Thursday, August 7, 2014

Acid Mine Drainage in Bukit Besi, Dungun, Terengganu

Acid Mine Drainage or popularly known as AMD is a common problem related to primary mining of metals.  Recent investigation conducted at Bukit Besi ex Mine site has discovered this AMD phenomena.  AMD is a natural weathering process where the sulphide metals such as pyrite (FeS2), chalcopyrite (CuFeS2) or arsenopyrite (FeAsS) are exposed to air and water resulting chemical reactions such as hydrolysis and oxidation to sulphide minerals.  These chemical reactions will produce a nasty acid called sulphuric acid (H2SO4) that can reduce the pH of the water.  

Photos below show common views of AMD problem such as yellow precipitate material (also known as Yellow Boy) and acid water.  The water quality meter shows the pH of the water is 3.18. 

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