Bioleaching of Pyrrhotite with Bacterial Adaptation and Biological Oxidation for Iron Recovery

Abstract

The microbially mediated recovery of valuable metals contained in mining waste presents an economical alternative to conventional hydrometallurgical processes. In order to investigate the effect of bacterial adaptation and biological oxidation on bioleaching, the microbially mediated bioleaching of a pyrrhotite sample from mine waste, with indigenous bacteria existing in acid mine drainage, was studied. The indigenous bacteria were sub-cultured repeatedly for iron adaptation, and Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans was identified as the dominant member of the microbial consortium. The point of zero charge (PZC) of pyrrhotite sampled from mine waste was determined as 3.0. The performance of bioleaching by contact and non-contact biological oxidation was compared by conducting bioleaching under different initial pH (pHini) conditions (2.8 and 3.2). Negatively charged bacteria could be attached onto the pyrrhotite, which has a positive surface charge at lower pHini (2.8) than the PZC (3.0). Bacteria attachment and corrosion pits on the surface of the pyrrhotite residues were observed at pHini of 2.8. Under bacteria-adapted conditions, the leaching concentration of Fe (44.2 mg/L) at pHini of 2.8 was 2.1 times greater than that (21.3 mg/L) at pHini of 3.2. Under non-adapted bacteria conditions, the extent of Fe leaching was not significantly different between the pHini of 2.8 and 3.2. This could be attributed to the fact that the adapted bacteria could more easily attach onto the pyrrhotite surfaces at pHini 2.8, allowing contact biological oxidation during the bioleaching experiments. We demonstrate here that the bioleaching of pyrrhotite could increase Fe recovery through bacterial adaptation and contact biological oxidation.