Rhizosphere chemistry and above-ground elemental fractionation of nickel hyperaccumulator species from Weda Bay (Indonesia) (original) (raw)
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Nickel phytomining potential in serpentine soil of Sri Lanka: an implication for sustainable mining
Bolgoda Plains
The world is experiencing rapid growth of nickel (Ni) demand, especially for lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles, while high-grade Ni deposits are being depleted due to expanding economics, growing populations, and disorganized industrialization. Therefore, a major transformation from high-grade low-bulk ores to low-grade high-bulk ores is necessary to secure the future supply chain of Ni [1]. In this context, ultramafic soil is considered a low-grade high-bulk Ni ore, mostly found in tropical countries. However, conventional mining practices are high energy-consuming and generate a tremendous amount of waste, making it impracticable to recover Ni from ultramafic soil. Therefore, phytomining (or farming for metals) is identified as a viable and innovative method for Ni recovery from low-grade high-bulk sources such as ultramafic soil.
Implementing nickel phytomining in a serpentine quarry in NW Spain
Journal of Geochemical Exploration, 2018
In Galicia (NW Spain), ultramafic outcrops represent approximately 5% of the land surface and several mining and quarrying activities take place in these areas. Resulting mine-soils present physical, chemical and biological properties which limit plant growth and soil functioning. Nickel phytomining, an eco-friendly strategy for metal recovery, could potentially be applied to these areas. A one-year field experiment was carried out in a serpentine quarry to evaluate the performance of four Ni hyperaccumulating plant species, comparing the Mediterranean spp. Bornmuellera emarginata and Odontarrhena muralis with the native populations of Noccaea caerulescens and Odontarrhena serpyllifolia. Field plots were established and amended with inorganic NPK fertilisers or composted sewage sludge. Three replicate plots (4 m 2) were planted for each plant species and fertilisation regime. Amending with compost reduced pH from 7.8 to 6.6, and increased soil cation exchange capacity (CEC), nutrient concentrations and Ni availability. Moreover, compost-amended mine-soil presented higher microbial density and activity, parameters which were further stimulated by plant growth. Plant biomass production of all plant species was significantly higher in compost-amended soils than that after NPK fertilisation, being most pronounced for O. muralis and B. emarginata. Despite the reduction in shoot Ni concentrations observed in plants (except O. muralis) grown in compost-amended plots, the increased biomass production led to significantly higher Ni yields (in kg ha −1) in B. emarginata (2.9), N. caerulescens (1.9) and O. muralis (2.3). All plant species were able to establish and grow in the mine-soil (with the Mediterranean species showing a higher capacity for adaptation) and to generate moderate Ni yields. Nonetheless, the results highlight the need for further optimisation in order to enhance the Ni phytoextraction efficiency. Finally, the improvement in soil quality after compost amendment and plant growth support the idea that phytomining systems can be effective approaches for the rehabilitation of soils affected by quarrying operations after mine closure.
Bioaccumulation of nickel by five wild plant species on nickel-contaminated soil
A number of plant species have adapted well in the soil conditions of the mining area and were capable to accumulate nickel in the aerial part of plants. The differences of tolerance and bioaccumulation on Ni contaminated soil on five plant species obtained from Ni post-mining land were in vestigated in pot experiment. The results showed that Sarcotheca celebica had a high tolerance (root tolerance index of 128.45% and shoot tolerance index of 21978%) and its capability to accumulate Ni in shoot (Translocation Factor value 8.67) was higher than that in the root. Tephrosia sp., Mimosa pigra and Celtis occidentalis were tolerance species that accumulated more Ni in the roots than in the shoots. Melastoma malabathricum was able to accumulate Ni the shoot in limited quantities.
Nickel accumulating plants in the post-mining land of Sorowako, South Sulawesi, Indonesia
2012
Twenty-three plant species from three post-mining sites in Sorowako, South Sulawesi, Indonesia were collected and their nickel concentrations in the dried leaf samples determined. Most species had a concentration below the threshold for nickel hyperaccumulation, with the exception of Sarcotheca celebica Veldk. (Family Oxadilaceae), which recorded a concentration of 1039 mg Ni kg-1 dry weight. However, all collected species would be suitable for remediation of the post-mining lands.
Asian Journal of …, 2009
Speciation is important to determine the mobility, bioavailability and/or toxicity of trace elements in soils because the total metal concentrations are not adequate for determination of these properties. In this study, four stage sequential extraction procedures were used to determine different Ni phases in soil samples. Soil samples and plants grown in these soils were collected from serpentine and copper-mining area in Maden-Elazig-Turkey. The extracted fractions are: exchangeable/carbonate, reducible-iron/manganese oxides, oxidizable-organic matter and sulfides and residual except silicates. In addition, selective extraction procedures were applied to the same samples and the results were compared. The concentrations of Ni in soil and plant samples were determined by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Considerable Ni concentrations in hydroxylamine hydrochloride extracts were found compared to other selective extracts. Because of translocation factor higher than 1, Rumex (Sorrel) leaves can be used as hyperaccumulator.
Control of nickel availability by nickel bearing minerals in natural and anthropogenic soils
Geoderma, 2006
The aim of this paper was i) to determine the Ni-bearing minerals and localize Ni in natural and contaminated Ni-rich soils, ii) to characterize Ni availability with isotopic exchange kinetics (IEK) and iii) to study its interactions with soil mineralogy and characteristics along a gradient of weathering intensity. We sampled 16 soils varying from a recently exposed surface serpentinite in cold regions, to Ferralsols (laterites) from a humid tropical climate including two highly contaminated soils (Ni industry). The minerals identified ranged from primary minerals to secondary phyllosilicates and lastly to Mn/Fe oxides, according to weathering intensity. Primary minerals inherited from the parent materials and secondary phyllosilicates formed in low leaching conditions had concentrations of Ni similar to the rock (0.2-0.3%). When compared to other secondary minerals, Fe oxides displayed slight Ni enrichment in moderate leaching conditions (0.4-0.8%) up to 10-fold enrichment in highly weathered Ferralsols (4-6%). Full characterization of the three factors of Ni availability in soils: the intensity (C Ni ), the quantity (E t ) and the capacity (CF) factors was achieved with IEK. For most of the soils, C Ni and E t varied conjointly: elevated values of these two parameters were found in soils dominated by both phyllosilicates and amorphous Fe oxides (high exchange capacity); low values were found in soils with significant amounts of well-crystallized Fe oxides (high retention capacity). In the case of anthropogenic origin, control of soil Ni availability also depends on the type of Ni-bearing minerals.
Developing Sustainable Agromining Systems in Agricultural Ultramafic Soils for Nickel Recovery
Frontiers in Environmental Science, 2018
Ultramafic soils are typically enriched in nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr), and cobalt (Co) and deficient in essential nutrients, making them unattractive for traditional agriculture. Implementing agromining systems in ultramafic agricultural soils represent an ecological option for the sustainable management and re-valorisation of these low-productivity landscapes. These novel agroecosystems cultivate Ni-hyperaccumulating plants which are able to bioaccumulate this metal in their aerial plant parts; harvested biomass can be incinerated to produce Ni-enriched ash or "bio-ore" from which Ni metal, Ni ecocatalysts or pure Ni salts can be recovered. Nickel hyperaccumulation has been documented in ∼450 species, and in temperate latitudes these mainly belong to the family Brassicaceae and particularly to the genus Odontarrhena (syn. Alyssum pro parte). Agromining allows for sustainable metal recovery without causing the environmental impacts associated with conventional mining activities, and at the same time, can improve soil fertility and quality and provide essential ecosystem services. Parallel reductions in Ni phytotoxicity over time would also permit cultivation of conventional agricultural crops. Field studies in Europe have been restricted to Mediterranean areas and these only evaluated the Ni-hyperaccumulator Odontarrhena muralis s.l. Two recent EU projects (Agronickel and LIFE-Agromine) have established a network of agromining field sites in ultramafic regions with different edapho-climatic characteristics across Albania, Austria, Greece and Spain. Soil and crop management practices are being developed so as to Kidd et al. Sustainable Agromining Systems for Nickel Recovery optimize the Ni agromining process; field studies are evaluating the potential benefits of fertilization regimes, crop selection and cropping patterns, and bioaugmentation with plant-associated microorganisms. Hydrometallurgical processes are being up-scaled to produce nickel compounds and energy from hyperaccumulator biomass. Exploratory techno-economic assessment of Ni metal recovery by pyrometallurgical conversion of O. muralis s.l. shows promising results under the condition that heat released during incineration can be valorized in the vicinity of the processing facility.
Journal of Degraded and Mining Lands Management
Journal of Degraded and Mining Lands Management, 2014
Uptake of nickel and three other heavy metals (copper, cobalt, and chromium) was examined in 33 species of the common and rare native vascular plants growing in an ultramafic area currently subjected to mining in Zambales Province, Luzon, Philippines. Leaf tissue samples were initially screened in the field using filter paper impregnated with dimethylglyoxime (1% solution in 70% ethyl alcohol) and later analyzed by atomic absorption spectroscopy. One species was found to be a hypernickelophore (>10,000 µg/g), eight species were nickel hyperaccumulators (>1,000 µg/g), nineteen species were hemi-accumulators (>100-1,000 µg/g), and five species were non-accumulators (<100 µg/g). This paper significantly adds to the list of hyperaccumulator species first reported for the Philippines in 1992. The findings will be discussed in context of using indigenous species for post mining ecological restoration and nickel phytoextraction in small-scale mining in the Philippines..
Several industrial sites suffer from the contamination of soils from heavy metals, which are emitted among others by anthropogenic mining and metallurgical activities. Effective and economic physicochemical technologies for remediation of these sites remain complicated and costly. A new alternative remediation technique is the so-called phytoremediation. This is based on the ability of some plants to accumulate very high concentrations of metals from soils and thus providing the basis for a remediation of the contaminated sites. This technique as an emerging branch of natural biotechnology, has several advantages compared to the sophisticated physicochemical techniques of soil remediation. It is not only environmentally friendly but also its costs are quite low since it is solar driven. Furthermore plants can accumulate metals to such levels that the mineral recovery maybe feasible even in conventional Ni refinery or smelting operations. In this work, the potential of many plants to...
Assessment of Phytoavailability of Nickel in Soils
Journal of Environment Quality, 1998
Methods are needed for the rapid characterization of the phytoavailable fraction of trace elements in soils to assess the risk of contamination of the food chain and evaluate the impact of waste management practices. This investigation was undertaken to study the phytotavailability of Ni in soils using the isotopic exchange method. Isotopic exchange of 63Ni2+ ions was studied in two soils, a sill loam and a clayey muck, and the isotopic composition of Ni in the soil solution was determined. Plant tests were conducted on the same soils amended with ~3Ni2+, and the isotopic composition of Ni in the plant tissues was also measured. The isotopic composition of Ni in soil extracted by DTPA at the end of the culture was also determined. Results showed that the isotopic composition of Ni in the soil solution was identical to the isotopic composition of Ni taken up by plants during the same time. The Ni in the plant came exclusively from the pool of the isotopically exchangeable Ni of the soil. Also, under these experimental conditions, DTPA extracted mainly isotopically exchangeable Ni, reinforcing the validity of this chemical to assess the phytoavailability of Ni. Besides, the phytoavailable soil Ni could be characterized with the intensity, quantity, and capacity factors deduced from isotopic exchange kinetics. The kinetics for which parameters were obtained from short-term experiments were successfully extrapolated to longer times of exchange corresponding to plant growth which demonstrated that isotopic exchange kinetics is an appropriate tool to assess the truly phytoavailable Ni in soils. This technique requires more data from many different soils before it can be used for routine measurements.