Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic
Insulation covers can be used for the reclamation of tailings storage facilities located in the Arctic. However, this approach can be vulnerable to changes in climatic conditions as its long-term performance is based strictly on controlling the temperature of tailings. A more robust alternative coul...
Published in: | Canadian Geotechnical Journal |
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Canadian Science Publishing
2021
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 |
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crcansciencepubl:10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 2024-09-09T19:23:15+00:00 Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic Boulanger-Martel, Vincent Bussière, Bruno Côté, Jean 2021 http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 en eng Canadian Science Publishing http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining Canadian Geotechnical Journal volume 58, issue 4, page 583-594 ISSN 0008-3674 1208-6010 journal-article 2021 crcansciencepubl https://doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 2024-07-25T04:10:05Z Insulation covers can be used for the reclamation of tailings storage facilities located in the Arctic. However, this approach can be vulnerable to changes in climatic conditions as its long-term performance is based strictly on controlling the temperature of tailings. A more robust alternative could be the use of insulation covers with capillary barrier effects because they control both the tailings temperature and oxygen flux. This study assesses the potential for an insulation cover with capillary barrier effects using laboratory tests and a field experimental cell. Material characterization indicated that the fine-grained compacted waste rock is a suitable material for constructing a moisture-retaining layer. A 2 m thick field experimental cell was constructed in which temperatures and unfrozen volumetric water contents were monitored for 3.5 years. Results showed thaw depths periodically reaching the reactive tailings and temperatures at the tailings–cover interface greater than 0 °C for 39–57 days each year. The degree of saturation in the moisture-retaining layer was almost always greater than 80%–85% when temperatures at the tailings–cover interface exceeded 0 °C. Yearly oxygen fluxes passing through the moisture-retaining layer were calculated to be less than 2 mol/m 2 /year, thus confirming the effectiveness of the cover as an oxygen barrier. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Canadian Science Publishing Arctic Canadian Geotechnical Journal 58 4 583 594 |
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Open Polar |
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Canadian Science Publishing |
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crcansciencepubl |
language |
English |
description |
Insulation covers can be used for the reclamation of tailings storage facilities located in the Arctic. However, this approach can be vulnerable to changes in climatic conditions as its long-term performance is based strictly on controlling the temperature of tailings. A more robust alternative could be the use of insulation covers with capillary barrier effects because they control both the tailings temperature and oxygen flux. This study assesses the potential for an insulation cover with capillary barrier effects using laboratory tests and a field experimental cell. Material characterization indicated that the fine-grained compacted waste rock is a suitable material for constructing a moisture-retaining layer. A 2 m thick field experimental cell was constructed in which temperatures and unfrozen volumetric water contents were monitored for 3.5 years. Results showed thaw depths periodically reaching the reactive tailings and temperatures at the tailings–cover interface greater than 0 °C for 39–57 days each year. The degree of saturation in the moisture-retaining layer was almost always greater than 80%–85% when temperatures at the tailings–cover interface exceeded 0 °C. Yearly oxygen fluxes passing through the moisture-retaining layer were calculated to be less than 2 mol/m 2 /year, thus confirming the effectiveness of the cover as an oxygen barrier. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Boulanger-Martel, Vincent Bussière, Bruno Côté, Jean |
spellingShingle |
Boulanger-Martel, Vincent Bussière, Bruno Côté, Jean Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic |
author_facet |
Boulanger-Martel, Vincent Bussière, Bruno Côté, Jean |
author_sort |
Boulanger-Martel, Vincent |
title |
Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic |
title_short |
Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic |
title_full |
Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic |
title_fullStr |
Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic |
title_full_unstemmed |
Insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the Arctic |
title_sort |
insulation covers with capillary barrier effects to control sulfide oxidation in the arctic |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic |
genre_facet |
Arctic |
op_source |
Canadian Geotechnical Journal volume 58, issue 4, page 583-594 ISSN 0008-3674 1208-6010 |
op_rights |
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2019-0684 |
container_title |
Canadian Geotechnical Journal |
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58 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
583 |
op_container_end_page |
594 |
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1809763663588884480 |