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Proposed laboratory investigation into electroosmotic dewatering of mine tailings

dc.contributor.authorVander Vis, Kimberly Ann, author
dc.contributor.authorBareither, Christopher, advisor
dc.contributor.authorScalia, Joseph, advisor
dc.contributor.authorSanford, William, committee member
dc.date.accessioned2020-09-07T10:08:37Z
dc.date.available2021-09-02T10:08:37Z
dc.date.issued2020
dc.description.abstractGeotechnical concerns of tailings storage facilities (TSFs) often depend on the water content of the tailings. Tailings with low hydraulic conductivity often have high-water contents with low undrained shear strength at the time of mine closure which limits the ability to close the TSF. The purpose of this study is to explore undrained shear strength gain in surficial mine tailings using electroosmotic dewatering (EOD) to help promote closure and reclamation of TSFs. Electroosmotic dewatering uses electrodes to apply an electrical direct current to induce flow through a porous medium. An experiment was developed to assess the effectiveness of dewatering methods at bench-scale to increase undrained shear strength of tailings via three different methods: EOD, surcharge consolidation, and evaporation only. The proposed research will evaluate if EOD (1) increases undrained shear strength of saturated surficial mine tailings more rapidly and (2) increases undrained shear strength as a function of depth more effectively, compared to the other techniques. Factors that influence EOD were preliminarily evaluated and include electrodes used, pore fluid chemistry, degree of saturation, voltage gradient and electrode configuration. Additionally, electroosmotic dewatering of mine tailings has not been implemented on a large-scale possibly due to lack of developed procedure, difficult water removal, and lack of a commercially available EOD unit. A goal of the proposed research plan is to develop field-scale implementation methods and water removal techniques via a moisture wicking synthetic capillary drain unit to be coupled with electroosmotic dewatering (i.e., EO-Plant) for field-scale applications.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediummasters theses
dc.identifierVanderVis_colostate_0053N_16153.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10217/212026
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2020-
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjectelectroosmotic
dc.subjectdewatering
dc.subjecttailings
dc.titleProposed laboratory investigation into electroosmotic dewatering of mine tailings
dc.typeText
dcterms.embargo.expires2021-09-02
dcterms.embargo.terms2021-09-02
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineCivil and Environmental Engineering
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (M.S.)

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