Development of an eco-friendly adsorbent for selective removal of selenium in uranium mining wastewater

While the benefits of uranium production bring economic and strategic advantages for Saskatchewan and Canada, the legacy of its tailings, waste rocks, flooded mines, and industrial wastewaters are the drawbacks. To safeguard both human and environmental health, the mining waste streams need to be treated prior to their release to the environment. The current research project aims to use agricultural residue-based materials (e.g., wheat and canola straws) as a cost-effective and eco-friendly alternative to the more expensive commercial adsorbents for removal of selenium from mining wastewater. Agricultural residues in Canada can provide an abundant source to develop inexpensive adsorbents and benefit the agricultural economy by increasing the value of the agricultural residues. The prepared agricultural residue-based adsorbents will offer an eco-friendly system for removing metal(loid)s from mining water with an initial focus on Se treatment. Investigation of the application of these biomass-based adsorbents will potentially reduce the cost of treatment of Se, and other metal(loid)s, in mining wastewater.

Faculty Supervisor:

Jafar Soltan;Kerry McPhedran

Student:

Partner:

Orano Resources Canada Inc

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Mining

University:

University of Saskatchewan

Program: