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DEVELOPMENT OF SRB TREATMENT SYSTEMS FOR ACID MINE DRAINAGE
Citation:
Nordwick, S., M. H. Zaluski, AND D R. Bless*. DEVELOPMENT OF SRB TREATMENT SYSTEMS FOR ACID MINE DRAINAGE. Presented at 5th International Symposium on Hydrometallurgy, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 08/24-27/2003.
Description:
Over the past decade, significant advances have been made in the development of sulfate- reducing bacteria (SRB) technology to treat acid mine drainage (AMD), Bench-scale testing, field demonstrations, and engineered applications of SRBs for the treatment of AMD will be presented. Designs include an insitu bioreactor installed in the subsurface workings of the Lilly Orphan Boy Mine in 1993, the SRB reactivewall installed at the Calliope Mine from 1998 to 2001, the integrated biological reactors built at the Surething Mine in 2001, and the ongoing development of a replaceable cartridge system. SRB technology benefits include the reduction of dissolved metal ions to insoluble metal sulfides and the neutralization of the AMD resulting from the production of biocabonate from the oxidation of organic nutrients. This paper will address engineering design criteria including the selection of organic media and system permeability and complete mitigation of AMD. Research was funded under Interagency Agreement No. DW899388-70-01-1 between the U.S. EPA and the U.S. DOE and was conducted by MSE Technology Applications, Inc., through the National Environmental Technology Laboratory (DOE Contract No. DE-AC22-96EW96405) at the Western Environmental Technology Office located in Butte, Montana.