Arsenic in Soils Affected by Mining: Microscopic Studies vs. Sequential Chemical Extraction

Jessica Álvarez-Quintana, Rodrigo Álvarez and Almudena Ordóñez
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Jessica Álvarez-Quintana: Mining Exploration and Exploitation Department, Escuela de Ingeniería de Minas, Energía y Materiales, University of Oviedo, 13th Independencia St, 33004 Oviedo, Spain
Rodrigo Álvarez: Mining Exploration and Exploitation Department, Escuela de Ingeniería de Minas, Energía y Materiales, University of Oviedo, 13th Independencia St, 33004 Oviedo, Spain
Almudena Ordóñez: Mining Exploration and Exploitation Department, Escuela de Ingeniería de Minas, Energía y Materiales, University of Oviedo, 13th Independencia St, 33004 Oviedo, Spain

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 22, 1-13

Abstract: Soil samples from three inactive mines, corresponding to different Arsenic-bearing mineralization types, were collected and studied. The aim was to determine the influence of mine wastes mineralogy/geochemistry and texture in As mobility and to compare results from sequential chemical extraction and microscopic techniques (optical and electron) at a grain scale. Arsenic in soils is found mainly associated to the residual fraction, indicating that mechanical As dispersion is mainly responsible for As soil pollution. The use of objective microscopic techniques (i.e., Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy -SEM-EDS-, High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy -HR-TEM) has pointed out that the selected sequential extraction method overestimates the role of Mn amorphous oxy-hydroxides and organic matter in As retention while underestimating the mechanism of As adsorption onto clay particle surfaces.

Keywords: contaminated soil; arsenic; mineralogy and texture of mining waste; sequential chemical extraction (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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