Erosion characteristics and resuspension of sub-aqueous mine tailings Available to Purchase

The use of shallow water covers for containing sulfide bearing mine tailings in non-arid climates has gained importance over the years due largely to their effectiveness as oxygen barriers. In spite of the numerous documented benefits of these covers, some fundamental questions on the application of the technology still remain; a major one being the contribution of the nature of the tailings particles to the overall performance of the cover. Many of the existing tailings ponds have been designed assuming cohesionless sediment behavior. Total suspended solids and sediment trap measurements at some existing water cover sites, designed using the cohesionless sediment approach, have indicated significant resuspension at these sites. The present study provides information on the cohesive nature of sulfide mine tailings particles using particle size and mineralogical data and results of laboratory erosion experiments. The results show that the erosion patterns for tailings particles are similar to those reported for cohesive natural sediments. A power law erosion equation is proposed for calculating erosion rates and estimating the optimal water cover depth for flooded mine tailings.Key words: sulfide mine wastes, subaqueous disposal, erosion character, cohesive sediments, erosion shear stress relationship.