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Dissolution of harmful trace elements from coal and the environmental risk to mine water utilization

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Abstract

Under the pressure of water shortages, coal mine water has been allocated as a national water resource in China. However, the existence of harmful trace elements (HTEs) in coal mine water causes environmental risks and health concerns over its reuse. Through a lixiviation experiment, the dominant factors affecting the dissolution of HTEs in coal were simulated and analyzed, and the environmental risks of HTEs in coal mine water in China were evaluated for the first time. The average dissolved content levels of HTEs from coal were Mn > Cu > Zn > Ni > Ba > Cr > Co > V > Mo > Se > U > Pb > Cd, and the average maximum dissolution rates were Ni > Co > Mo > Zn > Cu > Cd > Mn > Se > Ba > Cr > U > Pb > V. Oxidation–reduction potential (Eh) and pH are the dominant factors controlling HTE dissolution. Higher oxygen exposure levels induce Eh and pH development, resulting in more HTE dissolution. This study constructed the dissolution potential index (FC) of HTEs from coal. Based on the results of the FC model, the areas with the highest migration potential and environmental risk of HTEs from coal seams to mine water are located in southern China, especially in the southwest, followed by areas of eastern Inner Mongolia and Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces. The corresponding risks in other regions are relatively low; thus, mine water utilization remains an effective option. This study provides an effective reference for the analysis of HTE enrichment in coal mine water and an evaluation of its safe utilization.

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Data availability

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

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Acknowledgements

We appreciate the comments and suggestions from anonymous reviewers who can greatly improve this paper.

Funding

This research was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2017YFF0206703) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2021YJSDC10).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Geoscience and Surveying Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing), Beijing, 100083, China

    Qingyi Cao, Liu Yang & Yahui Qian

  2. Sichuan Water Conservancy Vocational College, Chengdu, 611230, China

    Siyao Chen

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  1. Qingyi Cao
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  2. Liu Yang
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  3. Yahui Qian
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  4. Siyao Chen
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Contributions

Qingyi Cao: data curation, formal analysis, project administration, writing — original draft and editing, conceptualization, methodology. Liu Yang: funding acquisition, supervision. Yahui Qian: investigation. Siyao Chen: investigation.

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Correspondence to Liu Yang.

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Cao, Q., Yang, L., Qian, Y. et al. Dissolution of harmful trace elements from coal and the environmental risk to mine water utilization. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 7786–7800 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-22530-x

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