Sulfate reducing bioreactor cells (SRBC) are a new technology for remediation of acid mine drainage (AMD).  AMD is created when pyrite and other sulfides present in coal oxidize in contact with oxygen and water. The water seeping from mine refuse piles is thus concentrated in sulfuric acid and dissolved metals.  The SRBC at the Blackfoot site in Pike County, Indiana, was constructed by diverting the flow from the seeps on site into a shallow pit lined with limestone gravel and hay.  The SRBC is designed to promote biological reduction of sulfate to sulfide, which incorporates heavy metals as it precipitates, and to generate alkalinity by dissolution of limestone.  This is the first study to measure metal concentrations at the Blackfoot site.  Analysis of metal concentrations can be useful for assessing the performance of the SRBC. Water samples are being collected from ports throughout the bioreactor and from the inflow, outflow, and downstream near where the outflow joins a tributary of the Patoka River. Samples have been collected since February, 2011, as part of a larger Indiana Geological Survey monitoring effort, and analyzed for trace metal concentrations by ICP-MS.  The Blackfoot bioreactor has proven to be highly effective for metal precipitation.  Preliminary results show several toxic metals are above EPA limits at the inflow, but all are at acceptable levels at the outflow. However, mixing of untreated water with the treated water leads to slightly higher concentrations at the downstream station.

Metals analysis at a sulfate reducing bioreactor in Pike County, Indiana

246th National Meeting (2013)

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