In this study, the tailings resulting from acid heap-leaching of uranium ore from a mine in south China was treated with different neutralizing agents. This formed part of a neutralisation experiment to examine the trend of pH over time and to fit kinetic equations to the observed trends. Moreover, combined with the distribution of various tailing particle sizes, the porosity and the pore volume of the waste ore were determined by cryogenic nitrogen adsorption-desorption. Thus the causes for the pH value trends could be determined and the correlation between physical properties of the tailings and the pH trends was ascertained. The result showed that the final pH of the tailings increased with the amount of neutralizing agent used, while over-dosing with neutralizer tends to disturb the system. The results of the experiment indicated that either lime or sodium hydroxide would be effective in neutralizing the tailings.
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