Method and Apparatus for the Treatment of Mine Water

Abstract

A method and apparatus for the treatment of acidic surface water that has an initial pH and that contains one or more dissolved metals, the method including: (a) extracting a continuous stream of acidic surface water from an acidic surface water supply; (b) mixing a powdered neutralizing agent, having a particle size in the range of 8 micron to 500 micron, in the stream of acidic surface water to produce an alkaline slurry; and (c) dispersing the alkaline slurry for a dosing period over at least a portion of the acidic surface water supply to treat the acidic surface water supply; whereby the treatment of the acidic surface water supply will result in the pH of the acidic surface water supply increasing from its initial pH, and at least a portion of the one or more dissolved metals precipitating out of the acidic surface water supply to form a supernatant and a metal-rich precipitate.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.