Chemical Analysis of Essential Trace Elements in Wastewater Samples Collected from Four Different Mines

Abstract

Mine water contains trace heavy metals which are some essential trace elements in high concentrations causing the pollution of nearby water bodies, related ground waters and soils degradation. The aim of the study is to identify and quantify the essential trace elements present in the different mine water samples and their level of toxicity. Digestion technique was employed to pretreat the mine wastewater before analysis. Physicochemical analysis was conducted for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), and salinity. The samples collected from four different locations are Sample A (Gold mine), Sample B (Copper mine), Sample C (Iron mine), Sample D (Tin mine). The raw or untreated mine water samples were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). The results showed the essential trace elements present in all the mine water samples are Mn, Cu, Fe and Zn. Cu is highly concentrated in copper (73.87 mg/L) and tin (2.09 mg/L) mine water while Fe is dominant in water samples collected from gold (7.19 mg/L) and iron (13.12 mg/L) mine. In conclusion, the essential trace elements Mn, Cu, and Fe present in all the mines are very high and can be harmful to human life in the environment but the concentrations of Zn in the entire mine water samples are within the permissible level of standard drinking water and hence it can pose no threat to human life.