Geochemistry and Transport of Uranium- Bearing Dust at Jackpile Mine, Laguna, New Mexico
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Geochemistry and Transport of Uranium- Bearing Dust at Jackpile Mine, Laguna, New Mexico By Reid Douglas Brown Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Masters of Science in Hydrology New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology Department of Mechanical Engineering Socorro, New Mexico (August 2017) ABSTRACT Closed mines pose significant risks to the environment and human health. Uranium mine contamination of surface water, groundwater and soil have received moderate attention, but few studies have investigated dust transport of uranium. The latter has immediate implications for remediation efforts and environmental/human health regulators. Frequent dust storms intensify aeolian transport of uranium in arid settings. At the Jackpile Mine in Laguna Pueblo, New Mexico, 15 sets of dust traps have been installed at heights of 0.25 m, 0.5 m, 1.0 m and 1.5 m above the soil surface. Some of these traps are within the mine pit, while others are up to 4 km away; dust from these sites was collected every two months. In addition, soil samples from each site were collected and sieved into eight size classes. All samples were acid digested, and the uranium content analyzed using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry. We investigate whether uranium has an affinity for a particular particle size class, with interest centered on particles small enough to be completely inhaled by humans. Results show that surface concentrations of uranium vary substantially across the landscape. Distance from the pit shows no correlation with uranium in the upper 5 cm of soil. Other factors appear to control accumulation, such as vegetation height and density and topographic relief, which are known to have a significant impact on wind speeds, soil erosion and dust deposition. Our study site has over 150 m of relief and intricate topography that lead to a range of wind speeds between sites. The soil uranium content determined at 15 sites has been compared to site elevation and vegetation height. Analysis suggests that elevation and vegetation height may impact local erosion and deposition of uranium contamination. Dust mass was collected at each height and converted into a flux (g/d/m2). The relationship between mass flux and height above ground followed a power law relationship as supported by previous research (Zingg 1953; Butterfield 1999; Dong et al 2003; Dong et al 2004a, 2004b). Particle size fractionation during aeolian transport led to an increase in metal concentrations in 4 of 6 metals of concern in the dust compared to the soil. Keywords: uranium, Jackpile Mine, dust transport, particle-size fractionation, legacy contamination ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Projects like these are impossible as a solo endeavor and can be lonely and isolating if attempted. Luckily, I had a strong support group of family, friends and advisors. First, I would like to thank my parents, Douglas and Janice Brown, for 31 years of hard work shaping me into the person I am today. Without their love and advice, I would not have been successful. Secondly, I would like to thank my sister, Erin “Tater Head” Brown for her constant and unwavering support. My advisors Dr. Daniel Cadol and Bonnie Frey as well as the rest of my committee, Dr. Ingar Walder and Dr. James Harrison deserve a lot of credit for their guidance throughout the project. They managed to walk the fine line of keeping me on track while giving me the space to make and learn from my mistakes. Lastly, but certainly not least, my strong friend group grounded me and restored sanity when needed. Much thanks to Tiffany “Bulleit” Luterbach for always being there and not taking first impressions too seriously, John “The Librarian” Ortiz for being the Frank to my Charlie and for teaching me how to gain confidence from the size of my book collection regardless of what I actually knew and Jeff “DToP” Pepin for being an inspiration to us all, who’s methods are anything but conventional yet somehow effective. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................................... v LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................ vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS ......................................................................... viii Chapter 1 – Introduction .................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Significance of the Study ....................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Research Questions ................................................................................................................ 2 1.3 Definitions of Terms Used ..................................................................................................... 3 1.4 Limitations and Assumptions ................................................................................................ 3 Chapter 2 – Mining History, Site Description and Geology ............................................................ 5 2.1 Deposit Formation ................................................................................................................. 5 2.2 Site Description ...................................................................................................................... 6 Chapter 3 – Aeolian Transport Literature Review ........................................................................... 7 3.1 Initiation of Movement: Saltation, Creep and Suspension..................................................... 7 3.2 Flux Profiles ......................................................................................................................... 10 3.3 Particle Fractionation ........................................................................................................... 11 3.4 Controls on Dust Transport .................................................................................................. 12 3.4.1 Surface Roughness ........................................................................................................ 13 3.4.2 Soil Texture ................................................................................................................... 14 3.4.3 Soil Moisture ................................................................................................................. 15 3.5 Legacy Impacts .................................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 4 – Methods ...................................................................................................................... 16 4.1 Site Selection ....................................................................................................................... 16 4.2 Soil Sample Collection ........................................................................................................ 17 4.3 Dust Sample Collection ....................................................................................................... 18 4.4 Weather Data Collection ...................................................................................................... 19 4.5 Sample Processing ............................................................................................................... 19 4.5.1 Sieving and Grinding .................................................................................................... 19 4.5.2 Sample Digestion .......................................................................................................... 20 iii 4.5.3 Sample Dilutions ........................................................................................................... 20 4.6 Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS) ................................................ 21 4.6.1 ICP-MS Calibration and Calibration Checks ................................................................ 21 4.6.2 Elements Analyzed ....................................................................................................... 22 4.6.3 Minimum Detection Limit Calculation ......................................................................... 22 4.7 Principal Component Analysis ............................................................................................ 22 Chapter 5 – Results ........................................................................................................................ 23 5.1 Soil and Dust ........................................................................................................................ 23 5.2 Wind speed and Direction .................................................................................................... 25 5.3 Soil Uranium Concentrations ............................................................................................... 26 5.4 Statistical Analysis ............................................................................................................... 29 5.5 Dust Mass Flux .................................................................................................................... 35 Chapter 6 – Discussion and Conclusions ....................................................................................... 39 6.1 Discussion ...........................................................................................................................