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Evaluation of Arsenic Availability in Sulfidic Materials from Gold Mining Areas in Brazil

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Abstract

This study is aimed at evaluating the availability and mobility of arsenic in sulfidic materials from gold mining areas in Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Eight extraction media were employed in a sequential extraction scheme, as follows: exchangeable As; strongly adsorbed As; As coprecipitated with acid-volatile sulfide, carbonates, MnO2, and Al2O3; As coprecipitated with amorphous iron; As linked to crystalline iron oxide; As coprecipitated with silicates; As coprecipitated with amorphous FeS2 and As2S3, and residual As, which was determined by GFAAS. Results demonstrated that in spite of differences in arsenic concentrations, the availability of the metalloid was found to be low for all samples. In general, arsenic was found in less available forms. Nevertheless, most of the arsenic in the environment is retained in the fractions 3, 4, and 5 which are susceptible to dissolution in acid medium, which in turn might be due to oxidation of the sulfide present in the samples.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank CNPq and the Doctoral Research and Productivity Scholarships, to FAPEMIG and PRPq/UFMG, for the financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. General Education, Unit Curvelo, Federal Center of Technological Education of Minas Gerais, 35790-000, Curvelo, Minas Gerais, Brazil

    Renato Pereira de Andrade

  2. Soils Department, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, PH Rolfs Avenue, 36570-000, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil

    Jaime Wilson Vargas de Mello

  3. Chemistry Department, ICEX, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, CP 702, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

    Cláudia Carvalhinho Windmöller & José Bento Borba da Silva

  4. Institute of Geosciences, University of Campinas, 51 Pandiá Calógeras Street, 13083-870, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil

    Bernardino Ribeiro Figueiredo

Authors
  1. Renato Pereira de Andrade
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  2. Jaime Wilson Vargas de Mello
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  3. Cláudia Carvalhinho Windmöller
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  4. José Bento Borba da Silva
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  5. Bernardino Ribeiro Figueiredo
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Correspondence to Renato Pereira de Andrade.

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de Andrade, R.P., de Mello, J.W.V., Windmöller, C.C. et al. Evaluation of Arsenic Availability in Sulfidic Materials from Gold Mining Areas in Brazil. Water Air Soil Pollut 223, 4679–4686 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-012-1224-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-012-1224-3

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