Geology topics

Heather E. Jamieson

Publications and source records attributed to Heather E. Jamieson.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2023

Antimony in mine wastes: Geochemistry, mineralogy, microbiology

Antimony (Sb) is a valuable mined commodity, used mostly in fire retardants, and considered a critical element. It is also a potential environment hazard classed as a carcinogen. Antimony is concentrated in tailings and waste rock from Sb mines as well as other locations, such as precious metal deposits, where Sb is present in the ore but not recovered. This review covers the aqueous geochemistry, isotope chemistry, mineralogy, and microbiology of Sb in the context of mine waste. The primary minerals stibnite and sulfosalts may release Sb in surface and groundwaters and result in contamination of soils, plants, and river sediments. In some cases, Sb mobility is limited by its adsorption and incorporation into Fe (oxyhydr)oxides. At higher Sb concentrations, precipitation of Sb secondary hosts such as tripuhyite (FeSbO 4 , relatively insoluble) and brandholzite (Mg[Sb(OH) 6 ] 2 · 6H 2 O, highly soluble) influence Sb concentrations in water associated with mine waste. Although Sb is nonessential to organisms, microorganisms are involved in oxidation, reduction, and methylation processes that can drive biogeochemical transformations. Limited toxicological information about Sb makes it challenging to establish regulations or guidelines limiting the concentration of Sb. Antimony is frequently associated with arsenic in mine waste, and remediation design is often based on the assumption that both metalloids behave in a similar way. However, new research suggests that in some environments, this is not the case, and Sb should be considered based on its unique biogeochemical behavior.

Economic Geology↗

USGS2020

Antimony mobility during the early stages of stibnite weathering in tailings at the Beaver Brook Sb deposit, Newfoundland

The aqueous speciation and mineralogy of antimony (Sb) in waters and tailings at Beaver Brook antimony deposit have been analyzed to understand Sb mobility during the initial stages of stibnite (Sb2S3) weathering in a near-surface environment. Dissolution of stibnite in oxidizing conditions releases Sb in drainage water and Sb is incorporated into the mineral structures of several secondary minerals. The most abundant Sb host in Beaver Brook tailings is primary stibnite, which dissolves, releasing Sb(III) to the pore water which rapidly oxidizes to Sb¬(V). The maximum concentration of Sb in tailings pore water is 26.4 mg/L and only 0.9% is in form of Sb(III). In all surface water, Sb concentration ranges from 0.01 to 26.1 mg/L (average 9.4 mg/L) and is mostly present in its Sb(V) (98.9 to 99.2 % of total Sb). The secondary minerals containing Sb formed in tailings impoundment, include tripuhyite-like Sb-Fe oxides (FeSbO4) where Sb is an important part of their structure with variable Fe/Sb ratios and Sb concentrations of up to 37.8% by weight (average of 21.7%). These are important Sb host phases in the top 30 cm of tailings. Iron oxides enriched in Sb, such as goethite (FeOOH), where Sb (average of 3.9% by weight) is adsorbed or incorporated in the structure are common but represent less than 1.3 % of the total mass of Sb. The elevated Mg concentrations in tailing ponds and pore water promote the precipitation of brandholzite (Mg[Sb(OH)6]2·6H2O) (in association with gypsum) during dry periods, which is easily dissolved during rainy periods. Brandholzite dissolution may significantly contribute to the concentration of dissolved Sb, together with stibnite dissolution, whereas Sb-Fe oxides are stable in the neutral pH, oxidized surface environment. Arsenic (As) accompanies Sb in all media but its behaviour differs from that of Sb. The source of As is arsenopyrite, which decomposes more slowly than stibnite. This may be due to the formation of oxidation rims on arsenopyrite grains composed of Fe, As, S, Sb and Ca which slow the dissolution, whereas no rims are seen on stibnite. Also, despite similar As and Sb concentration in bulk tailings, the concentration of Sb in drainage water is higher than that of As. In pore water, As(III) is the dominant oxidation state of As suggesting that the oxidation of dissolved As is slower than that of Sb.

Newfoundland↗

USGS2020

Micrometer-scale characterization of solid mine waste aids in closure due diligence

Precious- and base-metal mining often occurs in deposits with high acid-generating potential, resulting in mine waste that contains metals in forms of varying bioavailability, and therefore toxicity. The solids that host these metals are often noncrystalline, nanometer to micrometer in size, or undetectable by readily available analytical techniques (e.g., X-ray diffraction). This analytical shortcoming can pose a challenge when attempting to characterize sources and natural attenuation of metals at a given site, which is a best practice to satisfy closure due diligence. Numerous case studies have shown that efforts to characterize mine waste at multiple scales, particularly the micrometer scale, often lead to a better understanding of metal distribution and potential contamination risks. This paper presents a case study that compares the use of both traditional and non-traditional techniques to identify and quantify metal hosts in sediments downstream of the abandoned mine waste piles at the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site in Vermont (USA). The contaminant present in the highest concentration in the sediments is copper, yet not all copper-bearing solids were detected with bulk X-ray diffraction (XRD). At the micrometer scale, a combination of synchrotron-based X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and an automated mineralogy (AM) system were used to identify the most abundant copper-bearing solids. Bulk XAS and AM also provided semi-quantitative abundances of these solids in the sediment. At the Ely Copper Mine, copper in stream sediments was found to be predominantly hosted in sulphide minerals downstream of a major mine waste pile, whereas upstream copper was predominantly hosted in secondary iron and manganese (oxyhydr)oxides. These copper-bearing hosts were consistent with the expected bioavailability of copper in the sediments based on laboratory toxicity tests with aquatic organisms. When the bulk of copper was present in sulphides, aquatic organisms experienced greater survival than when copper was mostly associated with secondary iron and manganese (oxyhydr)oxides. The information gained from probing the sediments at multiple scales can now be used to prioritize containment and remediation strategies. While synchrotron-based analytical techniques have proven to be invaluable in many studies of mine waste, access to these techniques is limited. In contrast, access to a scanning electron microscope that can perform AM is becoming more common, primarily for the application in mining design and mineral processing operations. More recently, the successful use of AM to characterize mine waste suggests that this technique can be equally as valuable for mine closure plans. The resolution of information obtained may go beyond what is required from a regulatory perspective, but given that the results have the potential to be more conclusive than many traditional techniques, this level of characterization may save time and money in the long run.

Vermont↗

USGS2015

Arsenic and antimony geochemistry of mine wastes, associated waters and sediments at the Giant Mine, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada

Elevated levels of arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) in water and sediments are legacy residues found downstream from gold-mining activities at the Giant Mine in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories (NWT), Canada. To track the transport and fate of As and Sb, samples of mine-waste from the mill, and surface water, sediment, pore-water, and vegetation downstream of the mine were collected. Mine waste, pore-water, and sediment samples were analyzed for bulk chemistry, and aqueous and solid-state speciation. Sediment and vegetation chemistry were evaluated using scanning electron microscope imaging, synchrotron-based element mapping and electron microprobe analysis. The distributions of As and Sb in sediments were similar, yet their distributions in the corresponding pore-waters were mostly dissimilar, and the mobility of As was greater than that of Sb. Competition for sorption sites is the most likely cause of elevated Sb concentrations in relatively oxidized pore-water and surface water. The aqueous and solid-state speciation of As and Sb also differed. In pore-water, As(V) dominated in oxidizing environments and As(III) in reducing environments. In contrast, the Sb(V) species dominated in all but one pore-water sample, even under reducing conditions. Antimony(III) appears to preferentially precipitate or adsorb onto sulfides as evidenced by the prevalence of an Sb(III)-S secondary solid-phase and the lack of Sb(III)(aq) in the deeper zones. The As(V)–O solid phase became depleted with depth below the sediment–water interface, and the Sb(V)–O phase persisted under relatively reducing conditions. In the surficial zone at a site populated by Equisetum fluviatile (common horsetail), As and Sb were associated with organic material and appeared mobile in the root zone. In the zone below active plant growth, As and Sb were associated primarily with inorganic phases suggesting a release and reprecipitation of these elements upon plant death. The co-existence of reduced and oxidized As and Sb species, instability of some phases under changing redox conditions, and plant uptake and release pose challenges for remediation efforts at the mine.

Northwest Territories↗

USGS2014

The environmental geochemistry of Arsenic – An overview

Arsenic is one of the most prevalent toxic elements in the environment. The toxicity, mobility, and fate of arsenic in the environment are determined by a complex series of controls dependent on mineralogy, chemical speciation, and biological processes. The element was first described by Theophrastus in 300 B.C. and named arsenikon (also arrhenicon; Caley and Richards 1956 ) referring to its “potent” nature, although it was originally considered an alternative form of sulfur ( Boyle and Jonasson 1973 ). Arsenikon is believed to be derived from the earlier Persian, zarnik (online etymology dictionary, http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=arsenic ). It was not until the thirteenth century that an alchemist, Albertus Magnus, was able to isolate the element from orpiment, an arsenic sulfide (As 2 S 3 ). The complex chemistry required to do this led to arsenic being considered a “bastard metal” or what we now call a “metalloid,” having properties of both metals and non-metals. As a chemical element, arsenic is widely distributed in nature and can be concentrated in many different ways. In the Earth’s crust, arsenic is concentrated by magmatic and hydrothermal processes and has been used as a “pathfinder” for metallic ore deposits, particularly gold, tin, copper, and tungsten ( Boyle and Jonasson 1973 ; Cohen and Bowell 2014 ). It has for centuries been considered a potent toxin, is a common poison in actual and fictional crimes, and has led to significant impacts on human health in many areas of the world ( Cullen 2008 ; Wharton 2010 ).

Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry↗

USGS2014

Preface

Arsenic is perhaps history’s favorite poison, often termed the “King of Poisons” and the “Poison of Kings” and thought to be the demise of fiction’s most famous ill-fated lovers. The toxic nature of arsenic has been known for millennia with the mineral realgar (AsS), originally named “arsenikon” by Theophrastus in 300 B.C.E. meaning literally “potent.” For centuries it has been used as rat poison and as an important component of bactericides and wood preservatives. Arsenic is believed to be the cause of death to Napoleon Bonaparte who was exposed to wallpaper colored green from aceto-arsenite of copper (Aldersey-Williams 2011). The use of arsenic as a poison has been featured widely in literature, film, theatre, and television. Its use as a pesticide made it well known in the nineteenth century and it was exploited by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the Sherlock Holmes novel The Golden Pince-Nez (Conan-Doyle 1903). The dark comedy Arsenic and Old Lace is a prime example of arsenic in popular culture, being first a play but becoming famous as a movie.

Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry↗

USGS2010

Microbial oxidation of arsenite in a subarctic environment: diversity of arsenite oxidase genes and identification of a psychrotolerant arsenite oxidiser

Arsenic is toxic to most living cells. The two soluble inorganic forms of arsenic are arsenite (+3) and arsenate (+5), with arsenite the more toxic. Prokaryotic metabolism of arsenic has been reported in both thermal and moderate environments and has been shown to be involved in the redox cycling of arsenic. No arsenic metabolism (either dissimilatory arsenate reduction or arsenite oxidation) has ever been reported in cold environments (i.e. < 10°C). Results : Our study site is located 512 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle in the Northwest Territories, Canada in an inactive gold mine which contains mine waste water in excess of 50 mM arsenic. Several thousand tonnes of arsenic trioxide dust are stored in underground chambers and microbial biofilms grow on the chamber walls below seepage points rich in arsenite-containing solutions. We compared the arsenite oxidisers in two subsamples (which differed in arsenite concentration) collected from one biofilm. 'Species' (sequence) richness did not differ between subsamples, but the relative importance of the three identifiable clades did. An arsenite-oxidising bacterium (designated GM1) was isolated, and was shown to oxidise arsenite in the early exponential growth phase and to grow at a broad range of temperatures (4-25°C). Its arsenite oxidase was constitutively expressed and functioned over a broad temperature range. Conclusions : The diversity of arsenite oxidisers does not significantly differ from two subsamples of a microbial biofilm that vary in arsenite concentrations. GM1 is the first psychrotolerant arsenite oxidiser to be isolated with the ability to grow below 10°C. This ability to grow at low temperatures could be harnessed for arsenic bioremediation in moderate to cold climates.

BMC Microbiology↗

USGS2005

The composition of coexisting jarosite-group minerals and water from the Richmond mine, Iron Mountain, California

Jarosite-group minerals accumulate in the form of stalactites and fine-grained mud on massive pyrite in the D drift of the Richmond mine, Iron Mountain, California. Water samples were collected by placing beakers under the dripping stalactites and by extracting pore water from the mud using a centrifuge. The water is rich in Fe 3+ and SO 4 2− , with a pH of approximately 2.1, which is significantly higher than the extremely acidic waters found elsewhere in the mine. Electron-microprobe analysis and X-ray mapping indicate that the small crystals (<10 μm in diameter) are compositionally zoned with respect to Na and K, and include hydronium jarosite corresponding to the formula (H 3 O) 0.6 K 0.3 Na 0.1 Fe 3 3+ (SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 . The proton-microprobe analyses indicate that the jarosite-group minerals contain significant amounts of As, Pb and Zn, and minor levels of Bi, Rb, Sb, Se, Sn and Sr. Speciation modeling indicates that the drip waters are supersaturated with respect to jarosite-group minerals. The expected range in composition of jarosite-group solid-solution in equilibrium with the pore water extracted from the mud was found to be consistent with the observed range in composition.

California↗