Midwest US – Acid Mine Water Treatment

At a client’s mineral mine, rainwater had filled an excavation pit. The water reacted with the sulfur in the rock and became acidic with a pH of less than two. This water contained dissolved metals including, iron, copper, zinc and other heavy metals. The low pH and dissolved metals in the water are hazardous and could potentially be detrimental if the water leached into the groundwater or overflowed after additional heavy rainfall. The client selected an electrocoagulation (EC) system for the treatment process. WaterTectonics developed a 500gpm EC system, in conjunction with pH adjustment and clarification, ultrafiltration (UF) and nanofiltration (NF) that successfully treated the acid mine drainage to fresh water for discharge to a public water way.