Mineral exploration is often associated with the generation of environmental liabilities, whose potential damages might imperil local water quality. An example of these environmental impacts is the acid mine drainage—AMD, caused by sulfides oxidation and production of acid and saline effluents. The analysis of critical areas with generation and spread of contamination plumes becomes more feasible due to the possibility to obtain geophysical models of water systems, especially to identify regions with accumulation of reactive minerals and preferential water flows. The rock-waste pile named BF-04 fits in this context of contamination, and it was studied based on the Electrical Resistivity Tomography technique, inversion models and isosurface models, providing conditions to recognize sulfide zones (> 10.1 mV/V), whereas chaotic high salt content underground flows, along several depths, were identified by low resistivity zones (< 75.8 Ω m). The complex behavior of groundwater flow in this kind of artificial granular aquifer is caused by its granulometric and lithologic heterogeneities, and compacted material. In addition, the results reveled a substantial water infiltration from Consulta creek, however the most critic zones for AMD generation are located at shallow levels where the waste rock material is more exposed to atmospheric O 2 and meteoric water infiltration. The bedrock was not associated with significant low resistivity anomalies, which means that its contribution to AMD generation was considered relatively less important. The results will contribute to the environmental remediation management and also to demonstrate the potential applicability of geophysical methods in mining wastes.

中文翻译：

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使用电阻率层析成像技术研究铀矿废石堆中酸性矿山排水的产生和地下流动

矿产勘探通常与环境责任的产生有关，其潜在的损害可能危及当地的水质。这些环境影响的一个例子是酸性矿山排水 - AMD，由硫化物氧化以及酸性和盐水流出物的产生引起。由于可以获得水系统的地球物理模型，特别是识别具有活性矿物质和优先水流的区域的可能性，因此对具有污染羽流产生和扩散的关键区域的分析变得更加可行。名为BF-04的岩屑堆适合这种污染环境，基于电阻率层析成像技术、反演模型和等值面模型对其进行了研究，为识别硫化物带（> 10.1 mV/V）提供了条件，而低电阻率区 (< 75.8 Ω m) 识别出沿多个深度的混乱的高盐含量地下流。这种人工颗粒含水层中地下水流动的复杂行为是由其粒度和岩性非均质性以及压实物质引起的。此外，结果表明，Consulta 小溪有大量的水渗入，但是 AMD 生成的最关键区域位于浅层，在那里废石材料更容易暴露于大气 O 2 和大气水渗入。基岩与显着的低电阻率异常无关，这意味着它对 AMD 生成的贡献被认为相对不那么重要。