Erosion characteristic of slope sandstone soaking in acid mine drainage

Abstract

Acid mine drainage(AMD) is one of the main reasons of slope instability in chemical mines with high sulfide. The pH values of the solution inside the mining pit decrease with the increasing of distance from ore body and vary from 1.2 to 4.6, according to the results of the water environmental investigation and the composition test of the slope sandstone in Xinqiao Pyrite Mine. Comparative experiments between original sandstone and AMD eroded sandstone samples show that after AMD erosion the uniaxial compressive strength and elastic modulus decrease by 30%–50% and 25%–45%, respectively, the cohesion and internal friction angle decrease obviously, and the Poisson ratio fluctuates between 0.20–0.29. The greater joints development, the higher residual stress after peak value, and the longer time to damage. Besides above, the reaction mechanism analysis of AMD eroded sandstone shows that the fillings in joints and fissures of sandstone are frequently decomposed and polyreacted, resulting in changes of interior molecule structure and framework composition, and decreases of cohesion and angle of internal friction between rock structure interfaces.

Keywords

acid mine drainage / slope / microstructure / sandstone