Secondary sulphate precipitates in the gravel pit at Kumpuselkä esker, northern Finland

Abstract

AbstractWhite and yellowish precipitates were found in a gravel pit in the Kumpuselkäesker chain during the summers of 2004—2007. The esker is located in northern Finland, in the northern Ostrobothnia schist area which contains mica schists with quartz veins, which are locally enriched in Co, Cu, Au, Zn, Pb and Ni. A thin till bed lies between the esker gravel and bedrock. Precipitates were found as small grains on the till surface, encrusting twigs and around small pebbles. Ground-water ponds in the pit measured in the summer of 2006 were very acidic as was the till material. The precipitates comprise secondary sulphates, such as gypsum, pickeringite and Mg-sulphates, which are all water-soluble.