Two-step sequential bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite catalyzed by a mesophilic bacterium eliminates hazardous Fe(III)/As-bearing products and enhances mineral dissolution

Hong-Rui Chen; Qian Li; Xiao-Juan Zhao; Duo-Rui Zhang; Eva Pakostova

doi:10.1016/j.cej.2023.142259

Two-step sequential bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite catalyzed by a mesophilic bacterium eliminates hazardous Fe(III)/As-bearing products and enhances mineral dissolution

Hong-Rui Chen, Qian Li, Xiao-Juan Zhao, Duo-Rui Zhang, Eva Pakostova

Centre for Manufacturing and Materials

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

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Abstract

Arsenopyrite (FeAsS) is one of the most typical As-bearing sulfide minerals and bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite is a process of particular scientific interest, due to its broad application in gold mineral processing as well as the release of toxic As. This study aimed to enhance the dissolution of arsenopyrite (as well as of Fe(III)/As-bearing oxidation products) via a sequential two-step process comprising aerobic bio-oxidation and reductive dissolution under anaerobic conditions, both catalyzed by Acidithiobacillus (At.) thiooxidans DSM 504: (i) during aerobic bio-oxidation, 67.7 and 64.9% As was extracted from arsenopyrite in a basal salts medium (BSM) and acid mine drainage (AMD) respectively. A double passivation layer (comprising jarosite and a dense outer layer) formed on the mineral surface in BSM, inhibiting further bio-oxidation, while an oxidation layer with a more permeable amorphous nanosheet structure (composing of tooeleite) was formed in AMD. (ii) Subsequently, the reductive dissolution process effectively eliminated the double passivation layer (composed of S0, amorphous ferric arsenate, K-jarosite, tooeleite, and scorodite), with 47.2 and 91.9% Fe reduced in 16 days of anaerobic bio-oxidation of S0 and S2O32-, respectively. The proposed two-step bio-oxidation process has the potential to contribute to the development of improved extractive technologies, and avoid the accumulation of unstable As pollution sources. Additionally, the data indicate that a replacement of growth media with AMD could reduce the elevated costs of the technology capable of alternating aerated and anoxic bio-oxidation stages.

Original language	English
Article number	142259
Number of pages	9
Journal	Chemical Engineering Journal
Volume	462
Early online date	5 Mar 2023
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2023.142259
Publication status	Published - 15 Apr 2023

Bibliographical note

© 2023, Elsevier. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Copyright © and Moral Rights are retained by the author(s) and/ or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This item cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder(s). The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders.

This document is the author’s post-print version, incorporating any revisions agreed during the peer-review process. Some differences between the published version and this version may remain and you are advised to consult the published version if you wish to cite from it.

Funder

Funding for this research was provided by the Key Research and Development Program of Hunan Province, China (2020SK2125, 2022NK2057), and the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2018YFE0110200). We would like to thank Tie-Fu Xu (Hunan Navi New Material Technology Co., Ltd.) for his assistance in micromorphology analysis.

Keywords

Arsenopyrite
Bio-oxidation
Reductive dissolution
Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans
Acid mine drainage
Sulfur oxidation

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10.1016/j.cej.2023.142259

Pakostova2023AAM Accepted author manuscript, 1.8 MBLicence: CC BY-NC-ND

Cite this

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title = "Two-step sequential bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite catalyzed by a mesophilic bacterium eliminates hazardous Fe(III)/As-bearing products and enhances mineral dissolution",

abstract = "Arsenopyrite (FeAsS) is one of the most typical As-bearing sulfide minerals and bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite is a process of particular scientific interest, due to its broad application in gold mineral processing as well as the release of toxic As. This study aimed to enhance the dissolution of arsenopyrite (as well as of Fe(III)/As-bearing oxidation products) via a sequential two-step process comprising aerobic bio-oxidation and reductive dissolution under anaerobic conditions, both catalyzed by Acidithiobacillus (At.) thiooxidans DSM 504: (i) during aerobic bio-oxidation, 67.7 and 64.9% As was extracted from arsenopyrite in a basal salts medium (BSM) and acid mine drainage (AMD) respectively. A double passivation layer (comprising jarosite and a dense outer layer) formed on the mineral surface in BSM, inhibiting further bio-oxidation, while an oxidation layer with a more permeable amorphous nanosheet structure (composing of tooeleite) was formed in AMD. (ii) Subsequently, the reductive dissolution process effectively eliminated the double passivation layer (composed of S0, amorphous ferric arsenate, K-jarosite, tooeleite, and scorodite), with 47.2 and 91.9% Fe reduced in 16 days of anaerobic bio-oxidation of S0 and S2O32-, respectively. The proposed two-step bio-oxidation process has the potential to contribute to the development of improved extractive technologies, and avoid the accumulation of unstable As pollution sources. Additionally, the data indicate that a replacement of growth media with AMD could reduce the elevated costs of the technology capable of alternating aerated and anoxic bio-oxidation stages.",

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AU - Zhang, Duo-Rui

AU - Pakostova, Eva

N1 - © 2023, Elsevier. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Copyright © and Moral Rights are retained by the author(s) and/ or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This item cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder(s). The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. This document is the author’s post-print version, incorporating any revisions agreed during the peer-review process. Some differences between the published version and this version may remain and you are advised to consult the published version if you wish to cite from it.

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N2 - Arsenopyrite (FeAsS) is one of the most typical As-bearing sulfide minerals and bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite is a process of particular scientific interest, due to its broad application in gold mineral processing as well as the release of toxic As. This study aimed to enhance the dissolution of arsenopyrite (as well as of Fe(III)/As-bearing oxidation products) via a sequential two-step process comprising aerobic bio-oxidation and reductive dissolution under anaerobic conditions, both catalyzed by Acidithiobacillus (At.) thiooxidans DSM 504: (i) during aerobic bio-oxidation, 67.7 and 64.9% As was extracted from arsenopyrite in a basal salts medium (BSM) and acid mine drainage (AMD) respectively. A double passivation layer (comprising jarosite and a dense outer layer) formed on the mineral surface in BSM, inhibiting further bio-oxidation, while an oxidation layer with a more permeable amorphous nanosheet structure (composing of tooeleite) was formed in AMD. (ii) Subsequently, the reductive dissolution process effectively eliminated the double passivation layer (composed of S0, amorphous ferric arsenate, K-jarosite, tooeleite, and scorodite), with 47.2 and 91.9% Fe reduced in 16 days of anaerobic bio-oxidation of S0 and S2O32-, respectively. The proposed two-step bio-oxidation process has the potential to contribute to the development of improved extractive technologies, and avoid the accumulation of unstable As pollution sources. Additionally, the data indicate that a replacement of growth media with AMD could reduce the elevated costs of the technology capable of alternating aerated and anoxic bio-oxidation stages.

AB - Arsenopyrite (FeAsS) is one of the most typical As-bearing sulfide minerals and bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite is a process of particular scientific interest, due to its broad application in gold mineral processing as well as the release of toxic As. This study aimed to enhance the dissolution of arsenopyrite (as well as of Fe(III)/As-bearing oxidation products) via a sequential two-step process comprising aerobic bio-oxidation and reductive dissolution under anaerobic conditions, both catalyzed by Acidithiobacillus (At.) thiooxidans DSM 504: (i) during aerobic bio-oxidation, 67.7 and 64.9% As was extracted from arsenopyrite in a basal salts medium (BSM) and acid mine drainage (AMD) respectively. A double passivation layer (comprising jarosite and a dense outer layer) formed on the mineral surface in BSM, inhibiting further bio-oxidation, while an oxidation layer with a more permeable amorphous nanosheet structure (composing of tooeleite) was formed in AMD. (ii) Subsequently, the reductive dissolution process effectively eliminated the double passivation layer (composed of S0, amorphous ferric arsenate, K-jarosite, tooeleite, and scorodite), with 47.2 and 91.9% Fe reduced in 16 days of anaerobic bio-oxidation of S0 and S2O32-, respectively. The proposed two-step bio-oxidation process has the potential to contribute to the development of improved extractive technologies, and avoid the accumulation of unstable As pollution sources. Additionally, the data indicate that a replacement of growth media with AMD could reduce the elevated costs of the technology capable of alternating aerated and anoxic bio-oxidation stages.

KW - Arsenopyrite

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KW - Reductive dissolution

KW - Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans

KW - Acid mine drainage

KW - Sulfur oxidation

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DO - 10.1016/j.cej.2023.142259

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SN - 1385-8947

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JO - Chemical Engineering Journal

JF - Chemical Engineering Journal

M1 - 142259

ER -

Two-step sequential bio-oxidation of arsenopyrite catalyzed by a mesophilic bacterium eliminates hazardous Fe(III)/As-bearing products and enhances mineral dissolution

Abstract

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Keywords

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