Acid-Base Accounting to Predict Post-Mining Drainage Quality
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Acid–base accounting (ABA) is an analytical procedure that provides values to help assess the acid-producing and acid-neutralizing potential of overburden rocks prior to coal mining and other large-scale excavations. This procedure was developed by West Virginia University scientists during the 1960s. After the passage of laws requiring an assessment of surface mining on water quality, ABA became a preferred method to predict post-mining water quality, and permitting decisions for surface mines are largely based on the values determined by ABA. To predict the post-mining water quality, the amount of acid-producing rock is compared with the amount of acid-neutralizing rock, and a prediction of the water quality at the site (whether acid or alkaline) is obtained.
We gathered geologic and geographic data for 56 mined sites in West Virginia, which allowed us to estimate total overburden amounts, and values were determined for maximum potential acidity (MPA), neutralization potential (NP), net neutralization potential (NNP), and NP to MPA ratios for each site based on ABA. These values were correlated to post-mining water quality from springs or seeps on the mined property.
A poor relationship existed between MPA and post-mining water quality, NP was intermediate, and NNP and the NP to MPA ratio showed the best prediction accuracy. With NP to MPA ratios, values were separated into categories: <1 should produce acid drainage, between 1 and 2 can produce either acid or alkaline water conditions, and >2 should produce alkaline water.
On our 56 surface mined sites, an NP to MPA ratio of <1 produced mostly acid drainage sites, between 1 and 2 produced mostly alkaline drainage sites, while NP to MPA ratios > 2 produced alkaline drainage with a few exceptions. Using these values, ABA is a good tool to assess overburden quality before surface mining and to predict post-mining drainage quality after mining.