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Mining-Contaminated Sediment And Metal Storage In Channel Deposits In Turkey Creek, Tri-State Mining District, Missouri And Kansas, Max Quinn Hillermann

MSU Graduate Theses

The Joplin subdistrict, within the Tri-State Mining District (TSMD), was a major producer of lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) ore between the 1880s to 1920s. Metalliferous mining wastes are still stored in the channel deposits of local streams raising environmental and health concerns. This study quantifies the volume, sediment size, and metal concentrations in channel bed, bar, bench, and chute deposits to quantify the spatial variability of contaminated sediment storage in Turkey Creek (119 km²). Sample reaches (n=14) contained metal concentrations elevated above the Tri-State Mining District specific probable effects concentration at every site with mean concentrations in …

Identifying Biogeochemical Factors Responsible For The Cyclical Precipitation Of Sphalerite And Galena In Low Temperature Mississippi Valley Type Ore Deposits, Daniel John Makowsky

Theses and Dissertations

Mississippi Valley Type (MVT) lead and zinc deposits provide a significant source of sedimentary galena and sphalerite. However, geochemical characteristics and genesis including the source and production of hydrogen sulfide required for galena and sphalerite ore formation and the reasoning for quick, episodic mineralization is not fully understood. By simulating regional MVT brines, the input and effect of biological by-products during the development of these ores as well as the cause of cyclicity within MVT deposits have been observed. Experiments using compositions from MVT fluid inclusions were conducted over two-week periods. Variables during the experiments included temperature, CO2, hydrogen sulfide …

The Legacy Of Mining In Southwest Missouri: Past And Present Conditions Of The Tri-State Mining District, Anastasia M C Mcclanahan

MSU Graduate Theses

The historic Tri-State Mining District (TSMD) of southwestern Missouri, southeastern Kansas, and northeastern Oklahoma has a history of lead and zinc mining that extended over a hundred years. During the district’s peak production period, the TSMD was one of the world’s largest producers of lead and zinc. The mining activities in the TSMD produced economic growth that supported the local communities and were essential to the victory of the Allied Forces during World War I and World War II. Beginning in the 1920s, the mining activities in the district slowly began to cease due to depletion of metal ores and …

Spatial And Temporal Trends Of Mining-Related Lead-Zinc Sediment Contamination, Galena River Watershed, Sw Wisconsin-Nw Illinois, Dylan Alexander King

MSU Graduate Theses

Alluvial sediments within the Galena River Watershed were severely contaminated with heavy metals by historical zinc (Zn) and lead (Pb) mining operations during the early 1800s until 1979. Since the mines closed, there have been efforts to remediate on-site mine waste. However, the effectiveness of these efforts to reduce metal concentrations in stream sediments is unknown. This study compares present-day (2017) contamination trends in the Galena River Watershed to trends reported 25 years ago. A total of 415 sediment/soil samples were collected and analyzed using X-ray florescence spectrometry to determine sediment metal concentrations. The highest concentrations of zinc measured were …

Source Constraints Of Ore Metals In Mississippi Valley-Type Deposits In Central And Eastern Tennessee Using Pb Isotopes, Austin Moyers

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Mississippi Valley-Type (MVT) Central and East Tennessee (TN) Districts contain economically significant lead-zinc deposits that occur in the Early Ordovician carbonates of the Knox Group. Although both districts share similar host rock, have similar temperatures of formation, and typically fill open spaces of collapse breccias or replace their host carbonates, previous studies may suggest that these ores did not form from the same mineralizing fluids and may have different Pb sources. Nu Plasma MC-ICP-MS Pb isotopic analyses on sulfides from Central and East TN were conducted and the metal sources evaluated. Results were plotted on covariation diagrams with respect …

Trace Element Behavior During Coal Combustion: Insights From Cadmium And Zinc Isotope Analysis, Fotios Fouskas

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Due to its low cost and abundance, coal has been pervasively used in recent decades to meet large energy demands worldwide. Coal combustion provides the dominant electrical source in the U.S and produces over 100 million tons of coal combustion products (CCPs) per year domestically. The disposal/beneficial use of CCPs has the potential to release toxic trace elements, including cadmium (Cd) and zinc (Zn), into the environment. High temperature combustion of coal changes both physical states and chemical properties of Cd and Zn compounds in CCPs. Related processes such as evaporation and condensation, can lead to mass-dependent fractionation of Cd …

Application Of Copper And Zinc Isotopes To Fingerprint Metal Sources And Identify Attenuation Mechanisms In The Abandoned Waldorf Mine Area, Clear Creek County, Colorado, Suzan Aranda Luna

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Acid rock drainage (ARD) is caused by the oxidative weathering of sulfide minerals. Sulfur is oxidized by dissolved oxygen or Fe(III) and sulfate ions, metals, and protons are released into the environment. Hence, the pH of nearby water and soils often decreases in response to ARD while metal concentrations increase. Because a large part of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado are highly mineralized (i.e., the Colorado Mineral Belt), ARD is a serious problem in this region. Moreover, the many abandoned mining areas in the Rocky Mountains that include waste rock piles, tailings impoundments, and surface disturbances add to the problem …

Zinc Speculation And Ligand Fluxes In Chesapeake Bay And Elizabeth River Pore Waters, Duncan Glover Byers

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

Presented here are the first data on the vertical concentrations, complexation, speciation, and fluxes of total dissolved zinc and zinc complexing ligands, and zinc speciation in sediment pore waters in the Chesapeake Bay and Elizabeth River, Virginia.

Sediment pore waters were collected in mid and southern Chesapeake Bay in November 1997 and in the Elizabeth River (Pinner's Point) in March, April, and July 1998. Flux experiments were conducted in Elizabeth River sediment cores in April and July 1998. [TDZn] and zinc complexation were determined using differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry at a hanging mercury drop electrode (DPASV-HMDE).

[TDZn] in the …

Some Effects Of The Polychaete Nereis Succinea Frey And Leukart 1847 On The Distribution Of Copper Cadmium And Zinc In Sediments And Water, Gabriela Kitzig August

OES Theses and Dissertations

Two laboratory experiments, each lasting 216 hours, were conducted in order to determine the effects of a burrowing polychaete, Nereis succinea Frey and Leukart, 1847, on the distribution of copper, cadmium, and zinc in sediments and water in environmentally controlled microcosms. Dissolved metal concentrations in microcosms containing worms (experimental) decreased more rapidly than in microcosms without worms (controls). From 72 hours to 216 hours, suspended metal concentrations in experimental microcosms increased while concentrations in controls remained relatively constant. Sediment cadmium concentrations in experimental microcosms increased more over time than in controls. Polychaetes accumulated significant amounts of all three metals. These …