Jump to content

User:ToedToad/Biomining

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
< User:ToedToad
This is an old revision of this page, as edited by ToedToad (talk | contribs) at 04:01, 17 February 2024. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Article Draft

--- A large edit that I am proposing to make is the combining of biomining and bioleaching into the same article. Thoughts? ---

--- Also, as I have been "editing" the article, I have essentially had to rewrite everything... is that okay? ---

Lead

Lead section

  • Needs to be reduced and made general.
  • Needs many additional citations
  • Grammatical and structural issues

Biomining refers to any process that uses living organisms to extract metals from ores and other solid materials. Typically these processes involve prokaryotes, however fungi and plants (phytoextraction also known as phytomining) may also be used.[1] Biomining is one of several applications within biohydrometallurgy with applications in ore refinement, precious metal recovery, bioremediation and space mining.[2] The largest application currently being used is the treatment of mining waste containing iron, copper, zinc, and gold allowing for salvation of any discarded minerals. Biomining has been proposed as a relatively environmentally friendly alternative and/or supplementation to traditional mining.[2] It may also be useful in maximizing the yields of increasingly low grade ore deposits.[3]

Article body

Overview

  • Too much information in this section that should be in its own section
  • Unstructured
  • Lacking essentially all citations.
  • An overview section is not needed, so I will likely remove it.

Deleted - Processing Methods

  • This section will be moved to the processing methods subsection of the mining metals section

Deleted - Current Techniques

  • Remove this section and add appropriate material to applications subsection of the mining minerals section.

History of Biomining

  • Needs citations
  • Add information about first uses and industry reception.
  • Remove some unnecessary information

The possibility of using microorganisms in biomining applications was realized after the 1951 paper by Kenneth Temple and Arthur Colmer [4]. In the paper the authors presented evidence that the bacteria Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans (basonym Thiobacillus ferrooxidans) is an iron oxidizer that thrive in iron, copper and magnesium rich environments[4]. In the experiment, A. ferrooxidans was inoculated into media containing between 2,000 and 26,000 ppm ferrous iron, finding that the bacteria grew faster and were more motile in the high iron concentrations[4]. Following this experiment, the potential to use fungi to leach metals from their environment[5] and use microorganisms to take up radioactive waste[6] have also been explored[5].

While the 1960s was when industrial biomining got its start, humans have been unknowingly using biomining practices for hundreds of years[7]. In western Europe the practice of extracting copper from metallic iron by placing it into drainage streams, used to be considered an act of alchemy[7]. However, today we know that it is a fairly simple chemical reaction. [7]

Cu2+ + Fe0 → Cu0 + Fe2+

*Added Section* Biomining Methods

Biooxidation (Biological pretreatment)

Biological pretreatment utilizes the natural oxidation abilities of microorganisms to remove unwanted minerals that interfere with the extraction of the target metals. [8] An widely utilized example of this is the removal of arsenopyrite and pyrite from gold (Au)[8]. Adidithiobacillus spp. release the gold by the following reaction[9]:

2 FeAsS[Au] + 7 O2 + 2 H2O + H2SO4 → Fe(SO4)3 + 2 H3AsO4 + [Au]

Stirred tank bioreactors are used for the biooxidation of gold.[8] While stirred tanks have been used to bioleach cobalt for copper mine tailings, [10] these are costly systems that can reach sizes of >1300m3 meaning that they are almost exclusively used for very high value minerals like gold.[8]

Bioleaching (Bioprocessing)

    • Add a figure to visually show each of the methods used ( I am a little confused about which figures from online I can and cannot use)
    • the old processing methods section will be moved here but needs to be substantially edited and have citations added.
      • Dump Leaching was one of the first widely used applications of biomining. In dump bioleaching, waste rock is piled into mounds (>100m tall) and saturated with sulfuric acid to encourage mineral oxidation from native bacteria.[8] Inoculation of the rock with bacteria is often not preformed in dump bioleaching which instead relies on the bacteria already present in the rock.[8]
      • Heap leaching is a newer take on dump leaching[8]. The process includes more processing in which the rocks are ground into a finer grain size[8]. This finer grain is then stacked only 2 - 10 m high and is well irrigates allowing for plenty of oxygen and carbon dioxide to reach the bacteria[8]. The mounds are also often inoculated with bacteria.[8]
      • Agitated Leaching[8]
  • Deep Subsurface Biomining
    • In situ biomining
  • Current Techniques and Applications

In addition to iron oxidation, Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans has the ability to solubilize copper.[11] Using Bacteria such as A. ferrooxidans to leach copper from mine tailings has improved recovery rates and reduced operating costs. Moreover, it permits extraction from low grade ores – an important consideration in the face of the depletion of high grade ores.[3]

Bioremediation (currently this is just copied over from the article)

  • This section currently exists but needs to have citations added
  • A figure would be helpful

Bioremediation is the process of using microbial systems to restore the environment to a healthy state. Certain microorganisms can survive in metal rich environments where they can then leach metallic cations for use in the cell. These microbes can be used to remove metals from the soil or water. These metal extractions can be performed in situ or ex situ where in situ is preferred since it is less expensive to excavate the substrate.[12]

Bioremediation is not specific to metals. In 2010 there was a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Populations of bacteria and archaea were used to rejuvenate the coast after the oil spill. These microorganisms over time have developed metabolic networks that can utilize hydrocarbons such as oil and petroleum as a source of carbon and energy.[13] Microbial bioremediation is a very effective modern technique for restoring natural systems by removing toxins from the environment.

*section to add* Waste Recovery

Future prospects

  • Biomining in space

References

  1. ^ V. Sheoran, A. S. Sheoran & Poonam Poonia (October 2009). "Phytomining: A Review". Minerals Engineering. 22 (12): 1007–1019. Bibcode:2009MiEng..22.1007S. doi:10.1016/j.mineng.2009.04.001.
  2. ^ a b Jerez, Carlos A (2017). "Biomining of metals: how to access and exploit natural resource sustainably". Microbial Biotechnology. 10 (5): 1191–1194. ISSN 1751-7915.
  3. ^ a b Kundu et al. 2014 "Biochemical Engineering Parameters for Hydrometallurgical Processes: Steps towards a Deeper Understanding"
  4. ^ a b c Temple, Kenneth L.; Colmer, Arthur R. (1951). "THE AUTOTROPHIC OXIDATION OF IRON BY A NEW BACTERIUM: THIOBACILLUS FERROOXIDANS1". Journal of Bacteriology. 62 (5): 605–611. ISSN 0021-9193. PMID 14897836.
  5. ^ a b Wang, Y.; Zeng, W.; Qiu, G.; Chen, X.; Zhou, H. (15 November 2013). "A Moderately Thermophilic Mixed Microbial Culture for Bioleaching of Chalcopyrite Concentrate at High Pulp Density". Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 80 (2): 741–750. doi:10.1128/AEM.02907-13. PMC 3911102. PMID 24242252.
  6. ^ Tsezos, Marios (2013-01-01). "Biosorption: A Mechanistic Approach". In Schippers, Axel; Glombitza, Franz; Sand, Wolfgang (eds.). Geobiotechnology I. Advances in Biochemical Engineering/Biotechnology. Vol. 141. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. pp. 173–209. doi:10.1007/10_2013_250. ISBN 9783642547096. PMID 24368579.
  7. ^ a b c Barton, Larry L.; Mandl, Martin; Loy, Alexander, eds. (2010). Geomicrobiology: Molecular and Environmental Perspective. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands. doi:10.1007/978-90-481-9204-5. ISBN 978-90-481-9203-8.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Johnson, D Barrie (2014). "Biomining—biotechnologies for extracting and recovering metals from ores and waste materials". Current Opinion in Biotechnology. 30: 24–31. doi:10.1016/j.copbio.2014.04.008.
  9. ^ Li, Qian; Luo, Jun; Xu, Rui; Yang, Yongbin; Xu, Bin; Jiang, Tao; Yin, Huaqun (2021). "Synergistic enhancement effect of Ag+ and organic ligands on the bioleaching of arsenic-bearing gold concentrate". Hydrometallurgy. 204: 105723. doi:10.1016/j.hydromet.2021.105723.
  10. ^ Morin, Dominique Henri Roger; d'Hugues, Patrick (2007), Rawlings, Douglas E.; Johnson, D. Barrie (eds.), "Bioleaching of a Cobalt-Containing Pyrite in Stirred Reactors: a Case Study from Laboratory Scale to Industrial Application", Biomining, Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, pp. 35–55, doi:10.1007/978-3-540-34911-2_2, ISBN 978-3-540-34909-9, retrieved 2024-02-17
  11. ^ Valdés, Jorge; Pedroso, Inti; Quatrini, Raquel; Dodson, Robert J; Tettelin, Herve; Blake, Robert; Eisen, Jonathan A; Holmes, David S (2008). "Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans metabolism: from genome sequence to industrial applications". BMC Genomics. 9 (1). doi:10.1186/1471-2164-9-597. ISSN 1471-2164. PMC 2621215. PMID 19077236.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: PMC format (link) CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link)
  12. ^ Azubuike, Christopher Chibueze; Chikere, Chioma Blaise; Okpokwasili, Gideon Chijioke (16 September 2016). "Bioremediation techniques–classification based on site of application: principles, advantages, limitations and prospects". World Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology. 32 (11): 180. doi:10.1007/s11274-016-2137-x. PMC 5026719. PMID 27638318.
  13. ^ Fathepure, Babu Z. (2014-01-01). "Recent studies in microbial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in hypersaline environments". Frontiers in Microbiology. 5: 173. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2014.00173. ISSN 1664-302X. PMC 4005966. PMID 24795705.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:ToedToad/Biomining&oldid=1208340141"