摘要
Bioleaching processes cause dramatic changes in the mechanical and chemical properties of waste rocks, and play an important role in metal recovery and dump stability. This study focused on the characteristics of waste rocks subjected to bioleaching. A series of ex- periments were conducted to investigate the evolution of rock properties during the bioleaching process. Mechanical behaviors of the leached waste rocks, such as failure patterns, normal stress, shear strength, and cohesion were determined through mechanical tests. The results of SEM imaging show considerable differences in the surface morphology of leached rocks located at different parts of the dump. The minera- logical content of the leached rocks reflects the extent of dissolution and precipitation during bioleaching. The dump porosity and rock size change under the effect of dissolution, precipitation, and clay transportation. The particle size of the leached rocks decreased due to the loss of rock integrity and the conversion of dry precipitation into fine particles.
Bioleaching processes cause dramatic changes in the mechanical and chemical properties of waste rocks, and play an important role in metal recovery and dump stability. This study focused on the characteristics of waste rocks subjected to bioleaching. A series of ex- periments were conducted to investigate the evolution of rock properties during the bioleaching process. Mechanical behaviors of the leached waste rocks, such as failure patterns, normal stress, shear strength, and cohesion were determined through mechanical tests. The results of SEM imaging show considerable differences in the surface morphology of leached rocks located at different parts of the dump. The minera- logical content of the leached rocks reflects the extent of dissolution and precipitation during bioleaching. The dump porosity and rock size change under the effect of dissolution, precipitation, and clay transportation. The particle size of the leached rocks decreased due to the loss of rock integrity and the conversion of dry precipitation into fine particles.
基金
financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos.50934002 and 51104011)
the Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in Universities (IRT0950)
China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(No.20100480200)
