This paper presents experimental data that revealed the potential for chemical element transport by low-temperature vapor-gas streams. The study was conducted on sulfide waste heap sites located in the Kemerovo region, Russia. Condensates of vapor-gas streams were collected and analyzed in the air above the waste heaps and during laboratory experiments using samplers specially designed for this purpose. The gas streams from a waste heaps are complex mixtures consisting of water vapor, sulfur- and selenium-containing compounds (sulfur dioxide SO2, dimethyl sulfide C2H6S, carbon disulfide CS2, dimethyl disulfide C2H6S2, dimethyl selenide C2H6Se, and dimethyl diselenide C2H6Se2), elemental sulfur (S6, S7, and S8) and various chemical elements, including rock-forming elements (Ca, Mg, Na, K, Si, Fe, Al, and Mn), metals (Cu, Zn, Pb, Ni, and Sn), and metalloids (As, Te, and Sb). The main sources of chemical elements in the gas streams are unstable secondary minerals associated with crystalline hydrates: gypsum CaSO4 × 0.5H2O, sideronatrite Na2Fe(SO4)2(OH) × 3H2O, serpierite CaCu3Zn(SO4)2(OH)6 × 3H2O, and copiapite (Mg,Zn,Fe2+Fe3+)4(SO4)6(OH)2 × 20H2O that formed during the oxidation of sulfide minerals. Some of the elements come from pore waters that are acidic, highly mineralized solutions. The mechanism of element migration from the pore waters is as follow: the water vapor phase transports elements in the form of aqueous ions, but complexed species (such as MeSO4(aq), MeCl(aq), Me(OH)+, etc.) remain in the salt residue. A significant contribution to the processes of transformation and transport of elements is made by biochemical methylation reactions, which occur in the presence of bacteria producers of methyl groups and are accompanied by the formation of volatile compounds of arsenic, selenium, sulfur, and tellurium.
Keywords: Crystalline hydrates; Easily transportable elements; Emission; Migration; Solutions; Sulfur gases; Tailings.
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