Valorisation of acid mine drainage through effective recovery of selected rare earth elements using cationic resins

Authors

  • Nsaka Christophe Ntumba Department of Environmental Sciences, School of Environmental Science, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Florida Campus, University of South Africa, Roodepoort, South Africa
  • Jannie Philippus Maree Sustainability Research Unit, School of Science, College of Science, Engineering and Technology, Florida Campus, University of South Africa, Roodepoort, South Africa
  • Veronica Ngole-Jeme Department of Environmental Sciences, School of Environmental Science, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Florida Campus, University of South Africa, Roodepoort, South Africa

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17159/wsa/2024.v50.i4.4091

Keywords:

coal mine, cationic resins, rare earth elements, acid mine drainage

Abstract

Acid mine drainage (AMD) presents a challenge to the environment if not well managed, but it also presents an opportunity for the recovery of economically valuable products, including rare earth elements (REEs), which are critical for the development of advanced, and green technologies. REE concentrations in AMD samples from coal and gold mines were determined using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and their sorption by different cationic resins (CHT4083, CHP4502 and CHP00712) was evaluated. Optimum conditions for the sorption of the REEs by these resins were determined through batch experiments and desorption of the REEs from the resins using different concentrations of sulphuric acid (H2SO4) solutions. Coal mine drainage (CMD), with a low pH of 2.37, had higher amounts of REEs (ΣREE 226.3732 mg/L) than AMD from the gold mines (ΣREE 4.9705 mg/L), with a pH of 3.21. A REE sorption efficiency of up to 98% was obtained with CHP4502 and CHP00712 resins and further optimisation of CHP00712 revealed that a resin volume of 250 mL and a contact time of 10 min were required to successfully remove REEs from 500 mL AMD. The sorption capacities of the resin for the selected REEs were 3.88 mg/g, 0.88 mg/g, 1.37 mg/g, 3.18 mg/g, 0.67 mg/g, 0.01 mg/g and 0.27mg/g for Pr, Gd, Nd, Ce, Sm, Eu and Y, respectively. Elution of the resin with a 0.5 N solution of sulphuric acid desorbed the REEs. AMD from coal mines could be an alternate source of REEs and cationic resins can be used to recover these REEs from the CMD. Further investigations, including impregnation of resin to improve its sorption capacity, and temperature effects on the sorption process, are recommended. 

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Published

2024-10-30

Issue

Section

Research paper

How to Cite

Nsaka Christophe Ntumba, Jannie Philippus Maree and Veronica Ngole-Jeme (2024) “Valorisation of acid mine drainage through effective recovery of selected rare earth elements using cationic resins”, Water SA, 50(4 Oct). doi:10.17159/wsa/2024.v50.i4.4091.