Abstract
Uranium tailing ponds are a potential major source of radioactive pollution. Solidification treatment can control the diffusion and migration of radioactive elements in uranium tailings to safeguard the surrounding ecological environment. A literature review and field investigation were conducted in this study prior to fabricating 11 solidified uranium tailing samples with different proportions of PVA fiber, basalt fiber, metakaolin, and fly ash, and the weight percentage of uranium tailings in the solidified body is 61.11%. The pore structure, volume resistivity, compressive strength, radon exhalation rate variations, and U(VI) leaching performance of the samples were analyzed. The pore size of the solidified samples is mainly between 1 and 50 nm, the pore volume is between 2.461 and 5.852 × 10−2 cm3/g, the volume resistivity is between 1020.00 and 1937.33 Ω·m, and the compressive strength is between 20.61 and 36.91 MPa. The radon exhalation rate is between 0.0397 and 0.0853 Bq·m−2·s−1. The cumulative leaching fraction of U(VI) is between 2.095 and 2.869 × 10−2 cm, and the uranium immobilization rate is between 83.46 and 85.97%. Based on a comprehensive analysis of the physical and mechanical properties, radon exhalation rates, and U(VI) leaching performance of the solidified samples, the basalt fiber is found to outperform PVA fiber overall. The solidification effect is optimal when 0.6% basalt fiber is added.
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Funding
This research was supported by the Hunan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 2021JJ30572); the Research Project of Education Department of Hunan Province, China (grant no. 20A422); the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 11875164); and the project was approved by the Hunan Province Engineering Research Center of Radioactive Control Technology in Uranium Mining and Metallurgy and Hunan Province Engineering Technology Research Center of Uranium Tailings Treatment Technology (grant no. 2018YKZX1004), the Open Fund Project of the Hunan Cooperative Innovation Center for Nuclear Fuel Cycle Technology and Equipment (grant no. 2019KFZ01) and Hunan Provincial Innovation Foundation for Postgraduate, China (grant no. CX20210924).
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Fuliang Jiang put forward the experimental scheme, guided the experiment, and guided the writing of the thesis. Biao Tan and Zhe Wang carried out the field experiments and completed the draft paper. Yong Liu guided the formulation and modification of the experimental scheme. Yuying Hao, Chao Zhang, Haonan Wu, and Changshou Hong participated in the field experiment. All authors contributed to the writing of the manuscript and approved the final manuscript.
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Jiang, F., Tan, B., Wang, Z. et al. Preparation and related properties of geopolymer solidified uranium tailings bodies with various fibers and fiber content. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 20603–20616 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-17176-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-17176-0