper-mine tailings from Chile as linked to ecological and human health risks assessment

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Abstract

The geochemical stability, in terms of potential mobility and derived ecological and human health risks of potentially toxic elements (PTEs), of diverse fresh and old porphyry Cu-mine tailings from Chile was assessed through an integrated methodology comprising four interrelated investigation levels: (1) chemical composition and contamination degree of tailings by PTEs, (2) mineralogical characterization by X-ray diffraction and quantitative automated mineralogy analysis by scanning electron microscopy (QEMSCAN®), (3) partitioning and potential mobility of PTEs within the tailings by a sequential extraction procedure (SEP) and leaching tests, and (4) ecological risk assessment (ERA) and human health risk assessment (HHRA). According to pollution indices, Cu, As, Pb, and Mo are most concerning PTEs present in the tailings. SEP shows that major portion of the PTEs are strongly fixed as residual fraction, and thus are poorly mobilizable and bioavailable. Among the PTEs, Cu, As, and Mo were identified as the PTEs most prone to mobilization. Leaching tests show that a low fraction of PTEs is water-leachable. Seawater enhances Mn and As leaching, while process water increases the leaching of Cu, Mn, and Mo. Phosphate particularly promotes leaching of As and Cu, whereas it does not mobilize or even immobilize Pb in the tailings. ERA suggests that mainly old tailings pose a very high potential risk for ecological receptors (PERI = 663–3356), mostly due to Cu and As. HHRA indicates that the old tailings pose higher potential non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks, while the risk decreases in the order ingestion > dermal > inhalation for both children and adults. Non carcinogenic and carcinogenic HHRA points to As as the main PTE of concern via ingestion pathway in the tailings. Overall, the results revealed that particularly old tailings, containing mixed slag-tailings, pose considerable risks to the environment and human health due to potential PTEs mobilization and this aspect requires scrutiny for proper tailings management, including storage, sealing, and eventual tailings reprocessing and/or site rehabilitation after closure.

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Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the GEA (UdeC) laboratory staff, especially to Evelyn Novoa and Sebastián Benedetti, their contribution in the execution of SEP extractions and element analyses. The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support to SMI-ICE-Chile provided by the Chilean Government through the International Centre of Excellence program administered by CORFO as Project Number 13CEI2-21844.

Funding

Financial support to SMI-ICE-Chile provided by the Chilean Government through the International Centre of Excellence program administered by CORFO as Project Number 13CEI2–21844.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sustainable Minerals Institute–International Centre of Excellence Chile (SMI-ICE Chile), The University of Queensland, Australia. Av. Apoquindo 2929, 3rd Floor Of. 301, Las Condes, Santiago, Chile

    David A. Rubinos

  2. Instituto de Geología Económica Aplicada (GEA), University of Concepción, Chile. Barrio Universitario S/N, Concepción, Chile

    Óscar Jerez & Ursula Kelm

  3. Faculty of Earth Sciences, Shahrood University of Technology, Shahrood, Iran

    Giti Forghani

  4. Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation, Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, Level 5, Sir James Foots Building (47A), St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia

    Mansour Edraki

Authors
  1. David A. Rubinos
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  2. Óscar Jerez
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  3. Giti Forghani
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  4. Mansour Edraki
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  5. Ursula Kelm
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Contributions

DAR: conceptualization, methodology, investigation, data curation, writing—original draft; writing—review and editing; visualization. ÓJ: formal analysis, Review and editing. GF: formal analysis, investigation, writing—review and editing. ME: writing—review and editing, supervision, funding acquisition. UK: conceptualization, writing—review and editing, resources, supervision, project administration, funding acquisition.

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Correspondence to David A. Rubinos.

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Rubinos, D.A., Jerez, Ó., Forghani, G. et al. Geochemical stability of potentially toxic elements in porphyry copper-mine tailings from Chile as linked to ecological and human health risks assessment. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 57499–57529 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-12844-7

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