Publication information

Geological Survey of Canada
Open File 8752

Geoenvironmental characterization of ferroniobium slag, Saint Lawrence Columbium Mine, Oka, Québec 

A.J. Desbarats, J. B. Percival, P. Pelchat, J. Sekerka, I. Bilot, I. Girard, and P. Gammon

© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Natural Resources, 2020

Permanent link: https://doi.org/10.4095/327565

Publications in this series have not been edited; they are released as submitted by the author.

Recommended citation

Desbarats, A.J., Percival, J.B., Pelchat, P., Sekerka, J., Bilot, I., Girard, I., and Gammon, P., 2020. 
     Geoenvironmental characterization of ferroniobium slag, Saint Lawrence Columbium mine, Oka, 
     Québec; Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 8752, 1 .zip file. https://doi.org/10.4095/327565

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Contents

New technologies are driving a strong demand for critical metals found in carbonatite deposits such as rare earth elements and niobium. However, little is known about the environmental characteristics of mine wastes from carbonatites. This study investigates the mineralogy, geochemistry, and radioactivity of slag from the processing of niobium ore at the former St. Lawrence Columbium mine in Oka, Quebec. Niobium (Nb) occurs in the mineral pyrochlore, which also contains uranium (U) and thorium (Th). The conversion of pyrochlore concentrate to ferroniobium alloy yields a slag enriched in U and Th. The slag contains enough U and Th to be classified as a radioactive hazard. Slag leachate contains high concentrations of dissolved aluminum and fluoride. Results of this study provide open access benchmark data for environmental impact assessments of carbonatite-hosted critical metal deposits developed in the future.

Directory structure

of_8752_readme.rtf (this file)
of_8752.pdf (report)

of_8752_slag chemistry.xlsx 
This Microsoft Excel® file contains chemical analyses for three slag samples and one sample of pyrochlore concentrate.

of_8752_slag radiochemistry.xlsx
This Microsoft Excel® file contains radiometric analyses for three slag samples and one pyrochlore concentrate sample.

of_8752_radiometric profile.xlsx
This Microsoft Excel® file contains the radiometric survey results.

of_8752_leachate chemistry.xlsx
This Microsoft Excel® file contains analytical results for slag leachate chemistry.

Author contact information

A.J. Desbarats (Alexandre.Desbarats@canada.ca)
Geological Survey of Canada
601 Booth Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0E8

Availability information

This publication is available for free download through GEOSCAN (https://geoscan.nrcan.gc.ca/).
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