Saskatchewan scientist helped find a fix for toxic mining waste |
These in-their-own-words pieces are told to Patricia Lane and co-edited with input from the interviewee for the purpose of brevity.
Peter Blanchard X-rays mining waste to clean it up. This Canadian Light Source (CLS) scientist worked with researchers from the University of Saskatchewan to confirm that certain kinds of common clay can trap nickel and other harmful metals to keep them from polluting the environment.
Tell us about your project.
The waste from mines can potentially release nickel into nearby streams, ponds and groundwater. At high concentrations, nickel is toxic to people, fish, plants and other living things. Researchers from the University of Saskatchewan were looking at how clays common in nature interact with nickel and other toxic metals. They reached out to me to see if we could use the CLS to better understand how they interact.
I used the ultra-bright X-rays generated by the Canadian Light Source synchrotron to “see” how a common clay called kaolinite can sponge up and trap some of that nickel to reduce the harm. As we raised the pH of the water around........