Goethite is a dominant component of nickel laterite ores, which is capable of adsorbing metal ions in water. The potential of the unused low‐grade nickel ore (LGO) to treat synthetic acid mine drainage (AMD) was investigated. LGO characterization identified the presence of goethite (α‐FeOOH), calcium oxide (CaO), and manganese aluminum oxide. The performance of LGO for AMD treatment was evaluated using jar test and compared with limestone. At 0.5 ml AMD/g media, LGO increased the pH of AMD to 5.36 while limestone completely neutralized it. LGO removed more than 99% of Al and Fe, 94% of Ni, and 93% of sulfates compared to a 70% sulfate removal using limestone. The lower sulfate removal may be due to the armouring of the limestone surface. Furthermore, a batch test was conducted using both LGO and limestone as layered treatment media in an oxic and anoxic setup. Effluent pH remained constant while conductivity and TDS stabilize at 2,000 μS/cm and 1,000 ppm, respectively. Both setups achieved 99% removal of Fe and Al, ~90% Ni removal, and between 70% and 80% sulfate removal. These results indicate that LGO is a possible alternative material to be used for heavy metal adsorption for AMD treatment.

中文翻译：

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比较低品位镍矿和石灰石处理合成酸性矿山排水的性能

针铁矿是镍红土矿石的主要成分，它能够吸附水中的金属离子。研究了未使用的低品位镍矿（LGO）处理合成酸性矿山排水（AMD）的潜力。LGO表征确定了针铁矿（α-FeO​​OH），氧化钙（CaO）和锰铝氧化物的存在。使用jar试验评估了LGO用于AMD治疗的性能，并与石灰石进行了比较。在0.5 ml AMD / g培养基中，LGO将AMD的pH值提高到5.36，而石灰石则将其完全中和。与使用石灰石去除70％的硫酸盐相比，LGO去除了99％的Al和Fe，94％的Ni和93％的硫酸盐。硫酸盐去除率较低可能是由于石灰石表面的铠装。此外，使用LGO和石灰石作为有氧和无氧环境中的分层处理介质进行了批量测试。出水pH值保持恒定，而电导率和TDS分别稳定在2,000μS/ cm和1,000 ppm。两种设置均可实现99％的铁和铝去除率，〜90％的镍去除率以及70％至80％的硫酸盐去除率。这些结果表明，LGO是用于AMD处理的重金属吸附的一种可能的替代材料。