Abstract
The growing demand for mineral resources followed by the steady increase in mining activity result in the need for the disposal of large amount of tailings. Submarine tailings placements (STPs) is a viable option to land-based waste disposal. However, disposal of tailings with accumulated chemicals continues to contribute to the degradation of the marine environment. Replacement of chemicals towards more environmentally friendly alternatives is a good initiative aimed at preservation and protection of the marine ecosystem. Among the cationic surfactants esterquats-containing reagents have attracted particular attention due to their specific ability to degrade rapidly into non-surface-active and environmentally friendly fragments followed by inorganic end products. The important decomposition reaction is the hydrolysis in the presence of water. In this study the rate of esterquats-containing reagent FLOT 2015 desorption by seawater and the probable mechanism of its chemical degradation in aqueous mediums were investigated with the aid of a simple and adequate UV-spectrophotometric technique. By investigating the desorption characteristics of the adsorbed collector FLOT 2015 on mineral samples, important information regarding its mobility and stability was obtained that would be valuable for environmental impact assessment.
Highlights
The growing demand for mineral resources followed by the steady increase in mining activity result in the need for the disposal of a large amount of tailings
Rapid, and low cost method for the analysis of esterquats-containing reagents based on the formation of an ion pair between a cationic collector and an anionic dye
When the cationic collector FLOT 2015 is introduced to the anionic dye solution BCP, the solvent rearrangement around free ions leads to ion pair formation [38]
Summary
The growing demand for mineral resources followed by the steady increase in mining activity result in the need for the disposal of a large amount of tailings. The potential harmful impact of waste disposal on the environmental quality of the surrounding ecosystem is attracting an increasing amount of focus, which has led to stricter environmental regulations. Submarine tailings placements (STPs) is a viable option to land-based waste disposal and has been utilized at several mineral processing plants around the world [4,5,6]. The potential environmental impacts of STPs are the results of the oceanographic, biochemical, and ecological conditions of the site, as well as the specific mineral processing solution employed by the plant.
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