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Evaluation of acidity in late Permian outcrop coals and its association with endemic fluorosis in the border area of Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan in China

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Abstract

The junction area of Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan provinces is the heaviest coal-burning endemic fluorosis zones in China. To better understand the pathogenicity of endemic fluorosis in this area, 87 coal samples from the late Permian outcrop or semi-outcrop coal seams were collected in eight counties of the junction area of Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan provinces. The total fluorine and sulfate content, etc. in the coal was determined using combustion-hydrolysis/fluoride-ion-selective electrode method and ion chromatography, respectively. The results show that the total fluorine concentrations in the samples ranged from 44 to 382 µg g−1, with an average of 127 µg g−1. The average pH of the coals is 5.03 (1.86–8.62), and the sulfate content varied from 249 to 64,706 µg g−1 (average 7127 µg g−1). In addition, the coals were medium- and high-sulfur coals, with sulfur mass fraction ranging from 0.08 to 13.41%. By heating the outcrop coals, HF release from the coal was verified quantitatively without exception, while simulated combustion directly confirmed the release of sulfuric acid (H2SO4). The acid in coal may be in the form of acidic sulfate (\({\text{HSO}}_{4}^{ - }\)/H2SO4) because of a positive relationship between pH and \(p\left( {{\text{SO}}_{4}^{2 - } } \right)\) in the acidic coal. The possible reaction mechanism would be that a chemical reaction between the acid (H2SO4 or \({\text{HSO}}_{4}^{ - }\)) and fluorine in the coal occurred, thereby producing hydrogen fluoride (HF), which would be the chemical form of fluorine released from coal under relatively mild conditions. The unique chemical and physical property of HF may bring new insight into the pathogenic mechanism of coal-burning endemic fluorosis. The phenomenon of coal-burning fluorosis is not limited to the study area, but is common in southwest China and elsewhere. Further investigation is needed to determine whether other endemic fluorosis areas are affected by this phenomenon.

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the editor and anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments and suggestions. This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41371449). Special thanks to Yin Zhang, Yue Xie, and Wenhai Zhang for their support with underground sampling and soil collection.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Coal Resources and Safety Mining, China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing, 100083, China

    Handong Liang

  2. College of Geoscience and Surveying Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing, 100083, China

    Xiuping Hong & Handong Liang

  3. Sichuan Institute of Coal Field Geological Engineering Exploration and Designing, Chengdu, 610072, China

    Yufa Zhang

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  1. Xiuping Hong
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Correspondence to Handong Liang.

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Hong, X., Liang, H. & Zhang, Y. Evaluation of acidity in late Permian outcrop coals and its association with endemic fluorosis in the border area of Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan in China. Environ Geochem Health 40, 1093–1109 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-017-9990-x

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