Evaluation and optimization of a mine water treatment system

Currently, mine water treatment systems within the Sydney Coalfield extract and treat mine water from depth with the aim to gradually âflushâ the mine pools of its acid-generating products and achieve good water quality over the long-term. However, since the deep, lower quality mine water is always being treated, significant annual operational costs (>$1 million) are being incurred. This project will evaluate the hydrodynamics and hydrogeochemistry of the mine pools and investigate treatment approaches that instead focus on the shallow, higher quality mine water. It is envisaged that this project may lead to a more efficient and cost-effective approach to treat mine water, both within the Sydney Coalfield, and throughout other mining regions throughout Canada.

Faculty Supervisor:

Christopher Power

Student:

Patrick Merritt

Partner:

CBCL Ltd.

Discipline:

Engineering - civil

Sector:

University:

Program:

Accelerate