Development of lignite-based PRB and its semi-operational experiment in the treatment of acid mine water

Abstract

The treatment and purification of contaminated water is an expensive business, as the design and operation of the treatment technologies usually require high up-front investment and continuous operational and human resources. As a consequence, there is a growing demand for innovative passive water treatment systems that can be operated with low construction and operating costs and minimal supervision. The present study presents the design, construction and monitoring results of a pilot passive water treatment system for the treatment of acid mine drainage water collected and discharged from a closed mine in an abandoned mining area. During the design of the passive water treatment system, a number of laboratory tests were carried out to model the suitability of the reactive material in the real hydraulic environment. Following the laboratory tests, a number of modifications were made to the pilot trench during construction to improve the reactive material’s condition and hydraulic behavior. The cascade-like pilot trench was monitored by continuous water sampling and the deployment of passive water samplers, the results of which demonstrated the viability of the technology and highlighted issues that require further improvements to optimize the technology.