Numerical Modeling of Acid Mine Drainage Generation and Subsequent Reactive Transport

The multicomponent reactive transport model MIN3P can be used to simulate the evolution of pore water, pore gas, and the mineralogical composition in mine waste environments. The model is formulated for variably-saturated conditions, considers transport of dissolved and gaseous species, and describes geochemical reactions based on a partial equilibrium formulation. Reaction processes included are complexation, oxidation-reduction, ion-exchange, mineral dissolution-precipitation and gas exsolution- dissolution reactions. An example application, describing the generation of acid mine drainage and subsequent reactive transport for a ID-vertical profile in a tailings impoundment near Elliot Lake, Ontario, is provided.