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Article history: The aim of this work was to produce a high concentration ferric sulphate solution from coal pyrite tailings
Available online 29 April 2011 that could be used as coagulant for water and wastewater treatment. At laboratory scale it was performed
the oxidation of pyrite in an aqueous medium in a packed bed leaching column in an oxidizing environ-
Keywords: ment with the presence of acidophilic bacteria (Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans) as well as nutrients for bac-
Coal terial growth. It was indicated that an aqueous solution rich in ferric sulphate can be produced which was
Tailings found suitable for application in water treatment plants.
Wasteprocessing
2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Bioleaching
Ferric sulphate
Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 51 3308 9966; fax: +55 51 3308 7116. The leaching experiments were carried out using a pyrite con-
E-mail addresses: angeli.colling@ufrgs.br (A.V. Colling), jean.menezes@ufrgs.br centrate obtained by gravimetric processing of a coal tailing rich
(Jean Carlo Salom dos Santos Menezes), ivo.andre@ufrgs.br (I.A.H. Schneider). in pyrite from the Brazilian coal eld of Santa Catarina (SC). The
0892-6875/$ - see front matter 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.mineng.2011.04.003
1186 A.V. Colling et al. / Minerals Engineering 24 (2011) 11851187
material was crushed and sieved, and the size fraction between the samples were left undisturbed without any agitation for a per-
2 mm and 6 mm was used in the leaching column. The content iod of 10 min, to allow the solids to settle. The treated water was
of pyrite in the sample was determined 51%. The X-ray analysis analyzed for pH, turbidity, colour, metals (Fe, Al, Mn, and Zn), hard-
of the material showed the presence of the following crystalline ness, and sulphate. All analyses followed the procedures described
compounds: pyrite (FeS2) (predominant), quartz (SiO2), kaolinite in the Standard Method for the Examination of Water and Waste-
(Al4(OH)8(Si4O10), and mica (KAl2(AlSi3O10). water (Eaton et al., 2005).
2.2. Reagents
3. Results and discussion
Table 2
Characteristics of raw water and water treated with the coagulants FS-B/CT and PFS at a dosage of 0.4 mM (Fe + Al) at pH 7.0.
Parameter Raw water Treated with FS-B/CT Treated with PFS Brazilian standards for drinking water
pH 6.8 7.0 7.0
Turbidity (NTU) 81.3 0.4 0.5 5
Colour (Hazen) 44 2.0 2.0 15
Fe (mg L1) 1.2 <0.04 <0.04 0.3
Al (mg L1) <0.08 <0.08 <0.08 0.2
Mn (mg L1) <0.02 <0.02 <0.02 0.1
Zn (mg L1) 0.04 <0.02 <0.02 5
Hardness (mg L1 CaCO3) 22 183 134 500
Sulphates (mg L1) 7.8 223 82.9 250
possible to produce 790 m3 of ferric sulphate (12% iron). This vol- References
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