EPA-670/2-74-070
October 1974
Environmental Protection Technology Series
MINE SPOIL POTENTIALS FOR
SOIL AND WATER QUALITY
••BHBI
National Environmental Research Center
Office of Research and Development
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Cincinnati, Ohio 45268
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EPA-670/2-74-070
October 1974
MINE SPOIL POTENTIALS FOR SOIL AND WATER QUALITY
By
Richard M. Smith, Walter E. Grube, Jr.,
Thomas Arkle, Jr., and Andrew Sobek
Division of Plant Sciences
College of Agriculture and Forestry
West Virginia University
Morgantown, West Virginia 26506
Project No. S800745
Program Element -No. 1BB040
Project Officer
Benton M. Wilmoth
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Wheeling, West Virginia 26003
NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH CENTER
OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
CINCINNATI, OHIO 45268
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government
Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402
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REVIEW NOTICE
The National Environmental Research Center--
Cincinnati has reviewed this report and approved its
publication. Approval does not signify that the
contents necessarily reflect the views and policies
of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, nor
does mention of trade names or commercial products
constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.
ii
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FOREWORD
Man and his environment must be protected from the
adverse effects of pesticides, radiation, noise, and other
forms of pollution, and the unwise management of solid
waste. Efforts to protect the environment require a focus
that recognizes the interplay between the components of our
physical environment--air, water, and land. The National
Environmental Research Centers provide this multidiscipli-
nary focus through programs engaged in
• studies on the effects of environmental
contaminants on man and the biosphere, and
• a search for ways to prevent contamination
and to recycle valuable resources.
The removal of coal from the earth by surface mining
causes major disturbances to the environment. If environ-
mental damages are to be minimized, it is essential that
the extraction and reclamation processes be planned before
mining occurs. This project has made major progress in
developing techniques to pre-plan surface mining.
A. W. Breidenbach, Ph.D.
Director
National Environmental
Research Center, Cincinnati
iii
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ABSTRACT
Selected chemical, physical, and mineralogical measurements have been
adapted to coal overburden sections of the Monongahela, Conemaugh,
Allegheny, and New Elver formations of. the Pennsylvanian in central
and northern West Virginia.
Field studies, core logging, simulated weathering, and laboratory
measurements provide a basis for recognizing toxic (.pH below 4.0) or
potentially toxic (reduced sulphur sufficient for mineral acid in excess
of neutralization capacity) rock or soil as well as superior materials
(pH near neutral and high available phosphorus) for topsoiling mined
lands.
Laboratory measurements have been keyed to regional trends of coal
and rock types within the northern Appalachian coal basin, confirming
the validity of the three previously suggested Surface Mining Provinces
and providing a basis for useful extrapolation of results beyond sampled
sites.
Improved classification of minesoils within the comprehensive American
system, Soil Taxonomy, based on consistently observable properties of
minesoil profiles, provides the needed basis for more precise management,
including liming, accurate fertilization, and more satisfactory growth
of plant combinations emphasizing legumes or repeated nitrogen ferti-
lization.
This report was submitted in fulfillment of Project S 800745 by West
Virginia University under the sponsorship of the Environmental Pro-
tection Agency. Work was completed as of November, 1973.
IV
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CONTENTS
Section Page
I Conclusions 1
II Recommendations 4
III Introduction 7
IV Geologic Considerations 9
V Soil Considerations 29
VI Methods Adapted to Minesoils 36
VII Acid Producing Potential and Neutralizing Potential 72
VIII Chemistry and Mineralogy of Overburden Profiles 130
IX Petrographic Investigation of Sandstone Weathering 174
X Laboratory Weathering Studies 200
XI Characterization of Mine Wastes 224
XII Evidences from Old Minesoils 231
XIII Minesoil Interactions with Plant Covers and Management 242
XIV References 246
XV Publications 250
XVI Glossary 252
XVII Appendices 257
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FIGURES
No. FaSe
1 Surface Mining Provinces in West Virginia 10
2 Geologic-Pedologic Section of the Pennsylvanian
and Permian Systems of West Virginia
i *y
3 Generalized Geologic Map of the Pennsylvanian and
Permian Systems of West Virginia
•I O
4 Location Map of Geologic Cross Sections, and Areas
of Minespoil Research, 1969-1973.
5 Legend for Geologic Cross Sections A-A', B-B', C-C',
and D-D1.
6 Area of Study Adjacent to Geologic Cross Section A-A1 15
and Minable Extent of Pittsburgh and Redstone Coals.
7 Geologic Cross Section A-A1 in Gilmer, Lewis, Upshur, 16
Doddridge and Barbour Counties, West Virginia.
8 Area of Study Adjacent to Geologic Cross Sections B-B1, 18
C-C', and D-D' in Randolph, Barbour, Preston, and
Tucker Counties, West Virginia.
9 Geologic Cross Section B-B' in Randolph, Barbour and 20
Preston Counties, West Virginia.
10 Geologic Cross Section C-C' in Barbour County, West 22
Virginia.
11 Geologic Cross Section D-D' in Garrett County, Maryland 23
and Preston and Tucker Counties, West Virginia.
12 Comparison of Lime Requirements of 32 Upper Freeport Mine- 56
Soil Samples by Direct Ca(OH)2 Titration using a Rapid
5-Minute Boiling Method, and the Standard 4-Day Incuba-
tion.
13 Relationship between Soiltest Lime Requirement and 57
Neutralization Potential.
vi
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No. Page
14 Soxhlet Extractor Modified for Procedure to Measure 69
the Relative Acid-Producing Potential of Coal.
15 Acid-Base Account Illustrating Net Acitity or 74
Alkalinity of a Section of Coal Overburden.
16 Composite of Data from Sites HH and 00, Showing 76
Comprehensive Characterization of Redstone and
Pittsburgh Coal Overburden at One Locality.
17 Relationship between Sodium Bicarbonate Extractable 167
(Olsen's) and Acid Ammonium Fluoride Extractable
(Bray's) Phosphorus in Overburden Samples Having
a 1:1 pH of Less Than 6.5.
18 Microphotograph Showing Carbonate Acting as an 175
Effective Cementing Agent in a Calcareous Sandstone.
19 Microphotograph Showing Kaolinite Replacing Feldspar. 176
20 Microphotograph Showing a Mica Flake Flared at One 177
End by Invading Argillaceous Material.
21 Deckers Creek Quarry - Typical Face of the Active 183
Quarry Showing the Extreme Friability of the
Connoquenessing Sandstone at This Location.
22 Core of Spheroidally Weathered Sandstone Protruding 185
from a Surface Mine Highwall.
23 Sandstone Boulders on an Old Spoil Bank Exhibiting 19i
Variation in Resistance to Weathering.
24 Microphotograph Showing Minute Crack Between Grains. 193
25 Microphotograph Showing Grain Interlocking, Caused By 197
Growth of Secondary Quartz.
26 pH and Accumulative Release of Sulfur and Titratable 204
Alkalinity from Sample A-A', 15-10.
27 Weekly pH for Samples A-A', 14b-7, A-A1, 15-23, and 205
A-A', 15-11.
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No. Page
28 Accumulative Release of Titratable Alkalinity for 206
Samples A-A', 14b-7, A-A', 15-23, and A-A', 15-11.
29 Accumulative Release of Sulfur from Samples A-A', 207
14b-7, A-A1, 15-23, and A-AT, 15-11.
30 Weekly pH's for Minewaste Samples A, B, C, D, and 208
E, with Variable Lime Treatments.
31 Accumulative Release of Titratable Acidity from 209
Minewaste Samples A, B, C, D, and E, with Variable
Lime Requirements.
32 Accumulative Release of Sulfate-Sulfur from Mine- 210
waste Samples A, B, C, D, and E, with Variable
Lime Treatments.
33 Weekly pH's for Sandstone Samples G, H, I, J, K, 211
and N, with Variable Lime Treatments.
34 Accumulative Release of Titratable Acidity from 212
Sandstone Samples G, H, I, J, K, and N, with
Variable Lime Treatments.
35 Accumulative Release of Sulfate-Sulfur from Sand- 213
stone Samples G, H, I, J, K, and N, with Variable
Lime Treatments.
36 Relationship of Sulfate-Sulfur Formation to Modified 215
pH of an Acid Sandstone Minesoil.
37 pH Versus Exchangeable Aluminum at Two Depths in 244
Sandstone Minesoil, Six Months After Surface
Liming with Standard Agricultural Limestone.
38 pH Versus Exchangeable Aluminum at Two Depths in 245
Sandstone Minesoil, Six Months After Surface
Liming with Standard Agricultural Dolomite.
39 Coal Production of Counties in Area of Study. 259
40 Bituminous Coal Production, Braxton County. 260
41 Bituminous Coal Production, Gilmer County. 261
VI11
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No. Page
42 Bituminous Coal Production, Lewis County. 262
43 Bituminous Coal Production, Harrison County. 263
44 Bituminous Coal Production, Upshur County. 264
45 Bituminous Coal Production, Barbour County. 265
46 Bituminous Coal Production, Taylor County. 266
47 Bituminous Coal Production, Randolph County. 267
48 Bituminous Coal Production, Tucker County. 268
49 Bituminous Coal Production, Preston County. 269
50 Form Suggested for Presentation of Data Illustrating 302
Toxic or Potentially Toxic Material in a Section
of Coal Overburden.
IX
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TABLES
No. Page
1 A comparison of total acidity and pH, each determined by 59
two different methods, with extractable aluminum in
three to eight year old Upper Freeport minesoils.
2 Coefficients of correlation for five different methods 61
used to determine the Cation Exchange Capacity of
three to eight year old Upper Freeport minesoils.
3 Cation Exchange Capacity of three to eight year old 62
Upper Freeport minesoils as determined by five
different methods.
4 Comparison of Organic Matter in three to eight year 65
old Upper Freeport minesoils by dry ignition and
wet oxidation methods.
5 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 79
Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 17a.
6 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 80
Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A1, 17b.
7 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 81
Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 17c.
8 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 82
Redstone coal overburden at Site HH.
9 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 85
Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site 00.
10 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 87
Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 14a.
11 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 89
Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 14b.
12 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 91
Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 15.
13 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 93
Redstone and Pittsburgh coal overburden at
Site A-A', 12.
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No. Page
14 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 95
Elk Lick coal overburden at Site PP.
15 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 98
Upper Bakerstown coal overburden at Site IT.
16 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 100
Lower Bakerstown coal overburden at Site FF-b.
17 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 101
Bakerstown coal overburden at Site T (Project
14010EJE).
18 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 103
Upper Freeport coal overburden at Site AA.
19 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 105
Upper Freeport coal overburden at Site L
(Project 14010EJE).
20 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 107
Upper Freeport coal overburden at Site A
(Project 14010EJE),
21 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of
Upper Freeport and Lower Kittanning coal over-
burden at Site B-B', 16.
22 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of
Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B1, 18.
23 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of
Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site 0
(Project 14010EJE).
24 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 117
Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B1, la.
25 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 120
Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Sate B-B1, Ib.
26 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 121
Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B', Ic.
27. Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 123
Sewell coal overburden at Site MM.
xi
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No.
Page
28 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 124
Sewell coal overburden at Site NN-a.
29 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 125
Sewell coal overburden at Site NN-b.
30 Soiltest results for Upper Freeport coal over-
burden at Site AA.
31 Soiltest results for Upper Bakerstown coal
overburden at Site FF.
32 Soiltest results for Lower Bakerstown coal 135
overburden at Site FF-b.
33 Soiltest results for Redstone coal overburden
at Site HH.
34 Soiltest results for Sewell coal overburden 139
at Site NN-b.
35 Soiltest results for Elk Lick coal overburden 142
at Site PP.
36 Soiltest results for Lower Kit tanning coal over- 145
burden at Site 0 (Project 14010EJE).
37 Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal 148
overburden at Site B-B', la.
38 Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal 151
overburden at Site B-B1, Ib.
39 Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal 152
overburden at Site B-B1, Ic.
40 Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal over- 154
burden at Site A-A', 17a.
41 Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal over- 155
burden at Site A-A1, 17b.
42 Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal over- 156
burden at Site A-A1, 17c.
xii
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No. Page
43 Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal overburden 157
at Site 00.
44 Soiltest results for Sewell coal overburden at Site MM. 159
45 Soiltest results for Sewell coal overburden at 160
Site NN-a.
46 Soiltest results for Upper Freeport and Lower 161
Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B', 16.
47 Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal over- 163
burden at Site B-B', 18.
48 Correlation coefficients between amounts of available 168
phosphours extracted from overburden materials
by three extractants.
49 Distribution of sand, silt, and clay in coal over- 171
burden material from several locations.
50 Clay mineral composition, from X-ray diffraction 173
analyses, of selected materials overlying the
Bakerstown (Site Q) and Redstone (Site HH)
coal seams.
51 Composition of sandstones included in the petrographic 179
study of sandstone weathering.
52 Simulated weathering of selected rock chip 201
samples for a thirty-two week period.
53 Simulated weathering of selected minewaste and 202
minesoil for an eleven week period.
54 Mechanical composition of Upper Freeport test core 217
samples, from Site B-B', 16, following
artificially induced physical weathering.
55 Mechanical composition of test core of Upper and 219
Middle Kittanning overburden and underlying
materials, from Site B-BT, 18, following arti-
ficially induced physical weathering.
xiii
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No.
56 Mechanical composition of test core of Redstone and
Pittsburgh overburden materials, from Site A-A', 12,
following artificially induced physical weathering.
57 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of 22°
selected mine waste samples from Surface Mining
Province 1.
58 Soiltest results for selected mine waste samples
from Surface Mining Province 1.
59 Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of
several Flyash samples.
9
60 Soiltest results for several Flyash samples.
61 Ranges of available plant nutrients corresponding to 234
low, medium and high amounts measured in the
laboratory.
62 Means and significant differences among all soil 235
chemical analyses performed for each plant species
on Site QQ.
63 Means and significant differences among all soil 236
chemical analyses performed for each plant species
on Site SS.
64 Characterization and Acid-Base Account of minesoil 237
samples from the three to eight year-old areas QQ,
RR and SS.
65 Fractionation of sulfur in 3 to 8 year old minesoils 238
developed from 3 dist'inct types of Upper Freeport
overburden and fresh rock chip samples taken from
the Bakerstown and Upper Freeport overburden.
66 Reserves and total production of coal in Braxton, 258
Gilmer, Lewis, Harrison, Upshur, Barbour, Taylor,
Randolph, Tucker, and Preston counties, West Virginia.
67 Average analyses of ash and sulphur of Pittsburgh and 270
Redstone coals in an area of 880 square miles bisected
by geologic cross section A-A1 (* = Outside area of
investigation).
xiv
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No. Page
68 Average Analyses of ash and sulfur of Lower, Middle, 272
and Upper Kittanning, Lower and Upper Freeport, and
Bakerstown coals in an area of over 500 square miles
bissected by geologic cross section B-B'.
xv
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The following organizations have assisted in this work: (1) West
Virginia Steering Committee for Surface Mine Research; (2) West
Virginia Surface Mine and Reclamation Association; (.3) West
Virginia Department of Natural Resources; (4) West Virginia Geo-
logical and Economic Survey; (5) United States Department of
Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service; (6) West Virginia University
Soil Testing Laboratory.
Valuable consultations and advice were provided, in resp.onse to our
requests, by: Orus L. Bennett, Alan C. Donaldson, Frank W. Glover,
Keith 0. Schmude, and Edward H. Tyner.
The following people participated in the preparation of this report:
John Thomas Ammons, James F. Ali, Thomas Arkle Jr., G. Edward Arnold,
John R. Freeman, Walter E. Grube Jr., Milton T. Heald, Robert V-
Hidalgo, Everett M. Jencks, Charles W. Lotz Jr., John J. Renton, John
C. Sencindiver, Rabindar N. Singh, Richard Meriwether Smith, Andrew A.
Sobek, and John W. Sturm.
Assistants in the field and laboratory work included: Van A. Adams,
Larry N. Bitner, Carlos P. Cole, Frank A. Doonan, David L. Idleman,
Michael T. Kubina, R. Neal Peterson, Matthew B. Price, William C. West,
and Donald F- Zimmerman.
In consideration of the reader, who may have need to confer with the
authors of individual major topics, the following list is provided:
Geologic Considerations (Arkle, Grube, and Lotz)
Soil Considerations (Sencindiver and Smith)
Methods Adapted to Minesoils (Ali, Ammons, Freeman, Grube, Hidalgo,
Jencks, Renton, Singh, Smith, Sobek and Sturm)
Acid Producing Potential and Neutralizing Potential (Arkle, Grube,
and Smith)
Chemistry and Mineralogy of Overburden Profiles (Ali, Grube,
Singh and Smith)
Petrographic Investigation of Sandstone Weathering (Arnold and
Heald)
Laboratory Weathering Studies (Ali, Grube and Sobek)
Characterization of Mine Wastes (Freeman, Grube and Smith)
Evidence from Old Minesoils (Ammons, Sobek, Smith and Sturm)
Minesoil Interactions with Plant Covers and Management (Ammons,
Smith and Sturm)
The support of the project by the Office of Research and Development,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the help provided by Benton M.
Wilmoth, Grant Project Officer, and Ronald D. Hill, is grate-
fully acknowledged.
xvi
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SECTION I
CONCLUSIONS
1. Successful pollution control and land-use planning for surface
mining depend upon choice of measurements and creation of
systems that fit local conditions.
2. Logging of test cores and high walls can now be used by any
experienced person to make distinctions needed that convey
useful information about minesoil to help achieve environmental
objectives. Standard criteria include: Cl) rock color by
comparison with Munsell color charts; (2) rock hardness compared
to fingernail or knife; (3) rock streak on white streak plate;
(4) rock grittiness (sandiness) or smoothness; (5) rock splitting
tendency into thin layers; (6) rock layering alternation
(interlayering); (7) rock fizzing in dilute hydrochloric acid.
3. The acid-base accounting method is a useful means of rating coal
overburden materials for proper placement in surface minespoils,
to assure favorable and productive materials for anticipated
uses of minesoils.
4. Toxic or potentially toxic coal overburden associated with
.acidity may be defined satisfactorily for many purposes by three
measurements: (1) pH of the pulverized rock slurry in distilled
water; (2) total or pyritic sulphur; (3) neutralization potential
against hydrochloric acid. The methods and calculations required
are described in detail under "Methods Adapted to Minesoils"
(Section VI).
5. Field and laboratory measurements indicate that the rate of
formation of sulphates from pyritic sulphur is reduced sub-
stantially by raising the pH of acid minesoils by liming.
Presumably, the reduced rate results from reduced activity of
the chemoautotrophic bacteria involved, even though chemical
oxidation processes continue.
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6. Plant-available phosphorus extraction with a buffered sodium
bicarbonate solution is better adapted to the wide range of pH
and associated chemical conditions in minesoils than acid
extraction methods, and should be used to improve the accuracy
of recommendations for phosphorus fertilization.
7. Topsoiling materials for use on minesoils are readily classified
into three kinds: (1) Synthetic topsoils; (2) Weathered
topsoils (free of pyritic acid because of natural weathering;
and (3) Geologic topsoil (favorable because of natural basic
materials and plant nutrients deposited geologically).
Synthetic materials are used primarily as mulches to aid quick
establishment of ground covers.
8. Recent studies of old sandstone minesoils confirm that low pH
and plant nutrient levels are prime causes of persistent lack
of volunteer vegetation, although low water-holding capacities
may limit growth rates and yields. Very little plant invasion
occurs at pH below 4.0 and with very low available phosphorus.
In general, the relative requirements of invading tolerant plants
in vegetated versus barren areas were: redtop > black birch >
deertongue > broom sedge > poverty grass (Danthonia spicata) >
red maple > barren. Moderate liming and fertilization should
assure total revegetation since plants are growing wherever pH
and nutrient levels are only slightly higher than barren.
9. Petrographic (microscopic study of thin sections) observations,
gentle laboratory dispersion in Calgon, and field observations
agree that sandstones represented in the Coal Measures are
variable in inherent strength or stability and the percentage of
fines for soil formation is likely to provide important soil
differences at different locations. Methods of observation and
testing are being perfected to predict soil textures as well
as chemical properties of minesoils.
10. Adaptation of other laboratory methods to fresh overburden
materials or to old spoils include the following: (1) carbon,
by two methods; (2) cation exchange capacity by 5 methods;
(3) available phosphorus by 3 methods; (4) "lime requirement" by
4 methods; (5) sulphate removal by solution; (6) potassium,
calcium and magnesium by acid extraction and atomic adsorption
measurement; (7) exchangeable aluminum by neutral salt extraction
and atomic adsorption measurement; (8) particle sizes by
screening, gentle, prolonged shaking in Calgon solution and
sedimentation; (9) moisture retention against variable pressure
potentials; (10) mineral identification in thin sections and in
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grain mounts by optical (petrographic) methods; (11) mineral
identification by x-ray diffraction by oriented slides;
(12) mineral identification by differential thermal analysis.
11. This report expands and confirms previous findings regarding the
pyrite-free weathered zone approximating 20 feet of depth below
the land surface in Lower Mahoning sandstone over Upper Freeport
coal and in Saltsburg sandstone over the Bakerstown coal where
the Saltsburg is not replaced by mudrocks. In one case (Site B-BT
1 Whitman Flats) the sandstone over Kittanning coal retained its
low chroma and pyritic acid potential almost to the soil surface.
12. Surface Mining Province #3, typified by the Pittsburgh-Redstone
interval, contains an abundance of neutralizing material in
calcareous mudrocks and limestones for burying all toxic or
potentially toxic horizons.
13. The geologic section within Surface Mining Province #3, from
northcentral Barbour County on the northeast to the environs of
Glenville on the southwest shows limits of Pittsburgh and
Redstone coal both eastward and westward from the central basin
and helps explain coal production in Braxton, Gilmer, Lewis,
Upshur, Barbour, Harrison and Taylor counties.
14. Chemical and physical analyses of overburden materials from
locations extending from the center to the peripheral areas of
the major coal basin (Pittsburgh and Redstone seams) confirm
observed changes in overburden composition associated with
location within the depositional basin. These changes include
thinning of limestone beds coincident with thinning of the coal
toward the edges of the basin, encroachment of "red beds" of
calcareous dusky red mudstone from outside areas toward the
coal basin proper, and zones of pyritic, potentially acid-
forming, channel sandstones associated with localized areas of
high sulfur coal.
15. Kittanning coals of the Allegheny Formation (Surface Mining
Province #2) involve overburdens that contain less neutralizing
potential than overburdens in Province #3. This confirms the
validity of placing Kittanning intervals in Province #2, together
with Freeport and associated coals. Careful selection of near-
neutral or carbonate containing mudrocks may be necessary in
order to bury all potentially toxic overburden and assure
favorable topsoil. However, in all cases studied it is possible
to assure favorable soil for reclamation and use, and some of the
best minesoil and reclamation in the State occurs on properly
managed Lower Kittanning overburden near Brandonville, Preston County.
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SECTION II
RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Surface miners working in the Pittsburgh-Redstone interval of
Surface Mining Province #3 should leave only selected neutral
or slightly alkaline mudrock in the surface foot of the graded
spoil. In most cases this material will fizz in dilute hydro-
chloric (muriatic) acid CSections IV and VII).
2. Surface miners of Kittanning coals of Surface Mining Province
#2 should select overburden for placement in the surface
foot of graded spoil which meets the requirement of being
neither toxic nor potentially toxic by simplified standards
that we have developed (Sections IV and VII).
3. Overburden associated with the Bakerstown and Brush Creek coals
should be considered marginal between Surface Mining Provinces
#2 and #3. Sufficient favorable mudrock (or shale) should be
selected from the overburden to assure burial of all potentially
toxic material as well as unusable cobbles and boulders that
are often found on the original land surface (Sections IV and VII)
4. Although the Sewell coal overburden, Surface Mining Province #1,
where studied in northern Greenbrier County, is very low in
total sulphur and is neither toxic nor potentially toxic, surface
miners should select mudrocks or shales for placement in the
surface foot of graded spoil which will weather quickly enough
to assure at least 50% fines (less than 2 mm diameter) for
favorable soil water relations. Different relationships may
exist elsewhere in the Sewell coal field (Sections IV and VII).
5. Surface miners should learn to distinguish consistently
between black materials that are high in organic carbon and
those that appear black for other reasons. In general, rocks
that give a very dark streak or powder (i.e. Munsell color value
of three or less) are high in carbon (greater than 20%) and are
likely to be toxic, whereas some shales, mudrocks and limestone
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which appear black but which give a light streak or powder have
no potential for toxicity (Section VII).
6. Surface miners should study their coal overburden in advance
so as to plan for more efficient handling and placement.
7. At least three laboratory measurements should be made of over-
burden if acidity is a potential problem. These are: (1) pH
of pulverized rock slurry in distilled water; (2) total or
pyritic sulphur; and (3) neutralization potential against a
strong acid (Section VII).
8. In reclaiming acid minesoils emphasis should be placed on working
pulverized limestone into the top 3 to 6 inches of graded spoil
well in advance of fertilizing and seeding (Section XIII).
9. Greater emphasis should be placed on use of plant nutrient tests
that are appropriate for the nature of the minesoils. For example,
phosphorus extraction with buffered sodium bicarbonate should give
more reliable results than acid extractions with many minesoils
(Section VIII).
10. Greater emphasis should be placed on establishment of legumes
even though such emphasis may require thinner stands of grass
and slower initial groundcover (Sections XII and XIII).
11. More attention should be given to the rate of physical weathering
of overburden and the final particle sizes and water-holding
capacities to be expected from different rock horizons.
12. Surface miners should encourage the classification and mapping
of minesoils within the comprehensive system used by the U.S.
Dept. of Agriculture and State Agricultural Experiment Stations
and other agencies. This will aid reclamation and proper use of/
minesoils as important natural resources the same as other soils
(Section V).
13. Topsoiling should involve careful selection of the best available
material for placement on the land surface. In some instances the
best material may be geologic material occurring below the
weathered zone in the overburden section (Sections VII and VIII).
14. If legal restrictions permit, many high walls should be used as
an aid to creation of desirable, gently sloping land and to help
prevent excessively long credible slopes that contribute to
downstream sedimentation.
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15. Pre-pedologic studies of soil parent materials (including coal
overburdens) should be continued until we can assure that
placement, treatment, and continuing management will produce
consistently predictable results for anticipated agricultural,
forestry, engineering and recreational uses of minesoils.
6
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SECTION III
INTRODUCTION
This study was conducted in order to obtain information necessary to
guide surface mining operations and mine spoil reclamation on rapidly
expanding acreages in northern and central West Virginia. Considerable
geologic and soils information is available regarding rock sections
above the coals in this area, but use of this information requires
proper identification of position in the section as well as inter-
pretations of behavior when previously buried rocks are exposed to
surface or near surface environments. Moreover, the qualities of many
rocks are not known in terms of influence on soil formation and water
quality.
This report expands information developed and reported as EPA Project
14010 EJE 12/71, "Mine Spoil Potentials for Water Quality and
Controlled Erosion", and extends these findings to other coal over-
burden materials and neighborhoods of active or planned surface mining.
Improved methods of characterizing coal overburden and minesoil
materials according to suitability for placement in the spoil should
lead to improved or more economical methods of preventing water
pollution from minesoils and mine wastes and increase success of
vegetation and planned land use.
The following objectives were fulfilled in order to develop sufficient
information to assure that variable earth materials in surface mine
spoils and mine wastes were placed and treated appropriately for
prevention of water pollution and development of desirable soils and
landscapes: (1) identification, correlation, description, and
analysis of soil and rock strata in regions where surface mining is
in progress or planned; (2) determination of chemical, physical,
and mineralogical properties of soil, rock, mine spoil, and mine
waste samples involved in water quality problems; (3) determination
of natural or induced weathering processes and rates for earth materials
in known or controlled environments; (4) determination of interactions
among spoils, amendments, plants, and water over both short and long
time intervals.
-------
In addition to new information regarding properties of the coal over-
burden and mine waste materials discovered during this work, the
coworkers in these studies, providing interrelated competence in
geology, soils, chemistry, plant science, and general conservation,
have been able to develop new technology or adapt existing method-
ology to quantify chemical and physical parameters that are most
meaningful in understanding the problems of preventing water pollu-
tion and maintaining desirable plant growth on these materials.
-------
SECTION IV
GEOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS
INTRODUCTION
The following discussion and illustrations review the geological
approach used in the methodical study of coal overburdens and mine
spoils in Surface Mining Provinces 1, 2 and 3 of West Virginia
(Figure 1) as defined in the report Mine Spoil Potentials for
Water Quality and Controlled Erosion (West Virginia University, 1971a
p. 12-18).
Geologic studies under EPA Project S 800745, 1971-1973, were conducted
in Gilmer, Lewis, Upshur, Barbour, Harrison and Taylor counties
(Surface Mining Province 3); Preston, Mineral, Grant, Tucker, Randolph
and Barbour (Surface Mining Provinces 2 and 3); and Greenbrier (Surface
Mining Province 1) counties, West Virginia.
The illustrations in areas of principal study in this report depict
the characteristic associations of beds in Surface Mining Province 3
(geologic cross section A-A1 representing an area of some 800 square
miles) (Figures 4, 5, 6, and 7) of Gilmer, Lewis, Upshur, Barbour,
Harrison and Taylor counties and in Surface Mining Province 2 (geologic
cross sections B-B1 and C-C' representing an area of over 600 square
miles and D-D1) (Figures 4, 5, 8, 9, 10 and 11) and correlative beds
of Surface Mining Province 3 generally high in the hills of Randolph,
Barbour, Preston, and Tucker counties, West Virginia. Work has been
conducted in smaller areas of Mineral, Grant and Greenbrier counties,
West Virginia (Figure 4).
The delineation of Surface Mining Provinces in West Virginia is
based on the gross physical and chemical characteristics of thick
sections of rocks and associated coals and physiographic development
of large areas which reflect the depositional history and the general
geology of coal-bearing rocks of West Virginia.
-------
n
Horizon of the Pittsburgh Cool
Base of the Pennsylvania!) System
Limit of minable coal in Province 3
Direction of thickening
of basins of deposition
\
Surface mining provinces
SURFACE MINING PROVINCES
IN
WEST VIRGINIA
Figure I
-------
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-------
AREA OF MINE SPOIL RESEARCH
LOCATION MAP
or
8EOLO6IC CROSS SECTIONS
a NO
AREAS OF MINE SPOIL RESEARCH 1969-1973.
-------
LEGEND
GEOLOGIC CROSS SECTIONS A-A\ B-B\ C-C' and D-D'
(Figures 7, 9, 10 and II)
Lithologies adapted to the
American Comprehensive System
of Soil Classification
Figure 5
Sandstone
Shale and siltstone
Mudstone (includes claystone
and flint and plastic clay)
Red shale and mudstone and variegated
or mottled red and green and gray shale,
mudstone and claystone
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nodules, concretions and pellets)
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-------
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Area of
low sulfur Redstone coal
A A1
Cross section
o 9
Location of cores and sections
Southern extent of
minable Pittsburgh coal
Northern and western extent of
minoble Pittsburgh coal
Anticline Syncline
Figure 6
AREA OF STUDY ADJACENT TO CROSS SECTION A-A1
AND MINABLE EXTENT OF PITTSBURGH AND REDSTONE COALS
-------
GILMER COUNTY
LEWIS COUNTY
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16
-------
BARBOUR COUNTY
8
HARRISON
COUNTY
A1
o —i
VERTICAL EXAGGERATION 347.2
17
-------
o s
LEGEND
Monongohelo Group and areas
of mined Pittsburgh coal
Conemaugh Group
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Pottsville Group
and older rocks
Southern extent of
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Location of cores I
and sections
PENNSYLVANIA
B—B;
C "^~ C Cross sections
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RANDOLPH
1111
AREAS OF STUDY ADJACENT TO
CROSS SECTIONS B-B', C-C', AND D-D1
RANDOLPH. BARBOUR, PRESTON,
AND TUCKER COUNTIES, WEST VIRGINIA
18
-------
A joint geologic and pedologic study in two large areas of Surface
Mining Provinces 2 and 3 not only tests the geological assumption
but refines knowledge of the ultimate potential of spoil materials
(principally rock) in the pedogenic processes in areas presently
undergoing extensive surface mining (Figures 39 to 49). In addition,
it is anticipated that the coal economy of these counties will in-
creasingly rely on the extraction of coal by surface methods in the
future.
Figures 39 to 49 (West Virginia Department of Mines, 1945-1971) in
Appendix A illustrate the trends in production and methods of extrac-
tion of the various seams of coal since 1945 in the counties of prin-
cipal study. All counties with the exception of Lewis from which
little coal has been produced by underground methods and Harrison
County have shown a marked decline in production of coal by under-
ground methods in recent years. During World War II and the immediate
post war years, Harrison County led other counties of West Virginia in
the extraction of coal by surface methods. In addition, three of the
large underground mines in Harrison County were closed during 1972
(Arkle and Barlow, 1972, p. 24). The importance of surface mining
to coal economies of Lewis, Upstair, Barbour, Randolph, Tucker,
and Preston counties is recorded on the bottom diagram of Figures
42, 44, 45, 47, 48, and 49 respectively.
Figure 39 compares the year to year trend in coal production in Bar-
bour County with adjacent counties and Figure 45 depicts the history
of mining in Barbour County since 1945. The upper diagram shows the
percentage of annual production of the various seams by mining methods,
i.e., underground mining versus surface mining. Three coals, the
Pittsburgh, Redstone and Lower Kittanning in order of importance, are
the principal seams of Barbour County. The lower diagram shows the
annual percentage of West Virginia coal production and the tonnage of
coal produced by underground and surface methods annually in Barbour
County. In 1947, Barbour County produced 2.5 percent of the State's
total; in 1971 over 3.0 percent.
Barbour County reached a peak in coal production of 2,965,498 tons by
underground extraction in 1925, however the largest production of
3,984,689 tons was attained with both underground and surface extrac-
tion in 1947. As the underground reserves of Pittsburgh coal were
depleted principally in the Elk Creek drainage in 1955, some of the
large operators shifted exploration and development to the Lower
Kittanning coal in the environs of earlier mining activity near Phil-
ippi as indicated in the upper diagram (Figure 45).
Surface mining commenced in Barbour County in 1943 during World War II
and has grown with increasing tempo to the present time. In recent
19
-------
RANDOLPH COUNTY
BARBOUR COUNTY
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GEOLOGIC CROSS SECTION B-B1
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20
-------
PRESTON COUNTY
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GEOLOGIC CROSS SECTION C-C1
22
-------
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GEOLOGIC CROSS SECTION D-D1
SALTSBURG
SANDSTONE
3'-4" BAKERSTOWN COAL
BUFFALO
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MILES
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MAHONING
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UNDERLAIN BY ROCKS OLDER THAN
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UPPER FREEPORT SANDSTONE I
LOWER FREEPORT COAL
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UPPER K.TTANN.NG COAL
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POTTSVILLE GROUP
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23
-------
years, large amounts of capital have been invested to improve the
efficiency of extraction of surface exposures on croplines of the
depleted underground reserves of Pittsburgh coal and the thinner
nearly solid Redstone coal some 30 feet higher in the section (Figure
7) on the Elk Creek drainage. In 1972, Barbour County ranked 2nd,
surpassed only by Kanawha County, in the production of coal by surface
methods in West Virginia.
SURFACE MINING PROVINCES
The Pennsylvanian and Permian Systems of West Virginia can be divided
into three surface mining provinces (Figure 1) on generalizations of
the physiographic, stratigraphic and structural geology of the State.
These generalizations are complicated regionally away from the areas
of principal swamp environments by the encroachment of clastic sedi-
ments. These areas are generally outside the scope of this study. This
relationship is clearly illustrated in the southwestern extremities of
cross section A-A1 (Figure 7). Surface Mining Province 1 includes
beds of an older rapidly subsiding coal basin in southern counties of
West Virginia and Surface Mining Provinces 2 and 3 includes beds of a
younger more stable basin in northern and western West Virginia. A
buffer section, essentially of clastic sediments, separates the two
areas of principal coal production in West Virginia. These assumptions
are confirmed by regional synthesis of the orientation, distribution,
and concentration of the clastic sediments with respect to swamp,
lacustrine, and marine environments of deposition (Figures 6 to 11).
The division between Surface Mining Provinces 2 and 3 is transitional.
It is arbitrarily placed on the Saltsburg sandstone for geologic
reasons. The pedologic study of the overburden of the underlying
Bakerstown and Brush Creek coals, mined locally by surface methods
in Preston, Barbour, Tucker, Grant and Mineral Counties, West Virginia
and Garrett and Allegheny counties, Maryland, dictates that the ped-
ologic division between Surface Mining Provinces 2 and 3 be lowered
over 100 feet in the section to the overburden above the Mahoning
(local) or Upper Freeport coals, whichever is present (Figure 2).
These generalizations are further complicated within the principal
areas of coal production by the diverse nature of the depositional
history of at least 6150 feet (1880 meters) of rocks of Pennsylvanian
and Permian age in West Virginia. Streams and distributaries of the
shifting drainage system cut channels across the coal swamp and de-
posited clastic sediments. In addition, differential compaction of
the sediments below the swamp floor disrupted the continuity of the
physical and chemical characteristics of the swamp. The nature of these
24
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disruptions of swamp formation is evident in the variability in thick-
ness of coals, particularly in Surface Mining Province 2 (Figures 8-11).
The physiography of Surface Mining Province 1 is characterized by
steep slopes extending from narrow winding valleys to inaccessible
and rugged ridges ranging in relief from 600 feet (180 meters) in the
Charleston area, Kanawha County to as much as 1400 feet (420 meters)
farther east in the New River Gorge, Fayette County.
Multilevel mining of numerous seams of coal is confined to Mercer,
McDowell, Wyoming, Mingo, Logan, Raleigh, Boone, Kanawha, Fayette,
Nicholas and Greenbrier counties, West Virginia. Similar thin, less
numerous coals are produced in a small way in Randolph, Webster and
Pocahontas counties and are of marginal importance in Wayne, Lincoln
and Clay counties. Pocahontas and Lincoln counties are included in
a legislative moratorium, recently extended until 1975, on surface
mining in 22 counties of West Virginia.
The beds of the Pocahontas, New River, and Kanawha Formations and
Charleston Group, in ascending the section, represent the earlier of
the two coal basins of Pennsylvanian age in West Virginia (Figure 2).
The basin subsided intermittently and deepened to the southeast. The
sediments, essentially a wedge of fine to coarse clastic sediments,
were derived from older rocks of the Appalachian region to the south.
The coal bearing facies, the base of which is the southeastern exposure
of Pennsylvanian rocks in southern West Virginia and western Virginia,
thins rapidly fr.om the thickest section to the northwest into massive
marine (early) and deltaic (late) sandstones and finally disappears
in the subsurface of western West Virginia. The rate of thinning is
about 20 feet per mile (3.5 meters per kilometer) to the northwest.
Interestingly, the older coals, exposed on the southeast, are semi-
bituminous high carbon and low sulfur coals with volatile matter
ranging from 13 to 18 percent. The volatile matter increases to
greater than 34 percent with a commensurate decrease in carbon content
and increase in average sulphur content to 1.50 percent in ascending
the section to the northwest in the direction of maximum development
of the youngest coals of Surface Mining Province 1. The northwestern
boundary of Surface Mining Province 1, drawn on the 1.50 sulfur
line of composite unweighted coal analyses (C. W. Lotz, Jr., 1970,
oral communication) nearly coincides with the boundary derived from
geological considerations (Arkle, 1969 p. 62). It is along this line
that commercial coals of the older coal field of West Virginia dis-
appear in the northwest thinning of the section.
The rocks associated with coal in Surface Mining Province 1 are gener-
ally low in sulfur content. Overburden above the Sewell coal (New
25
-------
River Formation) in Greenbrier County characteristically has little
acid producing potential as discussed in Section VII. It is notable
that the sandstones and siltstones (cemented with siderite (FeCOo)) and
shales of the Kanawha Formation contain numerous small to large Cup to
4 feet (1.2 meters) thick) impure sideritic lenses, nodules and string-
ers. A few irregular marine and freshwater limestones are almost
entirely confined to the Kanawha Formation.
The physiography of Surface Mining Provinces 2 and 3 is a maturely
dissected plateau area confined to northern and western West Virginia.
Steep slopes rise 500 to 600 feet (150 to 180 meters) from narrow
bottom land to narrow sinuous ridges in the area between the Ohio
and Monongahela Rivers. The area is easily accessible hill country.
Farther east the relief increases and the area becomes more moun-
tainous in Surface Mining Province 2.
The principal coal production of the area is from one seam, the
Pittsburgh coal which produces about 25 percent of the State's coal
annually. Much of the Pittsburgh coal is produced by underground
methods in Harrison, Marion, Monongalia, Marshall and Ohio counties.
Smaller tonnages of Pittsburgh and Redstone coals (Figures 6 and 40-46)
are produced by surface methods in Braxton, Gilmer, Lewis, Upshur,
Harbour, Harrison and Taylor counties. A much smaller amount of coal
is produced in northern West Virginia from coals older than the Pitts-
burgh by surface mining and generally small underground mines (Figures
8-11, 44-49).
The beds (Pottsville, Allegheny, Conemaugh and Monongahela of Pennsyl-
vanian age and the Dunkard of Permian age) were deposited in the younger
and more stable of the two basins of coal deposition in West Virginia
(Figure 2). This basin shelved to the southwest as indicated by the
disappearance of coals in that direction (Figures 6, 7, 8 and 9), and
subsided to the north in the direction of maximum developments of
coal and limestone in southwestern Pennsylvania.
For this discussion, the section is divided into two groups each de-
picting its own unique geologic characteristics. The division between
the two groups is transitional and is arbitrarily placed on the
Saltsburg Sandstone as discussed above (Figure 2) .
The lower group or Surface Mining Province 2 includes beds of the
Pottsville, Allegheny and lower Conemaugh. The principal coals are
the Lower Kittanning, Upper Freeport and Bakerstown, however numerous
other coals, viz, Middle and Upper Kittanning, Lower Freeport, Maho-
ning and Brush Creek, have been produced generally in small underground
mines or in contour surface mines.
26
-------
Beds of Surface Mining Province 2, containing generally irregular sand-
stone and shale sequences and thin although locally thick multibenched
seams of coal, are present along a narrow strip of the Burning Springs
anticline and along the Ohio River in the northern extremities of the
northern Panhandle of West Virginia. The principal reserve of coal is
present in the Allegheny Mountain Section of the Appalachian Plateau
and contiguous areas to the west. Structural activity in the Allegheny
Mountain Section resulted in a series of enechelon folds (upwarps and
downwarps) in Randolph, Barbour, Tucker, Preston, Mineral and Grant
counties, West Virginia. This trend plunges out farther south in
West Virginia but continues north across western Maryland into Pennsyl-
vania. It is believed that deformation was active during the deposition
of the beds resulting in part in the irregularities in the physical
and chemical characteristic of the coals and associated rocks of Sur-
face Mining Province 2. Generally, the coals are best developed over
the axes of the synclines (downwarps) and in instances where the beds
have not been eroded are less well developed over the axes of the
anticlines (upwarps).
The variable chemical characteristics, i.e., volatile matter, fixed
carbon, ash and sulfur, within the same seam reflect the complexity
of the depositional and structural history of the beds of Surface
Mining Province 2. In eastern counties the coal may have a local
volatile matter of 14 to 19 percent, a semibituminous coal; farther
west the coals will have a volatile matter ranging from 22 to 38
percent with a commensurate decrease in the fixed carbon to between
50 and 60 percent. Analyses of mining sections of the coals show
sulfur oscillating between 0.5 and 3.0 percent and ash content
varying from 4 percent to over 15 percent depending on the number
of erratic partings in the mining section (Appendix B, Table 68).
Locally the Lower Kittanning and Upper Freeport coals were formerly
mined by underground methods for metallurgical purposes.
The upper group or Surface Mining Province 3 includes beds of upper
Conemaugh and Monongahela units of Pennsylvanian age and the Dunkard
Group of Permian age. The coals are considered to be high volatile
and high sulfur but locally both the Pittsburgh and Redstone (Figure 6)
are low sulfur coal and suitable for metallurgical purposes. The
principal coal of the area is the Pittsburgh which is mined generally
by underground methods throughout the basin. The Pittsburgh and
Redstone coals are mined by underground methods and surface methods in
Barbour, Upshur, Taylor and Harrison counties and principally by sur-
face methods in Lewis and Gilmer counties. In these counties the
volatile matter ranges between 32 and 40 percent; the fixed carbon
between 50 and 62 percent; and the ash between 4 and 12 percent depen-
ding on the number and thickness of generally thin regular partings in
the mining section (Appendix B, Table 67). Minor quantities of Red-
27
-------
stone coal are mined in Monongalla and Mason counties. Below the
Pittsburgh, the Harlem, Elk Lick and Little Clarksburg coals are
mined by surface methods in Preston, Mineral, and Grant counties and
above the Pittsburgh, the 'Sewickley and Waynesburg are mined locally
by surface mining in Monongalia County.
The relationship in this shifting facies shows alternating dusky red
and yellow mudstone and shale and associated sandstones on the south-
west encroaching in a transitional facies with sequences of gray beds
composed of mudstone, limestone, coal, shale and sandstone. The
latter beds were deposited in the lacustrine-swamp environment or
gray facies. To the southwest of the gray facies, the section loses
limestone first and then coal (Figures 6 and 7), gray shale and mud-
stone intertongue with red shale and mudstone, and sandstone becomes a
more dominant part of the section. Farther southwest all units become
dusky red and yellow shale and mudstone and massive to thin bedded
sandstone. The large area, adjacent to the surface mining limits of
Surface Mining Province 3 (Figure 1) and barren of prospective minable
coal, in central and southwestern West Virginia is underlain by the
red facies.
28
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SECTION V
SOIL CONSIDERATIONS
In Surface Mining Province #3 of North central West Virginia, cal-
careous shales or mudrocks, and limestones in the Pittsburgh, Red-
stone Sewickley intervals provide an abundance of silt and clay tex-
tured materials rich in carbonates, which have contributed to the
formations of moderately deep or deep soils with slightly acid or
nearly neutral lower subsoils. Such soils are adapted to production
of forage crops and are responsive to proper liming and fertilization.
However, hillside slips are serious on many slopes, causing irregular
topography that is difficult to mow or manage. In addition, over-
grazing and land slips often contribute to serious erosion by runoff.
As indicated in the preceding Section, the geologic boundary between
Surface Mining Provinces #2 and #3 is drawn at the top of the Saltsburg
sandstone. Moreover, from the soils standpoint, as well, the boundary
corresponds with soil changes since sandy, highly leached, acid, sili-
ceous soils occur over the Saltsburg sandstone in contrast to the finer
textured and more fertile soils mentioned in the main Pittsburgh, Red-
stone, Sewickley intervals. Even so, it is apparent that undisturbed
soils as well as minesoils associated with the Bakerstown and Brush
Creek coals between the Saltsburg and Mahoning sandstones are more
like the fine textured soils of the Pittsburgh, Redstone, Sewickley
than they are like the soils over the Mahoning sandstone and sandstones
of the underlying Alleghany Formation. Thus, as stated under "Geologi-
cal Considerations" (Figure 2) from the pedologic point of view, the
boundary between Provinces #2 and #3 could be drawn at the top of the
Mahoning sandstone rather than the top of the Saltsburg. This would
place the knobs of Bakerstown coal that occur in Preston, Grant and
Mineral Counties, within Province #3 rather than with the Freeport
and older coals and overburdens of Province #2.
Prominent soils of this part of Province #3 are Westmoreland (upland
slopes) and Clarksburg (colluvial slopes). Eastward, on Province #2
sandstones the major soils are Dekalb and Cookport (upland slopes and
ridgetops) with Laidig and Buckhannon on colluvium. The upland soils
29
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are not only coarser textured than uplands of Province #3, they also
lack or have only weak argillic subsoil horizons compared to much
greater clay migration into argillic horizons in Province #3. Appa-
rently, exchangeable aluminum cations associated with strongly acid
conditions account for limited clay movement in soils on sandstones
of Province #2 (Singh, et al, 1970).
CLASSIFICATION, MAPPING, USE AND MANAGEMENT OF MINESOILS GENERAL
Prior to the development of the new comprehensive soil classification
system by the National Cooperative Soil Survey, minespoil was not
considered to be soil. It was identified in mapping legends as a
miscellaneous land type and was delineated and named as "Strip Mine.
Mine spoil was not examined and studied in the detail required to
enable one to make meaningful statements in regards to its use and
management.
In the new soil classification system, Soil Taxonomy, Soil Conservation
Service, U.S.D.A., soil is defined as "the collection of natural bodies
on the earth's surface, in places modified or even made by man of
earthy materials containing living matter and supporting or capable of
supporting plants out-of-doors." In this system, soils are classified
on the basis of characteristics which can be observed or measured in
the field and in the laboratory. The system is hierarchical and from
the highest category to the lowest is comprised of: Orders, Suborders,
Great Groups, Subgroups, Families, and Series.
The comprehensive system is broad and flexible enough to permit the
definition of categories as necessary to accommodate diverse minesoils
and to further their scientific study as well as their effective use
and management. We suggested previously (West Virginia University,
1971) that spoils and coal wastes from mining can be studied and
classified on the basis of soil profile properties, the same as other
soils and can then be incorporated into the comprehensive system of
soil classification. This does not mean that categories have already
been formally defined that are adequate to include all minesoils.
In our proposal, minesoils would be classified at the Order level as
Entisols. Entisols are recent soils that have little or no evidence of
development of pedogenic horizons.
Presently, there are five Suborders in the Order of Entisols. These
are as follows:
1. Aquents - soils which, if they are not artificially drained, are
wet most of the year;
30
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2. Arents - soils which have fragments of diagnostic horizons;
3. Psannments - soils which are sandy;
4* Fluvents - soils which have formed in recent water deposited
sediments; and
•*' Orthents - soils which occur on recent erosional surfaces.
We are of the opinion that none of these suborders would adequately
accommodate minesoils. In our proposal, a new suborder, Spolents,
would be established for minesoils. Spolents would be defined to
include soils which have the following properties:
1. Coarse fragments in disordered arrangement;
2. Coarse fragments and (or) fines that are mottled as a result
of inherent composition differences and (or) active weathering
processes; and
3. A thin surface horizon containing a higher percentage of fines
than underlying horizons.
In addition, void pockets sometime occur under bridges of coarse
fragments as a"result of exclusions of fines by original placement.
At the Great Group level, we propose that minesoils would be classi-
fied on the basis of soil moisture that would be available to support
plant growth. In those places, where the soil, in most years, contains
sufficient soil moisture to support plant growth, minesoils would be
classified in the Great Group of Udspolents.
At the Subgroup level, we propose that minesoils would be classified
on the conformity and rock-origin of the coarse fragments.
At the Family level, we propose that minesoils would be classified
on the basis of texture, mineralogy, reaction, and soil temperature.
These properties are presently used in the comprehensive system to
classify soils at the Family level.
Present evidence indicates that pH at the top of the control section,
i.e., at 10 inches would probably be a satisfactory indication for
family definition. This has been true in profile studies completed
to date, which however, have not included deep profiles in Carbolithic
or coaly minesoils. In such cases, however, it is considered that
extreme acidity, the major concern in Carbolithic Minesoils, would be
unlikely unless the pH at 10 inches was below 4.0. This is expected
because of the dependence of rapid pyritic oxidation on high oxygen
31
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concentrations and on Thiobacillas micro-organisms that are inactive
at pH levels above 5.5. Thus, even if we should define the acid
categories of soil families in terms of dominant pH within the control
section (10 to 40 inches) we are suggesting that pH at 10 inches is
likely to be a generally satisfactory criterium for pH status of the
entire control section. Reaction classes suggested for the family
level are:
Extremely acid, pH 4.0
Acid, pH 4.0 to 5.5
Neutral, pH 5.5 to 8.0
Minesoils could be classified at the Series level, the lowest cate-
gory in the system, by defining all other significant soil profile
properties, such as details of texture, color, mottling, structure,
horizons, and pocket inclusions. Since some of these properties,
however, are changing rapidly in young minesoils it is judged satis-
factory, at present, to delay classification at the series level until
the rate of change of minor properties has become relatively slow, or
at least 10 years following establishment of vegetation. Such delay
does not appear necessary, however, for useful classification and
mapping at the family level.
It might be desirable to map phases of certain soil families in order
to satisfy specific practical needs. For example, steep slope and
extremely stony phases would apply to some outslopes in steep terrain.
However, the outslopes might be indicated more satisfactorily in
mapping by an appropriate elongate symbol rather than an enclosed area.
Other useful phases might be: (1) extremely acid surface phase; (2)
weathered topsoil phase; (3) alkaline geologic topsoil phase; and (4)
rough surface phase (where use of farm machinery would not be feasible).
Soil testing to determine lime and fertilizer needs for intensive uses
would be necessary in addition to the best of classification and mapping.
Also, full descriptions of such features as gullies, ponded water,
large surface stones, and inclusions of distinctly different minesoils
would be a part of the definitions of minesoil mapping units.
Management and land use implications by families are imperfectly tested
at present, but several generalizations seem likely to apply. With
extremely acid families, for example, covering with at least six inches
of favorable material, probably would be a standard recommendation,
whereas with acid families liming would be feasible for forage
seedings; and with neutral families no liming would be needed.
From the standpoint of available soil, water and fertility, the sandy
skeletal, siliceous families would be generally unfavorable for forage
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production, but would be favorable for roadways, camping, and certain
specialty crops. On the other hand, clayey-skeletal and schlickig,
neutral families would be most productive as meadowlands, but would
lack stability for roadways or stability on steep slopes.
CLASSIFICATION, MAPPING, USE AND MANAGEMENT OF MINESOILS — WEST
VIRGINIA
We,are of the opinion that several families of minesoils can be
identified in West Virginia as mappable and manageable units. One such
family, for example, is the Valley Point Family. This family is named
for Valley Point, Preston County, West Virginia, a community in central
Surface Mining Province 2.
In our proposal, the classification of the Valley Point family is as
follows:
Plattic Udspolents; sandy-skeletal, siliceous, acid, mesic.
Plattic Udspolents includes those soils originating from surface
mining in a climatic region where soil moisture is sufficient in
most years for plant growth and which contain thick bedded
(plate-like) coarse fragments. "Sandy-skeletal, siliceous, acid,
mesic" are family modifiers and are defined as follows:
1. Sandy-skeletal - the soil, below a depth of 10 inches,
contains 35 percent or more coarse fragments by volume,
and the fine-earth has a sandy texture;
2. Siliceous - the mineralogy of the sand fraction of the fine-
earth is 90 percent or more quartz or other insoluble minerals;
3. Acid - soil reaction at a depth of 10 inches is between 4.0
and 5.5; and
4. Mesic - the mean annual soil temperature at a depth of 20
inches is between 8°C and 15°C and the difference between mean
summer and mean winter soil temperatures is more than 5°C.
From the standpoint of use and management, Valley Point soils form
relatively stable land surfaces that will support livestock or auto-
motive traffic without land slippage. Erodibility is relatively slight
because of coarse fragments. Lime and fertilizer are essential for
revegetation. Seepage waters are acid or extremely acid in part,
becoming less acid with time after final placement. Available water
retention for plant growth is low, resulting in some plant mortality
from drouth. However, the prime difficulty in revegetation is near-
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surface acidity and aluminum toxicity resulting from weathering of
relatively low percentages of pyrite disseminated throughout the un-
buffered, acid sandstone.
SUGGESTED MINESOIL FAMILIES THAT MAY OCCUR AS MAPPABLE UNITS IN WEST
VIRGINIA
1. Regolithic Plat tic Udspolents; sandy-skeletal, siliceous, acid,
mesic. Name: Cuzzart family
2. Plattic Udspolents; sandy-skeletal, siliceous, extremely acid,
mesic. Name: not assigned
3. Plattic Udspolents; sandy-skeletal, siliceous, acid, mesic.
Name: Birdcreek family (This family may prove to be the same
as the Valley Point soils.)
4. Fissile Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, extremely acid, mesic.
Name: Albright family (May be acid and not extremely acid.)
5. Fissile Udspolents; clayey-skeletal, mixed, neutral, mesic.
Name: Bridgeport family
6. Fissile Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, acid^ mesic.
Name: Brandonville family
7. Carbolithic Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, extremely acid,
mesic. Name: Century family
8. Carbolithic Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, neutral, mesic.
Name: not assigned
9. Carbolithic Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, acid, mesic.
Name: not assigned
10. Typic Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, extremely acid, mesic.
Name: not assigned (May not occur in West Virginia as a mappable
unit.)
11. Typic Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, acid, mesic.
Name: Canyon family
12. Typic Udspolents; clayey-skeletal, mixed, neutral, mesic.
Name: not assigned
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13. Schlickig Udspolents; fine-loamy, mixed, neutral mesic.
Name: Mark Twain family (Mo.) (May occur also in West Virginia
where calcareous, non-fissile [SchlickstoneJ mudrocks are abundant.)
14. Regolithic Fissile Udspolents; loamy-skeletal, mixed, acid, mesic.
Name: not assigned
Note that these tentative names may not all occur in West Virginia in
mappable units. It is estimated that 10 soil family names may cover
the mappable units that are important in the State.
Generalized mapping at the subgroup level could include only the
following:
1. Flattie Udspolents (Sandstone minesoils).
2. Fissile Udspolents (Shaly minesoils).
3. Carbolithic Udspolents (Coaly minesoils).
4. Schlickig Udspolents (Silt and Clay minesoils).
5. Typic Udspolents (Mixed minesoils).
6. Regolithic Plattic Udspolents (Weathered sandstone minesoils).
Some representative minesoil descriptions are included as Appendix D.
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SECTION VI
METHODS ADAPTED TO COAL OVERBURDEN
MATERIALS AND MINESOILS
Evaluation of the. soil-forming-potential of various earth materials
requires the application of techniques adapted from analytical
chemistry, geology, and agronomy. In some cases we have modified
existing methods of rock and soil analysis to enable us to more accu-
rately estimate the properties of future soils; and in other cases we
have developed new tools which have proven efficient as aids in char-
acterizing the variety of coal overburden materials we have found
developing into new soils. Nevertheless, standard references in soil
analysis such as those by Jackson (1958) and Black (1965) will be of
value to others engaging in overburden and minesoil characterization.
In order to extend the usefulness of results obtained during the
project reported herein, we include, in pages following, step-by-step
procedures for certain techniques where they may be unique or deviate
substantially from methods familar to the average analyst.
Acquisition of samples of coal overburden materials have been facili-
tated by keying project field work with times when cooperating surface
mine operators are drilling exploration holes either by solid coring
or compressed-air drills. A routine procedure for collecting incre-
mental overburden samples as rock chips expelled by air^-drilling
follows.
PROCEDURE FOR COLLECTING ROCK CHIP SAMPLES FROM BLAST HOLE DRILLING
OPERATIONS
Materials
1. Long handle shovel (common round pointed garden shovel is ade-
quate) .
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2. One-pint plastic-coated cardboard round ice cream containers with
covers (Plasti-Kan, or No. 16 Tall Nestyle; Sealright Co., Inc.,
Fulton, N.Y.). One container for each foot depth of rock drilled,
or for each sample obtained.
3. Felt-tip pen (Magic-Marker) or other tool for legibly labelling
sample container.
4. Crate (e.g. apple crate) or heavy corrugated paper carton to trans-
port rock-filled containers.
5. Drill rig, rotary bit, compressed air type, to expel drill chips
from bore hole (Robbing Rotary Drill Model RR-T or similar type
is adequate).
6. Notepad to record miscellaneous data, such as location, total
depth drilled, unusual drilling conditions encountered, changes
in rock type encountered at various depths, and depth of drill
bench with respect to original land surface.
General considerations
1. To obtain the most information, the samples should be taken where
overburden depth is the greatest, e.g. top of a hill, or the
farthest strip cut into a slope.
2. Where more than one column of rock chip samples is collected on
a job, the lateral distance and indication of either upslope or
downslope of a previous sample should be noted and recorded.
3. A brief sampling site notation should be established to label sam-
ple boxes unmistakenly; e.g. Sew-1, where Sew indicates a Sewickley
overburden on the operation being sampled, and -1 indicates the
first borehole sample; Sew-2 would indicate a second borehole in
the same area or even on the same drilling bench.
4. Sample sites should be geographically located. A suitable method
is to locate the spot on a 7 1/2 minute U.S.G.S. Topographical Map,
and using a ruler, determine the latitude and longitude coordinates
in degrees to five decimal places.
Method of sample collection
1. The drive mechanism suspension chain on the drill rig is examined
to determine the number of links per foot. A one-foot depth incre-
37
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ment is approximated by marking, with a dab of grease or other mark
visible through the dust, successive link pins that occur about 12
inches apart (on a commonly used Robbins drill rig every sixth pin
is 13 1/2 inches). Exact one-foot sample increments are not re-
quired, as long as the actual distance of the increment is marked
either on a sample box or in the field note book.
2. Sampling is started beginning with the first one-foot increment
drilled from the levelled bench that the rig is parked on.
3. The shovel is held under the dust apron almost touching the ro-
tating drill extension and the air-expelled rock chips are allowed
to collect on the shovel as the bit lowers one foot.
4. The lowering of the drill bit can be followed by observing as the
marked link pins on the suspension chain pass a predetermined
point or mark on the frame of the drill rig.
5. The shovelful of material collected from drilling one foot is
dumped into the pint box; material overflowing the box is dis-
carded, under the assumption that an average of the material on
the shovel has been retained in the sample box.
6. Samples are marked in the order, 1, 2, 3 etc., collected
from the surface downward.
7. Occasional boxes are marked with the locations abbreviations to
aid in organization.
8. The filled pint boxes are placed in a crate or heavy carton,
along with a page of accompanying field notes, and transported to
the laboratory.
9. In mining operations where the mine operator is using a blast hole
drill such as the Bucyrus Erie 50-R or 61-R, which is of a differ-
ent design and construction than the truck-mounted drill used in
the work reported here, the method of recovering the rock chip
samples needs to be modified. Since these writers have no field
experience with the center-platform type of drill, it is suggested
that the ingenuity of local drill operators be utilized to secure
samples.
In regions where blasting is not practiced to shatter the rock prior
to removing the overburden, samples are obtained by hand sampling with
a rock hammer in incremental units throughout the depth of material to
be evaluated. Where the air-drill rig is parked on a bench below the
38
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original land surface, the material removed by a scraper or dozer is
hand sampled, at a nearby exposure, from the level of the drill bench
up through the original topsoil.
Where exploration test cores, commonly 2-inch diameter, are available
for overburden studies, detailed geologic logging is undertaken in
addition to sampling for chemical and physical analyses. The detailed
procedure for core characterization and sampling follows.
PROCEDURE FOR LOGGING AND SAMPLING EXPLORATION CORES
In the Field
1. All pertinent information about the core is recorded.
(a) Location, (b) Total length of core, (c) Coal seams
involved, (d) Depth from land surface to top of core, and
(e) Elevation of the land surface.
2. Sampling and logging starts from the top of the core.
3. The core is divided into the six rock types, sandstone, shale,
mudrock, limestone, intercalate, carbolith, and chert, and the
rock type and its thickness are recorded along with color (red,
green, etc.), fossils (plant or animal), slickensides (promi-
nent or present), nodules and any other descriptive information
which can be readily observed.
4. If a rock member is 5 inches thick or less, it is logged
but not sampled unless it is a layer of special interest,
such as containing much visible pyrite, limestone, etc.
5. When there is a rock layer of considerable thickness, say
30 feet, the number of samples taken from this section
depends on the rock type. Sandstone, Intercolates, and
Chert are normally sampled every 5 feet; therefore, there
would be 6 samples taken in a 30 foot section of any of the
afore mentioned rock types. If the 30 foot section were
Carbolith, Mudrock, Shale, or Limestone, we would take 10
samples from this section because these four rock types are
being sampled every 3 feet.
6. When an obvious change in properties, such as penetration of
the weathered zone below the land surface, occurs at some
point within a rock type, the two zones of the rock type are
recorded and sampled as different members.
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7. Samples, approximately 4 inches long, are taken from the
center of the material represented. If the rock is sampled
every 3 feet then the sample would come from the center of the
3 foot section.
8. When logging and sampling an exploratory core in the field
or at the core storage area has been completed, the log
book should contain the following information: Ca) sample
depth, (b) rock type, (c) thickness of rock type, (d)
descriptive material such as color, slickensides, fossils,
nodules, etc.
In the Laboratory
1. The samples are logged again in more detail. In the field
the sample was put into a class suck as Mudrock so in the
laboratory it will be further classified as to its being
fissile, non—fissile, or nodular.
2. The hardness of the sample is recorded. Only 3 ranges
CO-3; 3-5; > 5.5), are used on Moh's scale of hardness,
where the fingernail has a hardness of 2.5, a knife blade is
5.5 to 6, and quartz is 7.
3. The color of the sample is recorded using the, standard color
chips found in the Munsell Soil Color Charts.
4. The streak of the sample on a porcelain plate or white chert
rock is checked for "Value" using a Munsell color book.
Carboliths have a streak value of 3 or lower, indicating
carbon.
5. Finally, the samples are examined for fossils, slickensides,
carbonates, nodules, etc., and such finds are recorded.
GRINDING PROCEDURE FOR COAL OVERBURDEN SAMPLES
Reduction of field samples of coal overburden materials to a form
convenient for use in various laboratory analyses has been accom-
plished with simple grinding equipment. More complex commercially
available mechanical grinders are also suitable but working pro-
cedures have not been investigated. The sample processing steps
routinely used by technicians on this project are included here.
40
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Materials
1. Samples of rock in one-pint boxes Cor other containers occa-
sionally) .
2. Mortar and pestle, cast iron, six inch diameter, two pint capacity.
(Cat. No. 12-976, Fisher Scientific Co.; or similar equivalent).
3. Sieve, with receiving pan, 5-inch diameter, 60 mesh CO.25 mm
openings).
4. Snap cap plastic vials, about 50 cc capacity CIS dram).
5. One quart (32 Oz.) plastic cottage cheese container with cover.
Methods
1. The sample from the field, or that portion which is not needed
intact for physical analyses, should be crushed so that all
particles are about 1/4" or smaller, if the field sample is
not already this fine.
2. The entire pint of field sample is then placed into the one-
quart container, the cover applied, and the material rolled and
tumbled until thoroughly mixed. A small suitable commercial
mixer may also be used if available.
3. Approximately two heaping teaspoons full of the mixed material
is then placed into the mortar and pulverized with the pestle.
4. After grinding a short time, the sample is poured from the
mortar into the sieve and the sieve is gently shaken.
5. The sample particles larger than the sieve openings are returned
to the mortar for further grinding.
6. The entire sample originally placed in the mortar is repeatedly
ground and sieved until the entire sample passes through the
60 mesh sieve.
7. The pulverized sample contained in the sieve receiving pan is
thoroughly mixed by quartering on a clean paper, or is mixed in
an appropriate commercial mixer.
8. The homogeneous pulverized sample is then transferred to a 50 cc
plastic vial for laboratory use. The sample identification pre-
41
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sent on the field box is transferred to the plastic vial. The
unused portion of the field sample is transferred to the storage
room.
PROCEDURE FOR PREPARING MINESOIL SAMPLES FOR SOILTESTING LABORATORY
ANALYSES
Minesoils which have been taken for evaluation of available plant
nutrient status are prepared for chemical extraction in a manner
similar to that used routinely by West Virginia Soil Testing Labora-
tory. This procedure follows.
Materials
1. Samples of soil in one-pint boxes Cor other containers).
2. Wooden rolling pin (kitchen-style).
3. Sieve, with receiving pan, 8-inch daimeter, 10 mesh (2.0 mm
openings).
4. Brown heavy Kraft paper.
Methods
1. The sample from the field should be air-dried; pour out onto
a square of brown paper and allow to dry.
2. The entire field sample, a portion at a time, is placed between
two sheets of brown paper and crushed by moderate rolling over
the top sheet with a rolling pin.
3. After crushing a short time, the sample is poured from the
lower sheet of paper into the sieve and the sieve is gently
shaken.
4. The sample particles larger than the sieve openings are returned
to the paper for further crushing.
5. The entire field sample is crushed and shaken on the 2mm sieve.
6. The pulverized sample contained in the sieve receiving pan is
thoroughly mixed by quartering on a clean paper, or is mixed
in an appropriate commercial mixer.
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7. The homogeneous crushed sample is then transferred back to the
field sample box. Rocks and other material that does not
crush easily to pass the 2 mm sieve is discarded or is saved in
another container, appropriately labelled, if the project leader
so specifies for a particular study.
8. If the sample is to be analyzed for total sulfur, calcium car-
bonate equivalent, or chemical species other than available
nutrients, a sub-sample of the 2 mm material is pulverized to
pass a 60 mesh (0.25 mm) sieve.
SULFUR DETERMINATION
Among the various chemical analyses to which overburden and minesoil
samples have been subjected, pyritic sulfur content is most important
when considering toxicity or potential toxicity from acidity. Pyritic
sulfur content, knowledge of which allows calculation of the maximum
amount of acid that might be produced during the weathering of a rock,
was estimated from the total sulfur content after the sample has been
leached to remove sulfates. The LEGO Induction Furnace with Automatic
Sulfur Titrator is utilized for the sulfur analyses (Beaton, et al,
1968; West Virginia University, 1971). The step-by-step procedure
utilized in the instrument operation follows.
Simplified procedure for determination of total sulphur using the
LEGO model 521-400 Induction Furnace with Variable Temperature
Control Transformer and Timer and model 532-000 Automatic Sulfur
Titrator
General Considerations -
a. In the case of coal or very high carbon shale samples,
sandwich sample (0.100 gm) between two scoops of MgO which
will prevent splashing of sample. A longer time of run-
ning may be expected with such samples.
b. Some samples, e.g. coal, when first placed in the furnace may
change the color of the solution in the titration vessel to pink
or purple (probably due to organic matter being driven off from
the sample).
Some samples may contain halogens (I, Cl, F) which darken the
solution in the titration vessel and will therefore produce S
results that are low. This problem if encountered, may be
43
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eliminated by the use of antimony in a trap between the furnace
and titration assembly.
c. Generally, with low chroma samples (shale) or other types where
high sulfur content might be present, either 0.250 or 0.1000
gram samples should be run first. If sulfur is not detectable
or more accurate values are desired in this sample weight,
increase sample size to 0.5000 gms. and rerun.
Sample Preparation -
a. Place 1 0.2 ml scoop, level full, of iron chips in crucible,
then
b. Weight exactly 0.500 grams of 60 mesh sample into the crucible.
(1) For samples such as shale and coal, that contain or are
suspected to contain over 1% sulfur, use only 0.100 g.
c. Add 1 scoop of MgO, about 0.5 mm-*.
d. Add 2 scoops of Fe powder and one Cu ring.
e. After adding each component, gently shake the crucible to even-
ly cover the bottom.
f. Place one porous cover on the crucible, (cover may be turned
over and reused)
Solution Preparation -
a. Potassium ibdate titrant:
(1) 1.110 g KI03/L, multiply buret reading by 5 (1/2 g sample;
0.005 - 1.00 % S Range)
(2) 0.0444 g KI03/L, multiply buret reading by 0.200 (1/2 g
sample ; 0.0002 - .040 % S Range)
b. Hydrochloric acid solution: 15 ml cone. HC1/L H20
c. Starch solution: Use only arrowroot starch. Add 2 g Arrowroot
starch to 50 ml 1^0; stir well. Separately boil 150 ml H,20 and
to this slowly add the 2 g starch solution, stirring constantly.
Cool and add 6 g potassium iodate to the solution; pour this
solution into the polyethylene starch dispenser. Do not use
starch over 5 days old.
44
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Instrument Operation -
a. Read entire manuals on both LEGO Induction Furnace and Auto-
matic Titrator.
b. Turn ON "Filament Voltage"; grid tap to high position.
c. Turn on titrator — upper left switch. CAbove "Endpoint Adjust")
d. Set timer switch to ON, adjust timer to 8 minutes, or a time
sufficient to satisfy instructions p. and q.
e. Set "Titrate-Endpoint" switch to its middle position.
f. Slosh carboys containing HC1 and KI03 to mix the condensate
on the unfilled walls of the container.
g. Fill iodate buret.
h. Fill titrating chamber to mark; add one measure of Starch; bot-
tom of meniscus shall be 2 3/8" below top of chamber.
i. Turn on oxygen; set pressure to 15 psi, flow rate to 1.0 liter
per minute.
j. Turn "high voltage" ON.
k. Place sample crucible on pedestal, making sure it is centered;
carefully raise sample fully and close switching lever. Make
sure sample platform makes airtight contact when closed; as
evidenced by vigorous bubbling in top of titration cell.
1. Turn switch to "Endpoint".
m. After a few seconds when titrant level has stopped falling
and titrating chamber is a deep blue color, refill buret or
note and record initial buret reading; turn switch to "Titrate".
(See x. instruction also)
n. Push RED button on timer to start analysis.
o. While a sample is being titrated, add the final quantities of
iron and tin and copper to the next crucible.
p. Plate current must go to 300-350 ma for at least 15 seconds
during the analysis; if not, rerun sample.
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q. Adjust to prevent Plate Current from exceeding 350 ma.
r. When buret does not change reading for 2 minutes, and Plate
Current has achieved 300 to 350 ma, it can be assumed that all
of the sulfur has been driven from the sample. If buret is
still changing when timer shuts off instrument, set Timer
Switch to OFF, which restarts furnace, leave furnace on until
buret is stable for 2 minutes, then turn Timer Switch to ON.
s. Set "Titrate-endpoint" to middle position. (IMPORTANT)
t. Lower sample platform, remove crucible using tongs, place
fresh sample crucible in place, but do not close sample
chamber.
u. Drain titrating chamber and refill every 3rd sample, or
more if a large quantity of titrant was used by the previous
sample. Slightly drain titrating chamber to maintain original
level.
v. Refill KI03 buret.
w- Close sample chamber, making sure it is tight.
x. Switch to "titrate", or, if it is known that sample will
evolve S0£ slowly, leave switch at Endpoint - this acts as
a "Fine" control allowing buret valve to discriminate smaller
increments.
y- Continue from "n" above.
To Shut Down -
a. Turn "Titrate-Endpoint" switch to mid position.
b. Turn off main Q£ valve on top of tank.
c. Turn off "High Voltage".
d. Turn off Automatic titrator (see 3 c.)
e. Drain titration chamber; flush once with a chamber full of
HC1 solution or water, cover and leave stand.
f. If 02 has stopped bubbling in H2S04 solution, turn off small
knurled valve on gage outlet.
46
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g. Turn off "Filament Voltage".
Maintenance -
Periodically clean titration chamber and associated glassware with
acetone or cone. HC1.
Sulfate removal from minesoil and overburden samples prior
Total sulfur determination in LEGO Furnace
Materials -
a. 28 mm I.D. polyethylene funnel
b. 5.5 cm glass fiber filter paper
c. Acid-inert filter funnel holder (polyethylene)
d. 2:3 HC1
e. Mariotte bottle, at least 500 ml capacity, with height of
outlet capillary adjustable to regulate outflow rate.
Procedure -
a. Taking care to not sharply crease the glass fibers, fold a
filter to fit the polyethylene funnel.
b. With filter assemble on a suitable holder (small plastic vial),
place onto pan of a balance and weight 0.500 +_ .001 g. of
60 mesh sample into the filter.
c. Place sample and filter onto funnel holder in sink or other
suitable pan which can receive outflow from funnel.
d. Charge Marriotte bottle with 50 ml. of 2:3 HC1; start siphon
and adjust flow rate into funnel such that funnel does not
overflow.
e. After sample has been leached with the acid, rinse out feed
bottle and fill with 500 ml. of deionized, distilled water;
leach sample with water.
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f. After leached sample has dried (overnite airdry or 50°C oven),
carefully fold glass fiber filter paper around the sample^and
transfer to a ceramic crucible for total sulfur analysis in
the LEGO furnace.
g. Determine sulfur using standard LEGO procedure, however add
one extra scoop of Fe chips or powder.
POTENTIAL ACIDITY WITH PEROXIDE
Direct oxidation of reduced sulfur to acid with hydrogen peroxide and
subsequent titration with a standard base has been suggested as the
most attractive method of evaluating the acid potential of "acid sul-
fate soils" (Brinkman and Pons, 1972). Although they also advocate
the use of peroxide oxidation to detect "net potential acidity" in
acid sulfate soils containing carbonates, oxidative efficiency is
greatly reduced at pH's of 5.8 and above (Jackson, 1958). Earlier
investigations (West Virginia University, 1971) showed a close rela-
tionship between total sulfur content of fresh overburden samples
and the amount of acid measured after the samples were treated with
hydrogen peroxide. When the samples consisted of minesoils or
weathered overburden materials, sulfate-sulfur, organic content, and
calcium carbonate content unpredictably influenced the amount of
acidity generated by peroxide treatment. The relationship between
sulfur content and generated acidity for forty-nine minesoil and
weathered overburden samples, where the samples had been treated
with acid to remove sulfates and carbonates before both the sulfur
determination and the peroxide treatment has been statistically con-
firmed. Correlation between the acidity produced, and the pyritic +
organic sulphur content, was significant at the 0.001 level, with an
r^ value of 0.970. Acidity could be related to percent sulfur by the
equation:
Y = 4.93 + 52.29 X
where Y is total potential acidity, expressed as milliequivalents of
hydrogen per one hundred grams, and X is percent pyritic + organic
sulphur.
Procedure
Note: If the sample contains no Carbonates and no Sulfates, and the pH
is less than 5.5 in a 1:1 soil-water suspension, then Step 1 can be
eliminated.
48
-------
1. Place 3 grams of sample (< 60 mesh) into a funnel fitted with
filter paper (11-0 cm., Whatman No. 41). Leach sample with 300 ml.
of 2:3 HC1 (HCl:Water) in funnel-full increments, followed by
distilled and deionized water (in funnel-full increments) until
effluent is free from chloride as detected by 10% silver nitrate.
Airdry filter paper and sample overnight, or place in 50°C forced
air oven until dry.
2. Carefully scrape dried sample from paper surface and mix.
3. Weigh out accurately 2.00 grams of sample into a 300 ml. tall
form beaker. Add 24 mis. of ACS Reagent Grade 30% H202 and heat
beaker on hotplate until solution is approximately 40°C. Remove
beaker from hotplate and allow reaction to go to completion, or
for 30 minutes which ever comes first. Three blanks for each
batch of samples should be handled in the same manner. Caution;
Initial reaction may be quite turbulent when samples contain
0.1% sulfur or greater.
4. Add an additional 12 mis. of Reagent Grade H20, (30%) to beaker
and allow to react for 30 minutes, then place beaker on hotplate
at approximately 90 to 95°C, solution temperature, for 30 minutes
to destroy any unreacted H202 left in beaker. Do not allow to
go to dryness.
5. Wash down the sides of the beaker with distilled H20 and make the
volume of solution to approximately 100 mis.
6. Place beaker on the hotplate or over a Bunsen burner and heat
the solution to boiling to drive off any dissolved C02, then
cool the solution to room temperature.
7. Titrate the solution, with 0.0100 N_NaOH that is free of C02 and
protected from the atmosphere, to pH 7.0 using a glass electrode
pH meter. Note: The NaOH must be standarized precisely with
KHCfiH,0, to obtain its exact Normality which will be used in
the calculation.
8. Calculations:
a. (mis of NaOH) x (Normality of NaOH) x (50) = meq (H+)/100 g.
b. meq H+/100 g. x 0.01 = tons H+/thousand tons of material.
c. One ton of H+ requires 50 tons of CaCO equivalent to neu-
tralize it.
49
-------
NEUTRALIZATION POTENTIAL
The natural base content of overburden materials is important in
evaluating potential minesoils. Quantitation of neutralizing bases,
including carbonates, present in a rock was accomplished by treating
the sample with a known excess of hydrochloric acid, heating to
insure complete reaction, and determination of the unconsumed acid
by titration with standardized base. This is a modification of the
procedure used to measure the neutralizing equivalence of agricultural
limestone. (Jackson, 1958)
Procedure for Mines oil or Overburden Material
1. Weigh 2.00 + grams of sample, ground to pass a 60 mesh CO -25 mm)
sieve, into a 250 ml Erlenmeyer flask.
2. Carefully pipet 20.00 ml of 0.1 N_ HCl (the normality of which is
known exactly) into the flask.
3. Heat nearly to boiling until reaction (acid + carbonates) is
complete, 5 minutes is usually sufficient.
4. Add H£0 to a total volume of 150 ml, boil 1 minute: cool.
5. Titrate using 0.1 N_ NaOH (concentration exactly known), to pH
7.0 using an electrometric pH meter.
a. If the pH of the suspension is greater than 7.0 prior to
beginning the back titration with NaOH, it can be assumed
that there is a CaC03 equivalent of over 50 tons per thousand
tons of material.
b. If less than 3 ml of the 0.1 II NaOH is required to obtain
a pH of 7.0, it is likely that insufficient acid had been
added to neutralize all of the base present. Therefore,
to obtain the most reliable results, the sample should be
rerun using a greater amount of acid initially added to the
sample .
c. If an exact value of this high neutralizing capacity is
desired, rerun the sample using a greater amount of acid
initially, or using above procedure but substituting 1.0
N HCl and 1.0 N NaOH.
6. Calculate N.P. using equations (a) through (c) .
50
-------
a. Ml. acid consumed by sample = ml. of acid added to sample,
minus ml base required to neutralize sample x
ml of acid (only) in a flask
ml of base required to neutralize it
b. parts CaCOg equivalent/million parts of soil = (ml acid
consumed by sample) x N_ of acid x 100 x
grams of sample used
10,000 x 50 grams of CaC03
1 1 gram of H1"
c. for a 2.0 gram sample:
1. Tons CaCOo equivalent/1000 tons = ml acid consumed by
sample x 25,000 x 1[ of acid
1,000
2. Tons CaCOo equivalent/thousand tons of soil = ml x 25.0
x 1J of acid
d. Maximum CaCO-j requirement for neutralization of acid developed
from total sulfur = %S x 31.24 (assuming all sulfur occurs
as pyrite or marcasite).
The soil test analyses discussed in Section VIII for pH, lime require-
ment, available phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and magnesium were
carried out on overburden rock material pulverized to pass a 60 mesh
sieve and in the case of minesoils, crushed material passing a 2 mm
sieve. The analytical procedures for available phosphorus and potas-
sium are essentially those instituted by the North Carolina Agricul-
tural Experiment Station (Nelson, et al, 1953) and used by several
Eastern states. Available calcium and magnesium were determined in
this same extract. The lime requirement test was that proposed by
Woodruff. (Woodruff, 1948).
Analyses for available phosphorus by the sodium bicarbonate extraction,
as discussed in Section VIII, were carried out using the method of
Olsen, et al (1954) as described by Olsen and Dean (1965). Following
is the step-by-step procedure for this method.
51
-------
PROCEDURE FOR DETERMINING AVAILABLE PHOSPHORUS IN MINESOILS.
(MODIFIED METHOD OF OLSEN, et al, 1954)
Materials
1. 50 ml. Erlenmeyer flasks with, stoppers, or similar containers
for phosphorus extraction step.
2. Funnels, 60 mm diameter, with, funnel rack to hold several at a
time.
3. Whatman #40 or S & S 589-white, filter paper, 110 mm. diameter.
4. 50 ml. beakers to receive filtrate after extraction.
5. Decolorizing charcoal, Darco G-60 (J. T. Baker Chemical Co.) or
equivalent.
6. Balance, capable of +^ 0.01 gram accuracy.
7. Shaking machine, Burrell Wrist-Action Shaker, or reciprocating
shaker adjustable from about 50-200 excursions/minute.
8. 25 ml. volumetric flasks.
9. Colorimeter or spectrophotometer, with filter or adjustment to
provide 660 mu incident light.
10. Cuvettes or matched test tubes to fit above colorimeter.
11. Sodium bicarbonate (NaHO^) solution, 0.5 M, adjusted to pH 8.5
with 1 M NaOH. Mineral oil added to avoid exposure to the air;
stored in a polyethylene container and made fresh every 2 months,
12. Ammonium molybdate, (NH^)6 MO7024 '4H20, solution: Dissolve 15
g. in 300 ml. of warm distilled and deionized water. Filter if
cloudy and allow to cool. Gradually add 342 ml. of cone. HC1
and mix. Dilute to 1 liter.
13. Concentrated SnCl2 -2^0 solution: 10 g. of large crystals
dissolved in 25 ml. cone. HC1. Store in a brown glass bottle
in a refrigerator. Prepare fresh every 2 months.
a. Dilute SnCl2: Add 0.5 ml. of the cone. SnCl2 solution to
66 ml. distilled and deionized water. Prepare the dilute
solution for each set of determinations.
52
-------
14. Standard P solution: Weigh 0.4393 g. KH2P04 into a 1 liter
volumetric flask. Add 500 mis. distilled and deionized water
and dissolve the salt. Dilute to 1 liter, and add 5 drops of
toluene to reduce microbial growth.
15. Dilute P solution: Dilute 20 ml. (pipet) of the P solution from
(14) to 1 liter with distilled and deionized water. This solution
contains two micrograms of P per ml.
Procedure
1. Add 1.00 g of < 60 mesh rock or soil sample, 1.7 cc decolorizing
carbon, and 20 ml of NaHC03 solution to the 50 ml. Erlenmeyer
flask. Stopper the flask.
2. Shake for 30 minutes, at 20PC, using a shaking speed of 2 on a
Burrell wrist-action shaker, or 120 excursions per minute on a
reciprocating shaker.
3. Filter through filter paper specified; shake flask before pouring
suspension into filter funnel.
4. Pipet 10 ml of filtrate into a 25 ml. volumetric flask. (If
necessary to interrupt work, stop here)
5. a. Slowly add, with a pipet or calibrated dispenser, 5 ml of
Ammonium Molybdate solution. Shake gently to mix well CpH.
of the solution after adding molybdate should be between 3.0
and 4.0. With some alkaline soils it may be necessary to add
more acid in order to assure the indicated pH for consistent
color development. However, with minesoils studied, 5 ml of
molybdate has been sufficient and has avoided excess acidity
with extremely acid samples).
b. Wash down neck of flask with a small amount of H/jO and dilute
to about 22 ml.
6. Pipet 1 ml of the dilute Snd2 solution into the flask, dilute to
volume, and mix immediately holding the top of the volumetric
flask tightly closed (gases are generated during this mixing);
be_ sure solution is thoroughly mixed before releasing hand
pressure on the cap of the flask.
7. Ten minutes but less than 20 minutes after adding the dilute
SnClo to the flask and mixing, measure the transmittance (%T) of
the blue solution, using the colorimeter or spectrophotometer at
53
-------
660 mu. Be sure to understand instructions for operating the
instrument correctly.
8. Obtain P concentration from standard curve prepared as follows:
a. Pipette aliquots, containing from 2 to 25 micrograms of P
(this gives a range of from 0.08 to 1.0 ug/ml in the 25 ml
flask) , of the dilute P solution into 25 ml. volumetric flasks
and add 5 ml of the NaHCOa extracting solution to each flask.
b. Develop the color as in (4) above.
c. Plot the %T vs. P concentration in the 25 ml. flask on single-
cycle, semilog graph paper, or Absorbance (A) vs. P
concentration on linear graph paper.
Calculations
If a 1.0 gram sample is extracted with 20.0 ml of extractant; and
a 10.0 ml aliquot of the filtered extractant is taken into a 25 ml
volumetric flask for color development then:
ppm available P in the soil=
(ppm P in sample, taken from standard curve) X 50
IMMEDIATE LIME REQUIREMENT DETERMINATIONS
Determinations of the lime requirement of minesoils by Ca(OH)2 titration
were discussed previously (West Virginia University, 1971a) , and
further interpretations appear in Section VIII of this report. A
further study, involving 32 minesoil samples selected from an Upper
Freeport coal mining area, was undertaken to investigate the suitability
of the 5-minute-boiling modification of the Ca(OH)2 incubation reported
by Abruna and Vicente (1955). Their method was slightly modified for
minesoils and is as follows.
Procedure
Place 10 gm. samples of sieved (10 mesh) air-dry soil in beakers.
Dilute with 50 cc of distilled water and add varying increments of
0.03 N Ca(OH)2 solution, depending on the expected exchange capacity
and base saturation of the soil. Boil on a hot plate for 5 minutes
(intermittent stirring of the samples may be necessary to avoid
excessive foaming). Cool in a water tray to 25°C. and determine the
54
-------
pH of the suspension using a glass electrode. Buffer curves relating
pH values to quantity of lime are then prepared from these data and
used to determine the lime required to raise the soil pH to any
desired level.
Figure 12 is a comparison of the two methods for determining lime
requirement by titration. The results compare favorably and con-
siderable time is saved by the 5-minute-boiling method. It was
found that by boiling the solution for five minutes, the time for
reaching equilibrium was reduced from 100 hours to 1 hour.
Certain theoretical considerations in addition to a limited study
of data accumulated to date suggest that some relationship exists
between the lime requirement of soils as determined by the various
buffer methods, and the titratable acidity as detected in the
Neutralization Potential measurement discussed earlier.
Figure 13 indicates that Soiltest Lime Requirement (modified Woodruff
buffer method) and Neutralization Potential are closely correlated.
In these predominantly sandstone minesoil samples positive and
negative values of the neutralization potential were used. The
high correlation shows that it is possible to predict lime require-
ment from neutralization potential.
SOIL ACIDITY
There are several constituents which contribute to the development of
minesoil acidity. These sources (humus, alumino-silicates, hydrous
oxides, pyritic materials and soluble salts) may contribute indepen-
dently or by interaction. The more common methods of measuring acid-
ity are pH, electrometrically by means of glass electrode, exchange-
able acidity using unbuffered KC1, and titratable acidity, using un-
buffered solution.
Two important factors which affect soil pH measurements are (1) the
soil/water ratio and (2) the presence of soluble salts. The "sus-
pension effect" results in a different pH reading when the electrode
is placed in the sediment as opposed to the supernatent liquid. The
pH of the sediment is usually lower for acid soils. Ideally, pH
measurements should be taken in a "thin paste". At West Virginia
University's soil testing laboratory a 1:1 soil/water ratio is used,
which gives an ideal thin paste or slurry with some soils. With sandy
soils and many coarse or medium textured minesoils the 1:1 mixture
must be agitated while the pH xis being determined in order to assure
suspension. A satisfactory alternative is to use less water relative
to minesoil.
55
-------
in
o
o
-Q
3
O
O
•o
I
Y=0-7565x+l-3795
r = 0- 9875
FIGURE 12.
1234 5678
pH
after 5-minute boiling
COMPARISON OF LIME REQUIREtffiNTS OF 32 UPPER FREEPORT MINESOIL SAMPLES
BY DIRECT Ca(OH)2 TITRATION USING A RAPID 5-MINUTE-BOILING METHOD AND
THE STANDARD 4-DAY INCUBATION
-------
Oi
o
E
E
-2'
Y a - 1-1205 x-J-3-2031
r = 0-9738
-4-3-2-1 0 I 23 4
N.P.
(tons Ca C03 Equiv. /IO 00 tons of material)
FIGURE 13. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOILTEST LI>ffi REQUIREMENT AND NEUTRALIZATION POTENTIAL.
-------
Soluble salts may have a pronounced effect on soil pH. As the salt
concentration is increased the measured pH commonly decreases because
the cation of the salt replaces the exchange acidity on the soil
colloid releasing the acidity to the soil solution and the pH is
decreased.
Two procedures have been used to overcome the salt effect. One method
is leaching the soil with water to take out the soluble salts and then
measuring the pH. The second method is to add a salt solution instead
of distilled water to the soil before measuring pH. One tenth normal
KC1 and 0.01 M CaCl2 are the salts normally used. The assumption is
made that the salts in the soil solution are negligible compared to
the salt solution added to the soil. The more common approach in the
United States is to determine pH in a distilled water slurry, realizing
that significant soluble salts may be present, depending on character
of the sample.
The pH measurements of the 1:1, soil/water slurry (agitated to assure
soil suspension) were all higher than those of the 1:1, soil/salt
solution (Table 1).. The relationship between the two methods was
good, resulting in a correlation coefficient of 0.858; however, when
the pH measurements in water and salt solution were correlated with
the extractable aluminum, the correlation coefficients were 0.0319
and 0.0954 respectively. There are two reasons for these poor re-
lationships: (1) All the pH measurements were below 3.7, where
acidity is dominantly from mineral acids in the soil solution and
the range of pH from 4.0 to 5.5 is where soil acidity is dominated by
exchangeable aluminum. (2) There is such a small range of pH values
(2.9 to 3.6 for water slurry and 2.4 to 3.1 for the salt solution
slurry) that other uncontrolled variables dominate. The exchange
acidity of a soil is thought of as that acidity which can be replaced
by a neutral, unbuffered salt such as KC1. The titratable acidity is
that amount of acidity which is neutralized at a selected pH such as
8.2 for the BaCl2-T.E.A. method. The latter has the rationale of
measuring the many different components of soil acidity, and corres-
ponds to the definition of a calcium-saturated soil.
The soil acidity measurements (Table 1) indicate that the BaC^-T.E.A.
method results are higher than those from the IN KC1 method by a fac-
tor of approximately 3.0; however, both methods are closely related as
evidenced by a correlation coefficient of 0.945. When data of both
methods were compared with exchangeable aluminum, the IN KC1 method
correlated more closely (r=0.948) than the BaCl2-T.E.A. method (r=0.840)
indicating that the latter measures acidity other than just that which
is contributed by the exchangeable aluminum.
58
-------
Table 1. COMPARISON OF TOTAL ACIDITY AND pH BY TWO DIFFERENT METHODS
(JACKSON, 1958) ALONG WITE EXTRACTABLE ALUMINUM ON 3 TO 8
YEAR OLD UPPER FREEPORT MINESOILS.
,
Sample
QQ 1-1
QQ 1-2
QQ 1-3
QQ 2-1
QQ 2-2
QQ 2-3
QQ 3-1
QQ 3-2
QQ 3-3
RR 1-1
RR 1-2
RR 1-3
RR 2-1
RR 2-2
RR 2-3
RR 3-1
RR 3-2
RR 3-3
SS 1-1
SS 1-2
SS 1-3
SS 2-1
SS 2-2
SS 2-3
SS 3-1
SS 3-2
SS 3-3
Ba C12-TEA
pH 8.2
meg H+/100g
12.26
11.28
10.79
8.34
9.48
8.01
13.73
10.46
13.24
11.61
11.77
12.59
10.79
9.81
10.95
10.63
11.45
9.16
5.72
7.52
7.68
10.95
7.57
11.77
7.19
6.38
6.70
PH
IN KC1
meq H+/100g
3.87
3.87
3.51
2.50
2.85
2.55
4.89
3.26
5.09
3.36
3.62
4.02
3.62
3.26
3.67
3.46
3.87
3.05
1.99
2.70
2.65
3.87
2.85
3.77
2.65
2.34
2.04
IN KC1
meq Al+f+/10Qg
2.75
3.00
2.56
1.89
1.72
1.99
4.22
2.39
4.81
2.70
2.92
3.17
3.11
3.00
3.00
2.50
2.92
2.22
1.61
2.22
2.22
3.36
2.22
3.31
2.22
1.83
1.67
H20
1:1
2.9
2.1
3.1
3.2
2.9
3.3
3.3
3.2
3.4
3.2
3.0
3.1
3.2
3.2
3.2
3.1
3.0
3.1
3.6
3.5
3.5
3.3
3.5
3.4
3.5
3.5
3.6
1NKC1
1:1
2.4
2.5
2.6
2.6
2.5
2.7
2.6
2.5
2.7
2.7
2.7
2.7
2.7
2.8
2.7
2.7
2.6
2.7
3.0
2.9
2.9
2.8
2.9
2.8
2.9
2.9
3.1
59
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CATION EXCHANGE CAPACITY OF MINESOILS
Soils all have negative charges which are derived from both, the in-
organic and organic phases. The former contributes negative charges
to the soil by isomorphous substitution and ionization of hydroxyl
groups of the silica tetrahedron while the carboxyl, phenolic and
amino groups found in soil organic matter are responsible for the
negative charge arising from the latter. The sum total of these neg-
ative charges per given weight of a particular soil is called the
Cation Exchange Capacity (C.E.C.) of that soil. On each of these
negatively charged sites an exchangeable cation is absorbed and is
subject to interchange with cations in the soil solution. This reac-
tion continues until equilibrium is reached between the soil solution
and the exchange sites on the soil solid phase; however, the cation
exchange process is dynamic and the equilibrium condition is always
changing.
The different methods of determining C.E.C. can be placed into three
categories: (1) Electrodialyzing or leaching the soil with a dilute
acid (HC1) followed by titrating the soil with Ba(OH)2 to pH 7.0 or
NaOH to pH 8.5- (2) Summation of exchangeable or extractable hydro-
gen and the replaceable bases (calcium, magnesium, potassium and so-
dium) . (3) Saturation of the soil with a neutral unbuffered salt
(e.g. CaCl2, KC1) or the acetate of ammonium, barium, calcium, or
sodium which is buffered at a certain pH Ce.g. 7.0 or 8.2) and the
amounts of the cations absorbed by the soil is determined. The ques-
tion of which pH (7.0 or 8.2) is best for buffering salt solutions is
unanswered. The former has the rationale of neutrality and is the
pH to which soils are generally limed while the latter corresponds
to the definition of a calcium-saturated soil. It also appears to
correspond with complete neutralization of sorbed ferric iron and
aluminum ions.
The C.E.C. of three to eight year old Upper Freeport minesoils was
determined by five methods and the results statistically correlated
Table 2). Method I and II are saturation techniques while methods
III, IV and V are summation techniques. The data of Table 2 indicate
several relationships although there is variability between the actual
C.E.C. determined by the different methods (Table 3).
Method III (soiltest procedure) was poorly correlated with methods I
and II but showed a much closer relationship with methods IV and V.
This could be partly because method III is a summation technique like
methods IV and V and partly due to the acid extracting solution used
in this method. Method III tends to extract more calcium and magne-
sium which may be in the sulfate form rather than on the exchange
complex. The replaceable hydrogen is measured by equilibrating a
60
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Table 2. COEFFICIENTS OF CORRELATION RELATING DIFFERENT METHODS USED TO DETERMINE THE
CATION EXCHANGE CAPACITY OF 3 TO 8 YEAR OLD UPPER FREEPORT MINESOILS.
Methods Correlated
I.
II.
III.
IV.
Method I. (Jackson, 1958)
NH4+ Saturation
(1 N NH4(OAc), pH 7.0)
Method II. (Rich, 1961)
Ca"1"* Saturation
(1 N CaCl2)
Method III. (Nelson et.al., 1953)
Exchange Acidity
(Ca(OAc)2, pH 7.0)
+ Extractable Bases
(.05 N HC1 - .025 N H2S04
Method IV. (Jackson, 1958)
Exchange Acidity
(BaCl2-TEA, pH 8.2)
+ Exchangeable Bases
(1 N; NH4(OAc) , pH 7.0
Method V. (Jackson, 1958)
Exchange Acidity
(1 N KC1)
+ Exchangeable Bases
(1 !N NH4(OAc) , pH 7.0
.8904
.6452
.6093
.8456
.8384
.8289
.8776
.8996
.8039
.9500
-------
to
Table 3. CATION EXCHANGE CAPACITY OF 3 TO 8 YEAR OLD UPPER FREEPORT MINESOILS DETERMINED
BY 5 DIFFERENT METHODS.
Samples Method I Method II Method III Method IV Method V
QQ 1-1
QQ 1-2
QQ 1-3
QQ 2-1
QQ 2-2
QQ 2-3
QQ 3-1
QQ 3-2
QQ 3-3
RR 1-1
RR 1-2
RR 1-3
RR 2-1
RR 2-2
RR 2-3
RR 3-1
RR 3-2
RR 3-3
SS 1-1
SS 1-2
SS 1-3
SS 2-1
SS 2-2
SS 2-3
SS 3-1
SS 3-2
SS 3-3
6.44
6.54
6.54
4.92
5.06
5.73
12.73
6.78
10.20
7.87
8.44
7.87
7.16
6.54
7.49
4.92
6.06
4.83
2.83
4.83
3.87
6.54
6.06
6.06
4.25
3.68
3.30
5.61
5.61
4.99
3.62
4.24
3.62
8.48
5.61
9.23
5.74
4.74
7.11
5.74
5.36
5.36
3.62
4.37
3.62
3.24
3.74
3.74
5.99
4.24
5.99
3.62
3.24
3.24
5.04
4.21
3.53
3.40
3.31
2.58
4.86
4.08
5.60
4.92
5.03
5.00
5.80
4.20
5.75
5.33
6.12
4.53
2.61
3.42
2.60
4.28
4.16
5.13
2.57
1.72
2.51
12.44
11.32
11.01
8.50
9.58
8.16
13.92
10.68
13.47
11.97
11.91
12.80
11.00
10.00
11.12
10 . 89
11.67
9.36
5.81
7.66
7.78
11.09
7.66
11.97
7.32
6.54
6.79
4.05
3.99
3.73
2.66
2.95
2.70
5.08
3.48
5.32
3.72
3.76
4.22
3.83
3.45
3.84
3.72
4.09
3.25
2.08
2.84
2.75
4.01
2.99
3.90
2.78
2.50
2.13
-------
soil sample with Ca(OAc)2 at pR 7.0 instead of pH 8.2 like Method IV.
Since the replaceable hydrogen is so important in acid soils the mea-
surement of this cation could be the major difference between these two
methods.
Method IV is recognized by many soil scientists as the most reliable
procedure to use for determining the C.E.C. of acid soils and
only method V is significantly more closely related to it than is
method III. Method I, II, and III are similarly related to method IV.
Considering the data in Table 1 and Table 2, it may be concluded
that methods IV and V are both reliable in estimating the C.E.C.
of acid minesoils, with exchangeable hydrogen by the buffered solution
(pH 8.2) rather than by neutral KC1 solution being the difference in
actual values obtained. Method III can be used to estimate the
C.E.C. just as well as methods I and II.
ORGANIC CARBON ANALYSIS
The standard procedure for determining carbon in soil is the dry-
combustion method which employs a high temperature furnace to con-
vert the carbon to carbon dioxide which is collected and measured.
The procedure is slow, limiting the number of samples which can be
quickly processed. Another method of determining readily oxidizable
organic matter in soil is the wet oxidation method developed by Walkley
and Black. This method shows excellent correlation with the dry-
combustion method. It is a rapid titration method which determines
the readily oxidizable organic matter of soils by chromic acid
oxidation with spontaneous heating due to the chemical reaction of
1 N K2Cr20y and concentrated H2S04.
The method is rapid and gives moderately satisfactory discrimination
of humus from the highly condensed forms of organic carbon. Another
advantage of this method results from the fact that evolved C02 is not
measured and a soil sample can contain up to 50% CaC03 by weight with-
out any interference from the inorganic carbon source. The oxidizable
matter in a soil sample is oxidized by the chromate ions and the
excess chromate ions are measured by titration with FeS04 solution.
This procedure gives a 60 to 86% recovery of organic carbon and must
be multiplied by a factor to get per cent organic matter.
The disadvantages of this type of method are incomplete recovery of
organic carbon and the presence of other readily oxidizable material
in the soil. Chlorine, higher oxides of manganese and reduced iron
will interfere if they are present in any appreciable amounts.
63
-------
Ignition at low temperatures has also been used for determining organic
matter in soils. A weighted oven-dry sample is heated to 350° to 400°C
for 7 to 8 hours to oxidize the organic matter. The mineral matter
is assumed to be unchanged at these temperatures and the per cent
organic matter is calculated from the weight loss. The procedure
is simple and large numbers of samples can be processed, but the
discrimination between organic matter and mineral matter is not complete.
If carbonates are present the sample should be leached with HC1.
To evaluate the Ignition method, it was compared with the Walkley-
Black method using Upper Freeport minesoils which were devoid of
vegetation and ranged in age from 3 to 8 years. The only organic
matter present was contributed by the weathering of Carbolithic rocks.
The data in Table 4 indicate that the results obtained by the Ignition
method are almost twice as high as those obtained by the Walkley-
Black procedure; however, the degree of correlation between the two
methods indicates a very close relationship. This relationship
suggests that the Ignition method can be utilized with regression
equation to obtain a reliable estimate of easily oxidizable organic
matter in minesoils.
PROCEDURE FOR MEASURING PHYSICAL WEATHERING POTENTIAL OF ROCKS
This procedure was developed by combining features of the methods
put forth by Bouyoucos (1951), Tyner (1940), Day (1956), and Kilmer
and Alexander (1949) . The basjjfe principle of this method is to
artifically weather rocks by shaking the sample, treated with a mild
dispersing agent (Calgon), on a reciprocating shaker for sixteen
hours, followed by mechanical analysis of the resulting suspension.
Apparatus
French square bottles, 32 oz., with caps; 10 mesh sieve, 5 inches in
diameter; reciprocating shaker; a standard hydrometer (ASTM 152H, with
Bouyoucos scale in grams per liter); glass sedimentation cylinders
with, markings at the 1130 ml. and 1205 ml. levels; analytical balance;
drying oven; aluminum foil bread pans; thermometer (°F) ; plunger.
Reagents
5% Calgon solution; distilled water. The dispersing agent "Calgon"
contains sodium metaphosphate with sufficient sodium carbonate to give
a pH of approximately 8.3 in a 10% solution.
64
-------
Table 4. COMPARISON OF ORGANIC MATTER DETERMINED BY IGNITION (JACKSON,
1958) WITH EASILY OXIDIZABLE ORGANIC MATTER DETERMINED BY THE WALKLEY-
BLACK (JACKSON, 1958) WET OXIDATION METHOD USING SAMPLES FROM 3 TO 8
YEAR OLD MINESOILS, ALONG WTIH THE COEFFICIENT OF CORRELATION AND THE
REGRESSION EQUATION.
Samples
QQ 1-1
QQ 1-2
QQ 1-3
QQ 2-1
QQ 2-2
QQ 2-3
QQ 3-1
QQ 3-2
QQ 3-3
RR 1-1
RR 1-2
RR 1-3
RR 2-1
RR 2-2
RR 2-3
RR 3-1
RR 3-2
RR 3-3
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS 2-2
SS 2-3
SS
SS
SS
1-1
1-2
1-3
2-1
3-1
3-2
3-3
Ignition
6.76
7.96
4.16
7.
7.
.09
.32
6.95
30.85
19.68
21.93
4.
4.
4.
,49
.50
.30
3.59
3.79
4.55
5.55
7.60
5.20
0.83
0.79
.04
.44
.99
.36
.48
.50
2.
9.
1.
5.
1.
1.
Walkley-Black
3.68
4.19
2.26
4.28
4.37
4.12
11.79
9.04
10.04
2.50
2.19
.15
.89
.07
.25
.23
2.11
2.44
2,
1.
2,
2,
2,
0.60
0.36
0.19
0.35
3.61
0.81
2.05
0.67
0.56
0.43
Y(Walkley-Black) = 0.3079 + 0.4122 X (Ignition)
r = 0.9770
65
-------
Explanatory Notes
1. Temperature is quite important to the sedimentation procedure, and
although there is a correction factor for temperatures higher or
lower than the temperature at which the hydrometer has been cali-
brated, it is best to carry out the procedure in a constant tem-
perature room or maintain the sedimentation cylinders in a constant
temperature bath.
2. Plunger: This can be made out of 1/8 inch diameter wire. At one
end of the wire make a circle 2 1/8 inches in diameter; the wire
should be manipulated so the handle part extends from the center
of the circle for 22 inches. Small rubber bands are spaced around
the rim of the circle of wire until the circumference of the circle
has been covered and all rubber bands overlap at the center of
the circle.
Procedure
1. Intact rock fragments(generally >13 mm) are dried overnight at 50° C.
2. A 100 gram oven-dry sample is taken for all rock -types except
the non-fissile mudrock for which only a 50 gram sample is used.
3. Put the 100 4^ 0.1 g. sample (oven-dry) in a 32 oz. shaker bottle
and add 250 ml. of 5% Calgon solution. For a 50 g. sample use
125 ml. of 5% Calgon solution.
4. Fill the bottle with distilled water to within 3 3/4 inches of
the top.
5. Cap the bottle snugly and put it on a reciprocating shaker
for 16 hours at 120 strokes per minute. Note: the bottle
must be lying in a horizontal position on the shaker.
6. The shaker bottle is removed from the shaker and placed in a cold
water-ice bath to bring the temperature of the suspension promptly
to room temperature.
7. Put a wide mouth funnel in the sedimentation cylinder and insert
a 10 mesh sieve in the funnel. Transfer the sample to sedimenta-
tion cylinder by pouring the suspension through the 10 mesh sieve.
8. Wash all sediment out of the shaker bottle by holding the bottle
at a 45° angle with the mouth of the bottle over the center of the
sieve and directing a jet of distilled water upward into the bottle,
sweeping all the particles out by the force of the stream of water.
66
-------
9. Wash the particles caught on the 10 mesh sieve carefully and
thoroughly with a gentle jet of distilled water. Do not touch
the particles with anything but a stream of water during this
washing process.
10. Remove the sieve from the funnel carefully and transfer the ma-
terial retained to an aluminum breadpan which was previously
weighed and recorded. This transfer will be quite easy or diffi-
cult depending on the type of rock. To make the transfer without
losing material is important. The means of making the transfer
can be with a jet of water, tapping it gently off the sieve,
picking it off by hand, etc.
11. The aluminum breadpan is put into a drying oven at 105°C over-
night and weighed (+ 0.1 g.) the next day, then recorded.
12. Fill the cylinder to the upper mark (1205 ml.) with the hydrometer
in the cylinder if a 100 gram sample is used; lower mark (1130 ml.)
for a 50 gram sample. Use only distilled water.
13. Remove the hydrometer, take the plunger in the right hand holding
the cylinder with the left hand and move the plunger up and down
in the cylinder strongly while being careful not to spill the
contents of the cylinder.
14. After all the sediment is off the bottom of the cylinder, carefully
remove the plunger and set the cylinder in a place where it won't
be disturbed either by hand or room vibrations and record the
time.
15. Hydrometer readings are taken at the end of 40 seconds and at the
end of 2 hours. At the appropriate period, gently insert the hydro-
meter in the cylinder, steady it with the hand and record the
reading at the top of the meniscus. Remove the hydrometer gently
and wash it. The hydrometer must not be left continuously in the
suspension column too long (more than 20 seconds) because particles
settle out on its shoulders.
16. Record the temperature of the suspension at the time each reading
is taken. For every degree above the temperature at which the
hydrometer was calibrated, add 0.2 to the hydrometer reading; for
every degree below the temperature at which the hydrometer was
calibrated, subtract 0.2 from the hydrometer reading.
17. Correct hydrometer reading for the Calgon in the suspension: for
every batch of 5% Calgon solution made, 3 blanks for the 1206 ml
67
-------
volume and 3 blanks for the 1130 ml volume should be run to get
the correction factor for the Calgon in each suspension.
Calculations
% coarse fragments = (Wt. of pan + sample - (Wt. of pan) x
Wt. of sample
% clay = (Temp, corrected 2 hr. Reading minus Calgon correction x
Wt. of sample
% silt = Corrected 40 sec. Reading minus Corrected 2 hr. Reading x
Wt. of sample
% sand = 100 minus 1% coarse fragments + % clay + % silt]
ACID POTENTIAL OF COAL
Acid production from abandoned underground coal mines results from
the same oxidation reactions as found in weathering of pyritic over-
burden materials, the following technique for estimating acid producing
potential of coals has been applied to numerous different coal samples.
The study is incomplete, however, significant variation has been found
among the many coals tested. The following acid producing potential
technique has been designed to simulate natural conditions of weather-
ing and acid production in the absence of microorganisms. An air-
water-coal system is used. The purpose of the technique is to produce
an actual rather than calculated acid producing potential for comparison
of coals.
The technique, at this stage, eliminates or minimizes as many variables
as possible. Temperature of reaction is controlled. Biological in-
fluences are hopefully eliminated. The properties, volumes, and flush-
ing rate of leaching fluids are controlled. Surface area of reaction
is controlled. Influences of units enclosing the coal are eliminated.
Samples are continually saturated, thus eliminating cyclic hydration
and dehydration effects. In short, the heterogeneity of the system is
controlled except for the properties of the coal. The resulting acid
producing potential reflects the actual interaction of coal properties
to produce acid "without external influence".
68
-------
SOLVENT
SOLVENT
RESERV05R
PLASTIC
TUBING
SAMPLE
PELLETS
COTTON
INSULATION
HEATING
TAPE
- IRON- CONSTANTAN
THERMOCOUPLE
SOLVENT
COLLECTOR
PERISTALTIC ^X
PUMP
FIGURE 14. SOXHLET EXTRACTOR MODIFIED FOR PROCEDURE TO MEASURE THE RELATIVE ACID-PRODUCING
POTENTIAL OF COAL.
-------
Preparation of samples
1. Crush coal sample to less than 10 mesh size in a roll mill or
suitable substitute.
2. Grind representative splits to 325 mesh in size in a Spex
Mixer-Mill (or suitable substitute). A 65 ml tool steel grind-
ing vial equipped with a cap compression "0" ring is used. The
grinding vial is filled approximately 1/3 full with coal; 300
1/8 inch stainless steel balls are added plus 35 ml of methanol;
the vial is sealed and the sample ground for 15 minutes. The
resultant slurry is poured into an evaporating dish through a
wire screen to catch the balls. The vial is washed with methanol
as are the grinding balls and screen, catching the wash liquid
in the evaporating dish. After the slurry had dried, the cake is
repulverized with a rubber stopper.
3. Press 14 cylindrical pellets 32 mm in diameter by approximately
3 mm thick at 20 tons total load for two minutes.
Preparation of the Soxhlet extractors
1. Clean and flush the extractor assembley with distilled water.
2. Thoroughly soak, clean ceramic thimbles with distilled water
and drain.
3. Place the thimbles in the extractor assembly, add 85 ml of
distilled water to each thimble (this is the maximum standard
volume of water that can be added without initiating the over-
flow siphons.)
4. Turn on the cooling water to the condensers. Turn on the
power to the heating tapes and allow the reactors to establish
thermal equilibrium at 75°C.
Extraction of Samples
1. Add 300 ml of triple distilled water to the solvent reservoir.
Load 7 pellets for which total surface area has been calculated
onto brass wire racks (inert plastics are preferable) and lower
into the thimbles. A duplicate extractor can be run with the
remaining 7 pellets.
70
-------
2. Turn on the peristaltic pumps. This must be preadjusted to
deliver 300 ml of solvent in 100 minutes.
3. Extract for 100 minute - 300 ml cycle.
4. Turn off the pumps, remove the solvent collection flask,
and pour the solution (to overflowing) into a 250 ml poly-
ethylene bottle and seal the bottle. Discard excess. Return
the solvent collection flask to the extractor and refill the
solvent reservoirs to 300 ml. This extraction cycle is run
a total of five times.
Data Collection
1. Cool the solutions to room temperature, uncap, and immediately
determine the pH of the solution.
2. If the initial pH of the solution is less than 7, determine
ACIDITY by titration with standardized 0.02N NaOH to an end
point of pH = 7.00.
If the pH is greater than 7, determine the ALKALINITY by
titration with standardized 0.02;N HC1 to an endpoint of pH = 4.50.
3. Acidity or alkalinity is calculated according to the formula:
Acid. Qnl titrant (N titrant) (5000)
or = ml solution
Alka.
with results reported as ppm CaCO^j equivalent.
4. Data is corrected for total surface area and reported in ppm/
10,000 mm^ surface area where the 10,000 mm^ unit surface
area was arbitrarily chosen.
Data Analysis
1. Data can be plotted versus time for a visual comparison
between coals of acid production and rates.
2. Data can be analyzed by asymtotic regression to compute
end point total acidity and the time necessary to reach
this point.
71
-------
SECTION VII
ACID PRODUCING POTENTIAL AND NEUTRALIZING POTENTIAL
The formation of acid from the oxidation of reduced sulfur compounds
in exposed coal and coal overburden materials has been elaborated
upon by many other investigators. One objective of this project has
been to determine the quantity of pyrite and other potentially acid-
forming compounds in various coal overburden and minesoil materials.
This has been accomplished by chemical analysis for total or pyrite
sulfur.
From the stoichiometry of the reaction of the oxidation of FeS2 it can
be calculated that for a material containing 0.1% sulfur, all as pyrite,
complete oxidation will yield a quantity of sulfuric acid that will
require 6,250 pounds of calcium carbonate to neutralize one thousand
tons of material. Where sulfur in overburden rock is present exclu-
sively as pyrite, the total sulfur content accurately quantifies the
acid-producing potential. Removal of sulfates, by methods previously
presented, naturally present in some overburdens or resulting from
weathering of pyritic materials in a spoil area, allows increased ac-
curacy in predicting the acid-producing potential of materials con-
taining mixed sulphur species. v
Sulfur fractionation analyses show that the majority of fresh over-
burden materials found in areas of study reported by this project
contain insignificant amounts of sulfur other than pyritic. This
situation may be different in other areas .
Fine-grained euhedral pyrite petrographically observed to be widely
disseminated throughout the various unweathered sandstones has been
found in sufficient quantity to require up to ten tons or more of
calcium carbonate per thousand tons of material to neutralize resul-
tant acidity. Unweathered shales frequently contain similar quantities
or more of pyrite, but they also frequently contain neutralizing bases.
Total sulfur profiles in several different overburdens, extending from
the land surface to the coal to be mined, have been presented (West
72
-------
Virginia University, 1971a; Grube, et. al., 1972). All overburdens
contain an intensely weathered zone below the original land surface,
which contains essentially no pyrite. This zone commonly is 20 feet
deep or deeper, depending on lithology, degree of structural fracturing
of the rock, and position of the water table. Brown and yellow rock
colors (high chromas) provide useful clues to pyrite-free materials
regardless of whether their position in the stratigraphic section is
known.
The natural base (alkali and alkaline earth cations, commonly present
as carbonates or exchangeable cations on clays) content of overburden
materials is important in evaluating potential minesoils. The quantity
of natural, readily soluble bases in a fresh spoil material may be
sufficient to neutralize acid at a rate equal to or exceeding the rate
of acid production if pyrite is also present in the material. Quanti-
tation of neutralizing bases, including carbonates, present in a rock
was accomplished by treating the sample with a known excess of
hydrochloric acid, heating to insure complete reaction and determin-
ation of the unconsumed acid by titration with a standardized base
(this procedure is discussed in Section VI). A balance of the acid-
producing potential and neutralizing bases present in the sample was
then drawn which indicates the ultimate acidity or alkalinity that
might be expected in the material.
An acid-base account, as shown in Figure 15, illustrates the ultimate
acidity or basicity of different rock zones in the overburden. This
figure was obtained by plotting the values calculated from analytical
data as shown in Table 8, which presents a typical summary of data
from one field study site. The columns of data presented in the
table are explained as follows:
Depth indicates sequence of samples, from the original
land surface or from the coal seam indicated. Intensity of
Fiz (or effervescence) indicates whether an observable reaction
occurs when 10% hydrochloric acid is applied dropwise to the
pulverized sample. A visible reaction (as shown by "1") usually
indicates the presence of at least the equivalent of 20 tons of
calcium carbonate per thousand tons of material. Color is
evaluated on the pulverized sample using Munsel Soil Color
Charts. %S is determined using the LEGO instrument. The Tons
of Calcium Carbonate Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
is equivalent to tons of lime per acre as normally used in agri-
cultural lime and fertilizer recommendations. The "Maximum
Requirement" was calculated from chemical equivalency. The
"Amount Present" was determined by the procedure for Neutralization
Potential. An "Amount Needed for Neutrality" exists when the
value calculated for "Maximum Requirement" is numerically higher
73
-------
ACID-BASE ACCOUNT OF SITE
DEFICIENCY EXCESS
1006040 20 10664 2 I I 2 4 6 8 (O 20 4O6OIOO
CoC03 EQUIVALENT
(TONS/THOUSAND TONS of MATERIAL)
FIGURE 15. ACID-BASE ACCOUNT ILLUSTRATING
NET ACIDITY OR ALKALINITY OF A SECTION OF
REDSTONE COAL OVERBURDEN
74
-------
than the "Amount Present". The "Amount Needed for Neutrality"
is calculated by subtracting the "Amount Present" from the
"Maximum Requirement". In the case of some soils, minewaste
material, or certain overburden materials a measurement of "Amount
Present" will yield a negative number; when this is subtracted
from "Maximum Requirement", "Amount Needed for Neutrality" is the
algebraic sum of the two values, "Maximum Requirement" and "Amount
Present". When "Amount Present" exceeds "Maximum Requirement",
an "Excess CaC03 Equivalent" will be found. The "Excess. CaC03
Equivalent" was calculated by subtracting "Maximum Requirement"
from "Amount Present". The effective excess of bases will be
greater than that calculated because "Maximum Requirement" is
an upper limit of lime that will ever be needed; under practical
conditions this maximum only will be needed in a very long time.
In a graphical plot of Acid-Base Account, the values for "Amount
Needed for Neutrality" are plotted under "DEFICIENCY", and the
values for "Excess CaC03 Equivalent" are plotted under "EXCESS";
values of less than one ton do not appear on the graph.
Sites represented in the following discussion are identified in
Appendices C and E, and where appropriate, they are keyed to the
Geologic Cross Sections of Section IV. For example: A-A', 17c means
that samples are from Site 17 in Geologic Cross Section A-A1; the "c"
indicates that samples are from the third replicate column sampled at
Site 17.
SURFACE MINING PROVINCE 3
Details of the composition of much of the Pittsburgh and Redstone
overburden material from Surface Mining Province 3 and illustrated
in Figure 16 are shown in Tables 5 through 12. Tables 5 to 7 show
overburden characteristics from analyses of three borings at the
far eastern outcrop of the Pittsburgh coal in North central Barbour
County. The Redstone coal position is evident as a thin carbonaceous
shale at sample no. 13 in boring 17a. The persistence of the Redstone
Limestone is evident in samples 5 to 12 in boring 17a and 4-15 in boring
17c. Boring 17b again illustrates the low sulfur in the weathered zone
in rock near the land surface, in this case the Cedarville Sandstone.
The lower samples of boring 17b show increasing potential toxcity in
the carbonaceous shales overlying and associated with the Redstone
coal position. The small amounts of "Excess CaC03 Equivalent" found in
the weathered sandstone from boring 17b are probably accounted for
by calcite observable on fracture planes in this massive sandstone.
Obviously most of the overburden at this location is relatively free
from a net acid-producing potential and after burial of coal-roof shales,
revegetation has not shown any toxic acidity problems.
75
-------
ACID-BASE ACCOUNT
DEFICIENCY EXCESS
AVAILABLE PLANT NUTRIENTS
WVU Soil Tolling Laboratory
K>0 60 « 20 K>8 6 4 2 I I
CaCOj EQUIVALENT
(TONS/THOUSAND TONS oF MATERIAL)
FIGURE 16. COMPOSITE OF DATA FROM SITES HH AND 00, SHOWING COMPREHENSIVE CHARACTERIZATION
OF REDSTONE AND PITTSBURGH COAL OVERBURDEN AT ONE LOCALITY
-------
Tables 8 through 12 illustrate overburden characteristics in one
of the most heavily mined areas of the coal fields within this area
of study. The predominating lime influence from calcareous shales
and mudrocks, even beyond the recognized limestone in parts of the
section, undoubtedly account for recent successful vegetative re-
clamation. Increasing pH of the long acidic Elk Creek watershed is
probably due in part from erosion of calcareous materials exposed
during surface mining. Data from Site HH and 00 have been combined
into an overall illustration of overburden characterization as
Figure 16. The data plotted are drawn from Tables 8 and 9. The
somewhat less than ideal quality of the original topsoil can be
seen in most of the chemical measurements. The increased pH and
Excess CaCo^ Equivalent at about nine feet reflects the presence of
a few feet of red shale in the section. Exhaustive evaluation of
various properties of the "red beds" has not been completed, but it
appears that no significant toxicity is associated with red shales
and indeed most appear quite calcareous. Figure 16 shows the question-
ably high amounts of plant available phosphorus in the lower high-
lime beds overlying the Pittsburgh coal. This is further discussed in
Section VIII.
Sites A-A', 14 and A-A1, 15 show continuing calcareous influence
in Pittsburgh overburden, except for roof shale and underclay asso-
ciated with the Redstone and Pittsburgh seams. Site A-A1, 14 shows
diminution in quality of the once thick Redstone limestone as we move
southwest. Site A-A', 12 also shows variable quality of the limestone
but a continued calcareous influence throughout the entire overburden
section. Samples 4 and 5 of this site again show distinctive com-
positional features of the encroaching red beds. Although analyses
of hand samples from abandoned mine areas south and west from Site
A-A1, 12, consistently verify the trends shown in Figure 7 (Section
IV); lack of widespread active surface mining hindered the gathering
of samples for detailed incremental study, and indeed as discussed
in Section IV, extensive surface mining is not likely to occur in
these areas.
Table 14 presents analyses of material overlying the Elk Lick coal
seam, in the upper part of the Conemaugh Group. As seen from these
data there is a small but consistent amount of calcareous material
throughout this section, although not nearly as much as was seen
in some other Province 3 samples. An interesting feature of this
site is the weathered coal seam (sample +9) within the weathered
rock zone, which is 19 feet thick.
77
-------
SURFACE MINING PROVINCE 2
Figure 2 (Section IV) shows the geologic basis for designating Pro-
vince 2 as extending from the Saltsburgh Sandstone (Lower Conemaugh)
into the Pottsville Group. The largest variety of types of coal
overburden materials are evident in this Province.
Site FF (Table 15) comprising overburden material at the top of
the section representing Province 2, shows an Excess CaCC>3 Equiva-
lent throughout much of the material, however for the first time
there appears a deficiency of bases in the upper weathered zone
which includes the original natural soil. This characteristic
also signals the approach to the Pedologic Division (Figure 2)
that has been drawn to illustrate changes in soil properties evi-
dent in parent materials as one descends the section. The some-
what more calcareous material (samples 4 and 5, boring FF-b, Table 16)
between the Upper Bakerstown and Lower Bakerstown coals is character-
istic of this section, although it is much more striking farther west,
e.g. B-B1, 13 of Figure 9, Section.. IV. Bakerstown coal overburden
at Site T (Table 17) contains over 15 feet of material free from
potential acid toxicity, including a stratum of impure limestone;
however in this area the highly pyritic roof shale over the Bakers-
town coal seam attains a thickness of up to 15 feet. The toxic
nature of this black shale has been indicated by failures in trying
to revegetate areas where this material has been placed on the
spoil surface and where no significant attempt was made to amend
or improve the area before planting. Obviously a favorable material
for vegetation was available for placement on the spoil surface,
and in more recent surface mine operations, good success in recla-
mation has been achieved through careful spoil placement of the
overburden materials. Tables 18, 19, and 20 include analyses of
Upper Freeport coal overburden at three sites in the northern part
of Surface Mining Province 2.
Many of the barren spoils of northern West Virginia are composed of
this potentially acid-forming material where it has remained exposed
on the land surface after mining. Although occasional slightly
calcareous zones can be found in this sandstone, the predominating
influence is that of oxidizable pyrites. All these sites show a need
for amendments even if material from the surficial weathered zone
(20 to 25 ft. from the land surface) is replaced as topsoil. The
highly leached natural soil found here also distinguishes the Pedo-
logic division in parent material as discussed in Sections IV and V.
The somewhat less acid toxic nature of overburden at Site AA is pro-
bably related to its position of nearer the central basin of the Upper
Freeport seam in western Pennsylvania. The principals of gradational
trends in overburden composition in the Monongahela Formation observed
78
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Table 5
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A1, 17a.
vo
Intensity
Depth
18-20ia
20-22'
22-24'
24-26'
26-28'
28-30'
30-32'
32-34'
34-36'
36-38'
38-40'
40-42'
42-44'
44-46 '
46-48'
48-50'
50-52'
52-
(Sample #)
17
16
15
14
.13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
of
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
2
0
0
2
0
Pittsburgh
Coal
0
Color
10 YR 6/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
10 YR 3/2
5 Y 6/1
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6/3
2.5 Y 7.5/2
2.5 Y 7.5/2
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
2.5 Y 6/1
2o5 Y 6/1
coal seam
5 YR 2/1
7oS
.260
.380
.540
1.070
5.500
1.675
.045
.025
.045
.130
.120
.620
1.200
.225
.100
.800
3.550
8.550
Maximum
Requirement
(from 7,S)
8.12
11.88
16.88
33.44
171.88
52.34
1.41
0.78
1.41
4.06
3.75
19.38
37.50
7.03
3.12
25.00
110.94
267.19
Amount Amount
Present Needed for
(Titration) Neutrality (pH;
9.07
6.76 5.12
7.77 9.11
15.18 18.26
3.17 168.71
222.79
716.59
833.45
716.59
855.72
733.85
562.57
55.43
12.90
6.76
30.39
3.17 107.77
-1.17 268.36
Excess
CaC03
7± Equiv.
0.95
170.45
715.18
832.67
715.18
851.66
730.10
543.19
17.93
5.87
3.64
5.39
feet X 0,3048 = meters
-------
Table 6
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A',.17b.
oo
o
Intensity
Depth
3-4'
4-5'
5-6'
6-7'
7-8'
8-9'
9-10'
10-11'
11-12'
12-13'
13-14'
14-15'
15-16'
16-17'
17-18'
18-19'
(Sample #)
1 SSb
2 SS
3 SS
4 SS
5 SS
6 SS
7 SS
8 SS
9 SS
10 SS
11 SS
12 SS
13 MR
14 SH
15 SH
16 SH
of
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Color
10 YR 6.5/4
10 YR 6.5/4
10 YR 6.5/3
10 YR 6.5/3
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 6.5/4
10 YR 6*5/4
10 YR 6.5/4
10 YR 6.5/3
10 YR 6.5/3
10 YR 6/4
10 YR 5.5/4
2.5 Y 5.5/2
2.5 Y 53/2
2.5 Y 5.5/2
2.5 Y 5.5/1
%S
.005
.008
.007
.005
.005
.006
.006
.004
.004
.004
.004
.009
.235
.460
.630
1.140
Maximum
Requirement
(from %S)
.16
.25
.22
.16
.16
.19
.19
.12
.12
.12
.12
.28
7.34
14.38
19.69
35.62
Amount Amount
Present Needed for
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7)
1.04
1.55
2.57
1.80
2.06
1.80
2.06
2.32
-1.78 1.90
4.62
2.83
3.60
4.62 2.72
3.85 10.53
4.62 15.07
18.71 16.91
Excess
CaC03
Equiv.
0.98
1.30
2.35
1.64
1.90
1.61
1.87
2.20
4.50
2.71
3.32
SS = sandstone
SH = shale
MR = mudrock
LS = limestone
I = intercalate
C = coal
-------
Table 7
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A1, 17c.
Tons of CaCCh Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
oo
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #) Fiz
26-27' 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
40-41' 15
3
.2
2
4
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
2.
2.
2.
2.
2.
2.
2.
2.
N
10
10
10
10
2.
2.
Color
5 Y
5 Y
5 Y
5 Y
5 Y
5 Y
5 Y
5 Y
5.5/0
7.5/0
7/0
7.5/0
7.5/1
7.5/1
7/1
7/1
7.5/0
YR
YR
YR
YR
5 Y
5 Y
7.5/2
7.5/2
7.5/3
7.5/2
7/2
7/1
Maximum
Requirement
7oS (from %S)
2.575
1.500
1.290
.895
.260
.041
.085
.130
.035
.035
.045
.022
.025
.070
.570
70
46
40
27
7
1
2
4
1
1
1
2
17
.47
.88
.41
.97
.12
.28
.66
.06
.09
.09
.41
.70
.78
.19
.81
Amount Amount Excess
Present Needed for CaC03
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
301
50
61
289
644
836
703
554
927
817
873
917
574
672
392
.84
.34
.58
.70
.92
.10
.65
.96
.31
.35
.58
.31
.95
.41
.52
231
3
21
261
637
834
700
550
926
816
872
916
574
670
374
.37
.46
.17
.73
.80
.82
.99
.90
.22
.26
.17
.61
.17
.22
.71
-------
Table g
oo
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Redstone coal overburden at Site HH.
Tons of CaCO, Equivalent per Thousand Tons
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #)
0-3"
3-5"
5-8"
8-12"
12-18"
18-26"
26-46"
46-48"
4-5'
5-6'
6-7'
7-8r
8-10'
10-12'
12-14'
14-16'
16-18'
18-20'
20-21'
21-22'
soila
soil
soil
soil
soil
soil
soil
soil
MS
MS
MS
MS
MS
MS
MS
MS
MS
MS
1 MS
2 MS
3 MS
4 MS
5 MS
6 MS
7 MS
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
2
2
Color
10 YR 6/3
10 YR 6/3
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 7/3
2.5 Y 7/4
7.5 YR 6/4
10 YR 6/3
10 YR 7/2
10 YR 6/3
7.5 YR 6/4
5 YR 6/3
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 6/3
10 YR 6/3
10 YR 7/2
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 6/4
2.5 Y 6/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
Maximum Amount
Requirement Present
%S
.029
.020
.010
.009
.007
.008
.003
.002
.003
.005
.004
.004
.004
.005
.004
.002
.003
.002
.002
.003
.005
.002
.003
.002
.002
(from %S)
0.91
0.63
0.31
0.28
0.22
0.25
0.09
0.06
0.09
0.16
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.16
0.13
0.06
0.09
0.06
0.06
0.09
0.16
0.06
0.09
0.06
0.06
(Titration)
0.13
-2.04
-2.03
-2.17
-1.28
-1.40
-2.30
-0.13
2.55
4.85
4.59
9.18
19.13
0.77
2.04
5.61
7.14
7.14
7.42
8.33
37.76
8.85
22.98
60.10
48.65
Amount
Needed for
of Material
Excess
CaC00
Neutrality (pH7) Equivf
0.78
2.67
2.34
2.45
1.50
1.65
2.39
0.19
2.46
4.69
4.46
9.05
19.00
0.61
1.91
5.55
7.05
7.08
7.36
8.24
37.60
8.79
22.89
60.04
48.59
-------
Table 8 (continued)
8 SH 2 2.5 Y 7/4 .002 0.06 29.50 29.44
9 SS 2 2.5 Y 6/4 .002 0.06 27.21 27.15
-30' 10 SS 0 2.5 Y 7/4 .002 0.06 7.04 6.98
11 MS 0 2.5 Y 7/4 .003 0.09 10.56 10.47
12 MS 0 2.5 Y 7/4 .001 0.03 8.49 8.46
13 MS 0 2.5 Y 7/3 .001 0.03 8.77 8.74
14 MS 2 2.5 Y 6/4 .002 0.06 39.80 39.74
15 SH 1 5 Y 7/3 .001 0.03 15.45 15.42
16 MS 0 5 Y 6/3 .004 0.13 17.65 17.42
17 MS 0 5 Y 6/3 .013 0.41 8.77 8.36
18 MS 0 5 Y 7/3 .156 4.88 10.30 5.42
19 MS 0 5 Y 7/2 .650 20.31 9.15 11.16
-40' 20 MS 0 5 Y 7/2 .425 13.28 24.99 11.71
21 SH 0 5 Y 7/2 .615 19.22 18.11 1.11
22 SH 0 5 Y 6/1 .420 13.13 20.40 7.27
23 SH 0 5 Y 6/1 .290 9.06 25.30 16.24
24 SH 0 5 Y 5/1 .295 9.22 18.74 9.52
25 SH 0 5 Y 6/1 .140 4.38 16.65 12.27
26 SH , 0 5 Y 6/1 .130 4.06 18.11 14 04
27 SH 0 5 Y 6/1 .105 3.28 12.95 9 67
28 SH 0 2.5 Y 5/1 .145 4.53 9.61 5 08
29 MS 0 2.5 Y 6/2 .100 3.13 9.87 6.74
-50' 30 MS 0 2.5 Y 5.5/2 .080 2.50 8.34 584
31 MS 0 2.5 Y 6/3 .035 1.09 7.17 6*08
32 MS 0 2.5 Y 6/3 .025 0.78 8.08 730
33 SH 0 2.5 Y 5/2 .080 2.50 12.55 10*05
34 SH 0 5 Y 5.5/1 .200 6.25 18.84 12 59
35 SH 0 10 YR 5.5/1 .500 15.63 17.67 2*04
36 SH 0 5 Y 5.5/1 .800 25.00 13.59 - 11.41
37 SH 0 5 Y 6/1 .360 11.25 13.85 2 60
38 MS 0 2.5 Y 5/2 .400 12.50 5.89 661
39 MS 0 2.5 Y 5/1 .755 23.59 10.51 13.08
-------
oo
Table 8 (continued)
.60' 40 SH U 5 Y 4.5/1 -420 13.13 21.01 7.88
DU 7" ~ - „ , ,-/•. ocn in QA 30.50 19.56
22*.54 1.21
9.23 23.58
2.83 36.23
0.77 44.54
2.58 29.45
1.28 52.63
4.11 141.98
20.25 78.19
-70' 50 MS 1 N b.D/u f.fu« ;-- 20.25 51.63
40 SH
41 SH
42 SH
43 SH
44 C
45 C
46 C
47 C
48 C
49 MS
50 MS
51 MS
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
5 Y 4.5/1 .420
5 Y 4.5/1 .350
5 Y 4.5/1 .760
5 Y 4/1 1.050
5 Y 3.5/1 1.250
2.5 Y 2/0 1.450
2.5 Y 2/0 1.025
2.5 Y 2/0 1.725
2.5 Y 3.5/0 4.675
N 6.5/0 3.150
N 6.5/0 2.300
N 7/0 1.410
13.13
10.94
23.95
32.81
39.06
45.31
32.03
53.91
146.09
98.44
71.88
44.06
aSoil = soil
SS = sandstone
SH = shale
MS = mudstone
C = coal
-------
Table 9
Sample characterization and Acid^Base Account of Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site 00.
oo
Ul
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #) Fiz Color
1 MS 2
2
3
4 \
2
2
r 0
5 SH 1
6 1
7 LS 2
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16 -
1
1
2
4
5
5
5
5
1 5
17 MS 4
18
19
20
21
22
23
24 <
4
1
1
1
1
1
f I
2.5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 6.5/1
2.5 Y 6.5/1
2.5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/1
Maximum
Requirement
7oS (from 7=S)
.385
1.43
1.90
1.77
1.12
.665
.445
.450
.855
1.87
.690
.335
.510
.385
.695
.835
.215
.550
.315
.215
.080
.095
.100
.055
12.03
44.69
59.38
55.31
35.00
20.78
13.91
14.06
26.72
58.44
21.56
10.47
15.94
12.03
21.72
26.09
6.72
17.19
9.84
6.72
2.50
2.97
3.12
1.72
Amount
Present
(Titration) 1
67.06
60.97
82.75
9.97
28.97
28.71
77.95
28.97
26.19
64.44
551.42
671.05
495.56
467.12
439.92
411.60
355.96
332.48
119.42
89.63
85.58
82.31
36.62
78.03
Amount Excess
Needed for CaCO,
Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
55.03
16.28
23.37
45.34
6.03
7.93
64.04
14.91
0.53
6.00
529.86
660.58
479.62
455.09
418.20
385.51
349.24
315.29
109.58
82.91
83.08
79.34
33.50
76.31
-------
Table 9 (continued)
25
26 MS
27 |
28 |
29 SH
30
31
32
33 No
34 1
35 V
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
3
Sample
1
0
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
7/1
7/1
7/1
7/0
7/0
6/0
6/1
6.5/1
5.5/1
4.5/1
1
1
3
6
.050
.040
.045
.070
.360
.69
.780
.59
.50
.72
1.
1.
1.
2.
11.
52.
24.
49.
109.
210.
56
25
41
19
25
81
38
69
38
00
57
78
85
67
59
61
78
391
32
13
.32
.51
.09
.42
.59
.61
.51
.88
.00
.77
77.38
196.23
55.76
77.26
83.68
65.23
48.34
8.80
54.13
342.19
Coal (Pittsburgh)
oo
ON
-------
Table 10
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A1 , 14a.
oo
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #) Fiz Color
Maximum
Requirement
%S (from 7»S)
Amount Amount Excess
Present Needed for CaCOg
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
Redstone coal seam
1
2
3
, 4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
0
0
0
0
0
2
2
2
1
0
0
3
2
2
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
2
2
0
N 6/
N 11
N 7/
N 7/
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
N 7/
N 1}
N 11
10 YR 7/
2.5 Y 7/0
N 11
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
2.250
1.240
.905
.700
.760
.710
.800
.630
.600
.430
.260
.140
.110
.050
.065
.140
.060
.030
.070
.020
.020
.110
.275
.120
70.31
38.75
28.28
21.86
23.75
22.19
25.00
19.69
18.75
13.44
8.13
4.38
3.44
1.56
2.03
4.38
1.88
0.94
2.19
0.63
0.63
3.44
8.59
3.75
5.85
8.35
10.54
11.95
32.32
94.43
105.69
84.19
32.90
17.93
15.81
94.12
47.69
51.17
14.98
10.70
24.61
14.85
13.45
29.90
21.86
44.15
49.40
20.26
64.46
30.40
17.74
9.91
8.57
72.24
80.69
64.50
14.15
4.49
7.68
89.74
44.25
49.61
12.95
6.32
22.73
13.91
11.26
29.27
21.23
40.71
40.81
16.51
-------
Table 10 (continued)
25 0 5 Y 5/1 .125 3.91 9.42 5.51
26 0 5 Y 4/1 1.225 38.28 9.11 29.17
Pittsburgh coal seam
oo
oo
-------
Table 11
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 14b.
Tons of CaCO- Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
00
VO
Depth (Sample #)
Redstoi
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
nsity
of
Fiz
Color
%S
Maximum
Requirement
(from %S)
Amount
Present
(Titratibn)
Amount
Needed for
Neutrality (pH7)
Excess
CaC03
Equiv.
al seam
0
1
0
0
0
1
2
3
2
2
1
1
2
2
2
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
5 Y 6/1 1.425
7.5 YR 7/0 1.390
7.5 YR 7/0 1.250
2.5 Y 7.5/0 .735
2.5 Y 8/0 .645
2.5 Y 7.5/0 .630
5 Y 7/1 .805
2.5 Y 8/0 .620
5 Y 7.5/1 .525
5 Y 7/1 .645
5 Y 7/1 .480
10 YR 7/1 .350
7.5 YR 7.5/0.245
10 YR 7.5/0 .165
7.5 Y 7.5/0 .085
5 Y 7/1 .055
5 Y 7.5/1 .030
10 YR 7/1 .050
10 YR 7.5/1 .050
10 YR 7.5/1 .030
10 YR 7/1 .015
10 YR 7/1 .020
10 YR 6.5/1 .020
10 YR 6.5/1 .065
10 YR 6.5/1 .280
44.53
43.44
39.06
22.97
20.16
19.69
25.16
19.38
16.41
20.16
15.00
10.94
7.66
5.16
2.66
1.72
.94
1.56
1.56
.94
.47
.63
.63
2.03
8.75
13.84
12.19
9.65
14.86
9.27
18.79
36.01
123.80
99.20
56.64
31.26
21.06
41.13
54.60
42.65
27.11
24.40
20.40
56.21
39.55
59.21
52.91
53.58
58.83
41.97
30.59
31.25
29.41
8.11
.10.89
0.90
10.85
104.42
82.79
36.48
16.26
10.12
33.47
49.44
39.99
25.39
23.46
18.84
54.95
38.61
58.74
52.28
52.95
56.80
33.22
-------
Table 11 (continued)
26 1 10 YR 6.5/1 .190 5.94 22.72 16 78
27 1 10 YR 6.5/1 .270 8.44 22.21 t? 77
28 0 10 YR 6/1 .510 15.94 10.91 503
29 0 10 YR 5.5/1 1.750 54.69 6.27 48*42
30 0 10 YR 3/1 1.925 60.16 10.63 49*53
Pittsburgh coal seam ^
VO
O
-------
Table 12
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 15.
Tons of CaCO, Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #) Fiz Color
Maximum
Requirement
%S (from %S)
Amount Amount Excess
Present Needed for CaCO
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
Redstone coal seam
52-53' 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
-60' 10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
-70' 20
21
, 22
23
24
25
0
1
1
2
2
1
1
2
2
1
0
0
3
4
5
5
5
5
2
0
3
2
2
3
2
7.5 YR 5/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
N 11
N 11
N 7/
N 11
N 7/
N 11
N 7/
N 7/
N 11
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
N 7/
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 7/1
10 YR 7/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
1.730
.760
.545
.820
.555
.380
.340
.350
.230
.290
.310
.260
.555
.420
.305
.285
.320
.375
.115
.065
.195
.410
1.340
3.125
4.000
54.06
23.75
17.03
25.63
17.34
11.88
10.63
10.94
7.19
9.06
9.69
8.13
17.34
13.13
9.53
8.91
10.00
11.72
3.59
2.03
6.09
12.81
41.88
97.66
125.00
8.76
17.22
18.76
108.54
99.97
31.01
40.09
41.71
33.60
28.54
11.80
8.03
114.83
238.08
443.92
572.88
582.30
577.84
90.00
12.98
118.35
34.38
46.20
161.67
27.73
45.30
6.53
1.73
82.91
82.63
19.13
29.46
30.77
26.41
19.48
2.11
.10
97.49
224.95
434.39
563.97
572.30
566.12
86.41
10.95
112.26
21.57
4.32
64.01
97.27
-------
Table 12 (continued)
•%'•
26 3 5 Y 5/1 2.225 69.53 74.57 5.04
27 0 5 Y 5/1 1.875 58.59 3.31 55.28
80-81' 28 0 6.250 195.31 1.36 193.95
Pittsburgh coal seam
-------
VO
Table 13
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Redstone and Pittsburgh coal overburden at
Site A-A1, 12.
Tons of CaCO Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
of
Depth
18.0'
22.9'
24.8'
27.5'
34.5'
35.8'
39.0'
39.8'
44.0'
63.0'
66.3'
69.3'
73.7'
(Sample #)
_
- 22.9'
- 24.8'
-
- 27.5'
- 34.5'
- 35.8'
- 39.0'
- 39.8'
- 44.0'
-
- 63.0'
- 66.3'
- 69.3'
- 73.7'
- 75.7'
1 MR
2 MR
3 MR
4 MR
5 MR
6 SS
7 SH
8 SS
9 MR
10 SS
11 SH
12 SH
13 MR
14 MR
15 MR
16 MR
17 MR
18 MR
19 MR
20 SS
21 SH
22 I
23 SH
Fiz
1
0
2
3
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
2
0
0
2
2
Color
2.5
2.5
2.5
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
5 YR 6/2
5 YR 6/3
2.5
2.5
2.5
5 Y
2.5
5 Y
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
5 Y
2.5
2.5
2.5
2.5
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
7/1
Y 7/0
7/1
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
7/1
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Y 7/0
Maximum
Requirement
%S
.003
.002
.016
.017
.002
.003
.008
.007
.003
.007
.007
.035
.630
.615
.420
.090
.200
1.500
.190
.130
.305
.030
.030
(from %S)
1
19
19
13
2
6
46
5
4
9
.09
.06
.50
.53
.06
.09
.25
.22
.09
.22
.22
.09
.69
.22
.12
.81
.25
.88
.94
.06
.53
.94
.94
Amount
Present
Amount Excess
Needed for CaCO,
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv"
23.
9.
78.
184.
23.
13.
11.
13.
24.
20.
11.
8.
8.
15.
13.
16.
36.
28.
70.
11.
23.
94.
48.
51
65
46
98
51
12
38
12
50
54
39
66
91
35
37
58
88
71
04
63
39
32
26
23.42
9.59
77.96
184.. 45
23.45
13.03
11.13
12.90
24.41
20.32
11.17
7.57
10.78
3.87
.25
13.77
30.63
18.17
64.10
7.57
13.86
93.38
47.32
-------
Table 13 (continued)
vo
75.7' -
- 90.0'
90.0' -
- 99.0'
99.0' -104.0'
104.0'-106.1'
106.1'-108.8'
109.6'-
-118.0'
118.0'-
-131.5'
131.5'-
-142.0'
142.0'-144.5'
144.5'-
-157.9'
164.7'-
-171.5'
171.5'-175.5'
175.5'-178.5'
178.5'-
-189.3'
189.3'-190.8'
190.8'-192.3'
192.5'-
-199.0'
199.0 '-200.0'
24 SH
25 I
26 MR
27 SH
28 SH
29 MR
30 MR
31 MR
32 MR
33 MR
34 MR
35 SH
36 MR
37 SH
38 SH
39 MR
40 SH
41 MR
42 MR
43 I
44 I
45 SH
46 SH
47 I
48 I
49 LS
50 SH
51 MR
52 LS
53 MR
54 MR
55 MR
56 MR
57 I
1 2.5 Y 7/0 .011
1 2.5 Y 7/0 .065
0 2.5 Y 7/0 .010
0 2.5 Y 7/0 .007
0 2.5 Y 7/0 .010
0 2.5 Y 7/0 .012
0 2.5 Y 7/0 .005
1 2.5 Y 7/0 .085
2 2.5 Y 7/0 .075
4 7.5 YR 6/2 .019
2 2.5 Y 7/0 .150
0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .040
0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .012
0 2.5 Ys7.5/0 .075
0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .006
2 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .340
0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .025
0 10 YR 6/1 .045
0 10 YR 6/1 .350
0 10 YR 6/1 .125
0 10 YR 6/1 .260
0 2.5 Y 7/0 .250
0 2.5 Y 7.5/01.025
2 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .745
0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .100
4 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .135
2 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .030
2 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .030
2 2.5 Y 8/0 .070
1 2.5 Y 8/0 .029
2 2.5 Y 8/0 .060
2 N 7/0 .040
0 10 YR 6/1 .040
0 10 YR 6/1 .013
.34
2.03
.31
.22
.31
.38
.16
2.66
2.34
.59
4.69
1.25
.38
2.34
.19
10.62
.78
1.41
10.94
3.91
8.12
7.81
32.03
23.28
3.12
4.22
.94
.94
2.19
.91
1.88
1.25
1.25
.41
29.55
28.34
25.86
17.97
39.30
27.82
20.44
21.43
82.66
159.38
126.86
18.22
10.10
15.77
9.85
292.19
12.57
28.07
18.71
18.46
11.09
21.19
13.79
353.18
17.97
531.25
306.00
164.26
407.26
34.72
119.96
67.72
8.37
10.84
18.24
29.21
26.31
25.55
19.75
38.99
27.44
20.28
18.77
80.32
158.79
122.17
16.97
9.72
13.43
9.66
281.57
11.79
26.66
7.77
14.55
2.97
13.38
329.90
14.85
527.03
305.06
163.32
405.07
33.81
118.08
66.47
7.12
10.43
-------
vO
Table 14
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Elk Lick coal overburden at Site PP.
Tons of CaC00 Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #)
0-3"
0-1 '
1-2'
2-3'
3-4'
4-5'
5-6'
6-7'
7-8'
8-9'
9-10'
10-11 '
11-12'
12-13'
13-14 '
14-15 '
15-16'
16-17'
17-18'
18-18.5'
18.5-19'
19-20'
A Hor.
A & B
Hor.
B Hor.
Bo & B»
Hor.
+17
+16
+15
+14
+13
+12
+11
+10
+ 9
+ 8
+ 7
+ 6
+ 5
+ 4
+ 3
+ 2
+ 1
1
2
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
Color
10 YR 2/3
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 5.5/3
2.5 Y 5.5/3
2.5 Y 6/3
2.5 Y 6/3
2.5 Y 6/3
2.5 Y 5/2
2.5 Y 3.5/1
2.5 Y 4.5/1
5 YR 2/1
2.5 Y 7.5/3
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/3
10 YR 6/5
10 YR 6/5
10 YR 6/6
5 Y 6.5/3
2.5 Y 6/3
2.5 Y 7/1
Maximum
Requirement
%S
.065
.010
.006
.005
.005
.003
.012
.003
.001
.003
.040
.040
3.85
.075
.008
.001
,003
.004
.003
.003
.005
.085
.345
(from %S)
2.03
0.31
0.19
0.16
0.16
0.09
0.38
0.09
0.03
0.09
1.25
1.25
120.31
2.34
0.25
0.03
0.09
0.12
0.09
0.09
0.16
2.66
10.78
Amount
Present
(Titration)
2.02
-2.00
-0.24
2.77
4.03
2.52
6.54
5.03
4.53
7.30
6.04
9.05
0.77
5.29
7.30
7.30
6.54
7.04
7.80
7.55
42.47
12.82
31.91
Amount Excess
Needed for CaC03
Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
.01
2.31
0.43
2.61
3.87
2.43
6.16
4.94
4.50
7.21
4.79
7.80
119.54
2.95
7.05
7.27
6.45
6.92
7.71
7.46
42.31
10.16
21.13
-------
Table 14 (continued)
19-20' 3 1 2.5 Y 7/3 .155 4.84 6.54 1-70
U • / j
11.95
15.87
15.34
22.42
29.47
3.97
2.15
35.07
16.13
11.79
13.34
15.06
9.78
17.60
22.43
29.63
32.39
8.29
14.43
15.29
25.92
22.21
92.82
1.97
6.54
13.10
10.36
7.34
9.38
3.48
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
1
1
1
1
1
2
3
1
1
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 6.5/3
2.5 Y 6.5/3
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/3
10 YR 7/5
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7.5/1
2.5 Y 7.5/2
5 Y 7.5/2
2.5 Y 7.5/2
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7.5/2
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 7/2
10 YR 7/1
2.5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 7.5/1
2.5 Y 6/1
2.5 Y 6/1
2.5 Y 5.5/1
2.5 Y 5.5/1
.155
.105
.020
.055
.016
.055
.280
.235
.270
.325
.240
.210
.080
.065
.025
.016
.030
.065
.065
.105
.045
.090
.280
.455
3.22
.050
.290
.500
.380
.340
.405
.160
4.84
3.28
0.62
1.72
0.50
1.72
8.75
7.34
8.44
10.16
7.50
6.56
2.50
2.03
0.78
0.50
0.94
2.03
2.03
3.28
1.41
2.81
8.75
14.22
100.62
1.56
9.06
15.62
11.88
10.62
12.66
5.00
6.54
4.03
12.57
17.59
15.84
24.14
38.22
11.31
6.29
45.23
23.63
18.35
15.84
17.09
10.56
18.10
23.37
31.66
34.42
11.57
15.84
18.10
34.67
36.43
7.80
3.53
2.52
2.52
1.52
3.28
3.28
1.52
-------
Table 14 (continued)
13.41
152.42
74.93
6.62
11.27
58_59' 40 0 — -" - •" " -' — 61'09
(Includes top 6" of coal)
35
36
37
38
39
40
2
3
3
1
0
0
10 YR 4.5/1
2.5 Y 6/1
10 YR 6.5/1
10 YR 6/1 "••
10 YR 5.5/1'
10 YR 3/1
1.42
.710
.650
.520
.570
2.10
44.38
22.19
20.31
16.25
17.81
65.62
57.79
174.61
95.24
22.87
6.54
4.53
MD
-------
Table 15
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Upper Bakerstown coal overburden at Site FF.
vo
CD
Tons of CaCO,, Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Depth
0-4"
CO
4J
C
1
0)
M
o
a
•H
To
r-t
Intensity
of
(Sample #) Fiz Color
A, 0-4"
B, 4-16"
B, 16-26"
C, 26-36"
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
2
1
10 YR 4.5/3
2.5 Y 7.5/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/3
10 YR 7/5
10 YR 7/5
10 YR 7/5
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/5
2.5 Y 6.5/5
2.5 Y 7.5/5
2.5 Y 6/5
2.5 Y 6.5/3
2.5 Y 6.5/4
5 Y 6.5/3
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1.5
5 Y 6/1
2.5 Y 6.5/0
2.5 Y 6.5/2
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6.5/3
2.5 Y 7.5/1
Maximum
Requirement
%S (from %S)
.065
.016
.016
.007
.017
.007
.010
.012
.006
.017
.006
.010
.010
.003
.005
.330
.030
.045
.220
.135
.095
.060
.165
.325
2.03
0.50
0.50
0.22
0.53
0.22
0.31
0.38
0.19
0.53
0.19
0.31
0.31
0.09
0.16
10.31
0.94
1.41
6.88
4.22
2.97
1.88
5.16
10.16
Amount Amount Excess
Present Needed for CaCO
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
4.53
-1.75
-2.50
-1.75
-2.50
-2.50
-2.75
-1.50
-1.75
0.26
1.02
-0.24
0.51
2.27
4.03
3.78
5.79
5.79
8.80
20.10
12.07
12.07
25.64
27.64
2.25
3.00
1.97
3.03
2.72
3.06
1.88
1.94
0.27
0.55
6.53
2.50
0.83
0.20
2.18
3.87
4.85
4.38
1.92
15.88
9.10
10.19
20.48
17.48
-------
Table 15 (continued)
7.74
11.19
12.89
1.89
9.35
7.42
6.33
37.91
6.89
1.09
38.1-39.37' 31 0 10 YR 2/1 3.02 94.38 1.27 93.11
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
1
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y 7.5/1
2.5 Y 7.5/1
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 7.5/1
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6.5/0
2.5 Y 5.5/1
2.5 Y 6/1
2.5 Y 6/1
10 YR 2/1
.725
1.54
.855
.840
.955
.905
.875
1.64
.270
.220
3.02
22.66
48.12
26.72
26.25
29.84
28.28
27.34
51.25
0.44
6.88
94.38
30.40
36.93
13.83
28.14
39.19
35 . 70
33.67
13.34
15.33
5.79
1.27
VO
-------
o
o
Table 16
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Lower Bakerstown coal overburden at Site FF-b.
Tons of CaCOo Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #)
33.7-34.7'
34.7-35.8'
35.8-37.3'
37.3-
-41.5'
41.5-
-55.5'
55.5-56.3'
56.3-57.9'
57.9-58.3'
58.3-60.4'
1 C
2 C
3 C
4 MS
5 MS
6 SS
7 SS
8 SH
9 C
10 SH
11 C
Fiz
0
0
0
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
Color
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
10 YR
2.5 Y
2/0
2/0
2/0
6.5/0
7/0
6.5/0
6.5/0
6.5/0
2/0
2/1
2/0
Maximum
Requirement
%S (from %S)
2.45
1.98
1.75
.380
.175
.050
.085
.025
3.40
5.20
2.95
76.56
61.88
54.69
11.88
5.47
1.56
2.66
0.78
106.25
162.50
92.19
Amount
Present
(Titratibn)
2.
2.
3.
77.
30.
6.
6.
5.
1.
0.
97
72
71
96
94
93
93
20
0
24
50
Amount
Needed for
Excess
CaCO.
Neutrality (pH7) Equiv^
73
59
50
106
161
91
.59
.16
.98
.25
.26
.69
66.08
25.47
5.37
4.27
4.42
-------
Table 17
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Bakerstown coal overburden at Site T
(Project 14010EJE).
Depth (Sample #)
0-1 ' +13
+12
+11
+10
+ 9
+ 8
+ 7
+ 6
+ 5
+ 4
+ 3
+ 2
+ 1
+ 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
OT
0
h-1
O
""*
g
d.
l-t
o
O
^
rt
P"
O
OQ
8"
c
rt
:ensi
of
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
4
0
1
2
3
1
1
1
2
1
0
0
-
•ty
Color
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 8/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 8/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7.6
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 7/4
5 Y 8/3
2.5 Y 7/2
N 7/0
5 Y 7/3
5 Y 7/3
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 7/0
5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 YR 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
-
j
Maximum
Requirement
%S (from %S)
.032
.028
.016
.018
.023
.005
.018
.006
.019
.085
.019
.015
.430
.165
.170
.255
.320
.385
.120
.145
.055
.035
.075
.415
.195
1.00
.88
.50
.56
.72
.16
.56
.18
.59
2.66
.59
.46
13.44
5.16
5.31
7.96
10.00
12.03
3.75
4.53
1.72
1.09
2.34
12.96
6.09
Amount
Present
(Titration)
-0.73
0.40
-0.86
-0.71
-0.48
2.50
4.24
2.73
6.77
4.24
6.49
417.94
15.93
37.57
86.08
83.41
36.08
17.17
65.30
68.68
16.44
13.46
10.71
-
Amount Excess
Needed for CaCO
Neutrality (pH7) Equivf
1.73
.48
1.36
1.27
1.30
1.94
4.06
2.14
4.11
3.65
6.03
404.50
10.77
32.26
78.12
73.41
24.05
13.42
60.77
67.16
15.35
11.12
2.25
- —
-------
Table 17 (continued)
12 v -«••-• i ii\j x.uz 31.as 8.71 23.17
13 - - 9 Q«; TO /./.
J-.tJf _)0.<+4 —
f\ ~i e* TTT^ V*A . -
26.85
22.34
42.26
79.18
u zo I 4/u 2.60 81.25 17 AS
i U v/ £. • -j i y. i 11 T/-* i / u i 11* 'I'lcr « ™ ^- — -
> • OX
23
-38' 24
38-39'
39-40'
0
~"
—
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y 7/0
—
-
7.5 YR 6/0
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 5/0
2.5 Y 4/0
2.5 Y 2/0
2.5 Y 2/0
2.5 Y 3/0
2.5 Y 3/0
2.5 Y 3/0
1.02
2.35
1.87
1.52
1.32
1.83
2.98
2.60
5.73
3.70
5.20
4.15
3.63
31.88
73.44
58.44
47.50
41.25
57.18
93.12
81.25
179.06
115.62
162.50
129.68
113.44
8.71
_
^
20.65
18.91
14.92
13.94
17.68
2.25
-2.22
-7.20
-6.71
-6.94
Bakerstown coal seam
-------
Table 18
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Upper Freeport coal overburden at Site AA.
Tons of CaCO-i Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
Depth
0-1'
2'
3'
4'
5'
6'
7'
8'
9'
10'
11'
12'
13'
14'
15'
16'
17'
18'
19'
20'
21'
22'
23'
24'
25'
26'
(Sample #)
1
2
3
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
of
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
Color
10 YR 6.3
10 YR 7/4
2.5 Y 7/6
2.5 Y 8/6
10 YR 8/6
10 YR 8/2
2.5 Y 8/2
2.5 Y 8/4
2.5 Y 7/4
2.5 Y 8/4
10 YR 8/3
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 8/3
10 YR 8/3
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 7/2
5 Y 7/1
N 7/0
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
Maximum
Requirement
%S (from %S)
.043
.026
.013
.035
.038
.028
.029
.011
.010
.009
.010
.007
.007
.008
.010
.008
.010
.014
.010
.160
.085
.315
.490
.165
.095
1.34
0.81
0.40
1.09
1.18
0.88
0.90
0.34
0.31
0.28
0.31
0.22
0.22
0.25
0.31
0.25
0.31
0.44
0.31
5.00
2.66
9.84
15.31
5.16
2.96
Amount
Present
(Titration)
4.28
-0.76
-0.76
-2.01
-1.76
-1.25
-2.27
-1.25
-0.76
-0.99
-0.99
-0.25
0.0
0.0
-0.26
0.0
-0.26
0.0
-0.26
-0.99
-2.27
-0.76
0.25
22.72
82.31
Amount
Needed for
Excess
CaCO
Neutrality (pH7) Equivf
•>
1.57
1.17
3.10
2.95
2.31
3.18
1.59
1.07
1.27
1.30
0.47
0.22
0.25
0.57
0.25
0.57
0.44
0.57
5.99
4.93
10.60
15.56
2.94
17.56
79.34
-------
Table 18 (continued)
27'
28'
29'
30'
31'
32'
33'
34'
35'
36'
37'
38'
39'
40'
41'
42'
43'
44'
45'
46'
47'
48'
49'
50'
51'
52'
53'
54'
55'
56'
57'
58'
59'
59-64'
64-67 '
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
Upper Freeport
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
2
1
0
0
0
0
coal
0
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
2.5 Y 8/0
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
N 7/0
N 7/0
N 7/0
N 7/0
N 7/0
10 YR 7/1
N 7/0
10 YR 7/1
N 7/0
N 7/0
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
N 7/0
N 7/0
N 7/0
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 4/1
2.5 Y 2/0
2.5 Y 6/1
.160
.295
.065
.020
.015
.020
.025
.020
.030
.050
.105
.065
.340
.150
.235
.625
.265
.115
.055
.025
.055
.085
.175
.480
.850
1.29
.460
.250
.440
.255
.360
.450
.800
2.50
2.82
5.00
9.22
2.03
0.62
0.46
0.62
0.78
0.62
0.94
1.56
3.28
2.03
10.62
4.68
7.34
19.53
8.28
3.59
1.72
0.78
1.72
2.66
5.46
15.00
26.56
40.31
14.38
7.81
13.75
7.96
11.25
14.06
25.00
78.12
88.12
100.98
107 . 30
37.13
4.54
6.83
14.64
22.26
14.64
10.35
61.86
49.75
18.18
29.04
15.15
75.25
19.20
22.47
23.74
19.43
43.94
26.52
38.38
19.43
22.72
49.24
12.11
18.44
20.27
14.64
3.80
-3.52
-2.78
95.98
98.08
35.10
3.92
6.36
14.02
21.48
14.02
9.41
60.30
46.47
16.15
18.42
5.41
2.76
4.38
66.97
12.07
17.48
21.69
22.02
16.77
38.47
11.52
11.82
20.88
8.34
41.43
1.64
10.47
9.02
0.60
21.20
81.64
90.90
-------
Table 19
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Upper Freeport coal overburden at Site L
(Project 14010EJE).
5-6'
Tons of CaCO Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Depth (Sample #)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
ensi
of
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
No
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
Lty Maximum J
Requirement
Color
10 YR 7.5/4
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/6
10 YR 7.5/5
10 YR 7.5/4
sample
10 YR 7.5/3
10 YR 7.5/3
10 YR 7.5/3
10 YR 8/1
10 YR 8/1
10 YR 8/3
10 YR 8/2
10 YR 8/3
10 YR 8/1
10 YR 7.5/2
10 YR 7.5/1
2.5 Y 8/1.5
10 YR 7.5/3
10 YR 8/2
2.5 Y 8/3
2.5 Y 8/2
N 8/0
%S (from %S)
.022
.009
.016
.012
.015
.017
.008
.006
.005
.045
.155
.160
.185
.285
.215
.250
.250
.250
.245
.220
.260
.220
.220
.225
0.69
0.28
0.50
0.37
0.47
0.53
0.25
0.19
0.16
1.41
4.84
5.00
5.78
8.91
6.72
7.81
7.81
7.81
7.66
6.88
8.12
6.88
6.88
7.03
Amount
Present
(Titration)
-2.72
-0.74
-0.50
-0.99
-0.99
-0.50
-0.25
0
-0.25
0.25
-0.50
0
-0.25
1.48
1.48
7.42
0.25
6.68
11.63
6.19
34.40
31.68
6.93
6.93
Amount
Needed for
Excess
CaCO,
Neutrality (pH7) EquivT
3.41
1.02
1.00
1.36
1.46
1.03
0.50
0.19
0.41
1.16
5.34
5.00
6.03
7.43
5.24
0.39
7.56
1.13
0.69
0.10
3.97
26.28
24.80
0.05
-------
Table 19 (continued)
5.16
2.07
5.59
5.10
1.73
2.97
16.97
14.95
4.43
0.62
3.91
4.72
7.78
6.39
10.26
15.58
84.54
76.24
76.98
32.65
12.45
23.34
13.91
-55' 48 0 2.5 Y 2.5/1 1.29 40.31 3.71 36.60
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
47-47 1/2
48
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y 8/1
N 8/0
N 8/0
N 8/0
N 8/0
N 8/0
2.5 Y 7.5/2
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
N 8/0
N 8/0
N 8/0
N 8/0
N 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 5.5/0
2.5 Y 5.5/1
2.5 Y 5/1
2.5 Y 5.5/1
2.5 Y 5.5/1
2.5 Y 5.5/1
10 YR 2/1
2.5 Y 2.5/1
.165
.185
.195
.195
.190
.190
.170
.930
.460
.210
.220
.245
.265
.640
1.16
.950
2.65
2.40
2.40
1.10
.525
.525
.540.
1.29
5.16
5.78
6.09
6.09
5.94
5.94
5.31
29.06
14.38
6.56
6.88
7.66
8.28
20.00
36.25
29.69
82.81
75.00
75.00
34.38
16.41
16-.41
16.88
40.31
0
3.71
0.50
0.99
4.21
2.97
22.28
14.11
18.81
7.18
2.97
12.38
0.50
13.61
25.99
14.11
-1.73
-1.24
-1.98
1.73
3.96
-6.93
2.97
3.71
-------
Table 20
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Upper Freeport coal overburden at Site A
(Project 14010EJE)
o
-vl
Intensity
Depth
3-4'
4-5'
(Sample #)
1 SS
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
of
Fiz
—
0
0
0
0
0
0
-
0
-
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
-
1
1
Color
_
—
2.5 Y 8/1
10 YR 8/3
10 YR 7.5/4
10 YR 7.5/3
2.5 Y 8/3
10 YR 7/4
-
2.5 & 7.5/3
-
10 YR 7/3
2.5 Y 8/3
10 YR 8/2.5
2.5 Y 8/3
2.5 Y 8/2
10 YR 8/2
10 YR 8/2
2.5 Y 8/1
2.5 Y 8/3
10 YR 7/4
-
2.5 Y 8/1
2.5 Y 7.5/2
Maximum
Requirement
IS (from %S)
.002
.002
.008
.005
.004
.005
.004
.002
.003
.003
.006
.017
.011
.008
.008
.055
.140
.190
.090
.150
.150
.128
.132
.06
.06
.25
.16
.12
.16
.12
.06
.09
.06
.19
.53
.34
.25
.25
1.72
4.38
5.94
2.81
4.69
4.69
4.00
4.12
Amount Amount
Present Needed for
(Titfatibn) Neutrality (pH7)
-
0.99
0
0
0
0.25
0.25
-
0.50
—
0.25
0.25
0.25
-0.25
-0.25
0
0.50
0.99
0.74
19.55
-
9.40
6.68
-
.25
.16
.12
-
-
.58
.09
1.72
3.88
4.95
2.07
—
Excess
CaC03
Equiv .
-
.93
.09
.13
-
.41
-
.06
14.86
-
5.40
2.56
-------
Table 20 (continued)
25 1 2.5 Y 8/0 .140 4.38 26.48 22.10
26 - - .127 3.97
27 1 2.5 Y 7.5/1 .138 4.31 2.48 1.83
28 1 2.5 Y 8/1 .160 5.00 18.32 13.32
29 1 2.5 Y 7.5/1 .435 13.59 21.78 8.19
30 1 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .435 13.59 26.48 12.89
31 1 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .320 10.00 17.82 7.82
32 1 2.5 Y 8/0 .496 15.50 15.34 .16
33 1 2.5 Y 8/0 .425 13.28 18.32 5.04
34 - - .275 8.59
35 0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .587 18.34 8.91 9.43
36 0 2.5 Y 8/0 .340 10.62 6.44 4.18
39-40' 37 - - .386 12.06
g 40-41' 38 - .600 18.75
00 41-42'
42-43'
43- Upper Freeport Coal Seam
-------
southwest toward Glenville in Geologic Cross-Section A-A' (Figure 6)
and discussed previously may also be applied to the lower Conemaugh
in northern Preston County. This area could be considered a peripheral
area of the main Upper Freeport coal swamp, which is to the north in
western Pennsylvania, as evidenced by the predominating influence of
sandstones in the overburden section, erratic, local thinning and thick-
ening of the coal seam, and its eventual disappearance to the south
(see also Geologic Cross-Section B-B1, Figure 9). Sites B-B1, 16
(Table 21) and B-B', 18 (Table 22), representing exploration cores
through Kittanning overburdens in the northern part of Province 2,
show the somewhat lower sulfur contents associated with the Allegheny
Formation in this area. Detailed analyses prior to surface mining at
Site 0, northern extremity of Geologic Cross-Section B-B' (Figure 9)
showed only a small danger of potential acid toxicity and also only
a small neutralizing potential of rock strata below the weathered
zone (Table 23). This site involved a natural soil that was inherently
difficult to manage. The reclamation and revegetation subsequent to
mining at Site 0 were successful. Sites B-B1, la, b, and c represent
Lower Kittanning overburden at the Southern end of Cross-section B-B'
(Figure 9) just discussed. Figure 9 shows the increased complexity
in coal seam/rock type relationships as one goes south along B-B1.
The diverse nature of the rock types and compositions as seen in Tables
24, 25, and 26 supported by field observations of greatly varying
coal seam intervals and thickness, lenses of channel sandstones locally
prevailing or diminishing, and the general uncertain nature of coal
arid overburden quality present the surface mine operator and reclama-
tionist with a challenging job. The mudrock underlying the predominantly
sandstone overburden presents the best material for topsoiling a spoil
area. There does not appear to be a significantly deep weathered zone
of pyrite-free material in the sandstone caprock of this area. Indeed,
it appears that where a thin coal seam (Middle Kittanning) persists only
a few feet below the original land surface, weathering failed to pene-
trate appreciably into the underlying material.
SURFACE MINING PROVINCE 1
The rocks in this Province, the oldest found in the coal measures of
West Virginia, provide low sulphur, metallurgical grade coal.
Synonymously, a major portion of the coal overburden materials are
quite low in pyritic sulfur content, with a corresponding low acid
producing potential, although the rocks are not calcareous. Highly
successful revegetation effects where sufficient plant nutrients
have been applied on this minesoil material, along with little or no
record of acid water discharges, verify the favorable nature of this
material for plant growth. Tables 27, 28, and 29 provide data from
analyses of rock chips from two sites sampled in northern Greenbrier
109
-------
Table 21
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Upper Freeport and Lower Kittanning coal
overburden at Site B-B', 16.
Tons of CaCO- Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
of
Depth
18.0-23.6'
23. 6-30. O1
30. 0-35. O1
35.0-37.3'
37.3-39.0'
39.0-40.0'
40.0-40.7'
40.7-40.9'
40.9-42.3'
42.3-45.0'
45.0-46.0'
57.1-62.2'
75.0-80.0'
80.0-82.9'
82.9-85.0'
85.0-90.0'
90.0-91.0'
91.0-96.0'
96.0-97.5'
97.5-98.0'
98.0-99.0
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
Upper
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
I
SH
SH
SH
Fiz
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
Color
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/4
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 8/0
10 YR 7.5/2
10 YR 5.5/7
10 YR 7.5/3
2.5 Y 7/1
10 YR 6.5/4
2.5 Y 8/0
10 YR 7/4
Maximum
Requirement
%S (from %S)
.005
.007
.020
.055
,002
.003
.002
.055
.004
.300
.002
0.16
0.22
0.62
1.72
0.06
0.09
0.06
1.72
0.12
9.38
0.06
Amount
Present
Amount Excess
Needed for CaCO-
(Titratidn) Neutrality (pH7) Equivf
1.53
1.78
1.02
35.09
0
3.04
1.02
3.29
2.78
35.09
1.28
1.37
1.56
0.40
33.37
0.06
2.95
0.96
1.57
2.66
25.71
1.22
Freeport coal seam
3
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.5/0
2.5 Y 7.0/0
.027
.065
.014
.045
.020
.011
.005
.010
.011
0.84
2.03
0.44
1.41
0.62
0.34
0.16
0.31
0.34
100.15
24.48
5.05
5.56
14.15
61.10
3.54
3.54
6.07
99.31
22.45
4.61
4.15
13.53
60.76
3.38
3.23
5.73
-------
Table 21 (continued)
99.0-100.0' SH 0 2.5 Y 3/0 .041 1.28 7.06 5.78
100.0-101.0' MR 0 10 YR 5.5/1 .040 1.25 7.06 5.81
101.0-101.6' C 0 2.5 Y 2.5/0 2.95 92.19 4.03 88.16
101.6-104.5' MR 0 2.5 Y 2.5/0 .017 0.53 3.29 2-76
104.5-106.0' MR 0 2.5 Y 7/1 .556 17.34 2.78 14.56
106.0-107.0' MR 0 2.5 Y 8/0 .008 0.25 10.86 10-ol
107.0-108.0' MR 0 2.5 Y 8/0 .012 0.38 2.02 1-64
108.0-109.5' MR 1 2.5 Y 8/0 .011 0.34 16.17 15.83
109.5-111.5' SH 4 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .024 0.75 145.87 145.12
111.5-113.0' SS 0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .010 0.31 5.05 4.74
113.0-115.0' SS 0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .024 0.75 5.05 A-30
115.0-117.0' SS 0 2.5 Y 7/0 .006 0.19 11.63 11.44
117.0-120.0* SS 0 2.5 Y 7/0 .085 2.66 3.80 1.14
120.0-122.0' SS 0 2.5 Y 7/0 .060 1.88 4.06 2.18
122.0-125.0' SS 0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .075 2.34 2.02 0.32
125.0-130.0' SS 1 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .075 2.34 13.39 11.05
130.0-135.0' SS 1 2.5 Y 8/0 .035 1.09 12.88 11.79
135.0-140.0' SS 4 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .019 0.59 234.96 234.37
140.0-145.0' SS 1 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .022 0.69 12.39 11.70
145.0-149.5' SS 0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .026 0.81 3.04 2.23
149.5-150.0' SS 0 2.5 Y 7.5/0 .060 1.88 8.85 6.97
-------
Table 22
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B1
18,
Tons of CaCO^ Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #) Fiz Color
272.0-275
277.5-278
278.5-280
280.0-281
281.0-282
282.0-
-296
296.0-298
298.5-299
299.0-302
302.5-303
319.5-321
322.0-323
323.0-326
326.0-326
326.5-
-333
334.0-336
336.0-339
339.5-
.5'
.5'
.0'
.0'
.0'
.0'
.5'
.0'
.5'
.5'
.5'
.0'
.0'
.5'
.5'
.0'
.5'
Lower
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
MR
MR
SH
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
SH
SS
I
SS
SS
MR
SS
MR
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
I
Maximum Amount Amount Excess
Requirement Present Needed for CaCO-j
%S (from %S) (Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
Freeport coal seam
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
-
1
1
4
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
-
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
7.5/1
7/1
7/1
7.5/1
7.5/1
7.5/1
7.5/1
7/1
6.5/1
8/0
7.5/0
7/1
5/1
5.5/1
6.5/1
7/1
7/0
6.5/1
6.5/1
7/1
6.5/1
7/1
7.5/0
.022
.365
.070
.017
.009
.008
.006
.009
.010
.016
-
.095
.125
4.00
.725
1.125
.025
.012
.010
.040
.017
.006
.035
.007
.69
11.41
2.19
.53
.28
.25
.19
.28
.31
.50
-
2.97
3.91
125.0
22.66
35.16
.78
.38
.31
1.25
.53
.19
1.09
.22
3
-1
15
3
3
2
3
3
3
12
14
28
249
17
7
127
11
7
7
7
7
28
5
.21
.48
.59
.96
.71
.97
.71
.46
.96
.38
-
.85
.22
.86
.08
.42
.39
.38
.42
.67
.42
.18
.22
.20
2.52
12.89
13.40
3.43
3.43
2.72
3.52
3.18
3.65
11.88
_
11.88
24.31
124.86
5.58
27.74
126.61
11.00
7.11
6.42
6.89
6.99
27.13
4.98
-------
Table 22 (continued)
354.
356.
366.
376.
379.
380.
385.
386.
390.
400.
-354.
0-356.
0-
-360.
-360.
0-
-372.
-373.
0-
-379.
0-380.
0-
-385.
0-386.
5-
-390.
5-
-399.
0-
-406.
0'
0'
0'
51
0'
Of
0'
0'
0'
5'
5'
5'
O1
25
26
27
28
29
30
I
I
SH
SH
SH
SH
1
0
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
7/0
7/1
7/1
5.5/1
5/1
6.5/1
.050
.065
.008
.030
1.035
.010
1.56
2.03
.25
.94
32.34
Upper Kittanning coal seam position
31
32
SH
SH
Middle
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
I
I
ss
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
MR
MR
MR
0
0
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
Kittanning
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
6/1
6/1
coal
5/1
6.5/1
7/0
5/1
5.5/1
5.5/1
5.5/1
6/1
6/1
5.5/1
5.5/1
6/1
6/1
5.5/1
.025
.023
seam (1 ' )
.070
.040
.050
.170
.065
.080
.040
.040
.045
.215
.125
.023
.025
.030
2
1
1
5
2
2
1
1
1
6
3
.31
(3")
.78
.72
.19
.25
.56
.31
.03
.50
.25
.25
.41
.72
.91
.72
.78
.94
12.87
5.69
7.42
23.76
12.13
9.90
20.79
17.08
13.61
14.36
26.98
14.60
12.13
14.36
10.89
11.38
6.19
13.61
8.42
8.66
8.66
10.40
11.31
3.66
7.17
22.82
20.21
9.59
20.01
16.36
11.42
13.11
25.42
9 29
in'in
-LU * J.U
11.86
9.64
10.13
4.78
6.89
4.51
7.94
7.88
9.46
-------
Table 23
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site 0
(Project 14010EJE).
Tons of CaCO-3 Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
Depth
0-7"
0.5-2'
2-4'
4-8'
6-8'
8-10'
10-12'
12-14'
14-16'
16-18'
18-20'
20-22'
22-24'
24-26'
26-28'
28-30'
30-32'
32-34'
34-36'
36-37'
36-38'
38-39'
39-40'
40-41'
(Sample #)
34.36
30-34
30-32
28-30
26-28
24-26
22-24
20-22
18-20
16-18
14-16
12-14
10-12
8-10
6-8
4-6
2-4
1-2
0-2
1
2
3
of
Fiz Color
2.5 Y 6/2
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 7/4
10 YR 8/2
10 YR 7/3
7.5 YR 8/4
10 YR 8/4
10 YR 8/4
10 YR 8/3
10 YR 8/4
2.5 Y 8/4
10 YR 7/3
o 10 YR 7/4
o> 10 YR 7/4
N 7.5 YR 7/6
2 10 YR 7/4
10 10 YR 7/4
3 10 YR 7/4
10 10 YR 7/4
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 7/5
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/2
7,5
.036
.022
.014
.010
.004
.007
.008
.005
.005
.006
.006
.011
.013
.010
.016
.015
.010
.008
.004
.011
.007
.036
.015
.025
Maximum
Requirement
(from 7,5)
1.12
.68
.44
.31
.12
.22
.25
.15
.15
.18
.18
.34
.40
.31
.50
.46
.31
.25
.12
.34
.22
1.12
.46
.78
Amount
Present
(Titration)
-2.85
-7.76
-5.12
-6.32
-4.53
-3.42
-3.62
-3.26
-3.26
-2.28
-2.28
-3.58
-1.88
-2.91
-2.72
-3.80
-6.18
-1.98
-2.27
-3.42
-1.40
-1.12
-1.38
.22
Amount Excess
Needed for CaC03
Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
3.97
8.44
5.56
6.63
4.65
3.64
3.87
3.41
3.41
2.46
2.46
3.92
2.28
3.22
3.22
4.26
6.49
2.23
2.39
3.76
1.62
2.24
1.84
0.56
8.25
-------
Table 23 (continued)
41-42'
42-43'
43-44'
44-45 '
45-46'
46-47'
47-48'
48-49'
49-50'
50-51'
51-52'
52-53'
53-54'
54-55'
55-56'
56-57'
57-58'
58-59'
59-60'
60-61'
61-62'
62-63'
63-64'
64-65'
65-66'
66-67'
67-68'
68-69'
69-70'
71-72'
72-73'
73-74'
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 5/0
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6/0
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
-
-
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6/0
-
-
.090
.105
.060
.085
.070
.045
.075
.090
.065
.040
.045
.075
.120
.125
.065
.095
.060
.055
.095
.060
.055
.080
.045
.055
.045
.065
.060
.055
.070
-
.055
.225
2.81
3.28
1.88
2.66
2.18
1.40
2.34
2.81
2.03
1.25
1.40
2.34
3.75
3.90
2.03
2.96
1.88
1.72
2.96
1.88
1.72
2.50
1.40
1.72
1.40
2.03
1.88
1.72
2.18
-
1.72
7.03
-5.44
6.62
7.18
8.10
4.88
8.97
3.93
5.35
4.76
5.48
5.58
6.29
6.42
5.76
6.36
6.63
5.48
7.26
7.85
8.93
8.58
7.80
7.28
8.00
8.08
7.82
8.26
10.12
9.30
-
4.88
4.12
8.25
3.34
5.
5.
.30
.44
2.70
7.57
1.59
2.54
2.73
4.23
,18
.95
4,
3.
2.67
1.86
4.33
3.67
3.60
5.54
4.89
7.05
6.86
5.30
5.88
6.28
6:68
5.79
6.38
8.40
7.12
3.16
2.91
-------
Table 23 (continued)
74-75' 36 - 1.10 34.38 3.22 31.16
75-76' 37 - .350 10.95 2.84 8.10
76-77' 38 - .165 5.16 1.30 3.86
77-78' 39 - .715 22.34 1.36 20.98
78-79' 40 - 2.43 75.94 1.16 74.78
79-80' 41 2.5 Y 2/0 1.52 47.50 1.18 46.32
80- Lower Kittanning coal seam
-------
Table 24
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B1, la.
Depth
0'
1'
2'
3'
V
1'
2'
3'
4'
5'
(Sample #)
1 C
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
snsil
»f
[iz.
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
;y
Color
10 YR 3/1
10 YR 4/1
10 YR 4/1
10 YR 4/1
10 YR 3/1
10 YR 5/1
10 YR 2/1
10 YR 5/1
10 YR 4/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 7/1
N 7/
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 Y 8/0
N 7/
5 Y 6/1
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 Y 8/0
N 7/
%S
0.145
0.220
0.355
0.410
0.580
0.335
0.595
0.380
0.700
0.275
0.135
0.070
0.035
0.075
0.065
0.045
0.115
0.225
0.020
0.035
0.150
Maximum
Requirement
(from %S)
4,53
6,88
11.09
12.81
18.13
10.47
18.59
11.86
21.86
8.59
4.22
2.19
1.09
2.34
2.03
1.41
3.59
7.03
0.62
1.09
4.69
Amount
Present
(Titration)
-0.59
-0.46
-0.14
-0.46
-0.21
-0.21
-0.40
-0.40
-0.85
-0.21
-0.08
-0.40
-0.33
-0.21
-0.08
0.14
-0.06
-1.03
0.00
0.13
0.00
Amount
Needed for
Neutrality (oH7)
5.12
7.34
11.23
13.27
18.34
10.68
18.99
12.26
22.71
8.80
4.30
2.59
1.42
2.55
2.11
1.27
3.65
8.06
0.63
0.96
4.69
Excess
CaC03
Equiv.
-
-
•«
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-------
Table 24 (continued)
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30 C
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 Y 8/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
10 YR 5.0
10 YR 2/0
10 YR 2/1
10 YR 6/1
7.5 YR 7/0
7.5 YR 7/0
10 YR 7/1
7.5 YR 7/0
7.5 YR 7/0
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
10 YR 7/1
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/2
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
0.200
0.055
0.065
0.100
0.310
0.300
1.140
2.625
5.500
2.750
2.200
1.475
1.275
0.640
0.455
0.205
0.170
0.215
0.125
0.125
0.090
0.080
0.085
0.090
0.050
0.050
0.045
0.025
0.015
0.025
6.25
1.72
2.03
3.13
9.69
9.38
35.63
82.03
171.88
85.94
68.75
46.09
39.84
20.00
14.22
6.41
5.31
6.72
3.91
3.91
2.81
2.50
2.66
2.81
1.56
1.46
1.51
0.78
0.47
0.78
0.00
-0.13
0.13
-0.26
-0.26
-0.06
0.00
0.13
-1.16
-3.03
-4.05
-3.79
-3.16
-2.90
-1.75
2.17
3.03
2.49
5.95
6.27
6.08
6.14
3.32
3.77
5.78
5.33
4.75
4.88
3.34
3.14
6.25
1.85
1.90
3.39
9.95
9.44
35.63
81.90
173.04
88.97
72.80
49.88
43.00
22.90
15.97
4.24
2.28
4.23
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
u.
-
-
2.04
2.36
2.27
3.64
0.66
0.96
4.22
3.77
3.34
4.10
2.87
2.36
-------
Table 24 (continued)
2.07
2.97
2.05
2.20
0.17
0.68
0.04
0.65
0.17
0.69
1.23
0.91
2.52
1.48
so bb u 5 Y //i u.u/u t.i.y \j.j? 1.80
10.80
44.02
45.05
32.30
31.00
34.52
32.43
52.74
75.13
51.04
62.47
_78« 7« 0 5 Y 7/1 0.355 11.uy -l.zy 12.38
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68 SH
69 SH
70
71
72
73
74
75
76 SH
77
78
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 5/1
2.5 Y 4/0
2.5 Y 4/0
2.5 Y 3/0
10 YR 3/1
2.5 Y 2/0
2.5 Y 2/0
2.5 Y 2/0
2.5 Y 2/0
2.5 Y 2/0
10 YR 6/1
5 Y 7/1
0.020
0.020
0.025
0.020
0.030
0.030
0.015
0.025
0.030
0.015
0.010
0.020
0.010
0.035
0.070
0.325
1.425
1.450
1.050
1.025
1.125
1.075
1.700
2.400
1.625
1.925
0.355
0.63
0.63
0.78
0.63
0.94
0.94
0.47
0.78
0.94
0.47
0.31
0.63
0.31
1.09
2.19
10.16
44.53
45.31
32.81
32.03
35.16
33.59
53.13
75.00
50.78
60.16
11.09
2.70
3.60
2.83
2.83
0.77
0.26
0.51
0.13
0.77
1.16
1.54
1.54
2.83
2.57
0.39
-0.64
0.51
0.26
0.51
1.03
0.64
1.16
0.39
-0.13
-0.26
-2.31
-1.29
-------
Table 25
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B', Ib.
Tons of CaCOq Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Depth
27-28'
-43'
(Sample #)
1 MS
2 MS
3 MS
4 MS
5 MS
6 MS
7 MS
8 MS
9 MS
10 MS
11 MS
12 MS
13 MS
14 MS
15
item
of
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
sity Maximum
Requirement
Color
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 7/1
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1
5 Y 5.5/1
Lower Kittannini
Amount Amount Excess
Present Needed for CaCO.,
%S (from %S) (Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
.014
.035
.014
.014
.010
.006
.004
.035
.125
.030
.012
.008
.012
.085
I coal seam
0.44
1,09
0.44
0.44
0.31
0.19
0.12
1.09
3.91
0.94
0.38
0.25
0.38
2.66
6.71
7.45
8.18
3.21
3.47
7.96
4.21
4.95
7.19
1.73
1.22
-0.26
-0.51
-1.28
6.27
6.36
7.74
2.77
3.16
7.77
4.09
3.86
3.28
0.79
0.84
0.51
0.89
3.94
-------
Table 26
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B', Ic,
Tons of CaCOo Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Depth
0-1'
NJ
Intensity
of
(Sample #) Fiz Color
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.
2,
2.
2,
10 YR
10 YR
2.5 Y
.5 Y
,5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
.5 Y
.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
10 YR
10 YR
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
2.5 Y
7/2
7/2
7/1
6.5/2
6/1
6/1
6/1
6/1
6/1
6.5/1
7/1
7/1
7/1
6.5/1
6.5/1
4.5/1
5.5/1
6.5/1
6/1
5/1
6.5/0
6.5/0
6.5/0
6/0
6/0
' Maximum
Requirement
'.S. (from 7oS)
008
,004
008
,030
060
095
065
,100
345
,095
040
,040
,004
,008
019
,330
,380
,190
,095
,600
,270
,325
,370
,850
,540
0.25
0.12
0.25
0.94
1.88
2.97
2.03
3.12
10.78
2.97
1.25
1.25
0.12
0.25
0.59
10.31
11.88
5.94
2.97
18.75
8.44
10.16
11.56
26.56
16.88
Amount
Present
(Titration)
-0.74
-0.48
0.03
-0.48
3.77
1.53
1.76
0.76
G.51
-0.74
-0.48
0.28
-0.23
0.28
-0.23
0.03
0.03
-0.23
0.51
0.03
0.28
0.28
0.03
0.50
0.51
Amount Excess
Needed for CaC03
Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
0.99
0.60
0.22
1.42
1.89
1.44
0.27
2.36
10.27
3.71
1.73
0.97
0.35
0.03
0.82
10.28
11.85
6.17
2.46
18.72
8.16
9.88
11.53
26.05
16.37
-------
10
to
Table 26 (continued)
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2.5 Y 6/0
2.5 Y 6.5/0
2.5 Y 6.5/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 7/0
2.5 Y 6/1
2.5 Y 7/1
2.5 Y 5.5/0
2.5 Y 4/1
.225
.280
.230
.425
.245
.230
.675
.024
.105
.715
1.07
7.03
8.75
7.19
13.28
7.66
7.19
21.09
0.75
3.28
22.34
33.44
0.51
0.28
0.03
0.76
1.02
0.76
0.28
0.03
0.51
-0.23
2.27
6.52
8.47
7.16
12.52
6.64
6.43
20.81
0.72
2.77
22.57
31.17
-42'
46- Lower Kittanning coal seam
-------
Table 27
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Sewell coal overburden at Site MM.
Intensity
of
Depth (Sample #)
2-3'
3-4'
4-5'
5-6'
6-7'
7-8'
8-9'
9-10'
10-11'
11-12'
12-13'
13-14'
14-15'
15-16'
16-17'
17-18'
18-19'
19-20'
20-21'
21-22'
22-23'
23-24'
24-25'
25-26'
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Color
10 YR 7.5/3
5 Y 7.5/3
5 Y 7.5/2.5
5 Y 7.5/2.5
5 Y 7.5/2.5
2.5 Y 7.5/3
2.5 Y 7.5/3
10 YR 7/3
10 YR 7/3.5
10 YR 7.5/2
2.5 Y 8/0
10 YR 7.5/3
2.5 Y 7/3
10 YR 5.5/2
2.5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7.5/2
2.5 Y 6.5/2
2.5 Y 6.5/2
2.5 Y 6.5/2
10 YR 6.5/3
10 YR 7.5/2
2.5 Y 7.5/2
2.5 Y 7.5/3
10 YR 6.5/5
Maximum
Requirement
7.S (from %S)
.002
.002
.002
.001
.001
.002
.002
.002
.001
.001
.003
.001
.003
.022
.022
.001
.008
.003
.002
.005
.002
.003
.001
.002
.06
.06
.06
.03
.03
.06
.06
.06
.03
.03
.09
.03
.09
.69
.06
.03
.25
.09
.06
.16
.06
.09
.03
.06
Amount
Present
Amount
Needed for
Excess
CaC03
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
-0.23
-0.23
-0.23
-0.23
0.03
-0.49
-0.75
-0.75
-0.75
0.03
0.03
-0.75
-0.49
-1.24
0.03
-0.23
-0.49
-0.49
-0.23
0.03
-0.49
0.03
-0.23
0.03
.29
.29
.29
.26
.29
.55
.81
.81
.78
0
.06
.78
.58
1.93
.03
.26
.74
.58
.29
.13
.55
.06
.26
.03
—
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
.
-
_
_
_
_
,.
-------
Table 28
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Sewell coal overburden at Site NN-a.
N3
Depth (Sample #) Fiz
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
CO
lj
I
Tons per Thousand Tons of Material
Top of coal
Requirement
Color
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 5.5/1
10 YR 5.5/1
10 YR 5.5/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 6/1
10 YR 5.5/1
10 YR 4/1
10 YR 4/1
5 Y 4/1
5 Y 4/1
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
10 YR 6.5/1
10 YR 6.5/1
10 YR 6.5/1
10 YR 6.5/1
5 Y 6.5/1
10 YR 3.5/1
7oS (from %S)
.016
.019
.021
.025
.039
.030
.028
.022
.110
.080
.050
.050
.050
.031
.038
.030
.019
.026
.030
.021
.255
.50
.59
.66
.78
1.22
.94
.88
.69
3.44
2.50
1.56
1.56
1.56
.97
1.19
.94
.59
.81
.94
.66
7.97
Amount
Present
Amount Excess
Needed for CaCO^
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
12.38
10.12
12.90
12.64
11.12
11.38
11.38
7.34
13.65
12.13
12.38
13.78
11.59
7.34
10.67
9.12
11.64
9.35
17.69
19.21
6.08
11.88
9.53
12.24
11.86
9.90
10.44
10.50
6.65
10.21
9.63
10.82
12.22
10.03
6.37
9.48
8.18
11.05
8.54
16.75
18.55
1.89
-------
Table 29
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of Sewell coal overburden at Site NN-b.
Tons per Thousand Tons of Material
Depth (Sample #) Fiz
5-6'
6-7'
NJ
Ui
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Requirement
Color
10 YR 7/1.5
10 YR 7/2.5
10 YR 6.5/3
2.5 Y 7/3
5 Y 7/2.5
5 Y 7/2.5
10 YR 7/2.5
5 Y 7/3
2.5 Y 6.5/3
10 YR 6/3
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 -Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6/1.5
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1.5
2.5 Y 6/2
2.5 Y 5/2
2.5 Y 5/2
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 5/1
5 Y 5/1
7»S
.003
.002
.004
.004
.004
.006
.006
.004
.005
.004
.009
.012
.007
.011
.012
.017
.011
.008
.006
.006
.006
.007
.008
.020
.020
(frem 7«S)
0.09
0.06
0.12
0.12
0.12
0.19
0.19
0.12
0.06
0.12
0.28
0.38
0.22
0.34
0.38
0.53
0.34
0.25
0.19
0.19
0.19
0.22
0.25
0.62
0.62
Amount
Present
Amount Excess
Needed for CaC03
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
-0.97
-1.24
-0.97
-1.48
-0.43
1.19
-0.70
0.38
0.11
0.92
1.19
5.51
0.65
2.27
2.81
3.35
3.62
4.16
2.02
0.96
1.89
2.70
2.70
3.24
6.99
1.06
1.30
1.09
1.60
0.55
1.00
0.89
0.26
0.06
0.80
0.91
5.13
0.43
1.93
2.43
2.82
3.28
3.91
1.83
0.77
1.70
2.48
2.45
2.62
6.37
-------
*
Table 29 (continued)
26 - 2.5 Y 6/1 .020 0.62 13.45 12.83
27 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .010 0.31 4.02 3.71
28 - 5 Y 5/1 .016 0.50 6.72 6.22
29 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .010 0.31 4.56 4 25
30 No Sample *""
31 - 5 Y 5/1 .017 0.53 9.13 8.60
32 - 5 Y 5/1 .017 0.53 6.18 5.65
33 - 5 Y 5/1 .009 0.28 4.83 4 55
34 - 2.5 Y 5/2 .008 0.25 3.48 3*23
H - 2.5 Y 5/2 .004 0.12 5.10 4*98
36, - 2.5 Y 5/2 .005 0.16 4.56 4*40
37 - 2.5 Y 5/1 .014 0.44 4.97 4"53
38 - 2.5 Y 5/1 .012 0.38 6.45 6 07
39 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .018 0.56 10.75 10 19
40 - 5 Y 5/1 .020 0.62 9.67 o OS
41 - 5 Y 5/1 .021 0.66 7.53 6*87
42 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .020 0.62 12.23 1/61
43 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .030 0.94 9.13 R 19
44 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .022 0.69 18.28 17*50
45 - 5 Y 5/1 .029 0.91 16.79 15 88
46 No Sample D-eB
47 - 5 Y 5/1 .055 1.72 16.55 14 83
48 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .030 0.94 8.18 7 24
49 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .042 1.31 13.58 12'27
50 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .030 0.94 12.77 11 '*(
51 - 5 Y 4/1 .150 4.69 22.57 17 88
52 - 5 Y 5/1 .125 3.91 20.68 u' 77
53 - 5 Y 5/1 .020 2.81 22.03 TO ,o
54 - 5 Y 4/1 .070 2.19 18.55 16 35
" - 5Y4/1 .065 2.03 18.28 1625
56 5 Y 5.5/1 .055 1.72 7.53 5 81
57 - 5 Y 5.5/1 .039 1.22 10.21 g 99
58 - 5 Y 6/1 .036 1.12 12.37 !1 25
-------
Table 29 (continued)
59 - 5 Y 6/1 .029 0.91 9.94 9.03
60 5 Y 6/1 .027 0.84 9.13 8.29
61 - 5 Y 6/1 .028 0.88 9.26 8.38
62 5 Y 6/1 .029 0.91 8.45 7.54
63 - 5 Y 6/1 .032 1.00 12.50 11.50
64 - 5 Y 6/1 .028 0.88 8.99 8.11
59-60' 65 - 5 Y 4/1 .130 4.06 6.59 2.53
Top of coal 66A - 5 Y 3/1 .300 9.38 3.89 5.49
66B - 5 Y 3/1 .310 9.69 3.75 5.94
(•O
-------
County. Site MM is predominantly sandstone caprock overlying the
Sewell coal seam at elevations of about 4000 feet; and Sites Ma and
b are shale overlying the same coal seam a little distance away.
Boring NNb was about 100 feet upslope from NNa and provides a much
deeper section of overburden for evaluation. The thin, higher-sulfur
stratum appearing as NNa, 9 and NNb, 51-52 assure a reasonable lateral
correlation of the two boreholes. Inasmuch as primary emphasis in
this project has been oriented toward areas with more significant
revegetation problems, extensive sampling and overburden analyses have
not been pursued in Surface Mining Province 1. Even so, most of the
trends and principles developed through intensive studies of other
areas appear to apply to this region also.
IMPLICATIONS OF EVALUATION OF ACID-BASE ACCOUNT OF OVERBURDEN MATERIAL
In order to utilize the research information acquired during overburden
and minesoil investigations, we have applied results of certain measure-
ments to some practical situations. In cases where it is necessary
to identify toxic or potentially toxic materials in overburden of coal
or other resource prior to surface mining, we have accepted that a satis-
factory definition can be provided by three measurements and their
interpretation. These measurements, by methods previously described in
detail, are: (1) pH of the pulverized rock slurry in distilled water;
(2) total or pyritic sulphur; (3) "neutralization potential" or calcium
carbonate equivalent.
With the results of these tests at hand, toxic or potentially toxic
material is defined as any rock or earth material having a pH. of less
than 4.0 or a net potential deficiency of 5.0 tons of calcium carbonate
equivalent or more per 1000 tons of material, by the acid-base account-
ing method. The accounting includes maximum potential acidity pos-
sible from immediately titratable sources plus sulphur expressed
as sulphuric acid equivalent, and balances acidity against total
neutralization potential from alkaline carbonates, exchangeable bases,
weatherable silicates or other rock sources capable of neutralizing
strong acids as measured by the neutralization potential.
This definition will credit more acid potential to the sulphur than
is justified when part of the sulphur occurs in sulphate or organic
forms. However, with most rocks studied to date, except carbon-rich
rocks ("Carboliths") the error is insignificant. Moreover, as stated,
determination of pyritic sulphur may be substituted for total sulphur
if desired, but the determination is more complex and only in rare
cases will the classification of the rock as toxic or non-toxic be
changed by determining pyritic sulphur only.
128
-------
The choice of the deficiency of 5 tons of calcium carbonate
equivalent per 1000 tons of material as the division between toxic
and non-toxic material, obviously is arbitrary. However, when ap-
plied to the large number of samples studied, it corresponds rather
satisfactorily to other supporting laboratory information about these
samples as well as to extensive field experiences with minesoils
developing in the different rock types. If rock or soil samples
were defined to be toxic at much lower calcium carbonate equivalent
deficiencies than 5 tons per 1000 tons, we would be declaring many
of our natural soils to be toxic. On the other hand, with deficiencies
much greater than 5 tons per 1000 tons, pH values below 4.0 and toxic
concentrations of plant-available aluminum often develop rapidly
and are difficult to prevent with near surface applications of
reasonable amounts of pulverized limestone.
In considering these standards, as defined, it may be convenient
to recall that, chemically, one ton of calcium carbonate equivalent
corresponds with 2 milliequivalents per 100 grams of material, and
that 1000 tons is the theoretical weight of an acre plot-layer, as the
term is used by many agriculturalists.
In summary, we suggest that toxic or potentially toxic rock or soil,
as represented in surface mining of coal in the Appalachian coal
basins, may be defined by three relatively simple laboratory measure-
ments: (1) pH; (2) total or pyritic sulphur; and (3) neutraliza-
tion potential. Also, the methods of applying these measurements to
coal overburden materials have been described in detailed step-by-step
procedures. A suggested form for plotting these measurements in re-
lation to depth in a section of overburden is provided as Appendix G.
129
-------
SECTION VIII
CHEMISTRY AND MINERALOGY OF PROFILES
Average rock composition is not expected to apply to all situations,
but it may be helpful to keep in mind that sedimentary rocks, in
general, are known to contain higher neutralizing potentials than the
maximum acid potentials from pyritic sulfur (Clarke, and Washington,
1924). In fact, calcium alone in 253 composite sandstone samples
analyzed averaged 98 times the molar equivalence necessary to neutra-
lize all possible sulfuric acid that could form from the total sulfur
content measured. Moreover, with 78 shales, calcium averaged 6.8
times the amount required for neutrality; and with 345 limestones the
calcium averaged 1518 times the acid equivalence from sulphur.
Soiltest results for several overburden profiles are summarized in
Tables 30 through 47. Such data are useful when used with discretion
and especially when synthesized with acid-base accounts, indices of
physical weathering potentials, and rock types.
In some cases, such as Site AA (Table 30), the depth of weathering is
indicated clearly by the pH change from 3.8 for sample 23 to 7.5 for
sample 25 (two feet deeper than sample 23) and corresponding changes
of lime requirement from 6.75 to zero tons, and in both calcium and
magnesium from relatively low to very high levels.
A similar weathering break in pH and lime requirement occurs between
samples 10 and 12 at Site FF (Table 31). Distinctive changes in calcium,
magnesium and phosphorus occur in approximately the same depth zone.
Other examples of the same phenomenon include Sites HH, NN-b, PP
(very shallow depth) , and Site 0. The full significance of the weathered
zone was treated in some detail in early work concentrated on the
overburden of the Upper Freeport coal in Preston County (West Virginia
University, 1971a). In a case like Site PP the shallow depth of leaching
reflects the fine texture and the great excess of calcium carbonate in
the original, unweathered rock from which the soil has formed. So long
as carbonates are present the pH is buffered near neutrality or above
and many weathering processes are prevented or delayed.
130
-------
Table 30
Soiltest results for Upper Freeport coal overburden at Site AA.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Sample # pH
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
4.6
4.2
4.4
4.3
4.3
4.3
4.8
4.6
4.6
4.3
5.0
4.6
4.7
4.7
4.5
5.2
4.5
4.6
4.4
4.0
3.8
3.8
5.5
7.5
7.8
7.9
Tons
Lime Req.
8.25
5.25
3.75
8.25
6.75
9.75
2.25
4.50
3.75
7.50
1.50
3.75
1.50
1.50
2.25
0.75
3.00
3.00
4.50
6.75
9.00
6.75
0.75
0.00
0.00
0.00
'Phosphorus
80
47
77
67
72
56
58
54
45
47
50
54
40
40
24
37
37
48
65
47
62
159
192
107
58
47
1
Potassium
300
146
159
256
275
168
268
253
206
247
256
222
150
168
125
181
203
- 231
212
281
312
315
331
275
281
256
i
Calcium
1440
240
200
240
128
80
3760
40
80
80
4000+
80
120
120
120
3640
160
200
280
320
480
760
200
4000+
2000+
2640
Magnesium'
144
42
144
174
150
102
600+
96
114
150
196
120
90
90
90
522
186
246
216
222
336
444
24
600+
600+
438
-------
Table 30 (continued)
H
W
to
58-59'
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
59-64
64-67
7.9
7.9
7.6
7.9
8.0
8.0
7.8
7.9
7.9
7.7
7.8
7.9
7.9
8.1
8.0
8.0
8.2
8.2
8.2
8.3
7.8
7.9
7.9
7.8
7.7
7.7
7.8
7.8
7.9
7.6
6.3
4.2
coal 4.0
3.5
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
--
--
0.00
4.50
35
58
111
100
94
94
115
103
54
52
91
62
111
119
88
37
94
80?
100?
80
94
48
72
94
132?
159?
80
142
107
111
128
80
38?
167
247
295
347
321
290
287
347
381
296
265
295
256
321
293
268
250
284
244
259
262
272
256
253
265
289
262
222
287
284
284
256
228
63
247
4000+
3160
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
1800
2040
4000+
1360
4000+
160
1800
1640
120
200
1600
4000+
480
3040
600+
600+
600+
378
600+
600+
600+
522
462
600+
600+
600+
432
600+
582
600+
516
600+
540
492
516
540
552
360
540
150
540
480
132
90
180
600+
54
600+
-------
Table 31
Soiltest results for Upper Bakerstown coal overburden at Site FF.
per Thousand Tons of Material
U>
0-4"
4-16"
16-26"
26-36"
36-51"
51-66"
CD
J->
C
o
c
Sample # pH
A
B
B
C
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
,7
,2
,2
5
4.
4.
4.
4.
4.5
4.6
5.6
4.7
4.7
4.7
4.8
4.6
4.5
4.8
5.3
6.4
6.6
6.8
7.2
7.2
7.1
7.0
6.9
7.5
7.2
7.5
7.6
ions
Lime Req.
6.00
6.00
8.25
8.25
6.75
5.25
6.00
6.75
7.50
2.25
0.75
6.00
7.50
5.25
1.50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
rumma
1
Phosphorus
69
52
58
91
72
77
80
82
58
60
100
80
69
94
107
103
159
153
174
72
97
97
45
107
94
50
111
Potassium
265
194
222
309
234
241
244
290
253
222
237
275
275
306
296
296
324
312
315
187
156
175
137
253
228
250
337
Calcium
1920
520
360
280
240
280
280
560
480
360
400
720
960
1200
1360
1280
1720
1880
1840
4000+
3680
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
3649
Magnesium
216
78
126
204
174
168
198
318
252
186
180
378
600+
600+
600+
576
570
552
462
438
288
312
198
600+
600+
576
600+
-------
Table 3 1 (continued)
24 7.8 0 123 331 4000+ 600+
25 7.8 0 100 309 4000+ 600+
26 7.1 0 123 272 4000+ 600+
27 7.7 0 107 281 4000+ 600+
28 7.2 0 85 296 4000+ 600+
29 7.3 0 103 327 2120 450
30 7.2 0 97 341 1720 450
40-41.2' 31 6.5 0 667 256 1280 270
-------
Table 32
Soiltest results for Lower Bakerstown coal overburden at Site FF-b.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Ln
33.7-34.7'
34.7-35.8'
35.8-37.3'
37.3-
-41.5'
41.5-
-55.5'
55.5-56.3'
56.3-57.9'
57.9-58.31
58.3-60.4'
Sample #
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
£S_
6.6
6.3
6.4
7.8
8.0
7.7
7.8
7.7
3.9
6.5
5.6
Lime Reg .
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
Phosphorus
19
31
38
37
34
75?a
82?
91?
18
48
17
Potassium
56
78
109
300
268
284
334
405
44
253
41
Calcium
1520
2520
1920
4000+
4000+
4000+
3400
3280
360
480
360
Magnesium
42
54
144
396
324
270
258
426
30
48
12
uncertain results because of chemical interferences in test method.
-------
LO
0-3"
3-5"
5-8"
8-12"
12-18"
18-26"
26-46"
46-48"
4-5'
5-6'
6-7'
7-81
8-10'
10-12'
12-14'
14-16'
16-18'
18-20'
20-21'
21-22'
22-23'
Table 33
Soiltest results for Redstone coal overburden at Site HH.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Sample #
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
ions
pH Lime Req.
JT. —
4.4
4.0
4.0
4.0
4.4
4.3
4.6
4.7
4.8
5.0
5.1
7.0
7.4
4.7
4.7
5.1
5.5
7.0
6.9
7.0
7.7
7.4
7.7
7.8
7.8
7.8
7.9
4.50
6.75
7.50
6.00
6.00
5.25
9.00
6.75
5.25
3.00
2.25
0
0
4.50
3.75
2.25
1.50
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Phosphorus
65
47
48
45
58
48
82
159
294
308
200
174
137
80
159
216
142
97
88
115
45
246
75
42
45
56
52
ruuuu
1
Potassium
334
200
162
131
134
125
194
206
215
194
162
153
109
204
200
178
162
146
134
153
106
150
131
109
103
106
93
5
Calcium Magnesium'
2080
440
160
120
560
320
1240
2760
4000+
4000+
3800
4000+
4000+
3360
3320
4000+
4000+
3280
3280
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
288
84
42
36
336
234
582
600+
600+
600+
450
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
498
576
414
450
390
330
312
300
204
-------
Table 33 (continued)
U)
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
£>£•
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
7.8
7.3
7.3
6.8
7.8
7.8
7.7
7.7
7.7
7.6
7.8
7.7
7.7
7.8
7.7
7.7
7.5
7.6
7.3
7.4
.7.4
7.0
7.1
7.5
7.8
7.5
7.0
7.4
6.4
6.5
7.4
7.5
7.0
5.6
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
-
0
0
0
0
0
238
256
256
200
62
256
300
300
246
296
294
308
216
183
183
183
216
216
238
238
246
216
294
238
192
174
216
216
308
216?
183
174?
200?
294?
103
134
156
156
118
137
140
175
181
187
203
206
200
187
187
175
181
175
178
200
178
156
146
244
228
218
209
209
212
228
275
287
262
231
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
3920
3440
2720
3000
2720
3360
3360
3600
4000+
3680
4000+
4000+
4000+
3640
2960
3840
2880
2320
2800
2840
3200
2680
2720
150
360
462
528
390
510
600+
600+
594
564
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
480
378
528
600+
600+
492
372
-------
Table 33 (continued)
44 3.7 2.25 246 178 1840 288
45 4.3 0 128 100 920 132
46 5.1 0 137 112 920 150
47 4.2 0 119 96 760 108
48 2.5 8.25 159? 181 4000+ 600+
49 6.1 0 342? 272 4000+ 600+
50 6.3 0 308 262 4000+ 600+
51 7.4 0 159 297 4000+ 600+
oo
-------
Table 34
Sewell coal overburden at Site NN-b.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Sample # pH
to
VO
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.6
4.7
4.7
4.7
4.8
4.7
4.7
4.7
5.1
4.7
.0
.8
.6
.1
4.9
5.1
4.9
.0
,1
.6
.8
5.
5.
5.
5,
5,
5,
5,
5,
6.6
Tons
Lime Req .
9.00
9.00
4.50
5.25
5.25
4.50
3.00
2.25
2.25
3.00
2.25
0.75
3.00
0.75
-
0.75
0.75
0.75
1.50
2.25
2.25
1.50
0.75
-
0
I Pound s
Phosphorus
29
38
42
54
47
75
60
67
60
100
111
153
85
97
147
159
107
80
94
75
85
97
159
183
67
Potassium
231
287
287
359
327
327
321
321
306
312
324
306
341
306
275
315
324
296
344
350
321
337
224
312
337
Calcium
240
280
160
80
40
120
40
40
80
280
360
960
280
600
960
1320
800
720
960
600
560
720
920
1360
2160
Magnesium
168
258
144
102
90
156
72
96
84
120
264
342
240
534
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
516
600+
600+
600+
600+
-------
Table 34 (continued)
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
7.0
6.2
6.4
6.3
6.7
6.8
6.6
6.1
6.0
5.9
6.0
6.3
6.7
608
7.1
7.2
7.2
7.4
7.5
7.5
7.3
7.3
7.2
7.3
7.4
7.1
7.1
7.1
7.1
6.5
6.8
7.0
0
0.75
-
-
0
0
0
0.75
0.75
0.75
0.75
0.75
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
700?
238
200
238
200
294?
246
174
167
159
111
200
256
256
294
246?
148?
216?
183?
238?
183?
159?
200?
183?
238?
246?
238?
256?
238?
294?
238
294?
356
275
778
272
278
306
253
222
228
222
194
234
253
272
324
306
372
350
356
350
344
390
396
418
418
384
430
393
390
341
372
375
2280
1840
1880
1440
1600
1420
1760
1400
1280
1280
1160
1560
1760
1760
2160
2080
2240
2160
2120
2000
1800
1920
1960
2080
2040
1640
2280
1920
1680
2040
2160
2320
600+
600+
600+
600+
594
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
594
600+
582
600+
558
588
510
456
432
444
540
564
552
462
348
480
456
384
384
420
402
-------
Table 34 (continued)
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66a
66b
6.9
7.1
7.0
7.2
7.3
7.0
6.5
6.4
6.3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
-
216?
216?
238?
256?
192?
372
238
238
216
375
372
375
337
362
359
350
324
318
2560
2720
2840
2120
2440
2280
1640
1200
1120
408
396
372
288
354
372
396
330
330
-------
Table 35
Soiltest results for Elk Lick coal overburden at Site PP.
Depth Sample # pH
0-3"
0-1'
1-2 '
2-3'
3-4'
4-5 '
5-6'
6-7'
7-8'
8-9'
9-10'
10-11'
11-12'
12-13'
13-14'
14-15'
15-16'
16-17'
17-18'
18-18.5'
18.5-19'
19-20'
A hor
+20
+19
+18
+17
+16
+15
+14
+13
+12
+11
+10
+9
+8
+7
+6
+5
+4
+3
+2
+1
1
4.3
4.4
5.0
6.5
6.8
7.0
7.1
6.9
6.9
7.0
7.2
6.9
4.8
7.3
7.1
7.1
7.1
7.2
7.3
7.3
7.7
7.3
8.25
5.25
3.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
per Thousand Tons of Material
Lime Req .
8.25
5.25
3.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Phosphorus
40
35
45
82
102
107
123
107
103
119
246
300
54
111
153
147
147
142
132
142
38
111
Potassium
184
134
165
181
194
184
187
172
168
172
228
225
178
178
259
250
250
191
194
203
175
191
Calcium
4000+
440
1160
3160
3280
3760
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
1120
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
Magnesium
282
42
102
264
282
318
402
378
342
432
372
312
72
408
450
474
474
390
366
378
354
462
-------
Table 35 (continued)
20-21'
21-22'
22-23'
23-24'
24-25'
25-26'
26-27'
27-28'
28-29'
29-30'
30-31'
31-32'
32-33'
33-34'
34-35'
35-36'
36-37'
37-38'
38-39'
39-40'
40-41'
41-42'
42-43'
43-44'
44-45'
45-46'
46-47'
47-48'
48-49'
49-50'
50-51'
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
7.6
7.7
7.2
7.8
7.7
7.8
7.8
7.5
7.4
7.5
7.6
7.7
7.9
8.0
7.5
7.9
7.9
7.9
7.9
8.1
8.0
7.9
7.9
7.7
7.9
6.3
7.3
6.9
7.0
7.7
7.8
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
40
100
91
192
67
60
40
35
107
85
38
38
183
192
142
153
91
58
103
132
128
159
183
91
137
94
91
85
107
167
246
165
153
156
150
131
150
121
121
150
168
134
162
175
156
162
150
131
118
131
146
146
128
140
162
146
209
228
247
296
362
353
4000+
4000+
3520
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
3560
3160
3280
4000+
474
372
144
132
102
78
90
84
372
288
192
228
600+
600+
600+
390
198
312
600+
600+
600+
468
600+
600+
600+
600+
468
432
372
366
354
-------
Table 35 (continued)
51-52'
52-53'
53-54'
54-55'
55-56'
56-57'
57-58'
58-59'
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
7»7
7.8
7.6
7.7
- 7.8
7.8
7.5
7.1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
246
147
142
35
40
85
128
123
337
344
331
312
296
331
359
365
3360
2480
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
336
306
360
420
396
438
378
270
(Includes top 6" of coal)
-------
-p-
Ul
Table 36
Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site 0.
Depth Sample # pH
0-7"
0.5-2'
2-4'
4-8'
6-8'
8-10'
10-12'
12-14'
14-16'
16-18'
18-20'
20-22'
22-24'
24-26'
26-28'
28-30'
30-32'
32-34'
34-36'
36-37'
36-38'
38-39'
39-40'
0-7
7+28
34-36
30-34
30-32
28-30
26-28
24-27
22-24
20-22
18-20
16-18
14-16
12-14
10-12
8-10
6-8
4-6
2-4
1-2
0-2
1
2
4.4
4.1
4.3
4.2
4.4
4.6
4.5
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
4.5
4.7
4.8
4.8
4.5
4.4
4.7
4.6
4.5
4.7
4.3
4.8
6.00
6.00
5.25
4.50
6.00
3.00
2.25
2.25
2.25
1.50
1.50
4.50
2.25
3.00
5.25
2.25
4.50
0.75
2.25
3.75
1.50
3.00
1.50
per Thousand Tons of Material
Lime Req .
6.00
6.00
5.25
4.50
6.00
3.00
2.25
2.25
2.25
1.50
1.50
4.50
2.25
3.00
5.25
2.25
4.50
0.75
2.25
3.75
1.50
3.00
1.50
Phosphorus
38
43
42
35
54
48
48
45
34
45
38
23
22
23
32
42
48
40
43
26
38
23
27
Potassium
197
168
178
156
134
146
93
100
118
112
100
128
137
128
143
150
109
112
128
172
184
175
178
Calcium
400
160
160
240
360
280
80
80
40
40
240
560
640
680
960
560
120
400
360
640
480
360
480
Magnesium
48
36
114
228
258
186
60
42
42
36
114
234
234
216
300
168
42
138
168
300
222
222
306
-------
Table 36 (continued)
3 5.2 0.75
4 7.3 0
5 7.4 0
6 7.5 0
7 7.6 0
8 7.0 0
9 7.7 0
10 7.2 0
11 7.1 0
12 7.5 0
13 7.3 0
14 7.4 0
15 7.4 0
16 7.2 0
17 6.9 0
18 7.4 0
19 7.3 0
20 7.3 0
21 7.5 0
22 7.5 0
23 7.8 0
24 7.8 0
25 7.7 0
26 7.8 0
27 7.7 0
28
29 7.8 0
30 7.9 0
31 7.9 0
32 7.8 0
33 7.8 0
69
216
200
238
174
238
123
192
238
200
153
153
159
174
153
119
137
200
200
238
167
137
153
183
137
147
167
123
132
159
181
272
281
284
287
244
209
241
256
321
309
284
268
256
262
284
290
293
296
281
275
306
315
321
327
327
334
324
318
321
600
1640
1720
1680
2040
1400
2080
1200
1240
1760
1160
1320
1280
. 1160
1240
1320
1360
1640
1760
1680
1920
2200
2840
2880
2880
3080
3480
4000+
4000+
3200
306
480
504
498
576
426
600+
408
402
534
492
516
480
408
450
438
450
444
426
384
426
480
504
522
528
504
570
600+
600+
590
-------
Table 36 (continued)
79-80'
80-
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
-
6.2
6.4
4.5
5.7
5.6
6.5
3.0
-
0
0
0.75
0.75
0
0
5.25
294
123
308
115
119
100
31
315
387
265
247
250
331
191
2680
2040
2800
1840
1520
1600
1360
384
396
348
354
306
342
270
Lower Kittanning coal seam
-------
00
Table 37
Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B', la.
Sample #
BB
1C
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
4.5
4.3
3.8
4.0
4.2
4.7
3.9
4.4
3.7
4.6
4.7
4.9
5.4
4.8
4.7
5.0
4.2
3.3
5.4
5.0
4.7
4.3
4.6
4.8
4.7
4.4
4.4
1.50
0.75
0.75
--
0.75
--
0.75
--
0.75
--
--
--
--
--
--
--
0.75
2.25
--
--
0.75
0.75
--
--
--
--
0.75
per Thousand Tons of Material
Lme Req.
1.50
0.75
0.75
--
0.75
--
0.75
--
0.75
--
--
--
--
--
--
--
0.75
2.25
--
--
0.75
0.75
--
--
--
--
0.75
'Phosphorus
17
21
18
20
23
24
19
22
25
21
21
19
18
25
19
23
20
21
24
20
14
18
20
21
18
16
17
1
Potassium
96
72
69
60
78
35
84
44
125
78
38
38
56
47
56
81
66
168
96
47
63
90
41
47
56
41
44
i
Calcium
1480
1480
1000
2000
1800
2400
2880
640
760
960
2240
3080
520
3120
4000+
1040
2400
4000
360
3240
4000+
1040
800
4000+
1840
180
120
Magnesium1
474
186
174
150
240
186
246
54
54
48
54
114
30
78
372
78
372
246
168
366
372
78
54
340
60
6
6
-------
Table 37 (continued)
28 4.4 0.75 20 44 120 12
29 3.7 0.75 16 63 280 18
30C 3.0 5.25 25 53 440 60
31 2.8 4.50 23 159 640 252
32 2.6 7.50 31 168 800 372
33 2.7 5.25 31 194 760 360
34 2.8 6.75 45 253 840 348
35 2.9 7.50 56 256 720 336
36 2.9 8.25 132 306 1320 402
37 3.5 6.75 308? 384 3200 510
38 4.1 2.25 294 347 2400 390
39 3.8 3.00 256? 362 2280 402
40 5.3 1.50 192? 347 2360 492
H- 41 6.1 0.75 246? 321 2760 492
S 42 6.8 0 142? 300 3080 474
43 6.3 0 246? 315 1720 444
44 4.8 1.50 137 347 1240 420
45 4.9 0.75 97 337 1050 414
46 5.0 0.75 72 334 800 360
47 4.8 0.75 91 344 1000 390
48 4.9 0.75 256? 344 1720 354
49 5.0 1.50 300? 331 2360 348
50 5.1 0.75 159 347 1320 384
51 5.2 0.75 123 331 1080 360
52 5.0 1.50 115 347 1120 378
53 4.9 1.50 75 350 840 372
54 4.8 0.75 72 359 840 372
55 4.8 0.75 100 353 1000 372
56 4.4 1.50 77 302 840 366
57 4.5 1.50 75 359 760 336
58 4.5 1.50 72 281 560 234
59 4.6 0.75 80 318 640 276
60 4.6 1.50 77 278 560 228
-------
Table 37 (continued)
61
4.8
1.50
75
-78'
62 4.7
63 4.8
64 4.9
65 5.0
66 4.7
67 3.3
68 3.5
69 3.5
70 coal 3.9
71 coal 3.7
72 coal 3.6
73 coal 3.9
74 coal 4. 1
75 coal 3.5
76 3.2
77 2.8
78 3.2
0.75
0.75
0.75
0.75
1.50
4.50
1.50
1:50
0.75
1.50
1.50
0.00
0.00
1.50
5.25
6.75
3.75
82
80
80
65
60
56
119
94
69
128
65
94
45
43
65
37
40
293
300
296
309
300
278
247
187
206
165
225
197
134
72
187
184
153
290
640
680
640
640
640
520
640
640
600
400
760
480
640
560
720
720
720
720
276
288
276
288
300
234
288
162
162
108
186
138
96
42
150
222
300
294
-------
Table 38
Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B', Ib.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Sample # pH
27-28'
-43'
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
4.3
4.3
4.2
4.2
4.2
4.2
4.2
4.1
4.3
4.2
4.3
4.1
4.2
3.9
J. UUB — —
Lime Req.
2.25
2.25
2.25
3.00
3.00
3.00
2.25
2.25
1.50
2.25
2.25
3.00
3.75
5.25
1
Phosphorus
58
54
54
65
69
67
65
60
65
67
69
67
65
69
Potassium
137
140
131
109
181
278
309
287
278
306
300
234
347
315
Calcium
440
120
80
40
120
240
360
320
320
400
360
1520
720
600
Magnesium!
48
24
24
12
72
162
210
186
210
240
204
234
222
240
15 Lower Kittanning coal seam
-------
Table 39
Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B', Ic.
per Thousand Tons of Material
0-1'
to
Sample # pH
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
4.5
4.7
5.0
5.0
7.3
6.2
6.7
5.9
5.6
5.7
5.9
5.8
5.9
6.0
5.7
5.8
6.0
6.0
6.4
6.5
6.0
6.1
6.1
6.0
6.0
6.2
Lime Req .
1.50
0.75
0.75
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
ruuuus
1
'Phosphorus
42
37
37
37
52
45
42
47
37
37
37
34
31
42
29
32
48
52
48
47
47
54
54
60
69
72
69
77
Potassium
87
93
96
115
175
159
172
178
131
115
78
84
63
66
69
81
100
125
115
125
137
193
137
134
312
309
327
344
Calcium
160
80
80
80
1040
200
160
160
160
120
80
80
160
160
120
120
120
120
80
160
160
160
160
120
560
480
480
520
Magnesium'
0
0
0
6
252
102
108
108
60
30
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
204
198
198
228
-------
Table 39 (continued)
-42'
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
5.1
4.4
4.1
3.9
4.1
4.0
4.0
7.0
0
2.25
3.75
3.75
3.00
4.50
3.75
0
72 321
75 331
72 321
72 324
60 309
65 347
65 344
67 353
480
520
440
480
480
400
400
440
198
204
180
186
186
180
186
216
46'- Lower Kittanning coal seam
Ul
-------
Table 40
Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 17a.
per Thousand Tons of Material
50-52'
52-
Sample #
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
Coal
7.3
7.7
7.8
7.6
4.2
7.6
8.2
3.1
8.2
8.2
8.2
7.9
7.6
7.9
7.8
7.5
6.6
5.3
ons
le Req.
0
0
0
0
2.25
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
' Phosphorus
167
320
256
300
192
20
13
13
14
9
12
12
26
97
115
38
69
12
rounds
|
Potassium
191
262
334
337
281
250
156
93
121
87
138
200
250
334
337
265
253
25
Calcium
3280
4000+
4000+
4000+
3200
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
2920
3680
4000+
3120
1680
Magnesium!
408
486
600+
582
372
426
204
192
342
222
276
264
492
420
510
516
396
30
-------
Table 41
Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 17b.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Ul
01
Sample # pH
18-19'
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
6.3
6.4
6.4
6.4
6.4
6.2
5.8
6.1
6.1
5.9
5.9
5.5
5.4
5.6
5.9
7.0
Lime Req.
.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
0.75
0.75
-
-
0
1
Thosphorus
91
88
94
97
91
88
91
50
69
60
52
47
115
174
183
167
Potassium
156
121
128
137
143
140
162
112
131
121
121
191
200
203
203
93
Calcium
600
480
640
560
520
520
640
600
2360
1960
2920
2400
3120
3760
3320
2800
Magnesium'
168
144
180
168
162
168
198
168
258
228
324
438
600+
600+
492
510
-------
Table 42
Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site A-A', 17c.
per Thousand Tons of Material
40-41'
Sample #
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
JLUU5
pH Lime Req.
7.8
8.0
8.0
8.1
8.2
8.2
8.2
8.3
8.2
8.2
8.2
8.1
8.2
8.0
7.9
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
rounds
1
Phosphorus
17
21
62
20
14
12
12
12
8
10
7
6
7
7
5
Potassium
244
259
296
259
134
93
134
134
41
75
69
50
93
121
184
Calcium Magnesium
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
408
480
516
432
222
210
288
360
198
270
240
162
174
192
288
-------
Table 43
Soiltest results for Pittsburgh coal overburden at Site 00.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Ul
Sample # pH
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
7.3
7.4
7.4
7.5
7.9
8.1
8.1
8.1
8.0
7.4
8.2
8.2
8.1
8.4
8.2
8.1
8.1
8.1
8.2
8.3
8.2
8.1
Lime Req.
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Phosphorus
56
54
56
167
85
128
54
132
94
50
42
38
42
42
40
40
42
40
58
67 ,
58
47
r uuiiua
Potassium
234
275
275
331
290
306
281
312
284
287
290
303
350
344
344
344
315
318
312
303
300
296
Calcium
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
Magnesium
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
534
600+
600+
600+
534
564
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
-------
Table 43 (continued)
23 7.9 0
24 8.1 0
25 7.9 0
26 8.4 0
27 8.2 0
28 8.2 0
29 8.1 0
30 7.9 0
31 8.1 0
32 8.1 0
33
34 7.7 0
35 4.8 1.50
80
56
56
45
42
47
72
80
43
32
153
183
300
287
296
275
268
265
281
262
247
234
303
303
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
600+
Ui
oo
-------
Table 44
Soiltest results for Sewell coal overburden at Site MM.
per Thousand Tons of Material
2-3'
3-4'
4-5'
5-6'
6-7'
7-8'
8-9'
9-10'
10-11'
11-12'
12-13'
13-14'
14-15'
15-16'
16-17'
17-18'
18-19'
19-20'
20-21'
21-22'
22-23'
23-24'
24-25'
25-25.5'
Sample #
pH Lime Req.
5.0
5.9
5.7
5.4
5.2
5.1
5.1
5.5
5.0
5.6
5.7
5.0
5.3
4.8
5.4
5.2
5.1
5.3
5.1
5.1
5.6
5.3
5.4
5.2
0.75
0
0
0
0.75
0.75
0.75
0
0.75
0
0
0.75
0.75
3.00
0
0.75
1.50
0.75
0.75
2.25
0
0.75
0
0.75
1
Phosphorus
35
20
19
18
17
14
15
21
17
22
19
34
21
32
23
17
25
19
43
38
22
14
22
24
Potassium
44
81
69
84
100
87
84
75
78
87
78
93
84
112
81
84
93
87
106
121
63
81
106
109
Calcium
200
520
120
40
80
40
40
40
40
40
40
40
80
80
120
80
130
80
160
120
80
80
80
80
Magnesium'
30
24
18
12
18
12
12
12
12
18 .
18
12
12
24
30
18
24
24
42
30
18
24
24
18
-------
Table 45.
Soiltest results for Sewell coal overburden at Site NN-a.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Sample #
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
PH
7.1
7.2
7.4
7.1
7.1
7.0
7.0
7.1
7.0
7.0
7.0
7.1
6.5
6.6
6.9
6.9
7.2
7.1
7.2
7.0
5.2
lOIlb
Lime Req.
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
-
1 ruuuus
1
Phosphorus
174?
183?
142?
174?
200?
192?
200?
200
192
183
256
216
246?
294?
300?
300?
294?
294?
300?
246?
192
Potassium
259
303
287
296
290
337
353
259
353
309
327
327
324
359
341
319
350
306
293
272
284
Calcium
1200
1760
1520
1280
1160
1320
1320
1400
1240
1040
1280
1280
1640
1960
2080
2280
2920
3120
2720
1800
1040
Magnesium!
348
450
390
420
378
600+
600+
600+
468
324
384
390
408
486
414
444
414
366
348
294
366
-------
Table 46
Soiltest results for Upper Freeport and Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B1 , 16.
per Thousand Tons of Material
J. UHS '
Depth Sample # pH Lime Req . Phosphorus
18-23. 61
23.6-30
30-35
35-37,3
37.3-39
39-40
40-40.7
40.7-40.9
40.9-42.3"
42.3-45
45-46
57.1-62.2
75-80
80-82.9
82.9-85
85-90
90-91
91-96
96-97.5
97.5-98
98-99
99-100
100-101
101-101.6
101.6-104.5
1
2
3
4
7
8
5
9
10
11
6
Upper
12
13
14
15.
16
17
18
19
20
21
• 22
23
24
7.0
6.3
7.3
7.6
6.7
6.2
7.0
5.7
5.7
6.2
7.4
Freeport
7.8
7.6
7.5
7.4
7.4
7.3
7.7
7.4
7.4
7.4
7.6
3.4 5
7.4
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
coal seam
0
0
0
-
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
.25
0
62?
77?
111?
132?
Ill
88?
Ill
183?
200
94
128?
52
111?
167?
142?
153?
147?
256
246
294
192
183
159?
147
ruuiiua
Potassium
87
150
187
181
209
234
178
228
231
212
197
284
315
402
334
281
337
527
468
455
440
496
347
399
Calcium
680
720
520
4000+
960
640
640
1080
1000
840
4000+
4000+
4000+
1880
1480
2040
1760
2680
2320
2560
2960
3280
2080
2360
Magnesium
42
186
84
600+
288
168
144
114
228
192
600+
408
594
372
324
384
360
558
438
474
600+
600+
336
498
-------
Table 46 (continued)
104.5-106
106-107
107-108
108-109.5
109.5-111.5
111.5-113
113-115
115-117
117-120
120-122
122-125
125-130
130-135
135-140'
140-145
145-149.5
149.5-150
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
6.2
7.6
7.6
7.8
7.9
7.7
7.7
7.7
7.5
7.8
7.6
7.7
7.9
7.9
7.9
7.9
7.8
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
137
137
137
128
65
159?
200?
256?
200?
246?
142?
128?
142?
56
132?
159?
123?
418
433
462
440
375
437
399
396
368
415
321
275
334
250
287
303
312
2440
4000+
1560
4000+
4000+
2160
1840
2400
1640
2360
1400
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
1920
4000+
522
600+
354
426
348
306
240
246
204
282
204
600+
600+
240
312
174
474
-------
OJ
Table 47
Soiltest results for Lower Kittanning coal overburden at Site B-B1, 18.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Depth Sample
272-275.5'
277.5-278.5
278.5-280
280-281
281-282
282-
-296
296-298.5
298.5-299
302.5-303.5
319.5-321.5
322-323
323-326
326-326.5
326.5-
-333.5
334-336
336-339.5
339.5-
#
PH
Lime Req.
Lower Freeport coal
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
7.0
4.2
7.1
7.3
7.1
7.3
7.2
7.1
6.8
7.4
7.3
7.6
7.0
7.2
7.0
7.9
7o6
7.6
7.6
7.6
7.6
7.7
0.00
3.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
Phosphorus
seam
103?
56?
91?
115?
82?
107?
147
159?
159?
111?
52?
72?
52
80?
137?
48
119?
103?
132?
128?
128?
52
Potassium
408
359
362
496
433
496
499
496
440
143
156
218
312
225
433
321
384
390
412
396
446
359
Calcium
1880
1240
1920
2840
1680
1880
2040
2000
3040
3440
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
4000+
Magnesium
288
420
546
414
366
378
408
402
342
600+
180
600+
600+
600+
600+
462
600+
528
576
564
582
390
-------
Table 47 (continued)
-354
354-356
356-
359.5-
-360
366-
-372
376-
-379
379-380
380-
-385
385-386.5
386.5-
-390.5
390.5-
-399.5
400-
-406
24
25
26
27
28
29
Upper
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
7.6
7.7
7.6
7.4
7.4
7.2
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
Kittanning coal
7.3
7.4
7.0
7.4
7.5
7.7
7.5
7.6
7.5
7.4
7.4
7.4
7.4
7.2
7.3
7.2
7.3
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
O.QO
0.00
0.00
0.00
0,00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
O.QO
132
119
128
123
132
107
seam position
128
123
119;?
147?
115?
58?
137
132
153
153
132
142
137
159
216
238
216
458?
387?
359?
384?
387?
384?
(3")
437?
421?
412
381
306
241
412
402
331
437
446
443
418
446
499
509
462
3760
4000+
3000
4000+
4000+
3600
2680
2520
2240
2760
5760
9120
3080
2880
3160
2720
248Q
2280
2800
2440
2640
2880
3440
516
600+
462
540
600+
600+
564
600+
594
420
420
252
420
384
390
432
468
468
504
378
402
432
384
-------
Site B-B', la is a case where a near-surface sandstone has retained
significant percentages of sulphur and has failed to show typical
color changes and other evidences of near-surface weathering. Lab-
oratory measurements have indicated that this sandstone is toxic or
potentially toxic and should be buried under favorable mudrock oc-
curing deeper in the section.
PLANT NUTRIENT STATUS OF OVERBURDEN MATERIALS
Utilization of agricultural soil tests to evaluate the plant nutrient
status of minesoils and coal overburdens requires a somewhat different
interpretation of the analytical results than when normal agricultural
soils are considered.
Although nitrogen is rarely included in a soil test analysis, the
need for adding this element to disturbed land areas in universal
where revegetation is expected, and can be accomplished by periodic
nitrogen fertilization or inclusion of sufficient legumes.
Data from numerous samples analyzed by the West Virginia University
Soil Testing Laboratory indicated that the store of plant available
potassium in most unweathered overburden materials is adequate to
support vegetation except where intensive agricultural cropping will
be practiced. Petrographic examination of samples from various
Carboniferous sediments also confirmed the presence of significant
amounts of muscovite mica, which releases potassium slowly upon
weathering to hydrous mica or vermiculite.
Analyses for plant-available phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, and
trace elements can be affected by interactions between the samples
of overburden or minesoil and the chemical extractant used to evaluate
the nutrient availability. Materials containing as little as one to
two percent calcium carbonate can neutralize the acid contained in
most soil test extractants used in the eastern United States. The
neutralized extractant cannot be expected to remove the proportionate
amounts of nutrients that have been correlated with field responses.
Plant available phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium will be inaccurately
estimated with such an extractant.
In experiments with acid minesoils in eastern Kentucky it was noted
that plant responses to phosphorus agreed better with available
phosphorus as extracted by the Bray (acid ammonium fluoride) extraction
than by extraction with a dilute acid mixture of hydrochloric and
sulphuric acid (Berg, 1967). In West Virginia it has been noted,
repeatedly, that some acid minesoils and overburden samples extracted
with a dilute acid mixture give false colors or precipitates when the
165
-------
extracting solution is treated with vanadate to develop yellow colors
that indicate phosphorus concentrations. This experience and other
evidences of ferrous and ferric iron in acid soil solutions support
the conclusion that acid-soluble iron is responsible for inaccurate
indications of available phosphorus in some acid minesoils.
With near-neutral and alkaline minesoils it has been observed in
West Virginia that acid extractions sometimes give unreliable
indications of available phosphorus. Such unreliable results with
acid extractions from carbonate-rich minesoils are predictable,
theoretically, in some cases because excess carbonates are known to
neutralize the acid extractant, preventing normal acid solubilization,
whereas with neutral minesoils containing little or no carbonates,
the full strength acid will partially dissolve the apatite which often
occurs in variable rock types but in forms that are largely unavailable
to plants. Considering these and other difficulties of extracting
available phosphorus with standard acid soiltest methods commonly
used with undistrubed soils of humid regions, it was decided to intro-
duce the sodium bicarbonate extraction method which has been shown to
correlate well with plant response in western United States, both with
acid and with alkaline soils (Olsen, et al, 1954). Since minesoils
consist of variable, physically disrupted rock types, many of which
contain fresh rock minerals including carbonates and apatites, it is
logical to expect that the sodium bicarbonate method will be an im-
provement over previously used soiltests in this region.
Amounts of available phosphorus extracted from overburdens and mine-
soils by three chemical methods are not given in detail, but in
general, the amount extracted by the dilute acid mixtures has been
more erratic and higher than that extracted by sodium bicarbonate or
dilute acid plus ammonium fluoride, using minesoils with a pH range
from 3.0 to 7.9. Sodium bicarbonate phosphorus was, as expected,
higher for minesoils of pH above 6.5 than was the ammonium fluoride
extractable P. This is reasonable because the ammonium fluoride is
dissolved in acid and was designed and standardized with acid soils.
With acid minesoils, on the other hand, a satisfactory correlation
was obtained between sodium bicarbonate and ammonium fluoride methods
as shown in Table 48.
A correlation coefficient of 0.86, indicating that 74% of phosphorus
variation by either method is accounted for by the other method, is a
usable relationship, regardless of which method is considered as the
standard.
166
-------
too
80
60
40
20
40
80
120
160
200
Bray's P(ppm)
FIGURE 17. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SODIUM BICARBONATE EXTRACTABLE
'(OLSEN'S) AND ACID AMMONIUM FLUORIDE EXTRACTABLE
(BRAY'S) PHOSPHORUS IN OVERBURDEN SAMPLES HAVING A
1:1 pH OF LESS THAN 6.5.
167
-------
Table 48. CORRELATION COEFFICIENTS BETWEEN AMOUNTS OF AVAILABLE PHOS-
PHORUS EXTRACTED FROM OVERBURDEN MATERIALS BY THREE EXTRACTANTS (OLSEN
AND DEAN, 1965): (1) (NELSON, et al, 1953) 0(0.05 N HC1 + 0.025 N H2S04);
(2) (BRAY, et al, 1945) (0.025 N HC1 + 0.03 N_ NH4F) ; AND (.3) (OLSEN,
et al, 1954) (0.5 M NaHCOa AT pH 8.5)
pH of samples was less than 6.5 pH of samples was greater than 6.5
Nelson Bray Olsen Nelson Bray Ols en
Nelson - 0.48** 0.47** - 0.37* 0.21
Bray - - 0.86** - - 0.036
Published literature on the forms and relative availability of soil
phosphorus will not be reviewed in detail in this report. However,
there are fundamental reasons to believe that sodium bicarbonate is
at least as satisfactory an extractant as acid ammonium fluoride for
acid minesoils. For neutral or alkaline minesoils there should be
no serious doubts about validity of sodium bicarbonate extraction,
in contrast to acid extractions, which have been consistently un-
satisfactory with alkaline soils.
Improved testing of minesoils for available phosphorus promises im-
proved revegetation, reduced costs by avoiding phosphorus fertilization
which is not needed, and more accurate longtime maintenance treatments
on established vegetation devoted to variable uses.
Calcium and magnesium commonly are present in amounts sufficient for
plant survival in minesoil and overburden materials that have appre-
ciable base content as measured by the Neutralization Potential pro-
cedure. Acid materials, when limed sufficiently to insure successful
revegetation, will also then usually have sufficient amounts of calcium
and magnesium, particularly if dolomitic lime, where the ratio of
calcium to magnesium approaches 20 to 1 or higher, is used.
In general, sandstone derived minesoils and sandstone overburdens
can be expected to have the most intense nutrient deficiencies for
successful revegetation with forages. On the other hand, fine-grained
rock materials (mudrock, shale, limestone) present the most complex
situations for nutrient status evaluation.
Micronutrients can generally be considered to be sufficient in fine
grain sediments, however specific investigations must be made if a
trace element deficiency or toxicity is suspected in a particular
minesoil revegetation problem.
168
-------
Previous work at this laboratory (West Virginia University, 1971a)
established accuracy of the Woodruff buffer method of determining the
immediate lime requirement of acid minesoils when compared to the
direct calcium hydroxide titration method; however the modified
adjustment factor built into the Woodruff method in West Virginia
soiltests has been 1.5 times that used by Woodruff, and needs to be
reduced to provide a direct immediate lime requirement estimation for
minesoils. If the sample contains appreciable amounts of pyrite
(greater than 0.1%) that will produce acid upon breakdown of the rock
in minesoil, lime will be necessary to neutralize this acidity. If
measurement of Neutralization Potential shows the presence of insuf-
ficient natural bases, an estimate of lime requirement can be made by
the equation:
% Stotal X 15 = Tons of CaC03 needed/Thousand tons of material. (1)
The figure thus derived is about one^-half of that theoretically
required as calculated from pyritic sulphur content. On a practical
basis, five tons per acre is the highest rate normally recommended
for a surface application. If the lime is to be incorporated into
the minesoil to some depth, as much as ten tons per acre may be recom-
mended. If the*material under evaluation is from the weathered rock
zone, as indicated by a color chroma of 3 or greater, the above
formula can be reduced to:
% S-total X 10 = Tons Ca(X>3 needed/Thousand tons of material. (2)
These calculations are based on analyses of minesoils indicating that
on the average only one-third to one-half of the sulfur present is in
a form that is likely to produce acid.
When fresh unweathered overburden material is evaluated for lime
requirement some other properties of the material must be considered.
Rock that is artificially pulverized for laboratory processing may
not yet have released clay particles that will emerge upon weathering,
and thus it may have a negligible buffering capacity, leading to a
Woodruff Buffer lime requirement of zero. In this case the best
estimate of lime needed is provided as illustrated in Section VII,
Acid-Base Accounts, or on a practical basis the use of equation (1)
above.
PARTICLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION AND MINERALOGICAL PROPERTIES OF SELECTED
OVERBURDEN MATERIAL
It is well known that amount and type of clay minerals present in the
overburden material play an important role in determining the suitability
169
-------
of the material for physical stability and plant growth. It is also
known that a knowledge of the clay minerals plays an important role
in understanding weathering and soil forming processes. Therefore it
is important to have clay mineral analyses as an integral part of any
overburden characterization program.
Several locations included in a previous study (West Virginia University,
1971a) were further studied in this work. Samples taken from Sites Q,
HH, A-A' , 17, B-B', 1, 0, and NN (Appendix E, and Section IV) were
analyzed for particle size distribution and also for mineralogy which
is still progressing. Samples from location Q and HH have been pro-
cessed for mineralogical analyses, which were carried out on the less
than two micron clay fraction. Oriented mounts of the potassium and
magnesium saturated clay for X-ray diffraction analyses were made by
drying a clay suspension on to a glass slide. Magnesium saturated clay
was also glycerol saturated before preparation of the glass slides.
Diffraction analyses were made of the Mg-saturated samples after air
drying at room temperature and also after heating the glass slides at
110°C. The K-saturated samples were analyzed after air drying and
after heating to 110°C, 350°C, and 550°C. A semi-quantitative estimate
of the different clay minerals in a sample was made from relative peak
intensities. Diffractograms were made with a Siemens Crystalloflex
IV, X-ray diffractometer, using nickel-filtered copper radiation and
a scintillation detector.
Particle size distribution (Mechanical Analysis)
Table 49 shows results of mechanical analyses of coal overburden
material obtained from six locations. Samples from weathered zones
of locations Q, HH, A-A1 17, 0, and NN are somewhat similar so that
one can assume that methods to establish cover crops and prevent
erosion would be similar, strictly from a particle size distribution
point of view. All samples from these locations contain much greater
percentages of silt and clay compared to sand. The sand fraction
seldom exceeded 20% of the total. Presence of large amounts of clay
should provide high buffering capacity to control acid runoff and
prevent loss of applied nutrients due to leaching or surface runoff.
It is important to point out that the presence of large amounts of
silt in the overburden material may create soil erosion problems if
the spoil is not properly graded and planted to vegetation.
Samples taken from unweathered zones generally contain higher
amounts of sand and lesser amounts of clay. This indicates that most
of the clay minerals present in this overburden material are present
in the coarse fractions. Weathering of this material will result in
the production of a greater amount of clay.
170
-------
Table 49
Distribution of Sand, Silt and Clay in coal
overburden material from several locations
where clay mineralogy has been determined.
Sample Site
Q
Q
Q
HH
HH
HH
HH
HH
HH
A-A1, 17b
A-A1 , 17a
A-A1, 17a
B-B' , la
B-B' , la
0
0
0
0
0
0
NN-b
NN-b
NN-b
Depth
(ft)
10-13'
23-38'
40-52'
0.2-0.5'
2-4'
14-16'
27-28'
47-48 '
57-58'
12-13'
20-22'
40-42'
44-45'
66-67
0.5-2'
12-14'
34-36
45-46 '
59-60'
76-77'
8-9'
25r26'
47-48'
Coal
Bakers town
Bakerstown
Bakers town
Redstone
Redstone
Redstone
Redstone
Redstone
Redstone
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Lower Kit tanning
Lower Kit tanning
Lower Kittanning
Lower Kittanning
Lower Kittanning
Lower Kittanning
Lower Kittanning
Lower Kittanning
Sewell
Sewell
Sewell
Sand
a>
18.30
8.76
6.04
12.68
4.68
22.84
20.28
8.10
6.48
54.48
1.12
30.52
16.20
15.62
17.76
46.22
36.84
22.08
30.68
22.48
18.04
15.14
34.06
Silt
a>
29.40
64.14
59.14
65.90
49.70
51.64
61.06
70.26
70.44
35.38
76.60
45.90
60.04
61.16
52.22
31.38
39.94
57.94
52.86
45.68
53.58
58,28
48.56
Clay
(7°)
52.30
27.10
34.78
21.42
45.52
25.52
18.66
21.64
23.08
10.14
22.28
23.58
23.76
23.22
32.02
22.40
23.22
20.08
16.48
31.84
28.38
26.58
17.38
171
-------
Mineralogical analysis
The mineralogical data of samples taken from locations Q and HH are
given in Table 50. All samples from Site HE contained mixtures of
kaolinite, mica, vermiculite, and quartz. A sample taken from a depth
of 14 to 16 feet at Site Q also revealed the presence of calcite.
Kaolinite was the dominant clay mineral present at all depths. There
was a greater amount of vermiculite (non-collapsible) in the soil
zone (3" to 5" depth) and less mica. As the depth increased at this
location, the amount of mica also increased. Decrease in the amount
of vermiculite and increase in the amount of mica with depth indicates
that most of this vermiculite may have formed from alteration of mica
during weathering of rock material. Such a relationship was also re-
ported previously at a different location (West Virginia University,
1971a). Presence of calcite at lower depths (in the unweathered zone)
and its absence in the weathered zone further indicates acid weathering
of this rock material before its exposure to the atmosphere. The non-
collapsible nature of the vermiculite in the soil zone indicates that
in the upper zone where weathering is more intensive, aluminum may have
accumulated in inter-layer positions of this clay and as a result
prevented collapsing of vermiculite. These results indicate that
aluminum produced due to weathering may be readily fixed by vermiculite
and, as a result, toxic effects of this cation on plant roots may be
reduced under acid conditions.
At Site Q, mica is the principal clay mineral in the upper zone and
kaolinite is a dominant mineral in the deeper zone. Vermiculite was
present only in the sample taken from the 40 to 52 foot depth. Absence
of vermiculite in the upper zone and its presence at lower depth is
a good indication of the variability in the dominantly calcareous
mudrock. The presence of higher proportions of mica in this material
indicates a good potential to supply potassium to plants. Weathering
of mica will also result in the formation of vermiculite.
The mixed mineralogy of these materials should not pose any difficult
problems in establishment and growth of crops. Clay mineralogy of
Sites Q and HH is of special interest because the calcareous mudrocks
involved are being considered for use as topsoiling materials on
nearby acid sandstone minesoils and minewastes, and also because
rocks at HH are considered relatively sensitive to slippage on steep
slopes. It is apparent from the data that a tendency to slip downhill
on steep slopes does not require presence of montmorillonite. In
fact, the weak cohesiveness of kaolinite and disseminated calcite may
contribute to observed instability.
172
-------
TABLE 50
Clay mineral composition, from X-ray diffraction analysis, overburden material overlying the
Bakerstown (Site Q) and Redstone (Site HH) coal seams. Quartz: p = present, a = absent;
Layer Silicates, only: -- = absent, 1 = trace, 2 - low, 3 = medium, and 4 = high (up
to 50% of total fines); ** = Non-collapsible vermiculite (aluminum-interlayered)
Location Depth Kaolinite Mica Calcite Vermiculite Chlorite Monttnorillonite Quartz
Site Q
Site Q
Site Q
Site HH
Site HH
Site HH
10-13'
23-38'
40-52'
3-5"
2-4'
14-16'
2
2
4
4
4
4
4
3
2
1
2
2
2
2**
2
2
P
P
P
P
P
P
-------
SECTION IX
PETROGRAPHIC INVESTIGATION OF SANDSTONE WEATHERING
Observations of many sandstone overburdens and sandstone-derived mine-
soils made throughout our studies indicate that large differences in
friability, resistance to mechanical breakdown, and weathering in a
minesoil occur among the various sand members of the geologic section.
Recognition of overburden materials that are physically stable will
allow better construction of French drains and outslope foundations,
whereas readily weatherable rocks make better soils. Properties of
coal overburden and resulting minesoils that require greater attention
than in the past are rate of breakdown of large fragments and capacity
to retain water for plant growth and prevention of excess drainage or
runoff. Detailed investigation of some of these physical properties
of overburdens, principally sandstones, are reported in this Section.
WEATHERING OF SANDSTONE
In order to better understand the weathering of overburden sandstones,
exposures representing different lithologies and subjected to different
degrees of weathering were studied. These included natural outcrops
and old and recent exposures in road cuts and surface mines. Most of
the localities were in northern West Virginia but a few were in central
West Virginia and Ohio. Critical samples were thin-sectioned and
studied under the petrographic microscope. The clays in a few speci-
mens were X-rayed.
GENERAL PETROLOGY OF SANDSTONES
Sandstones are composed of a framework of grains with the space between
the grains being partly or completely filled with an argillaceous matrix
or a chemically precipitated cement. The framework grains range in
size from 1/16 mm to 2 mm. The grains are most commonly monocrystalline
with quartz predominating and smaller amounts of potash feldspar, sodic
174
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plagioclase, muscovite, biotite, chlorite and minor accessory minerals.
Some grains are polycrystalline representing fragments of such rocks as
quartzite, chert, shale, slate, phyllite and schist.
The framework grains are held together by a precipitated cement,
argillaceous matrix material or derormed ductile grains. The most
common precipitated cement in the Pennsylvanian sandstones is quartz.
The original quartz grains in the framework act as seed crystals on
which secondary quartz grows in a crystallographically continuous
manner. Generally the initiation of overgrowth is so perfect that
the boundary between the original grain and the overgrowth can not
be. determined. Well-formed crystal faces develop where quartz grows
freely into pores without obstructions. Less commonly calcite or
dolomite act as a cementing material in some pores (Figure 18).
Carbonates also replace such framework grains as feldspar and mica.
This carbonate does not increase the strength of the sandstone and
with later leaching might be a factor leading to the breakdown of
the rock.
The argillaceous matrix may originate in several ways. In part it
represents an original "mud" deposited with the sand-size grains.
Later recrystallization of this material would presumably lead to
interlocking of the argillaceous particles resulting in an increase
in the coherence of the matrix and hence a more strongly bonded
sandstone. Some pores may be filled with products resulting from
the alteration of unstable framework grains such as feldspar (Figure 19)
Part of the argillaceous material may be introduced after deposition.
The chief matrix minerals are illite, sericite, kaolinite and chlorite.
Some of these same minerals may occur as constitutents of framework
grains either as original components or as alteration products of
primary minerals such as feldspar or mica (Figure 20).
Compaction of sandstone reduces the pore space between the framework
grains and normally increases the strength of the sandstone. Where
an original argillaceous matrix is present, the compaction increases
the coherence of the matrix and hence its ability to hold the frame-
work grains together. Compaction causes ductile grains composed of
mica, shale, slate, phyllite or schist to deform in such a way that
they tend to wrap around rigid grains and are squeezed into pore spaces.
This deformation commonly results in the ductile grains acting as
"keystones" and playing an important role in increasing the coherence
of the sandstone. Deformed ductile grains which are composed of fine-
grained minerals tend to blend into the matrix so that they are diffi-
cult to distinguish from the original matrix in some cases. Not all
the argillaceous material is well compacted. Some of the kaolinite
developed in the pores after compaction and forms a loose mosaic which
is not effective in bonding grains together.
175
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Figure 18. Microphotograph showing carbonate acting as an effective
cementing agent in a calcareous sandstone. Q=Quartz,
C=Carbonate Buffalo Sandstone, Site 20. Crossed Nicols,
x55
Figure 19. Microphotograph showing kaolinite replacing feldspar.
Remnants of feldspar (arrows) are visible surrounded by
kaolinite with its characteristic mosaic appearance.
Q=Quartz, K=Kaolinite Buffalo Sandstone, Site 20.
Crossed Nicols, x 200
176
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Figure 20. Mlcrophotograph showing a mica flake flared (arrows) at one
end by invading argillaceous material. Iron oxide outlines
the original cleavage planes of the mica. Sandstone with
mica between grains and those with the mica concentrated
along bedding planes are generally weak and break down
readily. Q=Quartz, M=Mica, A=Argillaceous material (Black
areas are iron oxide stain)
Allegheny Formation, Site 14, Plain light, x 200
177
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Quartz grains undergo pressure solution where grains are stressed at
contacts as a result of the weight of overlying rocks. This may lead
to considerable compaction of the sandstones. Pressure solution pro-
duces highly sutured contacts between grains in some cases and this
interfingering increases the cohesiveness of the sandstone. Illite
or sericite between grains tends to accelerate the pressure solution
process. Stylolite seams are another manifestation of pressure
solution. If the seams are not highly sutured, they may act as zones
of weakness because of the additional argillaceous material that
accumulates as a residue of solution along the seams.
Unweathered sandstones differ considerably in coherence because of
these differences in original lithologies, cementation and compaction.
The degree of weakening from weathering depends on the original char-
acteristics of the sandstones and on the intensity of weathering. With
all these different factors, it is not surprising that the rate of
breakdown of sandstones is so variable.
PETROGRAPHY OF SANDSTONES AT SELECTED SITES
Pottsville Series
The Connoquenessing Sandstone was studied at the new roadcuts of
Corridor E near the entrance to Coopers Rock State Forest (Appendix F,
Sites 1, 2). The Connoquenessing at this locality is a fairly massive,
resistant, medium to coarse grained, clean, quartz sandstone with
widely spaced parallel joints. The sandstone is characteristically
gray on the surface but light brown from iron staining in the interior.
Well-developed secondary quartz faces tend to give the rock a spark-
ling appearance. Some of the float blocks which had been broken into
smaller boulders during road construction were much more friable than
the surrounding rock. Blasting may have effectively loosened the
grains leading to the observed weakness in the rock. It is possible
that these blocks had not been well indurated, but this seems unlikely
because friable sandstone is not present in the undisturbed rock. In
any case there are potential sources of at least small quantities of
sand forming material even in this area of relatively resistant rock.
Thin section study indicated a quartz content of 83 to 90 percent
(Table 50, # 1, 2, 3). Porosity ranged from 4 to 13 percent. Small
masses of argillaceous material were present in some interstices but
the quantity was so small ( < 5%) that it probably did not have a signi-
ficant effect in bonding the rock. Secondary quartz faces were abundant
where available pores were present to allow uninhibited growth. These
secondary growths also provided an interlocking of grains for added
178
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Table 51. COMPOSITION OF SANDSTONES INCLUDED IN PETROGRAPHIC STUDY OF SANDSTONE WEATHERING
Cpercent by volume including pore space)
H
^J
VO
Sample
Number
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
Quartz
83
84
90
83
82
89
84
84
87
87
87
89
58
60
71
68
72
84
94
88
74
64
64
68
58
58
Chert Feld-
Grains spar
tr
1
tr
1
tr
1 5
4
1 5
1
1 1
1
tr
3
1 1
1 1
8
Identi*-
Coarse fiable
Mica Kaolinite
tr
tr
tr
1
tr
tr
tr
tr
3
2
1
3
2
tr
tr
1
2
2
tr
tr
1
1
3
1
2
1
4
3
2
1
2
6
3
tr
tr
13
9
8
10
1
3
10
4
7
2
3
10
Other
Argilla-
ceous
Material
2a
1
2
1
1
1
tr
6
1
2
5
1
27
31
7
15
14
2
2
3
10
14
18
23
18
14
Carbo- Iron Miscel- Poro-
nate Pyrite Oxide laneous sity
1
1
tr 2
tr
tr
1
tr
3 21
1 1
1 1
1 tr tr
1 tr 1
1
tr tr
12 tr tr 1
tr
1 tr 1 2
15 tr tr 3
tr 3
13b
10
4
13
16
6
11
5
10
9
1
6
tr
1
2
2
2
6
5
8
1
tr
5
-------
rt
Includes fine-grained mica
''Porosity as observed in thin section. Locations where samples were obtained described in
appendix F, page 297.
Location and sites (detailed in appendix F) from which samples characterized in Table 50
were obtained.
Connoquenessing Sandstone
1-3. Corridor E near entrance to Coopers Rock State Forest. Sites 1 & 2.
4. Average of 2 samples. Deckers Creek Sand Co. quarry. Site 3.
5. From float at margin of quarry. Site 3.
6. Deckers Creek Sand Co. quarry at Site 4.
7. Deckers Creek Sand Co. quarry at Site 5.
,_, Homewood Sandstone
o 8. Quarry 0.5 ml. north of Burns Chapel. Site 8.
Sandstone in Pottsville Series
9,10. Valley Falls State Park. Site 9.
Guyandot Sandstone
11,12. Surface mine west of Lobelia. Sites 10 and 11.
Monitor Sandstone
13,14. Surface mine 2 mi. north of Summersville, Site 12.
13. Core of spheroid 14. Shell of spheroid.
Allegheny Sandstone
15. Road outcrop 10 mi. north of Summersville. Site 13.
16. Surface mine 3 mi. northeast of Brandonville. Site 14.
Buffalo Sandstone
17,18. Quarry across river from Uffington. Site 20.
-------
Mahoning Sandstone
19
20
21
22
Surface mine 2 mi. northeast of Tunnelton. Site 15.
Road outcrop 2.5 mi. northeast of Tunnelton. Site 16.
Road outcrop 0.2 mi. east of Irona. Site 17.
Surface mine 2 mi. west of Masontown. Site 18.
23. Road outcrop 2 mi. south of Quiet Dell School. Site 19.
Sandstone in Conemaugh Series
24,25. Roadcut on 1-79 north of Fairmont.
Site 22.
Sandstone in Monongahela Series
26. Surface mine 1 mi. northeast of Dexter City, Ohio.
Site 27.
oo
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strength. Minor pressure solution was also apparent as evidenced by
grain interpenetration and suturing. Iron oxide occurred in small
amounts and in some cases acted as an effective cementing agent.
Trace amounts of sphalerite occurred in one sample. The overall
strength of the sandstone in this area is probably a result of inter-
locking of secondary quartz growths and suturing with some local
cementation with iron oxide.
The Connoquenessing Sandstone was studied at the quarries of the
Deckers Creek Sand Company 2 1/2 miles west of Masontown (Sites 3-5).
Here the rock is a clean quartz sandstone exhibiting a sparkling
appearance from secondary quartz faces. Grain size ranges from
medium to coarse and color is generally white or light gray with
some shades of brown locally. The sandstone in the quarry south of
the road (Site 5) is moderately resistant and the quarry walls have
remained essentially intact. In the active quarry north of the
road (Site 3) much of the sandstone is highly friable and commonly
disintegrates along the quarry walls (Figure 21). Float blocks at
the margins of the quarry appeared to be much more resistant than
the typical quarry rock but actually disintegrated easily when
struck with a rock hammer. Apparently contaminants in the pores
near the surface and lichen-type growths aided in keeping the sur-
face of the boulders intact.
Thin section study of the sandstones indicated approximately 80-90
percent quartz, less than 5 percent argillaceous material and 6 to 16
percent porosity (Table 50, // 4-7). Secondary quartz growths exhibited
well-developed faces. The argillaceous material was mainly kaolinite
forming uncompacted mosaics in some of the interstices. Most of the
quartz grains in the friable sandstones are separated by minute cracks
but these are believed to have been induced in sample preparation for
thin-sectioning.
The Homewood Sandstone was examined in two nearby sand quarries of the
Deerfield Sand Company located on Route 119, 9 miles south of Morgantown
(Site 6). The rock is a friable, massive, clean, quartz sandstone.
Grain size ranges from medium to coarse and color is generally white
although some of the sand is iron stained. The exterior weathered
surface of this sandstone appears fairly resistant but in fact is quite
friable and granulates readily. Thin section study of the sandstone
revealed well-developed quartz faces. Relatively high porosity and
lack of significant pressure solution effects indicated that the sedi-
ments had never been greatly compacted. Although secondary quartz
growths are abundant, pores are only partially filled and grain inter-
locking has not reached the point of producing a coherent sandstone.
182
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Figure 21. Deckers Creek Quarry - Typical face of the active quarry
showing the extreme friability of the Connoquenessing
Sandstone at this location. The weakness of the rock is
evidenced by the general rounded appearance of the out-
crop and accumulation of loose sand at the base of the
quarry wall.
Connoquenessing Sandstone, Site 3
183
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The Homewood Sandstone at the abandoned quarry one mile ESE of
Summers School (Site 7) and the old Deckers Creek Sand Company quarry
one-half mile north of Browns Chapel (Site 8) is also relatively
friable. The sandstone forms fairly steep cliffs in some of the
natural outcrops in the area but the corners of exposures tend to
be rounded and the rock easily disintegrates with a hammer blow.
It appears that much of the Homewood in this area never was well-
lithified.
A sandstone in the Pottsville Series was studied at Valley Falls State
Park south of Grafton (Site 9). In contrast to the Pottsville in the
previously described sand quarries, this sandstone is very resistant.
It is massive, fairly clean and porous. Grain size ranges from medium
to very coarse and color is light to dark brown depending on the degree
of oxidation. These rocks also exhibit the sparkling appearance result-
ing from reflection from secondary quarty faces. Thin section study
of this sandstone revealed good porosity (10%) allowing uninhibited
secondary quartz growth into the pores. The sandstone contained 86 per-
cent quartz, less than 2 percent argillaceous material, 1 percent iron
oxide, and a trace of chert grains. A few grains of slate were present,
but constituted less than 1 percent of the rock (Table 50, j# 9, 10).
Apparently, the strength of this sandstone is a result of secondary
quartz growth causing grain interlocking and minor suturing from pressure
solution. Partial cementation by iron oxide may be a factor in the more
resistant samples. The weaker samples seem to show less grain inter-
locking than the more resistant samples.
The Guyandot Sandstone was studied at a surface mine 5 miles west of
Lobelia, Pocahontas Co. (Site 10). The sandstone overlies the Sewell
Coal and is gray, medium grained, massive and very resistant. Thin
section examination indicated a high quartz content with scattered
argillaceous grains and metamorphic rock fragments (Table 50, # 11).
Quartz was the main cementing agent with secondary growths filling pore
spaces. Pressure solution along with quartz cement was very significant
in effecting grain interlocking. This interlocking is apparently the
main reason for the resistance of the sandstone.
The Monitor Sandstone overlying the Peerless Coal (Campbell Creek) was
studied at a surface mine 2 miles north of Summersville on Route 19
(Site 12). Although the Monitor Sandstone is part of the Pottsville
Series, it is much more argillaceous than the members of the Pottsville
in northern West Virginia. The sandstone is massive, medium to coarse
grained with wide variation in resistance to breakdown. Spheroidal
weathering is particularly well developed in this area which accounts
for most of the variation in rock resistance. This type of weathering
is characterized by a spheroidal central core of resistant fresh rock
surrounded by one or more altered concentric shells (Figure 22). The
184
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Figure 22. Core of spherodially weathered sandstone protruding from a
surface mine highwall. The concentric outline of the highly
altered shells can be seen surrounding the resistant core.
The spheroidal weathering occurred before excavation but
many of the shells disintegrated after exposure.
Monitor Sandstone (overlying Peerless Coal), Site 12
185
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shells are generally a few centimeters thick but some are only a mili-
meter thick. Chemical alteration with expansion of the argillaceous
material is the most likely cause of the spheroidal development. Spher-
oids in sandstones seem to form best where the rock is argillaceous,
massive and vertically jointed such as is the case with the Monitor
Sandstone in this area. Alteration begins along joint faces and extends
to permeable bedding planes where water may move horizontally to the
next vertical joint. When a joint block has been completely encircled,
alteration may proceed along all faces of the block with the corners
being attacked on three sides. As chemical alteration proceeds inward,
concentric stresses are set up as a result of expanding argillaceous
material. The rock splits to form a concentric shell when sufficient
stress has built up to a point greater than the shearing strength of
the rock. Alteration continues toward the center forming other shells
until the complete spheroid has been altered. Some spheroids in the
Monitor Sandstone of the Summersville area have been completely altered
to the core whereas others have fresh gray cores surrounded by the less
resistent altered concentric shells. The highly altered sandstone is
so friable that it can easily be crumbled by hand.
Thin section study indicates that the sandstone is highly argillaceous
and somewhat feldspathic. The argillaceous material is mainly fine
micaceous material within grains of metamorphic rock such as slate and
schist. The feldspar has undergone partial solution and alteration
to kaolinite. The sandstone in some of the spheroidal cores has parti-
ally oxidized, iron-bearing carbonate which occurs in with the argil-
laceous material and feldspar. Some of the voids in the outer shell may
have resulted from the dissolution of the carbonate and some of the feld-
spar. Microscopic study of one of the cores and successive shells re-
vealed no obvious mineral change which would account for the expansion
of the outer shells (Table 50, # 13, 14). However, alteration of argil-
laceous material probably occurred but was not detectable under the
microscope. Preliminary X-ray examination indicates a possible increase
in the amount of vermiculite in the outer shells.
Allegheny Formation
A sandstone in the Allegheny Formation was studied at a road cut on
Route 19, 10 miles north of Summersville (Site 13). The sandstone is
massive, medium to coarse grained, friable and argillaceous with iron-
stained vertical joints. The extreme friability of the rock was indi-
cated by its flaky appearance and lack of coherance when attempts were
made to secure hand specimens. The outcrop exhibited a white appearance
mainly because of abundance of white argillaceous material. Where
joints dissected the sandstone, iron oxide was precipitated along the
faces and in some cases extended to a depth of one meter into the rock.
186
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The sandstone seemed to be more resistant along these faces apparently
as a result of the iron oxide acting as a partial cementing agent. Thin
section study indicated a high content of argillaceous material (Table 50,
# 15). The extreme friability of this sandstone probably is a result of
extensive alteration of the argillaceous material.
A thin resistant brown sandstone layer approximately two inches thick,
occurred within the friable white sandstone. This layer was similar
in lithology to the surrounding friable sandstone but apparently had
been effectively cemented by iron oxide. In thin section, the iron
oxide could be seen to completely surround most of the grains and to
permeate the argillaceous material.
Conemaugh Series
The Buffalo and Mahoning Sandstones are lithologically quite similar.
Excellent exposures of relatively fresh rock are to be found in the
abandoned quarries of the Buffalo Sandstone in the Morgantown area.
In addition to quartz and argillaceous material, the sandstone contains
small amounts of feldspar, calcite and pyrite (Table 50, #17, 18).
Concretions and lenses of calcareous material, in some cases 2 meters
across, occur locally. The calcite comprises 20 to 40 percent of these
masses having replaced the argillaceous material and part of the feld-
spar and quartz.
Variations in weathering of the Mahoning sandstone were studied south-
west of Kingwood. The Mahoning in this area varies from a friable to
a very resistant sandstone. Color ranges from light brown to dark brown
with some light gray sandstone.
One of the light gray sandstones was studied at a surface mine 2 miles
northeast of Tunnelton (Site 15). The sandstone is fairly massive, very
resistant and had a ringing sound when struck by a hammer. Thin section
study revealed a fine to medium grained, fairly clean, quartz sandstone
containing small patches of argillaceous material. It was composed of
approximately 94 percent quartz, 4 percent argillaceous material, and 0.5
percent iron oxide (Table 50, # 19). Pressure solution was evidenced by
suturing resulting from grain to grain interpenetration. The strength
of this rock is apparently the result of suturing from pressure solution
and secondary quartz growth resulting in firm grain interlocking.
The brown oxidized sandstones of the Mahoning varied considerably in
their resistance to breakdown. These sandstones were studied at a sur-
face mine 2 1/2 miles northeast of Tunnelton (Site 16) and at an
abandoned quarry and road cuts near Irona (Site 17). Thin section
study revealed a medium-to-coarse-grained sandstone varying from 70
187
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to 90 percent quartz, less than 1 percent coarse mica, 6 to 20 percent
argillaceous material and less than 6 percent porosity (Table 50,
# 20, 21). A moderate amount of pressure solution had occurred and
there was some evidence of secondary quartz growth. In samples where
iron oxide surrounded individual grains, the rock was fairly resistant.
In the weaker sandstones the iron oxide was more concentrated in
separate clots. Alteration of argillaceous material undoubtedly con-
tributed to the weakness of many of these rocks.
The Mahoning Sandstone was also studied at an abandoned surface mine
two miles west of Masontown (Site 18). The rocks range from resistant
to friable sandstones. The typical rock is a fairly massive, medium
grained, argillaceous, micaceous sandstone. Outcrop samples weathered
under oxidizing conditions exhibited a brown to pinkish color. Some
boulders which, were broken from the high wall had a protective coating
of iron oxide on one or more of its sides. These boulders had apparent-
ly been detached along joints where circulating waters deposited iron
oxide along the joint faces. Boulders exposed with the coating on top
remained intact whereas boulders of the same lithology with no iron
oxide coating broke down readily. Once this protective coating is
removed, breakdown proceeds normally. Many of the dark gray rocks have
micaceous partings and break down quite readily if left exposed with the
parting planes vertical. The pinkish brown rock exhibits variable re-
sistance. Some blocks of this sandstone are fairly resistant whereas
others completely disintegrate in a relatively short time. Differences
in extent of pre-excavation alteration probably account for these dif-
ferences in resistance.
Thin section study indicated that these sandstones are argillaceous and
of low porosity. Some of the argillaceous material is in grains of
metamorphic rock such as slate, phyllite and schist. As a result of
compaction these relatively ductile grains are molded around more rigid
grains and have been squeezed into some of the original interstitial
pores. Kaolinite is conspicuous in some of the sandstone both as a
pseudomorph after framework grains such as feldspar and as an intersti-
tial pore filling. The kaolinite is conspicuous in hand specimens as
white powdery clots. One sample contained moderate amounts of iron-
bearing carbonate and small amounts of pyrite (Table 50, # 22). The
carbonate was conspicuously stained from partial oxidation of iron
but the pyrite was relatively fresh. Voids at the margins of some
of the carbonate were a result of leaching.
Most of the variability in resistance of these rocks is probably due to
differences in degree of alteration of argillaceous material. Breakdown
of the rock with mica concentration along bedding planes is apparently
caused by expansion of the micaceous material as alteration proceeds
inward from the margins. The.micaceous layer may also have prevented
quartz from growing across the bedding planes and interlocking the beds.
188
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The most friable Mahoning sandstone studied is exposed 2 miles south of
the Quiet Dell School (Site 19). The sandstone in this area is argil-
laceous and reddish brown. Mica gives the rock a glistening appearance
from surface reflections from the mica flakes rather than from well-
developed quartz faces as is characteristic of many of the clean Potts-
ville sandstones. Thin section study revealed fine to medium grain size
with an abundance of mica flakes and argillaceous material. Mineral
composition was approximately 64 percent quartz, 2 percent coarse mica,
25 percent argillaceous material, 2 percent iron oxide and a porosity
of 8 percent (Table 50, # 23). In all sections studied, iron oxide was
present and undoubtedly imparted the conspicuous reddish brown color to
the sandstone. The iron oxide had surrounded most of the grains and
infiltrated much of the argillaceous material. The extreme friability
of this sandstone apparently resulted from a high degree of alteration
of the abundant argillaceous material. Some of the voids appear to be
the result of dissolution of carbonate and perhaps some feldspar.
Sandstones of the Conemaugh Series were studied along Interstate 79
between Fairmont and Morgantown. Most of the sandstones were relatively
fresh and resistant (Sites 21-25). However, at a road cut one half mile
north of the Pleasant Valley exit (Site 24) , one of the sandstone beds
had undergone spheroidal weathering before being exposed in the highway
construction. The shells were very friable and in some cases the
weakening from weathering extended through the cores.
At many of the road cuts blasting lead to disintegration of some beds
near blast holes whereas other beds along the same hole remained resis-
tant. In the road cut one mile north of the Downtown Fairmont exit
(Site 22) the sandstone was sampled to determine why different beds
responded differently to blasting. The sandstone beds were gray and
resistant outside of the blast zone (Table 50, # 24). However, near
the balst hole some beds were very friable. In thin section the friable
sample exhibited conspicuous cracks around many grains and some of the
grains themselves were fractured. This pervasive fracturing was the
cause of weakness leading to rapid disintegration. A thin bed of cal-
careous sandstone (Table 50, # 25) extending into the same blasted
zone showed no friable tendencies. No cracks were observed in thin
section indicating that the strong bonding from the carbonate cement
prevented separation of the grains. These samples show that blasting
will lead to disintegration of sandstones which have some potential
weakness but will cause only normal fragmentation of strong resistant
beds. ,
A Conemaugh sandstone was studied south of Grafton at the intersection
of Routes 119 and 250 where recent highway construction has resulted in
new exposures (Site 26). The sandstone is fairly massive, slightly
calcareous and medium grained. Chlorite imparts a greenish color to
189
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the sandstone. Spheroidal weathering is apparent not only in the older
outcrops but also in the newly exposed areas. These spheroids range in
size from approximately one-half to 2 meters in diameter. The cores are
greenish gray and slightly calcareous. The concentric shells "are light
to dark brown from oxidation of iron and are non-calcareous. The shells
do not granulate easily but they fragment into small blocks fairly readily.
Older spheroids which have been exposed along the road for many years are
dark brown and exhibit polygonal tension cracks on their surfaces ap-
parently from continual expansion of argillaceous material in the inner
layers. Iron oxide has been precipitated along the inner surfaces of
most of these older concentric shells.
Monongahela Series
Many of the sandstones overlying coal in eastern Ohio are especially
friable. One of the sandstones in the Monongahela Series was studied
at a surface mine one mile northeast of Dexter City, Ohio (Site 27).
The sandstone is light gray, moderately argillaceous and porous (Table 50,
# 26). The coherence of the sandstone shows considerable variation ap-
parently from differences in degree of original lithification as well as
in extent of alteration of argillaceous material which occurred before
removal of overburden. On a given spoil bank, some of the excavated
blocks of sandstone have completely disintegrated; whereas others are
still intact (Figure 23). All the blocks were subjected to the same
weathering conditions for the same length of time on the bank. These
variations in disintegration are a reflection of the differences in the
coherence of the sandstone which existed before excavation.
WEATHERING CHARACTERISTICS OF DIFFERENT SANDSTONE TYPES
The rate of breakdown of sandstones mainly depends on original lithology
and the extent and nature of weathering before excavation. In consider-
ing weathering behavior, the sandstones may be divided into 3 general
groups: Argillaceous Sandstones, Calcareous Sandstones, and Clean Sand-
stones.
Argillaceous Sands tones
Most of the argillaceous sandstones studied were originally well lithified.
Bonding by argillaceous material is the main factor in coherence. The
argillaceous material is chiefly illite, sericite, kaolinite and chlorite.
Some of this material was an original matrix which compacted and probably
recrystallized. Ductile grains of mica, shale, slate, phyllite and schist
which have been squeezed into pores aid in binding the other framework
190
-------
Figure 23. Sandstone boulders on an old spoil bank exhibiting variation
in resistance to weathering. Many of the weaker sandstones
granulate readily whereas those which are more resistant
remain fairly angular.
Sandstone in Monongahela Series, Site 27
191
-------
grains together. Quartz and calcite cement normally play a minor role
in the bonding of these rocks. Locally sutured contacts resulting from
pressure solution tend to increase the coherence of the sandstone.
The unaltered argillaceous sandstones are generally slow to weather.
This is shown by the durability of rock in old stone buildings and the
presently observed resistance of the sandstone in many old road cuts.
However, prolonged alteration before excavation commonly results in a
very friable rock. The alteration is basically a weathering phenomenon
but extends to a depth of 8 meters in some places. The alteration may
occur under oxidizing conditions producing shades of brown or under
reducing conditions leaving a gray sandstone which on casual inspection
resembles a "fresh" unaltered sandstone. Thus the argillaceous sand-
stones vary considerably in their rate of breakdown ranging from highly
resistant to very friable depending mainly on the extent of pre-excava-
tion alteration.
Special problems are encountered in the study of highly friable rocks.
Sampling is difficult because the rock is so fragile that it crumbles
easily. Although the specimens were thoroughly impregnated before thin-
sectioning, some of them showed cracks between grains that appeared to
have been recently induced (Figure 24). Natural fractures commonly
have iron oxide staining but the general cracks in the friable sand-
stones are free of impurities. Apparently the specimens were so weak
that jarring during collecting and preparing for impregnating induced
the cracks. Porosity due to the opening up of the cracks normally
amounted to 2 or 3 percent and was not included in the figures for
porosity in Table 50.
The petrographic differences between the resistant rock and the altered
friable rock are very subtle. In thin section, resistant rock and alter-
ed rock from the same bed show no obvious differences in variety of
minerals or relative abundances. The altered rock is more commonly
stained brown by oxidation of iron-bearing minerals but the oxidation in .
itself did not necessarily have a weakening effect. In fact, some of
the iron oxide acted as a binder and produced a fairly resistant rock.
Some of the argillaceous sandstones originally contained small amounts
of carbonate which was leached on alteration. However, the carbonate •
content of most of these rocks was so low that its removal was not a v
significant factor in the breakdown of the rock.
A subtle change in the argillaceous material must be the cause of the
weakness in these sandstones. Some sandstones even with "non-expandable"
clay minerals undergo expansion and contraction with wetting and drying
(Roper and others, 1964). These volume changes occurring over long
periods of time might have been a factor in weakening the bonds in the
Pennsylvanian sandstones. Preliminary X-ray work has indicated that
192
-------
Figure 24. Microphotograph showing minute crack (arrows) between grains.
Outline of individual grains adjacent to cracks seem to match,
indicating that the grains had at one time been in contact.
These cracks are limited to the friable sandstone and were
apparently induced in preparing the sample for thin section-
ing. Q=Quartz, P=Pore Space (Black Material is iron oxide)
Connoquenessing Sandstone, Site 5. Plain light, x 70
193
-------
vermiculite may have developed to a greater extent in the more friable
rocks. If new clay minerals are forming, they might act as poorer
bonding agents than the original argillaceous material which had become
compacted. Furthermore, expansion attending development of late clay
minerals might have had a disruptive effect. More quantitative studies
on the proportions of the various clay minerals might lead to a better
understanding of the factors causing the breakdown of argillaceous rocks.
In general, the higher the argillaceous content, the more likely the
rock is to be friable on alteration. However, moderate amounts of
argillaceous material critically distributed between framework grains
may lead to a very friable rock. For instance, small amounts of clay
rimming grains may alter and lead to complete breakdown of the sand-
stone. Even framework grains of quartzite with small amounts of mica
are weak in some sandstones, apparently from alteration of the micaeous
material.
The altered argillaceous sandstones exhibit various degrees of friability
at the time of excavation with some coherent enough to yield boulders.
However, when these boulders are left on the surface they completely
disintegrate in a few years. Some of the boulders are laced with small
cracks forming polygonal patterns which presumably are the result of
shrinkage. Apparently wetting and drying of the altered argillaceous
material causes expansion and concentration which leads to the breakdown
of these sandstone boulders.
Some sandstones undergo spheroidal weathering in which onion-like shells
form on the outside while the interior core remains intact. The units
range from half a meter to 4 meters across. Spheroidal weathering best
develops in argillaceous sandstones which are vertically jointed and
free of closely spaced horizontal partings. Waters circulating along
the joints and bedding planes apparently promoted alteration of the
sandstone. Expansion attending this alteration causes shells to split
away from the less altered core portion. Alteration was then probably
facilitated by the greater circulation along the openings between shells.
The component which expanded was presumably the argillaceous material.
In the samples studied, alteration of feldspar was not a factor because
the feldspar in the outer shells had not undergone any more change than
that in the core. The shells in some rocks are very weak and granulate
readily; whereas other rocks have stronger shells which fragment into
blocks.
Spheroidal weathering is particularly well-developed in the sandstones
in the Summersville area of West Virginia and commonly extends to a
depth of 8 meters below the surface. Some of the outer shells are so
highly altered that they completely disintegrate on excavation. Inner
shells are stronger but fragment into blocks which disintegrate fairly
194
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readily. More advanced weathering nearer the surface altered even the
inner cores in some places so that the complete rock crumbles readily.
The areas of spheroidally weathered sandstone are potential sources of
considerable sand for soil with proper reclamation planning.
Argillaceous sandstone with closely spaced micaceous layers along bedding
planes weather rapidly. There are two main reasons for the breakdown.
The layer of argillaceous material effectively prevents quartz from
growing.across the bedding planes; thus strong interlocking between
the beds does not occur. Furthermore, expansion of argillaceous material
along the bedding planes causes a splitting into thin sheets which then
readily disintegrate. Alteration proceeds inward from the margins so
that there is a strong wedging effect as the outer portions expand.
Blocks which are situated with the bedding vertical deteriorate most
rapidly. This type differs from most other argillaceous sandstones in
that it will break down readily without previous alteration before ex-
cavation. Of course, disintegration is even more rapid if some pre-
excavation alteration has occurred.
Calcareous Sandstone
A sandstone cemented with carbonate will breakdown rapidly as the
carbonate is dissolved under weathering conditions. If the carbonate
forms up to about 20 percent of the framework of a quartz cemented
sandstone, voids will develop on weathering, but the rock normally will
remain intact. In very highly calcareous sandstones, waters effecting
weathering become readily neutralized so that these sandstones do not
breakdown as rapidly as some of the less calcareous types.
Clean Sandstones
The clean sandstones are composed mainly of monocrystalline quartz with
some grains of chert and quartzite. Feldspar, mica and grains of argil-
laceous rocks are scarce. An original argillaceous matrix is lacking.
Uncompacted kaolinite occurs in some pores and probably is of post-
deposition origin.
Even in clean quartz sandstones there is great variation in bonding;
yet the factors controlling these variations are commonly difficult to
ascertain. It is apparent that a sandstone with practically no cement
will be very weak and one which is completely cemented under favorable
conditions with elimination of all porosity will be very resistant to
breakdown. Some of the sandstones of Pennsylvanian age fall into these
categories and their behavior under weathering conditions can be pre-
dicted with certainty. However, many of the clean sandstones fall between
195
-------
these two categories and the reasons for differences in rate of break-
down are not readily apparent. One might expect friability to increase
with porosity but the relationship is not simple. Some low porosity
sands are friable whereas others with considerable porosity are strong.
Low porosity in friable sandstones might have resulted from compaction
facilitated by pressure solution without development of quartz cement.
If deep suturing did not occur, grains would separate quite readily.
On the other hand, quartz cement in the form of overgrowths could lead
to an interlocking of grains which would resist separation even where
some porosity remains (Figure 25). It is possible that later pressure
solution might destroy some of the interlocking thus leading to a
friable sand in spite of the quartz cement.
Some workers believe that the friability of pure quartz sandstone is
due to a weakening of the rock through solution of quartz. For example,
Fettke (1918) in his classic study of the Oriskany glass sands, empha-
sized the solution of quartz in promoting friability. However, careful
microscopic study shows no evidence that quartz has dissolved. Quartz
faces sparkle and lack any traces of frosting or etching. Some of the
faces are minute facets and even these have sharp edges. The faces are
best developed in pores and along joints where they are most exposed to
circulating waters. When cracks are seen between grains in thin sections,
it is apparent that they have mechanically separated for the sides are
generally irregular; yet it is clear that the two sides would mesh to-
gether perfectly. For every projection on one side, there is a corres-
ponding re-entrant on the other side.
It appears that the tightness of the bonding at time of excavation will
determine the rate of breakdown of the clean sandstones rather than
chemical weathering. Although some of the weakly bonded sandstones
appear superficially to be similar to resistant sandstones, they break
down quite easily with relatively mild blows with a geologic hammer.
The nature of the outcrop also furnishes an important clue as to the
resistance of the sandstone. The poorly bonded types have rounded edges
rather than the angular shapes of the resistant sandstones. The erroneous
conclusion is easily drawn that a sandstone found in large boulders is
necessarily resistant. Some blocks of the Pottsville sandstone are at
least as large as small houses; yet may be composed of relatively
weak sandstone. Joints in the Pottsville are commonly widely spaced
so that huge boulders develop in the normal processes of mass-wasting.
Even with reduction in size through disintegration at the margins, these
boulders will be of above average size for a long time.
Rounded surfaces near the base of a cliff or along some joints are not
consistently an indication of rock weakness. The rounding may be a re-
sult of spalling from efflorescence. The efflorescence is greatest on
surfaces sheltered from heavy rainfall and where sulphate bearing waters
196
-------
Figure 25. Microphotograph showing grain interlocking, caused by growth
of secondary quartz. Grain interlocking in the clean quartz
sandstones is apparently the main factor controlling the
strength of the rock.
Q=Quartz Homewood Sandstone, Site 6. Corssed Nicols, x 200
197
-------
are flowing toward the surface. Commonly the effects of efflorescence
are greatest in the weak sandstones; however, in some sandstones the
friability is limited to the areas of efflorescences and the remainder
of the rock is very durable.
APPLICATIONS
A knowledge of the weathering characteristics of sandstone is of
practical value in making the best use of excavated material. Moder-
ately calcareous sandstones are hard at the time of excavation but
fragments will break down relatively rapidly where left near the sur-
face so that circulating waters are able to remove the carbonate.
Sandstones with micaceous partings may also be hard at the time of
excavation but will disintegrate readily near the surface.
Most of the argillaceous sandstones that break down readily are tan
or brown for the obvious reason that they have been oxidized during
weathering near the surface. The argillaceous sandstones that have
altered under reducing conditions are deceiving in that they are gray
and by casual inspection resemble fresh rock which would be resistant
to breakdown. However, some of these sandstones are among the fastest
to disintegrate. They usually can be recognized by the presence of soft
clay in the interstices and a noticeable lack of brittleness when struck
by a hammer. Generally the most altered argillaceous sandstones are
near the original land surface where they have been permeated by more
reactive waters. However, some beds at moderate depths are more friable
than some of the overlying beds because the deeper beds happened to be
more susceptible to alteration on account of composition or permeability.
For this reason, a possible source of friable sand at intermediate
depth should not necessarily be ruled out simply because a shallow
resistant bed has been encountered.
The altered argillaceous sandstones are particularly useful where
additional sand would be beneficial in the soil. In spheroidally
weathered sandstone, both resistant and friable sandstone is available.
The material in the outer shells is weak and is a potential source of
sand size material. The hard cores are resistant to disintegration
and could be utilized as fill where stable conditions are required.
In the clean quartz sandstones the degree of friability is,extremely
variable because of differences in bonding. However, these variations
in strength are ordinarily apparent at the time of excavation. The
weakly bonded types which will disintegrate readily crumble with light
hammer blows even in fresh appearing specimens. On the other hand, the
clean sandstones which are strong when excavated will remain essentially
intact in spite of severe weathering conditions.
198
-------
Some sandstones are greatly weakened by shock near blast holes. Part-
ings occur along concentric cylinders approximately parallel to the blast
holes. In some cases the shattered zone is as much as one meter in
diameter. Weathering is greatly facilitated by the presence of the part-
ings and disintegration is relatively rapid. The strongest sandstones
are not shattered by blasting but sandstones which show only slight
signs of weakness may become vary friable around the blast hole. Out-
side of the blast zone the sandstone is coherent and weathers very slow-
ly. Blasting techniques probably could be adjusted to increase the
amount of disintegrated material where additional sand in the soil would
be beneficial. On the other hand, by employing procedures to minimize
shattering, a greater supply of strong aggregate could be obtained where
stable blocks, riprap, etc., is desired.
It is not possible to characterize an entire sandstone body as to its
weathering behavior because of variations in lithology and differences
in extent of alteration before excavation. However, with careful exam-
ination of natural outcrops in a limited area one can predict at least
in a general way, what the weathering characteristics of the sandstone
will be in that area. If exposures are poor, it might not be possible
to make a meaningful evaluation until the rock is cored or excavation is
initiated. With these preliminary studies, better planning for excavation
and reclamation should be realized.
199
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SECTION X
LABORATORY WEATHERING STUDIES
SIMULATED CHEMICAL WEATHERING WITH INTENSE AERATION
This part of the project was a modified continuation of studies
initiated under EPA Project 14010 EJE, Mine Spoil Potential for Water
Quality and Controlled Erosion (West Virginia University, 1971a).
Selected rock chip samples, most of which had been previously ground
to pass a 2mm. sieve, were placed in a 4x12x6 inch plastic container
fitted with plastic lids. Each box had two openings constructed from
1/4" o.d. plastic tubing, one opening for air inlet and one for air
and leachate exit. Moist air (produced by bubbling air through water)
passed through each box for 31/2 days and was followed by dry air for
3 days. One half-day was used to leach the boxes and analyze the
leachate. One kind of flyash (0.277 CaCOg equivalent) or pure CaCO^
powder was added to selected samples as shown in Table 53. The second
figure in the "Lime added", columns in Table 53 includes lime added to
samples in Boxes B and H after 7 weeks. All boxes were inoculated
with acid mine water from a deep mine to provide the essential micro-
organisms for reduced sulfur and iron oxidation. Two samples, A-A1,
14b-7NS, (box 9) and Site HH, 24-NS., (box 2), are identical to samples
A-A', 14b-7, (box 1) and Site HH, 24, (box 12), except that samples were
not ground to pass a 2 mm. sieve; they represent "raw" rock chips as
collected from the field.
Reaction products were periodically removed by adding 100 ml. of dis-
tilled, deionized water to each box, allowing contact with the sample
for approximately ten minutes, and decanting into a centrifuge tube
through the exit tube in the box. The leachate was then centrifuged
to remove any "fines" and the volume of clear supernatant measured
with a 100 ml. graduate cylinder. The centrifuged "fines" were dried
for 2 days at 40°C and returned to the appropriate box. The volume
of the recovered leachate was recorded and the resistivity was deter-
mined using an Industrial Instruments Model RC-1682 Wheatstone bridge
and electrode with a cell constant of 0.01. Sulfate was determined
using a Hach Portable Engineer's Laboratory and Hach reagent
200
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Table 52
Simulated weathering of selected rock chip
samples for a thirty-two week period.
CaC03 Equivalent % of Initial Total
Initial % Initial (Initial) CaC03 Equivalent
Sample Box // Total S (%) Total S "Weathered" Tons/Thousand Tons "Weathered"
to Sulphates
A-A1,15-11 10 .310 8.74 2.11 11.12
A-A',14a-ll 8 .260 10.13 7.68 8.19
Site HH-24-NS 2 .295 17.63 9.52 11.06
Site HH-24 12 .295 12.52 9.52 8.59
A-A',15-10 3 .290 4.08 (14 weeks) 19.48 2.86
A-A',14a-23 11 .275 3.31 <14 weeks) 40.81 1.48
A-A',15-15 4 .305 3.07 (14 weeks) 434.39 0.17
A-A',15-23 6 1.340 5.72 4.32 6.17
A-A',15-3 7 .545 3.87 1.73 6.13
A-A',14b-7NS 9 .805 3.53 10.85 3.81
A-A',14b-7 1 .805 3.63 10.85 3.86
A-A',14b-7 5 .800 1.70 (14 weeks) 80.69 0.83
-------
Table 53
Simulated weathering of selected minewaste
and minesoil for an eleven week period.
to
o
NJ
Sample Box # Total S (%)
Mine Waste A
(Composite of B
#'s 7, 9, C
and 10, D
Section XI) E
Flyash F
(Albright-3)
02
02
02
02
1.02
0.06
Sandstone
(Sewickley)
v
Mine Waste
#13
(Section XI)
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
0
P
12.70
12.70
12.70
12.70
12.70
12.70
12.70
12.70
2.00
2.00
% Initial
Total S "Weathered"
to Sulphates"
13.76
11.34
9.27
5.00
13.38
42.26
2-
2,
2.
1.
.88
.70
.50
,72
0.78
3.19
2.57
2.78
3.83
3.31
CaC03 Equivalent
Initial & Amendments
Tons/Thousand Tons
- 5.01
- 3.01 (4.99)
- 1.01
2.99
- 4.73
2.77
-12.30
-10.30 (5.70)
- 8.30 ,,
- 4.30
3.70
-12.30
- 8.30
-12.02
9.01
9.01
Lime added
Tons/Thousand Tons
0
2 (48 later)
4
8
0.28 (100T flyash)
0
0
2 (+16 later)
4
8
16
0
4
0.28 (100T flyash)
0
0
-------
Sulfa-Ver III. The pH was determined by glass electrode and a Corning
Model 12 pH meter. If the pH of the leachate was below 7.0, the sample
was titrated to pH 7.0 (glass electrode) using standardized HC1.
For the data summary in Tables 52 and 53 the meq of acidity and mg of
sulfur from the acid mine water added to each box was previously subtrac-
ted. The assumption was made that any sulfate present was in the form of
, providing the basis for estimating % CaCO^ equivalent "weathered".
Boxes 1 and 12 (Table 52) all contained sandstone or shale samples with
inherent CaC03 equivalents which ranged from 1.73 to 434.39 tons/thousand
tons of material. After 14 weeks, boxes 3, 4, 5, and 11 were terminated
because carbonates were dominant over potential acidity and sulfate for-
mation was uniformly slow, as illustrated in Figure 26, which is for box
#3. Boxes 4, 5, and 11 produced similar trends and are not shown.
Trends for boxes 1, 6, and 10 are shown in Figures 27, 28, and 29. Boxes
2, 7, 8, 9, and 12 showed similar trends and are not presented. With
boxes 1, 6, and 10, the maximum percent CaC03 equivalent weathered was
11.1% in box 10, and the pH of the leachate from these samples after 32
weeks remained at pH 7.0 or higher (Figure 27). From Figures 28 and 29
it appears that sulfate and alkalinity production are relatively stable.
As mentioned previously, boxes 2 and 9 are unground duplicate samples of
boxes 12 and 1, respectively. As seen in Table 52, the unground samples
show no consistent differences from the less than 2 mm. samples.
Boxes A through P contained untreated checks or samples treated with
flyash or CaCO-j, Table 53. Samples A through E represented a composite
of mine waste samples # 7, 9, and 10. Samples B and H received additional
CaC03 (8 and 16 tons/thousand tons respectively) after 7 weeks. In all
cases, samples treated with flyash or CaC03 show a decrease in percent S
weathered (Table 53) when compared to the untreated sample. As shown in
Figures 32 and 35 this is further substantiated by the inverse relation-
ship between sulfate and CaCO^ equivalent amendments to the samples.
Titratable acidity (Figures 31 and 34) follows this same trend.
As expected, mine waste samples containing 1.02% S are producing less
sulfate and titratable acidity than the sandstone samples containing
12.7% S (Table 53).
From these data, it appears that samples containing adequate amounts on
inherent, available bases for neutralization (expressed as CaC03 equiva-
lent) are more effective in preventing sulfate formation than similar
samples that do not contain bases but have had CaCO-j added. Presumably,
added bases lack the intimate contact with the pyrite that typifies
naturally-occurring cons tituen ts .
203
-------
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O
• 04
CO
£ -03
CD
O
O
^ -02
X
O
tr
£ >Q\
OH
sample no,3
6789
WEEKS
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
I
OJ
E
10 II 12 13 14
FIGURE 26. pH AND ACCUMULATIVE RELEASE OF SULFUR AND TITRATABLE ALKALINITY FROM SAMPLE A-A', 15-10
-------
x
Q.
NJ
O
Ui
8
7
6
10
15
WEEKS
20
25
30
FIGURE 27. WEEKLY PH FOR SAMPLES A-A', i4b-7(BOX i), A-A', i5^23(Box 6), and A-A', IS-IKBOX 10)
-------
SJ
o
CTi
WEEKS
FIGURE 28, ACCUMULATIVE RELEASE OF TITRATABLE ALKALINITY FOR SAMPLES A-Af, 14b-7(BOX 1) ,
A-A1, 15-23CBOX 6), and A-A', 15-11(BOX 10).
-------
(0
E
CD
7O
60
50
40
O
O 30
-^
CO
o» 20
' / ' L.
'
1 1
I I 1 1
10
15
20
25
30
WEEKS
FIGURE 29. ACCUMULATIVE RELEASE OF SULFUR FROM SAMPLES A-A', 14b-7(BOX 1), A-A', 15-23(BOX 6)
AND A-A1, 15-11(BOX 10).
-------
ro
o
CO
X
Q. 4
234 56789
WEEKS
10 II
FIGURE 30. WEEKLY pH'S FOR MINEWASTE SAMPLES A, B, C, D, AND E, WITH VARIABLE LLME
TREAT1-IENTS.
-------
ho
10 II
FIGURE 31. ACCUMULATIVE RELEASE OF TITRATABLE ACIDITY FROM MINEWASTE SAMPLES A, B, C,
D} AND E, WITH VARIABLE LIME TREATMENTS.
-------
to
H-
O
50
100
50
5678
WEEKS
10
FIGURE 32. ACCUMULATIVE RELEASE OF SULFATE-SULFUR FROM MINEWASTE SAMPLES A, B, C, V, AND
E, WITH VARIABLE LIME TREATMENTS.
-------
K>
X
Q.
7
6
H
i 2 3 4 5 67 89 10 II
WEEKS
FIGURE 33. WEEKLY pH'S FOR SANDSTONE SAMPLES G, H, I, J, K, AND H, WITH VARIABLE LIME
TREATMENTS.
-------
NJ
1-^
to
40
o
o
30
2 0
10
234 56789 10 I
WEEKS
FIGURE 34. ACCUMULATIVE RELEASE OF TITRATABLE ACIDITY FROM SANDSTONE SAMPLES G, H, I, J,
K, AND N, WITH VARIABLE LIME TREATMENTS.
-------
U)
E
(9
O
O
to
o»
400
300
200
100
6 7
WEEKS
8
9
10 II
FIGURE 35. ACCUMULATIVE RELEASE OF SULFATE-SULFUR FROM SANDSTONE SAMPLES G, H, I, J, K,
AND N, WITH VARIABLE LIME TREATMENTS.
-------
SIMULATED CHEMICAL WEATHERING WITH NATURAL AERATION
Natural acid sandstone mlnesoil from Site KK (Appendix E) was mixed with
several rates of agricultural limestone and kept moist in glazed 9-inch
deep pots in the laboratory at temperatures near 70°F (plus or minus 5°F)
for 112 days. Then, as a measure of the influence of modified acidity on
oxidation of pyritic sulphur to sulphates, the percent of total sulphur
was determined and plotted against pH of the minesoil. Each point is an
average for 4 replicate pots.
As shown in Figure 36, sulphate production correlated negatively with pH.
This result supports the belief that liming of this kind of minesoil tends
to reduce the rate of pyrite oxidation and formation of sulphates. It
may be that this effect of pH is an indirect result of reduced microbio-
logical activity with increasing pH, since Thiobacillus organisms are
known to respond to pH in the manner shown (Zuberer, 1972).
SIMULATED PHYSICAL WEATHERING
The elimination of water pollution from minesoils has focused attention
on the chemical properties of stripmine overburden, not only the acid
generation abilities, but also the nutrient supplying capabilities of
the material for plant growth. In the short term, chemical properties
are the most important factors associated with minesoil stabilization
and prevention of water pollution; however, once this objective has been
attained, the long term objectives for this land are usually dictated
by the physical properties of the minesoils. The enormous costs of
modifying minesoils after the initial placement of overburden materials
indicates that both objectives should be satisfied during the initial
reclamation phase; thus, both a chemical and physical characterization
of overburden materials should be completed before placement of spoil
materials is undertaken.
Until recently there has been no intensive study of physical properties
of overburden materials, and to fill this need, work on several different
methods was undertaken. One result of this work was the Physical
Weathering Potential measurement outlined in Section VI of this report.
This method can provide valuable information concerning future soil
development such as texture of soil, time for development of soil separ-
ates and types and amount of coarse fragment that may develop. This
information combined with chemical characterizations (e.g., neutraliza-
tion potential and soil test data) can be utilized for preplanning a
surface mine to obtain maximum benefits from our coal and land resources.
This type of information can also be a useful tool for preplanning dis-
turbed areas other than coal mines.
214
-------
rs>
i-*
Ul
CO CO
C C
-• c
80
70
co 60
c
r
"" 50
m 40
30
20
10
Y=-5-5570x+74-3463
r= 0-8170
1234567
PM
FIGURE 36. RELATIONSHIP OF SULFATE-SULFUR FORMATION TO MODIFIED pH OF AN ACID
SANDSTONE MINESOIL.
-------
To illustrate the method of Interpreting data obtained from the "Physical
Weathering Potential" method and its utilization, three exploratory cores
were analyzed. The data are reported in Tables 54, 55 and 56. Each
table contains the depth from the land surface, rock type according to
definitions in the Glossary, Section XVI , and the percentage of soil
separates plus the coarse fragment percentage of the total sample.
Coarse fragments (material which will not pass a 10-mesh sieve) are con-
sidered to be the material which has not weathered to soil size (less
than 2 mm.) as defined by the Soil Science Society of America (Committee
on Terminology, 1965).
The data in Table 54 emphasize two points: (1) the overburden material
except for a 4.4 foot section at 101.6 feet from the land surface will
weather slowly; (2) the resultant minesoil will have a sandy texture.
There are no large sections of rock strata in this overburden which are
more promising "top-soil" material than the 7.7 foot section starting
at a depth 37.3 feet from the land surface. This section would yield
a suitable material for placing on the top of the spoil area if the
chemical properties are favorable. There is an indication (Table 21)
that enough excess carbonates to neutralize any acid generated by the
pyritic material is present in the rock strata. This interpretation is
based upon the assumption that the area would only be disturbed to the
Upper Freeport coal seam. If the material underlying the Upper Freeport
coal was disturbed, then the recommendation would be modified to take
advantage of the greater nutrient supply contained in the lower material.
The next site, B-B1,, 18, was only sampled beneath the Upper Freeport coal
seam. If this material were exposed by surface mining, then the section
from 275.5 to 296.0 feet would be the preferred material to place upon the
top of the spoil. The data indicate that it will weather more rapidly
than material underlying it and will result in a loamy minesoil. Also
the acid-base account (Table 22) indicates the presence of an excess of
carbonates after all the acid is neutralized. Normally, the mudrock and
shale weather quickly but at depths lower than 322.0 feet at this site,
they seem to be resistant to change. One reason for this could be the
intense pressure to which they have been subjected as evidenced by the
prominent slickensides found in the samples.
The third site, A-A1, 12, is the best example of the usefulness of the
method. This site consists dominantly of shales and mudrock which are
commonly found above the Redstone and Pittsburgh coal horizons. It is
suggested from the data in Tables 13 and 56 that there could be several
sections of overburden which would be suitable material to be placed on
the surface of the resulting minesoil. The 9.5 foot section starting at
a depth of 18 feet will weather rapidly resulting in a loamy textured
soil with a large excess of bases to provide a near-neutral pH.
216
-------
Table
Mechanical composition of Upper Freeport test core samples,
from Site B-B',16, following artificially induced
phy sic al~-w eather ing .
Depth
18.0- 23.6'
23.6- 30.0'
30.0- 35. Of
35.0- 37.3'
37.3- 39.0'
39.0- 40.0'
40.0- 40.7'
40.7- 40.9'
40.9- 42.3'
42.3- 45.0'
45.0- 46.0'
57.1- 62.2'
75.0- 80.0'
80.0- 82.9'
82.9- 85.0'
85.0- 90.0'
90.0- 91.0'
91.0- 96.0'
96.0- 97. 51
97.5- 98.0
98.0- 99.0'
99.0-100.0'
100.0-101.0'
101.0-101.6'
101.6-104.5'
104.5-106.0'
106.0-107.0'
107.0-108.0'
108.0-109.5'
109.5-111.5'
111.5-113.0'
113.0-115.0'
115.0-117.0'
117.0-120.0'
120.0-122.0'
Rock
Type
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
I
SH
SH
SH
SH
MR
CL
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
SH
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
Coarse
Fragment
%
99.7
67.2
97.9
100.0
37.3
99.4
89.4
46.5
71.2
86.0
99.8
Upper Freeport
99.4
99.1
100.0
98.3
100.0
97.0
71.0
81.2
73.3
74.6
59.3
75.2
6.3
0.9
85.4
80.1
79.7
96.9
94.3
100.0
100.0
99.3
100.0
Sand
%
10.4
-
—
41.5
-
0.2
35.1
8.5
2.8
-
coal seam
-
-
-
-
-
-
4.1
10.5
7.5
5.3
15.5
15.9
49.6
28.0
3.0
8.3
7.9
-
0.9
—
-
—
—
Silt
%
8.3
—
-
8.1
-
4.0
8.9
15.4
8.4
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
9.5
4.9
18.0
19.8
24.0
5.6
40.9
20.3
5.2
4.2
6.5
—
3.3
—
—
—
—
Clay
%
14.1
-
-
13.1
-
6.3
9.5
4.8
2.8
-
-
-
-
-
—
—
15.2
3.4
1.2
0.3
1.2
3.2
3.2
50.8
6.4
7.4
5.9
—
1.5
—
—
—
—
217
-------
Table 54 continued,
122.0-125.0' SS 100.0
125.0-130.0' SS 100.0
130.0-135.0' SS 100.0
135.0-140.0' SS 100.0
140.0-145.0' SS 100.0
145.0-149.5' SS 100.0
149.5-150.0' SS 100.0
218
-------
Table 5$
Mechanical composition of test core of Upper and Middle
Kittanning overburden and underlying materials, from
Site B-B',18, following artificially induced
physical weathering.
Depth
272.0-275.5'
277.5-278.5'
278.5-280.0'
280.0-281.0'
281.0-282.0'
282.0
-296.0'
296.0-298.5'
298.5-299.0'
299.0-302.5'
302.5-303.5'
319.5-321.5'
322.0-323.0'
323. 0-326. O1
326. 0-326. 5 '
326.5-
-333.5'
334.0-336.0'
336.0-339.5'
339.5
-354.0'
354.0-356.0'
356.0-
-360.0'
-360.5'
366.0-
-372.0'
-373. O1
Rock
Type
Coarse
Fragment
%
Sand
%
Silt
%
Clay
%
Upper Freeport Coal
MR
MR
SH
• MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
SH
SS
I
SS
SS
MR
SS
MR
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
I
I
I
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
SH
60.2
34.0
97.9
41.4
39.7
89.4
93.7
97.7
94.5
100.0
-
100.0
100.0
90.5
100.0
85.9
99.5
97.8
100.0
99.9
100.0
96.7
100.0
83.7
100.0
94.8
99.5
100.0
98.5
99.9
Upper Kittanning
100.0
99.1
Middle Kittanning
8.6
31.4
_
11.3
17.5
3.8
2.7
_
2.9
—
—
—
-
1.7
-
3.9
-
-
-
-
-
1.4
-
3.7
-
1.9
-
-
-
-
Cbal
-
-
Coal
17.9
20.5
_
27.0
22.5
3.4
2.4
-
1.3
—
-
_
—
3.7
-
6.8
-
-
-
-
-
0.7
-
8.0
-
2.6
-
-
-
-
Seam 3 inches
-
—
Seam 1 foot
13.3
14.2
_
20.2
20.3
3.5
1.2
-
1.2
—
-
-
-
4.1
-
3.3
-
-
-
-
-
1.1
-
4.6
-
0.7
-
-
-
-
-
—
219
-------
Table 55 continued,
376.0- I 100.0 -
-379.0' I 100.0 -
379.0-380.0' SS 100.0 -
380.0- I 100.0 -
-385.0' I 99.4 -
385.0-386.5' I 100.0 -
386.5- I 100.0 -
-390.5 I 99.5 -
390.5- I 100.0 -
I 100.0 -
-399.5 I 99.9 -
400.0- MR 96.6 0.5 0.8 2.1
MR 94.3 0.8 1.8 3.1
-406.0' MR 94.5 1.4 1.4 2.6
220
-------
Table 56
Mechanical composition of test core of Redstone and Pittsburgh
overburden materials, from Site A-A',12, following
artificially induced physical weathering.
Depth
18.0-
- 22.9'
22.9- 24.8'
24.8-
- 27.5'
27.5- 34.5'
34.5- 35.8'
35.8- 39.0'
39.0- 39.8'
39.8- 44.0'
44.0-
- 63.0'
63.0- 66.3'
66.3- 69-3'
69.3- 73.7'
73.7- 75.7'
75.7-
- 90.0'
90.0-
- 99.0'
99.0-104.0'
104.0-106.1'
106.1-108.8'
109.6-
-118.0'
118.0-
-131.5'
Rock
Type
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
SS
SH
SS
MR
SS
SH
SH
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
SS
SH
I
SH
SH
I
MR
SH
SH
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
MR
SH
MR
Coarse
Fragment
%
69.5
46.0
17.6
13.2
9.2
92.6
67.1
88.9
36.2
99.1
45.8
11.4
6.9
15.8
0.1
0.6
8.6
35.9
28.3
89-6
31.4
96.2
44.8
99.6
86.8
35.8
86.1
78.4
11.6
59.5
17.8
31.4
52.7
47.6
97.1
50.1
221
Sand
%
5.6
9.7
33.3
25.6
32.5
2.3
4.3
2.1
28.9
-
13.9
10.7
17.7
19.2
17.6
15.9
24.3
14.8
16.7
10.7
8.5
2.1
5.7
-
2.8
15.2
2.6
4.5
28.4
4.3
12.5
26.1
11.1
13.6
1.0
16.0
Silt
%
16.3
24.6
19.5
28.4
14.7
3.4
11.6
5.6
18.2
-
20.3
33.1
26.0
21.1
39.7
43.6
35.6
28.9
30.8
0.5
29.3
1.3
22.0
—
3.2
20.4
6.5
10.5
33.2
27.3
42.1
16.8
10.4
10.6
1.8
26.5
Clay
%
8.5
19.7
29.6
32.8
43.6
1.7
17.0
3.4
16.7
-
20.0
44.8
49.4
43.9
42.6
39.9
31.4
20.3
24.3
-
30.7
0.4
27.5
—
7.2
28.5
4.8
6.6
26.7
8.8
27.5
25.6
25.7
28.2
0.1
7.3
-------
Table 56 continued
131.5-
-142. O1
142.0-144.5'
144.5-
-157.9'
157.9-164.7'
164.7-
-171.5'
171.5-175.5'
175.5-178.5'
178.5
-189.3'
189.3-190.8'
190.8-192.3'
192.5-
-199.0'
199.0-200.0'
SH
SH
MR
SH
MR
MR
I
I
77.4
31.3
65.9
1.3
88.9
99.8
71.4
93.8
3.3
13.6
4.1
0.4
4.2
-
11.0
3.1
Redstone coal section
SH
SH
I
I
LS
SH
MR
LS
MR
MR
MR
MR
I
99.8
2.4
100.0
62.4
98.2
86.4
5.0
67.1
1.4
97.6
34.7
5.0
99.4
Position of Pittsburgh
-
13.3
-
10.2
0.7
4.1
19.5
6.0
15.6
-
13.1
22.4
—
coal
13.9
36.0
20.6
67.5
4.4
-
10.3
2.6
missing
-
45.7
-
16.2
0.7
4.3
33.1
13.6
34.6
0.5
25.3
32.8
—
5.4
19.0
9.3
30.8
2.4
-
7.3
0.5
-
38.6
-
11.2
0.4
5.3
42.4
13.2
48.3
1.9
26.8
39.8
—
222
-------
Another 19 foot section of material starting at the 44 foot depth would
also be considered for placement on the top of the minesoil; however,
this material disintegrates rapidly resulting in a clay dominated soil
which would not be a desirable as a loamy textured soil for certain types
of future uses. Also, the acid-base balance (Table 13) of this section
is not comparable to the section of overburden previously mentioned.
A third section which should be considered as "top-soil" material is the
mudrock extending from 99.0 to 118.0 feet below the land surface. This
material tends to be influenced by the clay fraction and it also contains
sufficient bases to eliminate any acid problem which may arise. These
sections of the overburden could be mixed with other strata or the 18
feet of material (not available for analysis) that starts at the land
surface to get a loamy textured soil if the resultant chemical proper-
ties were favorable.
The Physical Weathering Potential does not project the harsh grinding
(by machinery) or severe chemical weathering which exists under natural
conditions in the field. This method is a mild weathering procedure;
therefore, materials which disintegrate in the laboratory would be more
easily weathered in the field under the harsher conditions.
223
-------
SECTION XI
CHARACTERIZING MINE WASTES
Discussions in this section include materials categorized by others
as "gob", "tailings", "refuse heaps", "slate dumps", "red dog",
"yellow boy", "mine refuse", "mine waste", etc., and includes fly-
ash and other reputed waste materials resulting from coal mining and
byproducts of such operations as water treatment or burning operations.
Indeed the various names used are somewhat indicative of the wide
variety of materials resulting and considered as unusable after the
mining operation. Realistically, much of the more common mine waste
materials categorize easily into (1) discarded coal partings, roof
shale fractions, or highly pyritic shale lumps, or impure coal
associated with cleaning or purifying coal into a readily marketable
produce; or large piles (perhaps covering many acres and being many
tens of feet in height) of this material in varying stages of being
leached, weathered, or oxidized from spontaneous combustion;
(2) flyash, the residue remaining from burning coal in an electric
generating plant; tonnage wise this may amount to 10% of the amount
of coal burned; and (3) mud, silt or elemental oxides resulting from
natural or induced chemical reactions of salts dissolved in waters
during treatment or stagnation in sediment ponds. Environmentally,
the first category of mine waste materials is probably considered most
significant, followed by flyash disposal or utilization, with water
treatment residues being small mostly local problems.
Attempts to vegetate mine waste areas frequently involve either
extreme soil acidity or fertility imbalances or both, and limited
capacities to retain available water because of oily, water repellent
surfaces of some of the carbolithic materials. Therefore most of the
studies carried out under this project have been aimed toward
evaluating the suitability of the mine waste material for plant
growth.
Sampling mine waste areas has usually been carried out cooperatively
with Soil Conservation Service personnel who have particular knowledge
of areas with difficult vegetation problems. Sample processing was
224
-------
carried out using methods adapted for minesoils (Section VI). Most
mine wastes would be classified in Carbolithic Subgroups of minesoils
(Section V).
Estimates of the acid producing potential of minesoil or mine waste
materials are frequently inaccurate if total sulfur content of the
sample is used in the determination. Upon exposure to the atmosphere
a substantial proportion of the pyrite originally present may have
weathered to sulfate, rendering the subsequent acid potential related
to the quality of unoxidized pyrite remaining in the material. In
addition pyrite oxidation may vary greatly with respect to depth from
the surface, therefore care needs to be exercised in relating analytical
results to either a thin surface layer of waste, or to deeper, less
oxidized material. The procedure given in Section VI for sulfate re-
moval has been useful in obtaining an accurate characterization of
these materials.
Derivation of an Acid-Base Account (see Section VII) for various mine
wastes has aided in estimating the degree of ammendment necessary, or
whether simple covering with more desirable soil or rock material
was more desirable. Table 57 shows data for several typical mine
waste materials. These and other data show the presence of some
neutralizing bases, although these materials frequently are acidic.
Where laboratory measurements indicate a calcium carbonate deficiency
of 5 to 10 tons per thousand tons, or higher, serious consideration
should be given to covering with more acceptable material (frequently
available from a local surface mine area) unless high rates of lime
can be incorporated into deep surface layers to assure neutralization
and permit successful vegetation.
Empirical studies of acid formation frpm mine waste materials treated
with varying amounts of calcium carbonate (see Section X) show the
usefulness of high amounts of lime in reducing acidity (Table 53).
Limited data also confirm that applications of flyash neutralize
acid or reduce acid generation in proportion to calcium carbonate
equivalent added, as measured by the neutralization potential method.
Soil Test Laboratory analyses of numerous mine waste samples indicate
that potassium is nearly always required to increase fertility.
Tests for available phosphorus have frequently yielded uninterpre-
table results, because of interference by soluble iron or some other
chemical species with the determinative test. Experimentation has
shown sodium bicarbonate extraction method for phosphorus to be
substantially more reliable and less subject to interference than
other phosphorus tests.
225
-------
Table 57.
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of selected mine waste
samples from Surface Mining Province I (Boone Co.)
Tons of CaCOi Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
to
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
(Sample #)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Island Creek,
#5 Arial Tram
#5 Truck Dump
Island Creek,
Powellton #3,
Island Creek
Island Creek,
Intensity
if
Maximum Amount
Requirement Present
Amount
Needed for
Fiz Color %S (from %S) (Titration) Neutrality (oH7)
0 10 YR 6/3.5
0 10 YR 6.5/3
0 2.5 Y 6/3
0 10 YR 6/3
0 2.5 Y 5.5/3
0 5 YR 5/2
0 5 Y 4.5/1
0 5 Y 4/1
0 5 Y 4/1 1.
0 5 Y 4/1 1.
0 5 Y 3.5/1
0 5 Y 3/1
0 5 Y 2.5/1 2.
0 5 Y 2.5/1
0 2.5 Y 2/0 2.
020
055
220
030
160
630
350
500
550
000
650
550
000
900
250
Top of #4 Arial Tram, Stowe.
, Above Mine Dump.
Above Cleaning Plant.
#1 Dump, Cover Material
Cover Material.
Coal Company, #1 Dump, Red
#4 Mine Dump, below Road,
Dog.
Stowe.
Fanco Preparation Plant, Refuse Pile.
0.62
1.72
6.88
0.94
5.00
19.69
10.94
15.62
48.44
31.25
20.31
17.19
62.50
28.12
70.31
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
0.78
0.00
-1.28
2.58
1.29
8.76
1.29
11.07
-3.34
-7.72
0.78
-1.02
9.01
-1.02
-7.97
1.72
8.16
3.71
10.93
9.65
4.55
51.78
38.97
19.53
18.21
53.49
29.14
78.28
Excess
CaC03
Equiv.
0.16
1.64
#5 Arial Tram, Spoil Material.
Powellton #1,
Island Creek
Island Creek,
Plant.
Island Creek,
Powellton #3,
Powellton #2,
Old Dump, Sheep.
#4 Arial Tram Dump.
Truck Dump above #5
#1 Mine.
Spoil Material.
Lick Branch.
Cleaning
-------
Table 58.
Soiltest results for selected mine waste samples from Surface Mining Province I (Boone Co.).
to
Sample #
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
£H_
Tons
Lime Req.
per Thousand Tons of Material
Founds
4.6
4.0
3.8
4.8
4.2
6.6
4.6
6.5
3.4
2.7
4.3
4.0
7.1
4.0
2.8
2.25
3.75
5.20
1.50
2.25
0
1.50
0
6.75
8.25
3.00
2.25
0
0.75
7.50
Phosphorus
25
24
35
56
17
80?
43
94
10
12
35
8
58
18
153?
Potassium
175
165
209
203
197
624+
262
312
66
19
265
78
287
84
41
Calcium
280
160
1600
1240
1000
4000+
1760
3080
3600
1320
1120
1280
4000+
2440
2400
Magnesium
84
66
600+
372
252
282
150
600+
438
396
276
210
516
198
498
-------
The coal-burning power plant industry byproduct, flyash, has received
much attention in recent years as a potentially useful amendment for
disturbed land areas, including surface mine spoil areas. Although
characterization of this material by total chemical analyses and
particle size distributions may be helpful, measurements of potentially
useful plant nutrients or neutralizing potential have not commonly
been practiced except in relatively infrequent agronomic evaluations.
Table 59 shows the widely varying range of Neutralization Potential
exhibited by several flyashes evaluated by methods described in
Section VI. Obviously even very large applications of material similar
to the Albright flyashes, for example, will still require additional
agricultural limestone to neutralize acidity; whereas other flyashes
apparently contain several percent calcium carbonate equivalent neutra-
lizing power. Sulfur analyses reported here are total sulfur. Although
these samples were not leached to remove sulfates, it is expected that
a major proportion of the total sulfur present in flyashes is present
as sulfate. Therefore the acid-producing potential should be very low,
even though sulfur is present up to several tenths of a percent.
Plant nutrient content of most of the flyashes analyzed in this instance
appears moderate (Table 60), however this will necessarily be decreased
by dilution when any of the flyashes are applied as an amendment to a
material of lower available nutrient content. The above discussion
suggests analyses of flyashes, by procedures more appropriate to revege-
tation requirements than total chemical analyses. Such analyses prior
to application to a spoil area may show significant advantages in ap-
plying flyash from certain powerplants to specific areas that could
best benefit from the properties of a specified ash.
228
-------
Table 59
Sample characterization and Acid-Base Account of several Flyash samples.
Tons of CaCOo Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
Depth (Sample #)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
of
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
-
-
-
Color
2.5 Y 3/0
5 Y 5/1
5 Y 5/1
5 Y 5/1
5 Y 5/1
5 Y 5/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 6/1
10 YR 3/1
5 Y 5/1
-
-
-
7oS
.242
.055
.090
.145
.110
.080
.410
.415
.325
.060
-
-
-
Maximum
Requirement
(from %S)
7.56
1.72
2.81
4.53
3.44
2.50
12.81
12.97
10.16
1.81
-
-
-
Amount Amount
Present Needed for
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7)
2.27 4.29
8.59
5.56
6.32
1.53 1.91
1.53 .97
35.60
34.83
11.63
2.77
41.58
17.57
11.38
Excess
CaC03
Eauiv.
6.87
2.75
1.79
22.79
21.66
1.47
0.86
1 Anthracite VGI
2 Willow Island
3 Powhatan Point
4 Mount Storm
5 Albright - A
6 Albright - B
7 Fort Martin - A
8 Fort Martin - B
9 Rivesvilie
10 Forestry Flyash (Albright-C)
11 Harrison Station
12 Rivesville Station (dark)
13 Rivesville Station (light)
-------
Table 60
Soiltest results for several Flyash samples.
to
u
o
Tons
Sample # pH Lime Reg
per Thousand Tons of Material
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
4.8
7.6
7.4
7.5
4.8
4.7
9.1
9.3
7.6
5.4
9.9
9.3
8.2
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Mount Storm
Albright -
Albright - B
Fort Martin - A
Req.
2 UGI
Land
Point
rm
• A
- B
Phosphorus
111
153
119
200
94
91
128
137
153
174
132
102
128
8
9
10
11
12
13
i
Potassium Calcium Magnesium
200 880 132
134 4000+
124 2920
368 4000+
281 960
262 800
390 4000+
387 4000+
344 4000+
228 2280
452 4000+
365 4000+
477 4000+
Fort Martin - B
Rivesville
288
172
138
42
36
588
600+
278
72
600+
600+
600+
Forestry Flyash (Albright»C)
Harrison Station
Rivesville Station
Rivesville Station
(dark)
(light)
-------
SECTION XII
EVIDENCES FROM OLD MENESOILS
CHEMICAL ANALYSES OF ROOT ENVIRONMENTS OF INVADING PLANT SPECIES
This work was undertaken to identify the naturally invading plant
species found on two extremely acid stripmine spoils from Upper
Freeport overburden; and, to determine if there were significant
relationships between individual plant species and available nutrients
in the root zone of these species. A secondary objective was to eval-
uate the barren areas within the two sites and determine if the lack
of vegetation was due to low pH, depleted nutrient levels, or some
other undetermined minesoil property.
Several spoils in Monongalia County, West Virginia have been in the
planning stages of reclamation for several years. After grading of
the spoil and soil tests were conducted, the sites were deemed suit-
able for plant establishment; however, a few months later when these
spoils were checked again, the pH values had decreased to below 4.0.
At this time the spoil was too acid for attempting revegetation, and
periodic checks would be made to determine if the pH of those spoils
had increased to an appropriate value (greater than 4.0) to permit
successful revegetation of the area. Both sites used for this study
were examples of the above situation.
Site QQ was derived from Upper Freeport overburden and covers 10.91
acres. The Soil Conservation Service classified the spoil as VTIIsS
due to its extreme acidity and extreme stoniness. The surface texture
of the fines was sandy loam.
The spoil was leveled in December 1964 and was being planned for re-
vegetation with autumn olive, Elaeagnun umbellata, and black locust,
Rpbinia psuedoacacia L., by the Soil Conservation Service. When the
pH was checked prior to spring planting in 1965, it was found that
80% of the spoil surface had dropped to a pH below 4.0. At that time
it was felt that after a few more months the pH would increase. It
has been checked several times since 1965 and the pH was still below
4.0.
231
-------
Even though the spoil was still extremely acid in 1973, there were
many plant species growing on the site. The primary species were
identified as broom sedge, poverty grass, deertongue, redtop, black
birch and red maple. Other species identified were: yellow poplar,
sassafras, large tooth aspen, black cherry, black locust, sumac, dom-
estic apple, goldenrod, sticktight, cinquefoil, greenbrier, white
aster, Indian hemp, Spannish nettle, sheep sorrel, Joe Pye weed,
thoroughwort, and several unidentified species.
Site SS was also derived from Upper Freeport overburden and covered
14.20 acres. The Soil Conservation Service classified this spoil
VIIIs3. The surface texture was sandy loam and in some areas loamy
sand. This spoil is not as stony as Site QQ.
The spoil was backfilled in November 1963 and was considered suitable
for replanting. Autumn olive and black locust were to be planted in
the spring of 1964, but when the pH was again checked, the values
were too low. The same situation occured at Site QQ.
The barren areas of both sites were significantly lower in pH than
areas where plants were growing. There was a distinctive difference
between vegetated and barren areas, as there were no plants growing
at a pH below 3.8 and there were no barren sites with a pH above 3.7.
Red Maple was the most acid-tolerant species while redtop was signi-
ficantly higher than all other species.
The potassium levels of both sites were in the medium range for all
plants. This medium level of potassium is probably the single most
positive factor in the establishment of plants on both sites. Broom-
sedge and deertongue areas had the highest potassium levels while
barren areas were significantly lower than plant areas. Red maple and
poverty grass showed the lowest potassium levels for plants on both
sites.
Calcium and magnesium both exhibited the same basic distribution.
Redtop areas had the highest levels of calcium and magnesium while
barren had the lowest values. Red maple areas contained the lowest
calcium and magnesium levels of the plant species and were not signi-
ficantly different from barren areas. Poverty grass had the lowest
levels of calcium and magnesium for the grass species and was not
significantly different from red maple.
Both sites showed very low levels of phosphorus, with barren having
the lowest values. Red maple was the most tolerant plant species at
the lowest levels of phosphorus while soil averaged highest in phos-
phorus where broomsedge was growing, although the mean value was not
significantly different from other plant species.
232
-------
In the spring of 1973, Site SS had two major areas with natural vegetation.
The barren areas are much larger than on Site QQ. The vegetation found
on Site SS was similar to QQ, with only a few exceptions. Redtop was not
found on Site SS and there were not as many forbs represented. Black-
berry was abundant on one portion of Site SS and was not found on QQ.
Overall, Site QQ had more plant species represented and there was a
denser ground cover.
For the purpose of this study, there had to be at least eight indivi-
dual plants of the same species at each site before it was considered
as a primary species. At Site QQ, individual plants were selected at
random except in the sampling of redtop. There were only 8 to 10
individual redtop plants on the entire site. Care was taken to select
plants that were relatively the same size in order to minimize the
variability among species. Any litter on the soil surface beneath
or around the plant was removed to lessen the influence on the nu-
trient status of the soil sample. In case of grass species, each
plant was totally harvested in order to obtain the soil from the roots
at three inch depth. As for woody plants, the immediate soil surface
was removed and the soil was obtained from around the roots to a depth
of 3 inches.
Eight soil samples were obtained from roots of each of the primary in-
vading species and from barren areas on both sites. Data from all the
chemical analyses - pH, phosphorus (a and b), potassium, calcium,
magnesium, and neutralization potential - were evaluated statistically.
A standard t-test was used where variances were homogeneous and in
cases where homogeneity was lacking, the tf test was used. All signi-
ficant differences were noted at the 0.05 level.
Prior to the examination of soil chemical analyses for each of the
plant species, it was noted that the pH values for vegetated areas
were extremely acid - below 4.5. Also, the nutrient levels fall
within the very low to low range, with one exception. Potassium
levels on both sites were in the medium range, which probably par-
tially accounts for the grass species doing as well as they did on
these sites. Table 61 shows the ranges for phosphorus, both the
dilute acid (a) and the sodium bicarbonate (b) methods, potassium,
calcium, and magnesium. All values are in pounds per acre
(2,000,000 Ibs.).
233
-------
Table 61. RANGES OF AVAILABLE PLANT NUTRIENTS CORRESPONDING TO LOW,
MEDIUM AND HIGH AMOUNTS MEASURED IN THE LABORATORY.
P (a) P (b) K Ca Mg
Very Low 0-24 - 0-39 0-399 0-49
Low 25-49 0-10 40-78 400-799 50-99
Medium 50-99 10-22 79-156 800-1999 100-249
High 100-174 22+ 157-234 2000-3999 250-499
Very High 175+ - 235+ 4000+ 500+
Tables 62 and 63 show the mean values of eight observations for all the
data from sites QQ and SS. All values are in pounds per acre, except
for the neutralization potential values which are in tons of CaC03
equivalent per 1000 tons of material.
From this study it is evident that red maple tended to be the most
tolerant plant species to low pH, potash, calcium and magnesium. The
most tolerant of the grass species to low pH, calcium, potassium and
magnesium on site QQ; was poverty grass, but on site SS poverty grass
was not significantly different from the other grass species. Redtop
exhibited the highest average pH, acid soluble phosphorus, calcium
and magnesium and was significantly higher in pH than all other plant
species. This study also confirms that the reason plants were not
growing on the barren areas was the significantly lower pH and nutrient
levels of those areas, not by chance, which was felt at the onset of
this study.
SULFATE, PYRITIC, AND ORGANIC SULFUR SPECIES IN AGED MINESOILS
The initial investigation of the acid producing potential of three Up-
per Freeport minesoils (Sites QQ, RR, and SS, Appendix D) produced
conflicting results which prompted a more detailed study of these
3 to 8 year old minesoils. The pH's of these samples were below 3.6
(Table 1) and the total sulfur measurements (Table 65) indicated
a large amount of sulfur present in most samples. The potential
acidity data, obtained by using the Peroxide method (West Virginia
Univ., 1971a), indicated that only a small amount of oxidizable
sulphur was present. To explain the paradoxical data, a fractionation
of the total sulphur into the sulfate, pyrite and organic forms were
accomplished using the A.S.T.M. method, designated D2492-66T (A.S.T.M.,
1966), for removing the different fractions. The method was modified
to permit the use of the Leco induction furnace to measure the total
sulphur of each sample after each fraction had been removed and then
the different fractions were determined by difference.
234
-------
Table 62
Means and significant differences among all soil chemical analyses performed for each plant
species on Site QQ. Values in same column followed by similar subscripts are not
significantly different at the 0.05 level.
Brooms edge
N> Poverty Grass
Ul
Deer tongue
Red Maple
Black Birch
Red top
Barren
PH
4.03 be
3.96 c
4.15 ab
3.94 c
4.08 b
4.26 a
3.60 d
Phosphorus
Dilute acid
22.88 a
21.75 a
22.75 a
16.00 b
21.13 a
23.25 a
15.00 b
Phosphorus
NaHCOs
4.25 a
3.75 a
4.00 a
3.38 a
4.75 a
3.75 a
1.25 b
Neutral! z.at ion
Potassium
138.63 a
96.63 be
137.88 a
80.63 c
97.13 b
106.25 b
50.63 d
Calcium
240 a
90 cd
100 be
55 d
135 b
320 a
100 c
Magnesium
27.00 ab
11.25 c
25.50 ab
8.25 cd
15.75 b
74.25 a
6.00 d
Potential
-0.19 ab
-0.51 b
-0.66 be
-1.00 b
-0.62 b
+0.25 a
-1.53 c
-------
Table 63
Means and significant differences among all soil chemical analyses performed for each plant
species on Site SS. Values in same column followed by similar subscripts are not
significantly different at the 0.05 level.
Is)
w
ON
Broomsedge
Poverty Grass
Deertongue
Red Maple
Black Birch
Barren
pH
3.96 a
4.01 a
4.01 a
3.80 b
4.09 a
3.45 c
Phosphorus
Dilute Acid
16.38 a
14.50 a
6.63 be
8.25 be
6.25 c
10.25 b
Phosphorus
NaHCOj Potassium
3.50 a 131.63 a
1.38 b 95.25 b
3.13 ab 139.13 a
3.25 a 86.38 b
2.00 ab 121.75 ab
1.25 b 57.25 c
Neutralization
Calcium Magnesium Potential
100.00 a 13.13 a +0.41 a
80.00 ab 12.75 ab +0.53 b
43.75 c 6.75 ab +0.97 a
21.25 c 3.75 be -0.10 c
48.75 ab 15.25 a +0.97 a
21.25 c 2.50 c -0.69 d
-------
Table 6b
Characterization and acid-base account of minesoil samples
from the 3 to 8 year-old sopil areas (QQ, RR, and SS)
Tons of CaCC-3 Equivalent per Thousand Tons of Material
Intensity
of
Sample
QQ
QQ
QQ
QQ
QQ
QQ
QQ
QQ
QQ
RR
RR
RR
RR
RR
RR
RR
RR
RR
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
SS
11
12
13
21
22
23
31
32
33
11
12
13
21
22
23
31
32
33
11
12
13
21
22
23
31
32
33
Fiz
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Color
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 5.5/1
2.5 Y 6.5/2
5 Y 4.5/1
5 Y 4.5/1
5 Y 5/1
5 Y 4/1
5 Y 4.5/1
5 Y 4.5/1
2.5 Y 6.5/2
2.5 Y 6.5/2
2.5 Y 6.5/2
2.r Y 6/2
2.5 Y 6.5/2
2.5 Y 6.5/2
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 5.5/1
5 Y 6/1
5 Y 7/2
5 Y 7/2
2.5 Y 7/2
Maximum
Requirement
7»S
.085
.110
.085
.050
.105
.060
.145
.125
.115
.060
.050
.090
.075
.045
.060
.110
.120
.090
.015
.016
.043
.022
.070
.050
.021
.020
.013
(from %S)
2.66
3.44
2.60
1.56
3.28
1.88
4.53
3.91
3.59
1.88
1.56
2.81
2.34
1.41
1.88
3.44
3.75
2.81
0.47
0.50
1.34
0.69
2.19
1.56
0.66
0.62
0.41
Amount
Present
Amount Excess
Needed for CaC03
(Titration) Neutrality (pH7) Equiv.
-3.94
-3.69
-2.95
-2.95
-2.13
-2.95
-3.69
-2.95
-2.95
-2.13
-1.66
-2.13
-1.66
-3.94
-1.98
-1.66
-1.66
-1.66
-0.99
-1.21
-0.99
-1.66
-0.99
-1.66
-0.99
-0.99
-1.21
6.60
7.13
5.55
4.51
5.41
4.83
8.22
6.86
6.54
4.01
3.22
4.94
4.00
5.35
3.86
5.10
5.41
4.47
1.46
1.71
2.33
2.35
3.18
3.22
1.65
1.61
1.62
-------
Table 65
ho
o>
oo
Fractionation of sulfur in 3 to 8 year old minesoils developed from 3 distinct types of
Upper Freeport Overburden and fresh rock chip samples taken from
the Bakerstown and Upper Freeport overburden.
Sample
QQ 1-1
QQ 1-2
QQ 1-3
QQ 2-1
QQ 2-2
QQ 2-3
QQ 3-1
QQ 3-2
QQ 3-3
RR 1-1
RR 1-2
RR 1-3
RR 2-1
RR 2-2
RR 2-3
RR 3-1
RR 3-2
RR 3-3
SS 1-1
SS 1-2
SS 1-3
Total Sulfur
Leached
Unleached
.480
.380
.210
.245
.340
.330
.235
.340
.170
.175
.170
.195
.185
.185
.165
.275
.370
.235
.120
.190
.155
HC1
.085
.110
.085
.050
.105
.060
.145
.125
.115
.060
.050
.090
.075
.045
.060
.110
.120
.090
.015
.016
.043
HC1
.012
.012
.016
Forms of Sulfur
as a percent
of Total Sulfur Unleached
50/,-S
82.3
71.0
59.5
79.6
69.1
81.8
38.3
63.2
32.3
65.7
70.6
53.8
59.4
75.7
63.6
60.0
67.6
61.7
87.5
91.6
72.2
Pyrite-S
8.3
14.7
22.4
2.8
12.0
3.6
1.3
5.3
12.3
12.6
12.9
26.7
23.2
8.1
17.0
21.1
15.7
20.4
2.5
2.1
17.4
Organic-S
9.4
14.2
18.1
17.5
18.8
14.5
61.7
31.5
55.3
21.7
16.5
19.5
17.3
16.2
19.4
18.9
16.7
17.9
10.0
6.3
10.3
Predominant
Rock Type
Carbolith
mixed with
Mudrock and
Sandstone
Sandstone
(Low Chroma
mixed with
some
Carbolith and
Mudrock
Sandstone
(High Chroma)
-------
Ni
CO
SS 2-1
SS 2-2
SS 2-3
SS 3-1
SS 3-2
SS 3-3
ST 9336
ST 9337
ST 9339
ST 9341
ST 9343
ST 9345
T 1
T 3
T 15
T 20
T 22
L 12
L 20
L 34
L 41
L 44
.305
.150
.225
.150
.135
.080
.685
.585
.395
.285
.195
.130
.180
.340
1.370
6.100
4.025
.150
.265
.480
.855
1.790
.022
.070
.050
.021
.020
.013
.265
.300
.175
.130
.115
.035
.130
.245
1.270
5.000
3.423
.135
.255
.465
.780
1.570
_
.019
.040
.021
.016
-
.153
.230
.120
.102
.036
.028
.051
.040
.220
1.000
.450
.010
.030
.250
.100
.070
92.8
53.3
77.8
86.0
85.2
83.7
61.3
38.5
55.7
54.4
41.0
73.1
27.8
27.9
7.3
18.0
34.8
10.0
3.8
3.1
8.8
12.3
—
34.0
4.4
0
3.0
-
16.3
17.1
13.9
9.8
40.5
5.4
43.9
60.3
76.6
65.6
73.9
83.3
84.9
44.8
79.5
83.8
—
12.7
17.8
14.0
11.8
-
22.3
39.3
30.4
35.8
18.5
21.5
28.3
11.8
16.1
16.4
11.2
6.7
11.3
52.1
11.7
3.9
mixed with
small amounts
of Mudrock
Mixed
amounts of
Carbolith,
Mudrock and
Sandstone
Mudrock
Mudrock
Mudrock
Carbolith
Carbolith
Sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone
Mudrock
-------
The data in Table 65 indicate that the sulfate S comprised 50%
or more of the total sulfur content of all samples, plus QQ 3-2 were
high in Organic-S and easily oxidizable organic matter (Table 4,
Section VI). The samples from site SS were the lowest in total
sulfur content and highest in the percentage of sulfate-S.
Only eight of the twenty seven samples had a higher percentage of
pyritic-S than the organic-S form. The highest organic S percentages
occured in the sample QQ 3-1, 3-2, and 3-3 which is indicative of the
dominant rock type (carbolith) found at this site; however, sites
KR and SS had a higher percentage of the organic-S fraction than would
be expected since the minesoils at these sites are predominantly
sandstone derived.
Some randomly selected minesoil samples (labeled ST) were analyzed and
with the exception of ST-9343 the sulfate-S was the highest fraction
with the organic-S being second, and the lowest fraction was pyritic.
This is good evidence that weathering has proceeded after mining op-
erations exposed the material to the atmosphere; but, the demonstration
of a weathering zone in the rock strata before it is disturbed (West
Virginia University, 1971a) would dictate that knowledge of the pro-
perties of this zone is essential before making any recommendations
as to treatment of these sites.
Samples from sites T and L were analyzed in the manner previously
described and the results (Table 65) indicate that fresh rock chip
samples do undergo measurable weathering within a short time. Since
only five samples from each rock chip core were analyzed only trends
can be noted. The total sulfur content increases with depth (West
Virginia Univ., 1971a) and there is sulfate-S present although the
pyritic-S is the largest fraction.
The sulfate-S in overburden materials is negligible in comparison
to the amount of pyritic-S present; therefore, a total sulfur mea-
surement without first removing the sulfates would be sufficient
when evaluating materials for their acid producing potential and
suitability as "Top-Soil". However, when evaluating old minesoils
which are to be revegetated, the amount of lime needed to completely
neutralize the soil acidity and any future acid produced due to the
oxidation of sulfides can not be determined by a total sulfur mea-
surement, unless the sulfates are removed prior to the determination.
The acid-base account (Table 64) for sites QQ, KR and SS indicates
that except for five samples of site QQ, no more lime is need to com-
pletely neutralize any future acid production from the pyritic and
organic-S fractions than is needed on some of the poorer, non-disturbed
soils of West Virginia. If the sulfates had not been removed from
these samples, the amount of lime thought to be needed would be much
240
-------
larger. These data provide the basis for general recommendations in
West Virginia, that for old minesoils the maximum potential acidity
estimated from total sulphur should be discounted from theoretical
for pyritic sulphur, by factors of about 0.5 for low chroma materials,
or 0.33 for high chroma minesoils. Obviously, these factors are
approximations only,* and more accurate results would require sulphur
fractionation.
241
-------
SECTION XIII
MINESOIL INTERACTION WITH PLANT COVERS AND MANAGEMENT
Observations throughout West Virginia indicate that establishment
of vigorous vegetative covers on surface minesoils has improved
dramatically during the past two years. It is not possible to say
precisely what changes account for all improvements, but it appears
that more attention to placement of different kinds of overburden
is one significant change that has contributed. Another is increased
use of lime and fertilizer treatments according to needs. Other im-
provements include higher seeding rates of the best adapted species,
well-prepared seedbeds, and mulching.
Unfortunately, some changed practices have caused increased erosion,
sedimentation, and damage to vegetative stands. One such practice is
high wall elimination and establishment of long uninterrupted slopes.
Such situations inevitably result in concentration of accumulating
runoff into channels of flow with high eroding power, quickly causing
rills and gullies. Another serious erosion-inducing practice is the
covering of steep outslopes with relatively stone-free fine soil ma-
terial. Runoff and erosion is much less severe where the top layer con-
tains coarse fragments that are not readily moved by shallow runoff.
Moreover, coarse fragments form natural stone mulches which help protect
the fines and which retard concentration of runoff into channels.
Emphasis on establishing legumes requires continual attention, es-
pecially because of the demand for the quickest possible cover. Unfor-
tunatley, the quickest, and most aggressive grasses tend to delay or
prevent thick stands of legumes. Weeping love grass, in particular,
grows so vigorously in warm seasons that legumes are retarded.
Recent work on surface liming illustrates the importance of working
lime into acid minesoils and delaying fertilization and seeding long
enough for the pH to be raised and especially for toxic aluminum to be
converted to insoluble forms. Figure 37 illustrates the relationship
between rate of surface-applied agricultural limestone, pH, and ex-
changeable aluminum. Minesoil samples taken at the one to two inch
242
-------
depth showed little change in amounts of exchangeable aluminum, and
although the pH increased slightly, there was little movement of the
lime down through the soil. Figure 38 shows the same situation where
dolomitic limestone was applied. However, exchangeable aluminum ap-
pears to decrease more strikingly with increasing rate of lime than
where predominantly calcitic lime was used.
Unquestionably, the partial failure of some seedings on strongly acid
minesoils is more a matter of surface placement and not enough time
for reaction, rather than any inaccuracy of recommended treatments .
Surface liming, at best, doesn't eliminate toxic aluminum deeper than
about an inch during the first six months. Lime must be worked in
and allowed to react in order to permit added phosphorus to be effec-
tive, as well as to prevent aluminum toxicity.
There is still some tendency to forget that planting of non-leguminous
shrubs or trees may fail because of nitrogen deficiency unless legumes
are established as companion crops. One exception is European Black
Alder, which, although not a legume, is believed to be capable of
symbiotic nitrogen fixation. Other effective nitrogen fixing trees
being used are black and bristly locust. These trees have special
value because of nitrogen, and should never be judged solely on other
values (or lack of values) of the trees themselves. These observations
and conclusions lead back, inevitably, to the quality of overburden
and final placement in the minesoil. When favorable, non-toxic material
with good water-holding capacity is placed on the surface, there is
little difficulty in growing vigorous legumes, with little or no liming
and fertilizing problem.
243
-------
to
. 3
E
O
O
•s.
10
<
5
PH
treatments
• = 0 tons /acre
A = l tons/acre
o=2 tons/acre
• s 4 tons/acre
= 0-1 inch depth
= i-2 Inch depfh
FIGURE 37. pH VERSUS EXCHANGEABLE ALUMINUM AT TWO DEPTHS IN SANDSTONE MINESOIL,
SIX MONTHS AFTER SURFACE LIMING WITH STANDARD AGRICULTURAL LIMESTONE.
-------
to
-p-
Ln
£
(3
O
O
2
I
I
I
I
I
I
-*•-•"•--—
I " -1
treotments
• = 0 tons/rocre
* = I tons/acre
o=H tons /acre
• = 4 tons/acre
— =0-1 inch depth
-— = I ~2 inch depth
A
PH
FIGURE 38. pE VERSUS EXCHANGEABLE ALUMINUM AT TWO DEPTHS IN SANDSTONE MINESOIL,
SIX MONTHS AFTER SURFACE LIMING WITH STANDARD AGRICULTURAL DOLOMITE.
-------
SECTION XV
REFERENCES
1. Abruna, F., and J. Vicente. Refinement of a Quantitative Method
for Determing the Lime Requirements of Soils. Jour Ag Univ
(Puerto Rico) 39(1):41-45. 1955. v
2. Arkle, T., Jr. The Configuration of the Pennsylvanian and
Dunkard (Permian?) Strata of West Virginia: West Virginia Uni-
versity and Geological Survey. In: Some Appalachian Coals and
Carbonates: Models of Ancient Shallow-water Deposition, Geol
Soc, American Preconvention Field Trip Guidebook, Donaldson, A.C.
(ed.). Atlantic City, 1969. p. 55-88.
3. , and J. A. Barlow. The Log of the I.C. White
Memorial Symposium Field Trip: West Virginia Geol Survey.
1972. 63 p.
4. . The Stratigraphy of the Pennsylvanian and
Permian of the Central Appalachians: Geol Soc America Special
Paper 148. 1973. (In Press).
5. ASTM. Tentative Method of Test for: Forms of Sulfur in Coal.
ASTM Designation: D2492-66T. 1966.
6. Bondurant, D.M. (ed). Proceedings of the Revegetation and
Economic Use of Surface-Mined Land and Mine Refuse Symposium,
Sponsored by West Virginia University at Pipestem State Park,
1971.
7. Bouyoucos, G.J. A Recalibration of the Hydrometer Method for
Making Mechanical Analysis of Soils. Agron Jour. 43:434-437,
1951.
8. Bray, R.H., and L.T. Kurtz. Determination of Total Organic, and
Available Forms of Phosphorus in Soils. Soil Sci. j>9_: 39-45. 1945.
8a. Brinkman, R., and L. J. Pons. Recognition and prediction of acid
sulphate soil conditions. Proceedings of the International Symposium
on Acid Sulphate Soils, Wageningen, The Netherlands (1972).
246
-------
9. Clarke, F.W., and H.S. Washington. Composition of the Earth's
Crust. U.S. Geol Survey Professional Paper 127, 1924.
10. Coleman, M. Interaction of Thiobacillas Ferrooxidans and
Heterotrophic Bacteria Indigenous to Acid Mine Water. M.S.
Thesis. West Virginia University. 1972. 58 p.
11. Day, P.R. Report on the Committee on Physical Analysis. 1954-
55. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc. 20:167-169. 1956.
12. Fettke, C.R. Glass Manufacture and the Glass Industry of
Pennsylvania. Topographic and Geologic Survey. Report 12.
1918. 149 p.
13. Grube, W.E., Jr., R.M. Smith, E.M. Jencks, and R.N. Singh.
Significance of Weathering in a Pennsylvanian Sandstone to
Pollution from Strip Mines. Nature 236(5341):70-71. 1972.
14. Grube, W.E., Jr., R.M. Smith, and R.N. Singh. Interpretations
of Mottled Profiles in Surficial Ultisols and Fine-grained
Pennsylvanian Age Sandstones. Abstract of Joint Meeting of
Commissions V and VI of the International Society of Soil Science,
(Stuttgart-Hohenheim, Germany.) 1971.
15. Hennen, R.V. Wirt, Roane and Calhoun counties: West Virginia
Geol Survey, 1911. 573 p.
16. Hennen, R.V. Doddridge and Harrison counties: West Virginia
Geol Survey, 1912. 712 p.
17. , and D.B. Reger. Marion, Monongahela and Taylor
Counties:West Virginia Geol Survey, 1913. 844 p.
18. , and . Preston County: West Virginia
Geol Survey, 1914. 566 p.
19. . Braxton and Clay Counties: West Virginia Geol
Survey, 1917. 883 p.
20. Hinish, W.W., M.R. Heddleson, and J.H. Eakin, Jr. Soil Testing
Handbook. Penna. State University, Coll of Agr, Ext Service.
University Park, PA, 1968.
21. Jackson, M.L. Soil Chemical Analysis. Prentics Hall, Englewood
Cliffs, N.J. 1958.
247
-------
22. Kilmer, V.J., and L.T. Alexander. Methods of Making Mechanical
Analyses of Soils. Soil Sci 68:15-24. 1949.
23. Nelson, W.L., A. Mehlich, and E. Winters. The Development,
Evaluation and Use of Soil Tests for Phosphorus Availability.
In: Soil and Fertilizer Phosphate in Crop Nutrition, Agronomy
Monograph 4, Pierre, W.H., and A.G. Norman (ed.). Madison,
Wise. Amer Soc Agron, Inc. 1953. p. 153-188.
24. Olok, G.C. Chemical and Physical Properties of Spoil Material
Resulting from Strip Mining. M.S. Thesis, West Virginia
University. 1967.
25. Olsen, S.R., C.V. Cole, F.F. Watanabe, and L.A. Dean. Estimation
of Available Phosphorus in Soils by Extraction With Sodium
Bicarbonate. U.S.D.A. Circular 939- 1954.
26. Olsen, S.R., and L.A. Dean. In: Methods of Soil Analysis,
Agronomy Monograph 9, Black, C.A. (ed.). 1965.
27. Reger, D.B., and D.D. Teets, Jr. Barbour and Upshur Counties
and Western Portion of Randolph County: West Virginia Geol
Survey, 1918. 867 p.
28. Renton, J.J., R.V. Hidalgo, and D.L. Streib. Relative Acid
Producing Potential of Coal: Environmental Geology Bulletin 11,
West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, 1973. 7 p.
29. Rich, C.I. Calcium Determination for Cation-exchange Capacity
Measurements. Soil Sci 9:226-231. 1961.
30. Roper, H., J.E. Cox, and B. Erin. Petrographic Studies on
Concrete Containing Shrinking Aggregate. Journal of the Portland
Cement Assoc, Research and Development Laboratory, 6(3):2-17. 1964.
31. Singh, R.N., W.E. Grube, Jr., E.M. Jencks, and R.M. Smith.
Morphology and Genesis of Dystrochrepts as Influenced by the
Properties of Mahoning Sandstone. Agronomy Abstracts 141,
(Presented at the Annual American Society of Agronomy Meeting.
Tucson, Arizona. 1970.)
32. Smith, R.M., and others. Properties of Coal Overburdens that
Influence Plant Growth on Minesoils. Proceedings of Acid Mine
Drainage Workshop. Dept of Geology, Ohio University, Athens,
Ohio. 1972.
248
-------
33. Sobek, A.A. Properties of Barren Mine Spoils that Influence
Revegetation, M.S. Thesis. Division of Plant Science-Agronomy,
College of Agriculture & Forestry, West Virginia University,
Morgantown, W.Va. 1972.
34. Soil Survey Staff. Selected Chapters from the Unedited Text
of the Soil Taxonomy of the National Cooperative Soil Survey.
U.S.D.A. Soil Conservation Service, Washington, D.C. (Unpublished)
1970.
35. Soil Survey Staff. Soil classification, a comprehensive system—
7th approximation (and supplements) U.S.D.A. Soil Conservation
Service, Washington, D.C. 1960.
36. Temple, K.L., and W.A. Koehler. Drainage from Bituminous Coal
Mines. West Virginia University Engineering Experiment Station
Research Bulletin 25. 1954.
37. Tyner, E.H. The Use of Sodium Metaphosphate for Dispersion of
Soils for Mechanical Analysis. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 4:106-113.
1940.
38. West Virginia Coal Association. West Virginia Coal Facts. 1971.
28 p.
39. West Virginia Department of Mines. Statistical Report of Coal
Mines 1925. 1945-1971.
40. West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey. Geologic Map of
West Virginia. 1968.
41. West Virginia University. Mine Spoil Potentials for Water Quality
and Controlled Erosion. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington,
D.C. Water Pollution Control Research Series, 14010EJE. 1971.
42. West Virginia University. Soil Development on Mine Spoils. WVU
Agriculture Experiment Station Bulletin 604T. 1971.
43. Woodruff, C.M. Testing Soils for Lime Requirement by Means of
a Buffered Solution and the Glass Electrode. Soil Science
66:53-66. 1948.
44. Zuberer, D.A. Microbial Oxidations of Pyritic Mine Spoil
Materials. M.S. Thesis. Division of Plant Science-Bacteriology,
College of Agriculture & Forestry, West Virginia University. 1971.
249
-------
SECTION XV
PUBLICATIONS
Arnold, G.E., and M.T. Heald. Weathering of Sandstones in West
Virginia. (Presented to West Virginia Academy of Sciences.
Fairmont State College, Fairmont, W-Va. 1973.)
Balasko, J.A. Plant and Spoil Characteristics Affecting Surface
Mine Revegetation. Proceedings of the Revegetation and Economic Use
of Surface-mined Land and Mine Refuse Symposium, West Virginia
University, Morgantown, W.Va. 1971.
Bennett, O.L. Grasses and Legumes for Revegetation of Strip-mined
Areas. Proceedings of the Revegetation and Economic Use of Surface-
Mined Land and Mine Refuse Symposium, West Virginia University,
Morgantown, W.Va. 1971.
Grube, W.E., Jr., R.M. Smith, and R.N. Singh. Interpretations of
Mottled Profiles in Surficial Ultisols and Fine-grained Pemisylvanian
Age Sandstones. (Presented to meeting of Commissions V and VI of
the Int Soc Soil Sci. (Stuttgart-Hohenheim, West Germany) 1971.)
Grube, W.E., Jr., R.M. Smith, E.M. Jencks, and R.N. Singh. Signi-
ficance of Weathering in a Pennsylvanian Sandstone to Pollution
from Strip Mines. Nature 236(5341):70-71. 1972.
Grube, W.E., Jr., R.M. Smith, R.N. Singh, and A.A. Sobek. Char-
aterization of Coal Overburden Materials and Minesoils in Advance
of Surface Mining. Proceedings of the Research and Applied Technology
Symposium on Mined-Land Reclamation, Bituminous Coal Research, Inc.,
Monroeville, Penna. 1973.
Grube, W.E., Jr., R.M. Smith, and R.N. Singh. Interpretations of
Mottled Profiles in Surficial Ultisols and Fine-grained Pennsylvanian
Age Sandstones. Pseudogley and Gley, Transactions of Commissions V
and VI. Int Soc Soil Sci (Verlag Chemie Gmb.H. Weinheim/Bergst,
Germany), p. 255-262, 1973b.
250
-------
Smith, R.M. Properties of Coal Overburden that Influence Revegetation
and Economic Use of Mine Soils. Proceedings of the Revegetation and
Economic Use of Surface-Mined Land and Mine Refuse Symposium, West
Virginia University, Morgantown, W.Va. 1971.
Smith, Richard Meriwether. Choosing Topsoil to Fit the Needs. Green
Lands Quarterly, Vol. 3, No. 2, WVSMRA Charleston, W.Va. 1973.
Smith, R.M. and others. Properties of Coal Overburdens that Influence
Plant Growth on Minesoils. (Presented at Acid Mine Drainage Workshop.
Dept. of Geology, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio. 1972.)
Smith, R.M., and W.E. Grube, Jr. Overburden Makes the Difference.
Green Lands Quarterly, Vol. 3, No. 1, WVSMRA Charleston, W.Va. 1973.
Smith, Richard Meriwether, Walter E. Grube, Jr., and John Thomas Ammons.
Toxic or Potentially Toxic Materials. Green Lands Quarterly, Vol. 3,
No. 3, WVSMRA Charleston, W.Va. 1973.
Smith, R.M., W.E. Grube, Jr., J.C. Sencindiver, R.N. Singh, and
A.A. Sobek. Properties, Processes and Energetics of Minesoils.
Accepted for publication in the Proceedings of the 10th International
Congress of Soil Science (Moscow, U.S.S.R.) (In press) 1973.
Sobek, A.A., and R.M. Smith. Properties of Barren Mine Spoil.
Proceedings of the West Virginia Academy of Sciences, 43:161-169, 1971.
Sobek, A.A. Properties of Barren Mine Spoils that Influence Revegeta-
tion. M.S. Thesis, West Virginia University. 1972.
Sperow, C.B., Jr. Continuing Management of Vegetation on Surface-
Mined Land. Proceedings of the Revegetation and Economic Use of
Surface-Mined Land and Mine Refuse Symposium. West Virginia University,
Morgantown, W.Va. 1971.
Sturm, J.W. Naturally Invading Plant Species on Two Upper Freeport
Strip-Mine Spoils. Problem Report, Ms. Agr., West Virginia University.
1973. 50 p.
Zuberer, D.A. Microbial Oxidations of Pyritic Mine Spoil Materials.
M.S. Thesis, West Virginia University. 1971.
Ammons, J. T. Interaction of Some Chemical Properties Due to Liming
Acid Surface Mine Soils. M.S. Thesis, West Virginia University. 1973.
251
-------
SECTION XVI
GLOSSARY
Acid-Base Account - A tabulation of data or graphic presentation of
results of analyses for pyritic sulfur content and neutralization
potential, from which the maximum potential acidity possible from
immediately titratable sources plus sulfur expressed as sulfuric
acid equivalent has been calculated, and balanced against total
neutralization potential from alkaline carbonates, exchangeable
bases, weatherable silicates, or other rock sources capable of
neutralizing strong acids.
Calcareous - Containing calcium carbonate.
Carbolith - This name has been coined to cover dark colored sedimen-
tary rocks that will make a black or very dark (Munsell color
value of 3 or less) streak or mark on a white streak plate or
hard rock like chert. Rocks included under this name include
coal, bonecoal, carbon rich muds, and carbon rich shales. An
optional name is carbonrock. In general; such rocks will be
at least 25% organic matter.
Carbonrock - See carbolith.
Channel sandstone - Sandstone deposited in a stream bed or other
channel eroded into the underlying bed.
Chemoautotrophic - Being autotrophic and oxidizing some inorganic
compound as a source of energy.
Chert - A rock consisting dominantly of amorphous silica or extremely
small (cryptocrystalline) quartz and hard enough to scratch
glass or an ordinary knife blade (i.e., hardness of 6.5 to 7.0
on the Moh scale). Flint, Jasper, and other names related to
rock color or weathering may be used to identify different kinds
of chert.
252
-------
Clayey - Containing large amounts of clay or having properties similar
to those of clay.
Coarse fragments - Rock or mineral particles greater than 2.0 mm. in
diameter.
Colluvium - Deposit of rock fragments and soil material accumulated
at the base of slopes as a result of gravitational action.
Depositional basin - A segment of the earth's crust which has been
downwarped, usually for a considerable time, and into which
potential rock-forming materials have been laid down.
Ductile - Capable of considerable deformation, expecially stretching,
without breaking.
Efflorescense - Surface encrustation, commonly powdery, produced by
evaporation.
Euhedral - Minerals that are bounded by their own crystal faces.
Fines - Material smaller than 2 mm. in effective Stokes diameter.
Fissile - Having a tendency to split along parallel planes, into
layers that are less than 2 mm. thick.
Flintclay - A mudrock consisting of high alumina minerals that make
it appropriate for use in high temperature firebricks, and which
shows conchoidal fracture and other features similar to chert
except its hardness which is typical of other mudrocks (hardness
2 to 3 on the Moh scale).
Friable - Easily crumbled, as would be the case with rock that is
poorly cemented.
Intercalate - This term is used as a composite noun to include rocks
of different kinds that are so intimately interlayered or inter-
calated that they cannot be sampled or described separately. A
sandstone-shale intercalate would be more than 50% sandstone
whereas a shale-sandstone intercalate would be more than 50%
shale. Other kinds of intercalate rocks would be described by
other appropriate rock names.
Interstice - Pore, void.
Interfinger - To grade or pass from one material into another through
a series of interlocking or overlapping wedge-shaped layers.
253
-------
Isomorphous substitution - The replacement of one atom by another of
similar size in a crystal lattice without disrupting or changing
the crystal structure of the mineral.
Lacustrine •- Produced by or belonging to lakes.
Lens - A body of ore or rock thick in the middle and thin at the
edges; similar to a double convex lens.
Lime requirement - In an acid soil, the amount of lime (CaC03) or other
base required to neutralize acidity in the range from the initial
acid condition to a selected nautral or less acid condition.
Limestone - A sedimentary rock consisting dominantly of calcium or
magnesium carbonate, which can be scratched readily with a knife,
but not with the fingernail, and which is light colored or white
(Munsell color value of 7 or higher) when powdered or streaked on
a hard surface. Confirmation of identification may require
testing for fizz in dilute (1 to 3 or 1 to 4) hydrochloric acid,
although other rocks such as calcareous mudstone may also fizz
freely in acid.
Matrix - In a rock in which certain grains are much larger than the
others, the grains of the smaller size comprise the matrix.
Minesoil - In accordance with the new soil classification system,
Soil Taxonomy, Soil Conservation Service, U.S.D.A., soils
may be modified or even made by man (see Section V): hence,
minesoil is soil made by mining or mining related activity.
Mine spoil - Prior to the present soil classification system,
Soil Taxonomy, most earthy bodies now called minesoils were
designated as mine spoils. The term mine spoil, therefore,
is either a synonym for the recently adopted term, minesoil,
or it refers to earthy waste material being disrupted or
moved during mining or mining related activity.
Mottling - Spots or blotches of different color or shades of color
interspersed with the dominant color.
Mudrock - A broad term for sedimentary rock dominated by silt and
(or) clay sized particles, without restrictions on mineralogy.
This rock type may contain as much as 50% sand if properties
are judged to be dominated by silt and (or) clay. I*f sand (grit)
is noticeable by observation or feel, the rock may be called
sandy mudrock. Mudstone is considered a satisfactory synonym
254
-------
for mudrock, but some authorities may exclude all fissile
(prominently layered) sediments from their definition of mud-
stone. Mudrocks may contain any proportion of carbonate so
long as particles are dominantly silt and Cor) clay when
rubbed in water.
Mudstone - See mudrock.
Nodular - Containing at least 10% by volume of rounded bodies of
rock that are generally somewhat more cohesive or harder than
the enclosing sediment or rock matrix.
Nodule - More or less rounded body generally somewhat harder than
the enclosing sediment or rock matrix.
Overburden - Earth material, consolidated or unconsolidated, that
overlies a deposit of useful materials, ores, or coal, especially
those deposits that are mined from the surface by open cuts.
Fed - A unit of soil structure such as an aggregate, crumb, block,
prism, or granule, formed by natural processes.
Phase, soil - A subdivision of a soil type or other unit of classi-
fication having characteristics that affect the use and
management of the soil but which do not vary sufficiently to
differentiate it as a seperate type.
pH-dependent charge - That portion of the total charge of the soil
(clay) particles which is affected by, and varies with, changes
in pH.
Sandstone - A sedimentary rock consisting dominantly of sand-sized,
that is visible grains that feel gritty when rubbed in water.
Silt and clay combined may total as much as 50% of the total
rock weight. When more than 15% of a sandstone consists of
particles finer than sand, the rock may be called a muddy
sandstone, silty sandstone, clayer sandstone, argillaceous
sandstone, or other kind of descriptive name.
Schlick - A mass of body of silt and (or) clay that would be called
Schlickstone except that it is very soft when wet (hardness
about 1.0) and may not fit popular concepts of stone or rock.
From the standpoint of soil structure, Schlick is massive,
although it may show some stratification.
255
-------
Shale - A mudrock that appears prominently thin-layered or fissile.
Shale often is more resistant to physical breakdown in water than
non-fissile mudrock and usually is harder to scratch. Some
indurated shale cannot be scratched with the fingernail.
Sinuous - Of a serpentine or wavy form.
Soil separates - Mineral particles, 2.0 mm. in equivalent Stokes
diameter, ranging between specified size limit.
sand: 2.0 - 0.05 mm.
silt: 0.05 - .002 mm.
clay: less than 0.002 mm.
Stringer - A narrow vein or irregular filament of mineral traversing
of rock mass of different material, or a thin layer of coal at the
top of a bed, separating in places from the main coal by material
similar to that comprising the roof.
Topsoil - Presumed fertile soil material used as top dressing.
Toxic materials - Any rock or earth material having a pH of less than
4.0 or a net potential deficiency of 5.0 tons of calcium carbonate
equivalent or more per thousand tons of material as determined by
the acid-base accounting method.
Weathering - All physical and chemical changes produced in rocks, at
or near the earth's surface, by atmospheric agents.
256
-------
SECTION XVII
APPENDICES
Page
A. Reserves and coal production in ten West Virginia 258
counties in the area of this study.
B. Average analyses of ash and sulphur in the major 270
coals mined in the area of this study.
C. Listing of cores and geologic sections on cross 274
sections in Section IV.
D. Profile descriptions of minesoils of various ages 280
studied within this project.
E. Locations of field study sites not directly plotted 294
on the cross sections in Section IV.
F. Site locations for sandstones included in petrographic 297
study of sandstone weathering.
G. Form suggested for presentation of data illustrating 302
toxic or potentially toxic material in a section of
coal overburden.
257
-------
APPENDIX A
Table 66
Reserves and total production of coal in Braxton, Gilmer,
Lewis, Harrison, Upshur, Harbour, Taylor, Randolph,
Tucker and Preston counties, West Virginia.
County
Braxton
Gilmer
Lewis
Harrison
Upshur
Barbour
Taylor
Randolph
Tucker
Preston
Original
Reserves
(thousands
2,323,333
1,019,245
2,776,037
2,172,731
3,554,552
3,585,619
1,327,767
4,183,644
486,964
3,212,324
Estimated
Recoverable
Reserves
of tons)
1,152,511
497 ,045
1,375,228
653,381
1,743,123
1,648,523
616,098
2,448,282
186,289
1,485,468
Reported
Production
(1883--1970)
9,154
12,577
12,790
432,984
34,153
144,287
47,785
61,928
57,193
120,694
258
-------
15,000,000
COAL PRODUCTION OF COUNTIES
IN AREA OF STUDY
AREA
LOCATION
Figure 39
259
-------
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
Deep
mined
coal
0.5
o
o
a.
a.
ui
i-
0.3
u- 0.2
Cfc
UJ
a.
0. I
CO
Z
LLl
CO
m
z
o
K
3
m
CE
CO
5
UJ
C9
J
O
CJ
100 %
50 %
m
*
cn
O
m
cn
m
cn
o
to
cn
YEAR
in
(O
en
O
^
o>
in
h-
en
500,000
- 0.4 in 400,000
a
ui
te 300,000
a.
UJ
a:
UJ
< 200,000
z
z
o
g 100,000
o
COUNTY
LOCATION
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
BRAXTON COUNTY
Figure 40
260
-------
Q 100 %
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
a
Deep
mined
coal
o
(-
o
o
UJ
I-
<
I .0
U
a.
ui
U)
V
o
50 %
Ul
(9
o
o o
2,000,000
o
Ul
1-
c
o
Q.
Ul
1,000,000
•X
O
O
COUNTY
LOCATION
a>
o
to
a>
YEAR
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
GILMER COUNTY
Figure 41
It)
r^
261
-------
a 100 %
LJ
LEGEND
Surfoce
min ed
coal
a
Deep
mined
cool
Z.O
10
in
z
o
50 %
a:
a>
tu
(9
o
u
n
»
0>
O
n
01
o
-------
o 100 %
ui
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
a
Deep
mined
coal
20.0
a
o
ce
a.
i-
m
ui
o
a:
ui
a.
UI
CO
CD
50 %
co
a
ui
o
20,000,000
a
ui
a:
o
a.
ui
10.0 cr 10,000,000
ui
o
o
o
O
fl
o
en
YEAR
o>
o
K
o>
COUNTY
LOCA TION
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
HARRISON COUNTY
Figure 43
in
r~
at
263
-------
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
o 100 %
tu
Ul
in
o
50 %
Deep
mined
coal
t-
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
UPSHUR COUNTY
Figure 44
n
h-
o>
264
-------
100 %
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
Deep
mined
coal
5.0
2 4.0
a
o
(E
"•
UI
o
(E
111
a.
3.0
2-0
1.0
z
z
ui
in
in
o
1C
YEAR
in
10
o>
o
^-
o>
COUNTY
LOCATION
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
BARBOUR COUNTY
Figure 45
m
r-
Ot
265
-------
100 %
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
a
Deep
mine d
coal
2.0
Z
-
a>
COUNTY
LOCATION
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
TAYLOR,COUNTY
Figure 46
266
-------
100 %
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
a
Deep
mined
coal
2.0
in
oo
o
i
CO
3
U)
50 %
O
in
cn
o
en
YEAR
in
2,000,000
COUNTY
LOCATION
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
RANDOLPH COUNTY
Figure 47
in
t--
01
267
-------
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
Deep
mined
coal
2.0
o
o
IE
a.
u.
o
UI
o
a:
ui
a.
1.0
a 100 %
Ul
z
i
CO
in
>•
a
z
o
tp
or
i-
OT
O
Ul
C9
4
O
O
50 %
UPPER <;
FREEPORT
*
a>
o
in
in
in
01
O
2,000,000
o
UJ
1-
(E
O
a.
a. 1,000,000
(9
<
o
I-
4
O
O
COUNTY
LOCATION
BITUMINOUS COAL PRpDUCTION
TUCKER COUNTY
Figure 48
268
-------
LEGEND
Surface
mined
coal
Deep
mined
coal
5.0
4.0
o
D
O
O
(E
UJ
l-
m
z
u
o
3.0
2.0
1.0
Q 100 %
UJ
z
s
UJ
tn
CD
Z
O
H
S 50 %
-
O
O
<
z
o
o
o
m
o>
m
m
01
O
u>
Ol
YEAR
IO
(O
o>
o
r-
5,000,000
iu 4,000,000
a
UJ
| 3,000,000
a.
ui
a:
z
z
o
2,000,000
6 1,000,000
o
COUNTY
LOCATION
BITUMINOUS COAL PRODUCTION
PRESTON COUNTY
Figure 49
r-
Ol
269
-------
APPENDIX B
Table 67. AVERAGE ANALYSES3 OF ASH AND SULFUR OF PITTSBURGH AND REDSTONE COALS IN AN AREA OF
880 SQUARE MILES BISSECTED BY GEOLOGIC CROSS SECTION A-A'.
NJ
County
Roane^
Calhoun
Gilmer
Braxtdnb
Lewis
Harrison
Upshur
Barb our
Name of Coal
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
Reds tone
Pittsburgh
Redstone
Pittsburgh
Redstone
Pittsburgh
Redstone
Pittsburgh
No. of
Analyses
4
3
18
7
14
3
6
2
14
1
4
7
Average Thickness in ft.:
Mining Section Partings
3-6 1/4
3-0 1/4
5-11
5-9 1/8
4-4 1/2
4-5 1/4
6-0
5-1 1/7
4-10 1/4
7-0
5-3 5/B
7-6 1/2
1-7/8
0-1/4
0-0 3/4
0-2
0-2 1/4
0-1
0-1
0-0 13/16
0-8
0-5 1/2
Percent
Ash Sulfur
6.92
6.97
6.57
6.31
7.06
6.24
7.65
6.15
6.73
6.55
5.43
6.47
2.01
3.41
2.32
2.05
2.77
2.52
1.80
4.15
1.99
3.08
1.96
2.80
Condition of
Sample
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
-------
Table 67 (.continued)
No. of Average Thickness in ft.: Percent Condition of
County Name of Coal Analyses Mining Section Partings Ash Sulfur Sample
Taylor
Gilmerb
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh
11
4
6-11 1/2
9-8 1/4
0-1 7/8
0-2
6.81
7.05
2.46
2.12
A.R.
A.R.
aAbove data taken from the following reports:
Hennen, R. V., 1911, p. 215-223.
, 1912, p. 207, 209, 211, 571, 572, 615, 633, 639, 640.
Hennen, R. V. and D. B. Reger, 1913, p. 703-709, 742, 743.
Reger, D. B., 1916, p. 515, 516, 518, 521, 524, 526-528, 530, 532, 533, 536, 540, 541,
544, 546-556, 593, 594.
, 1917, p. 486, 487, 488, 502, 503, 505, 507, 775.
b
Reger, D. B. and D. D. Teets, Jr., 1918, p. 444, 446-457, 461-463, 469-471, 474-476, 738.
Outside area of investigation.
-------
Table 68. AVERAGE ANALYSES OF ASH AND SULFUR OF LOWER, MIDDLE AND UPPER KITTANNING, LOWER
AND UPPER FREEPORT AND BAKERSTOWN COALS IN AN AREA OF OVER 500 SQUARE
MILES BISSECTED BY GEOLOGIC CROSS SECTION B-B1.
ro
County
Randolph
Upshur
Barb our
Preston
No. of
Name of Coal Analyses
Middle and Lower
Kit tanning
Clarion
Lower Freeport
Middle Kit tanning
Bakers town
Upper Freeport
Upper Kit tanning
Lower Kit tanning
Bakers town
Upper Freeport
8
1
1
3
4
7
5
17
4
42
Average Thickness in f t . :
Mining Section Partings
(includes bone & shale)
7-8 3/4
9-9
3-1
4-0
4-1
4-8
3-10
6-0
3-9 3/4
5-10
1-2 2/3
3-1
0-8 2/3
1-2
1-2
0-6
1-1
0-9 3/4
1-2
Percent
Ash Sulfur
10.74
8.44
12.39
9.78
7.54
11.97
11.16
10.56
6.38
8.40
1.88
1.86
4.78
3.82
2.42
3.51
3.08
1.99
1.65
1.69
Condition of
Sample
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
-------
Table 68 (continued)
County
Preston
No. of
Name of Coal Analyses
Lower Freeport
Upper Kit tanning
Lower Kit tanning
2
7
17
Average Thickness in ft.:
Mining Section Partings
(includes
3-10
4-1
6-5
bone & shale)
2-4
0-5 1/3
1-10
Percent
Ash Sulfur
15.43
10.07
8.92
3.52
2.37
1.36
Condition of
Sample
A.R.
A.R.
A.R.
ISJ
^1
00
aData from the following reports:
Hennen, R.V. and D. B. Reger, 1914, p. 137, 139, 160, 163, 271, 273, 279-283, 287-291,
295-298, 301-304, 306, 309, 314-317, 319, 320, 327,
329, 332-334, 340, 342, 343-345, 347, 364-367.
Reger, D. B. and D. D. Teets, Jr., 1918, p. 247, 492, 495, 497, 513-515, 518, 519, 525,
526, 532, 534, 535, 537, 539, 554, 559, 560,
563, 568, 570-572, 574, 575, 578, 588, 589,
592, 595, 596, 598, 607, 611, 616, 624-626,
630, 631, 633, 635, 636, 647, 739-741.
-------
APPENDIX C
SECTIONS AND CORES
ON
CROSS SECTION A-A'
1. Glenville Section, Glenville District, Gilmer County, West
Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1916, Lewis and Gilmer counties, West
Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 85.)
2. Cedarville Section, Center District, Gilmer County, West
Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1916, Lewis and Gilmer counties,
West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 94.)
3. Vadis Section, Freemans Creek District, Lewis County, West
Virginia (Reger, D. B., 1916, Lewis and Gilmer counties, West
Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 60.)
4. Hurst Section, Freeman Creek District and J.C. Marsh Core Test
(WVGS Number 280) Lewis County, West Virginia (Reger, D.B.,
1916, Lewis and Gilmer counties, West Virginia: West Virginia
Geol. Survey p. 56-58.)
5. Alum Bridge Section, Freemans Creek District, Lewis County, West
Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1916, Lewis and Gilmer counties, West
Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 60, 61.)
6. Camden Section, Freemans Creek District, Lewis County, West
Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1916, Lewis and Gilmer counties, West
Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 58, 59.)
7. Town Run Section, Courthouse District, Lewis County, West
Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1916, Lewis and Gilmer counties, West
Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 127.)
8. Interstate 79 and U.S. Route 33 Section, Hackers Creek District,
Lewis County, West Virginia.
9. Hyre Brake No. 1 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number 82, Buckhannon
District, Upshur County, West Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1916,
Barbour and Upshur counties and western portion of Randolph
County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 415.)
10. Groundhog Hollow Section, Warren District, Upshur County, West
Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1916, Barbour and Upshur counties and
western portion of Randolph County, West Virginia: West
Virginia Geol. Survey p. 119, 120.)
274
-------
11. Ruraldale Section, Warren District, Upshur County, West Virginia
(Reger, D.B., 1916, Barbour and Upshur counties and western
portion of Randolph County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol.
Survey p. 120, 121.)
12. B.M. Core Record No. 1, Warren District, Upshur County, West
Virginia, Bethlehem Mines Corporation, Century, West Virginia.
13. Pecks Run Section, Warren District, Upshur County, West Virginia
(Reger, D.B., 1916, Barbour and Upshur counties and western
portion of Randloph County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol.
Survey p. 121.)
14. Dick Drain of Gnatty Creek Section, Union District, Barbour
County, West Virginia.
15. Arnolds Creek Section, Elk District, Barbour County.
16. Brushy Fork Section, Simpson District, Harrison County, West
Virginia (Hennen, R.V., 1912, Doddridge and Harrison counties,
West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 208.)
17. Divide Section between Taylor Run and Pleasant Creek, Pleasant
District, Barbour County, West Virginia.
275
-------
SECTIONS AND CORES
ON
CROSS SECTION B-B'
1. Measured section in LaRosa Surface Mine, Whitman Flats, Middle
Fork District, Randolph County, West Virginia.
2. U.S.G.S. Core Record No. 32, Roaring Creek District, Randolph
County, West Virginia. (Geological Survey Water Resources
Division U.S. Department of Interior Acid Mine Demonstration
Project No. W.Va. -7-0.)
3. U.S.G.S. Core Record No. 4, Roaring Creek District, Randolph
County, West Virginia. (Geological Survey Water Resources
Division U.S. Department of Interior Acid Mine Demonstration
Project No. W.Va. -7-0.)
4. U.S.G.S. Core Record No. 3, Roaring Creek District, Randolph
County, West Virginia. (Geological Survey Water Resources
Division, U.S. Department of Interior Acid Mine Demonstration
Project No. W.Va. -7-0.)
5. U.S.G.S Core Record No. 9, Roaring Creek District, Randolph
County, West Virginia. (Geological Survey Water Resources
Division, U.S. Department of Interior Acid Mine Demonstration
Project No. W.Va. -7-0.)
6. Davis Coal and Coke Company No. 5 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number
52), Harbour County, West Virginia, (Reger, D.B., 1918, Barbour
and Upshur counties and western portion of Randolph County,
West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey, p. 406.)
7. Flora Section, Glade District and Isaac Coonts Coal Test Record
(WVGS Number 39), Barbour County, West Virginia (Reger, D.B.,
1918, Barbour and Upshur counties and western portion of Randolph
County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey., p. 108-109.)
8. Meadowville Section, Glade District and Nelson H. Harris Coal
Test Record (WVGS Number 37), Barbour County, West Virginia
(Reger, D.B., 1918, Barbour and Upshur counties and western
portion of Randolph County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol.
Survey, p. 107-108.)
9. Nestorville Section, Cove District and Lewis Auvill Coal Test
(WVGS Number 33), Barbour County, West Virginia (Reger, D.B.,
276
-------
1918. Barbour and Upshur counties and western portion of Randolph
County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey, p. 104-105.)
10. Allie Rosier Coal Test (WVGS Number 30), Cole District, Barbour
County, West Virginia (Reger, D.B., 1918, Barbour and Upshur
counties and western portion of Randolph County, West Virginia:
West Virginia Geol. Survey, p. 403-404.)
11. Colebank Section, Cove District and James Lindsey Coal Test
Record (WVGS Number 29), Barbour County, West Virginia (Reger,
D.B., 1918, Barbour and Upshur counties and western portion of
Randolph County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey,
p. 101-103.)
12. Marcellus Knotts Core Test (WVGS Number 97A), Reno District,
Preston County, West Virginia (Hennen, R.V. and Reger, D.B.,
1914, Preston County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol.
Survey p. 256.)
13. Austen Coal and Coke Company Core Test No. 4 (WVGS Number 88)
Reno District, Preston County, West Virginia (Hennen, R.V.,
and Reger, D.B. , 1914, Preston County, West Virginia: West
Virginia Geol. Survey p. 257.)
14. Rowlesburg Section, Reno District, Preston County, West Virginia
(Hennen, R.V. and Reger, D.B., 1914, Preston County, West
Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 97-98.)
15. Core Record No. VH 101, Pleasant District, Preston County, West
Virginia.
16. Core Records No. VH 102 and FP 19 (Kingwood Mining Co.) Pleasant
District, Preston County, West Virginia.
17. Core Record No. FP 17 (Kingwood Mining Co.) Pleasant District,
Preston County, West Virginia.
18. Core Record No. FP 25 (Kingwood Mining Co.) Pleasant District,
Preston County, West Virginia.
19. Brandonville Section, Grant District and Hudro-Electric Company
of West Virginia Core Test No. 2 (WVGS Number 6) Preston County,
West Virginia (Hennen, R.V. and Reger, D.B., 1914, Preston
County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 80-81.)
277
-------
SECTIONS AND CORES
ON
CROSS SECTION C-Cf
1. Hall, Union District, Barbour County, West Virginia (Reger, D. B.,
1918, Barbour and Upshur counties and western portion of Randolph
County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey, p. 94.
2. L. R. No. 1 Coal Test Boring, north of Lick Shoals Run, Union
District, Barbour £ounty, West Virginia.
3. A. V. Wilmoth No. 5 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number 64A) , Barbour
County, West Virginia (Reger, D. B., 1918 Barbour and Upshur
counties and western portion of Randolph County, West Virginia:
West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 411.
4. Belington Section, Barker District and Blackman Wilmoth No. 3
Coal Test Record (WVGS Number 70) Barbour County West Virginia
(Reger, D. B., 1918, Barbour and Upshur counties and western
portion of Randolph County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol.
Survey, p. 112-113).
5. Junior Section, Valley District and Cora Wilson (William Bonar)
No. 1 Coal Test (WVGS Number 69) Barbour County, West Virginia
(Reger, D. B., 1918, Barbour and Upshur counties and western
portion of Randolph County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol.
Survey, p. 115).
6. Davis Coal and Coke Company No. 5 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number
52), Barbour County, West Virginia, (Reger, D. B., 1918, Barbour
and Upshur counties and western portion of Randolph County,
West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 406.
278
-------
SECTIONS AND CORES
ON
CROSS SECTION D-D1
1. Fred Wotring Bore Role No. 1 (WVGS Number 103), Preston County,
West Virginia (Hennen, R. V. and Reger, D. B., 1914, Preston
County, West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey, p. 259).
2. Wilson Bore Hole No. 3 (WVGS Number 104), Garrett County, Maryland
(Hennen, R. V. and Reger, D. B., 1914, Preston County, West
Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey, p. 259-260).
3. Davis Coal and Coke Company No. 50 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number 41)
Tucker County, West Virginia (Reger, D. B., 1923, Tucker County,
West Virginia: West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 337-338).
4. Davis Coal and Coke Company No. 52 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number
63), Tucker County, West Virginia (Reger, D. B., 1923, Tucker
County, West Virginia, West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 351-352).
5. Thomas Section, Fairfax District and Davis Coal and Coke Company
No. 11 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number 15) Tucker County, West
Virginia (Reger, D. B., 1923, Tucker County, West Virginia:
West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 128-129).
6. Douglas Section, Fairfax District, Tucker County, West Virginia
(Reger, D,. B., 1923, Tucker County, West Virginia: West Virginia
Geol. Survey p. 125-127).
7. Davis Coal and Coke Company No. 121 (WVGS Number 65) and Mining
Section Upper Freeport coal (WVGS Number 64), Davis District, West
Virginia (Reger, D. B., 1925, Tucker County, West Virginia: West
Virginia Geol. Survey p. 353-354).
8. Stonecoal Run of Red Creek Section, Dry Fork District and Robert
Bridges Estate No. 2 Coal Test Boring (WVGS Number 81), Tucker
County, West Virginia (Reger, D. B., 1923, Tucker County, West
Virginia, West Virginia Geol. Survey p. 141-142).
279
-------
APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site 1-1
DATE: June, 1971
LOCATION: Appalachian Coal Company, East of Brandonville, Preston
County, Site is located 1 1/16 miles east and 1 5/16 miles
north of Shady Grove Church. Lower Kittanning coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver and Sturm
VEGETATION: Ryegrass, alsike clover. One year old spoil.
Horizons:
1 0-1" —Dull yellowish brown (10YR 4/3 & 5/3) loam to
clay loam; medium, moderate granular structure;
friable; many roots; pH 6.5-7.0; clear boundary.
2 1-10" —Dull yellowish brown (10YR 4/3) and bright
yellowish brown (10YR 6/6) loam to clay loam;
weak subangular blocky structure; friable to
firm; common, distinct parent material mottles;
5-10% coarse fragments; pH 6.0; abrupt, irre-
gular boundary.
3 10-22" —Dark gray (N 3/0) layered shale; 60% coarse
material; few, fine roots; roots go down through
the shale layer.
4 22-34" —Dark gray (N 3/0) shale fragments; 75% coarse
material; common, fine roots; pH 4.5.
5 34"+ —Dark gray (N 3/0) hard shale, disordered.
280
-------
APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site 1-2
DATE: June, 1971
LOCATION: Appalachian Coal Company, East of Brandonville, Preston
County. Site is located 180 feet northwest of pit 1-1.
Lower Kittanning coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver and Sturm
VEGETATION: Ryegrass, timothy, alsike clover, ox-eye daisy. One
year old spoil.
Horizons:
1 0-1"
2 1-9"
3 9-36"+
—Dull yellowish brown (10YR 4/3) loam; no
mottling; friable; many roots; 30% coarse frag-
ments; pH 7.0; abrupt; wavy boundary.
—Dull yellowish brown (10YR 4/3) loam; common
distinct parent material mottles; friable to
firm; 45% coarse fragments; many roots; abrupt,
irregular boundary.
—Black and brown shale; common roots; 75%
coarse fragments (shale) with 50% greater than
3".
281
-------
APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site 1-3
DATE: June, 1971
LOCATION: Appalachian Coal Company, East of Brandonville, Preston
County. Site is located directly north of pit 1-2 approxi-
mately 50 feet north of county road. Lower Kittanning coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver and Sturm
VEGETATION: Birdsfoot trefoil, timothy, alsike clover, oxeye daisy.
Revegetated 4 or 5 years.
Horizons;
1 0-1" —Dull yellowish brown (10YR 5/3 and 5/4) loam
to sandy loam; weak granular structure; friable;
55% coarse fragments; many roots; pH 7.0; abrupt,
wavy boundary.
2 1-7" —Dull yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) clay loam;
common, distinct bright yellowish brown (10YR
6/8) mottles; massive to weak, granular struc-
ture with some platelike structure; friable to
firm; 55% coarse fragments, black and brown
shales; many roots; pH 5.0-5.5; abrupt, irre-
gular boundary.
3 7-24" —Dull yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) loam; common,
distinct bright yellowish brown (10YR 6/8)
mottles; massive structure; friable to firm;
75% coarse fragments of black brown shale with
25% greater than 3"; some discontinuous layers
of shale; common roots; pH 4.5; clear, wavy
boundary.
4 24-35" —Dull yellowish brown (10YR 4/3) and brown
(10YR 4/4) loam; common, distinct bright yellow-
ish brown (10YR 6/8) mottles; massive and shale
controlled structure; friable to firm; 80%
282
-------
coarse fragments of black and brown shale; few
roots; abrupt, smooth boundary.
5 35-37"+ —Dark gray (N 3/0) shales with only 10-15%
fine material with a color of bright yellowish
brown (10YR 6/8); friable to firm of fines; no
roots; pH 4.5.
Notes: The digging was easier from 24" to the bottom of the pit than
it was in the top 24". Shale seemed to be somewhat layered
in 3rd horizon but discontinuous. However, as the profile
went deeper the shales were more broken up and at all angles.
283
-------
APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site 2-1
DATE: July 9, 1971
LOCATION: Appalachian Coal Company, South of Brandonville, Preston
County. Site is located on Kelly Farm 3 miles south of
Shady Grove Church. Upper Freeport coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver and Sturm.
VEGETATION: Birdsfoot trefoil, white clover, timothy, buckhorn
plantain. 12 year old spoil.
Horizons:
1 0-2"
2 2-35"
3 35-39"+
—Dark brown (10YR 3/3) loam; weak granular
structure; friable; many roots; clear, wavy
boundary.
—Bright yellowish brown (10YR 6/8) , brown
(7.SYR 4/3) and dull yellowish brown (10YR 5/3
and 4/3); firm; 75% coarse fragments, 70%
shale and 5% sandstone; mixed black and brown
shales; common roots; clear, wavy boundary.
—Colors same as above horizon; 25-35% coarse
fragments (no sandstone); friable to firm; few
roots, some trefoil tap roots extend to bottom
of pit.
Notes:
6.0
6.0
6.0
Well-drained.
284
-------
APPENDIX D
Mlnesoil Profile Description
Site 2-2
DATE: July 13, 1971
\
LOCATION: Site is 90 feet southwest of site 2-1. Upper Freeport coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver, Grube, and Smith.
VEGETATION: Birdsfoot trefoil, white clover, canada thistle. 12 year
old spoil.
Horizons;
1 0-2" —Dark brown to brownish black (10YR 3/2.5);
weak, fine granular; friable; 50% coarse
fragments; clear boundary.
2 2-10" —Yellow orange (10YR 7/8) and brownish black
(10YR 3/2); many roots; 60% coarse fragments;
25-35% of horizon is sandstone; black and bright
reddish brown (5YR 5/8) thin bedded and ran-
domly oriented shales; black and brown concre-
tionary material.
3 10-30" —Thin bedded shales disordered; firm; 25-30%
sandstone; common roots; pressure faces evident
on sandstone.
Notes: Variability of colors with black dominant; browns, grays and
lighter colors in sandstone; shales predominantly black in-
terior. Probably enough sandstone in this pit to classify
as Typic (mixed). Mottling associated with different rock types,
285
-------
APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site 3-1
DATE: July 15, 1971
LOCATION: Site is located approximately 50 feet from site 3-2.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver, Grube, Smith, and Singh
VEGETATION: No vegetation at pit site. 20-25 year old spoil.
Horizons:
1 0-2"
2 2-41"
Notes: pH values
—Brownish black (10YR 3/1); weak granular
structure; very friable; 40% coarse fragments
of shale (> 2mm). pH 4.0.
—Bright yellowish brown (.10YR 6/8) , brownish
gray (10YR 6/1) and dull yellow orange (10YR
6/4) silty clay loam with some pockets of clay;
low chroma colors seem to follow root channels;
approximately 40% of color is high chroma;
massive; firm; 55% coarse fragments; shales
disordered with only 1-2% oriented horizontally;
black shales dominant with some dark reddish
brown (2.5YR 3.4) and grayish red (2.SYR 4/2);
some shales high in carbonates; few roots to a
depth of 25" probably coming from locust trees
in the vicinity; some carbolith present.
depth
Surface
5"
15"
20"
25"
35"
PH
4.0
4.2
6.5
6.0
6.2
6.5
286
-------
The surface was thought to be an area of oxidation because
of the low pH. This spoil was well mixed with the bad por-
tion put back on top. The surface was white which was
probably caused by an accumulation of salts, also causing
a surface crust to be formed. A level was used to determine
the slope of several coarse fragments:
1. 14% ( 7°) looked nearly level
2. 66% ( 33-1/3°)
3. 45% ( 26°)
287
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APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site 3-2
DATE: July 24, 1971
LOCATION: Site is located in Preston County 1/2 mile south and 1/8
mile east of Beech Run Church. Bakerstown coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver
VEGETATION: Black locust, poverty grass, colts foot, wild strawberry,
deertongue grass. 20-25 year old spoil.
Horizons;
1 0-5" —Brownish black (10YR 3/2) ; few, distinct
bright yellowish brown (10YR 6/8) mottles;
fine weak granular structure; friable; 40%
shale coarse gragments; many roots; pH 4.5;
few black concretions; clear boundary.
2 5-10" —Dull yellow orange (10YR 7/4) and bright
yellowish brown (10YR 7/6) and other vari-
egated colors; massive; firm; 40% shale
coarse gragments; many roots; many, pro-
minent high chroma mottles; few brownish
gray (10YR 6/1) concretions; clear boundary.
3 10-37" —Dull yellowish brown (10YR 4/3); massive;
firm 50% shale coarse fragments in disordered
orientation; shales of various colors - dark
reddish brown (2.6YR 3/2 and 3/3), black (10YR
2/1), grayish olive (5Y 3/3); bright yellowish
brown (10YR 7/6); common roots; pH at 35" was 6.0.
4 37-57"+ —Yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) , grayish yellow
brown (10YR 6/2), and bright brown (7.SYR 5/8),
silty clay loam to silty clay; massive; firm;
2-5% coarse fragments; black concretions present;
very few roots.
288
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APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site: 4-1
DATE: July 20, 1971
LOCATION: Site is in Monongalia County, 1 1/2 miles due east on Rt. 119
and Canyon Road intersection, on Mary Judy Farm. Pittsburgh
coal.
SAMPLED AND DESCRIBED BY:. Sencindiver, Smith
VEGETATION: Poverty grass, prostrate cinquefoil, tulip poplar and
other trees. Approximately 10 years old.
Horizons;
1 0-2" —Clay loam; weak granular structure; friable;
many roots; few fragments of black shale and sand-
stone; clear, wavy boundary.
2 2-7" —Strong brown (7.SYR 5/8) and dark brown (10YR 4/3)
clay loam; massive; firm; many roots; many promi-
nent low chroma mottles; 20% dark red (2.SYR 3/6)
and carbolithic material.
3. 7-36"+ —Yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) and brownish yellow
(10YR 6/6) clay loam with pockets of light gray
(10YR 6/1 and 10YR 7/1) silty clay; firm; few roots;
massive; many prominent gray (10YR 5/1) mottles;
20-25% strong brown (7.5 YR 5/8) and reddish yellow
(7.SYR 6/8) sandstone fragments and 20-25% black
(10YR 2.5/1) carbolithic material.
Notes: Coarse fragments dominantly disordered, and randomly oriented.
Enough sandstone to be Typic (mixed).
depth
Surface
7"
15"
25"
34"
pH
4.5
4.5
4.5
4.5
4.5
289
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APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site: 5-1
DATE: May 24, 1972
LOCATION: Site is located in Preston County, 2 miles south, and 1 mile
east of State Rt. 92 and Birds Creek Road intersection.
Upper Freeport Coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver and Ammons.
VEGETATION: Only regraded approximately 90 days. No vegetation.
Horizons;
1 0-8" —Variegated yellowish brown (10YR 5/4), yellow
C10YR 7/6), brownish yellow (10YR 6/8) sandy clay
loam; very friable; massive; 5% coal fragments;
65% dark reddish brown (SYR 3/4) light gray
(N 7/0 and N 6/0) and brownish yellow (10YR 6/8)
sandstone fragments; 10% of sandstone fragments
> 3" diameter; sandstone fragments are disordered.
Clear irregular boundary.
2 8-30"+ —Variegated colors same as above horizon; sandy
clay loam; massive; 75-85% sandstone fragments with
60% of these 3" diameter; approximately 50% of
sandstone fragments are layered horizontally; no
coal fragments.
Notes: 25% carbolith on the surface in different spots. Gray and red
sandstone on the surface with the gray sandstone being acid.
Vegetation around the site is Black birch, red maple, fire
cherry, wild grape, white oak, dogwood, service berry, and sumac.
290
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APPENDIX D
Minesoil Profile Description
Site: 6-1
DATE; September 22, 1972
LOCATION: Site is located in Monongalia County, 1/2 mile west of Fort
Martin School. Sewickley coal.
DESCRIBED AND SAMPLED BY: Sencindiver, Sturm, Akers.
VEGETATION: Wheat, pilewort, foxtail, ragweed. 2-3 years old.
SLOPE: 19%.
Horizons:
0-2 1/2"
2 1/2-11"
11-26"
—Yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) and brown (10YR 5/3)
silty clay loam; weak granular structure with some
pockets massive; friable to very friable; many fine
roots; 40-45% yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) and
grayish brown (2.5 Y 5/2) shale fragments and < 5%
sandstone fragments; pH 7.7; clear wavy boundary.
—Yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) and brown (10YR 5/3)
silty clay loam; massive; firm, common fine roots;
common distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/8) and
brownish yellow (10YR 6/8) mottles and few faint
light brownish gray (2.5 Y 6/2) mottles; 50% very
dary gray (N 3/0) , gray (N 5/0) and olive yellow
(2.5 Y 6/6) shale fragments; 5% sandstone fragments;
are 3" in diameter; pH 7.3 in one spot and 4.6 in
another spot; clear wavy boundary.
—50% brownish yellow (10YR 6/8) and yellowish
red (SYR 4/6) clay and 50% brownish yellow (10
YR 6/6) silty clay loam; massive, firm; few fine
roots; common distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/4),
and strong brown (7.SYR 5/8) mottles and few faint
gray (5 Y 6/1) mottles; 50% gray (N 5/0) and very
dark gray (N 3/0) shale fragments with 5% 3"
diameter; 5% sandstone and 5% limestone fragments;
291
-------
pH 6.5 of reddish clay, pH 6.9 of yellowish
brown material. pH 6.2 of mixed colors;
gradual irregular boundary.
4 26-36"+ —Light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) and yellowish
brown (10YR 5/4) silty clay loam with pockets of
clay; massive; firm; few fine roots; many promi-
nent yellowish brown (10YR 5/8), light yellowish
brown (2.5 Y 6/2) and strong brown (7.SYR 5/6)
mottles; 50% very dark gray CN 3/0) and dark gray
(N 4/0) shales with 5-10% > 3" diameter; 5% sand-
stone and < 5% limestone fragments; pH 5.1 of clay
pocket, pH 2.0 of dark gray shale, pH 7.0 in
mixed color material.
Notes: Surface pH 7.7
Localized spots of free carbonates on the surface. 35-50%
coarse fragments showing on surface with 15-20% of these
sandstone and 1-2% limestone. Coarse fragments disordered
throughout profile. Pockets of original A^ material found
at about 30". Several limestone fragments found throughout
profile. Greenish gray (5 GY 5/1) and pale olive (5 Y 6/4)
shales found on the surface.
292
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APPENDIX D SITE MAP
hJ
VO
OJ
-------
APPENDIX E
Locations of field study sites not directly plotted on cross sections in
Section IV.
Site
Latitude
Longitude
Surf. Elev.
Coal Seam
Detail of Site Location
PP
AA
KK
QQ
39.26284°N
79.20710°W
2760'
39.56517°N
79.62512°W
2020'
39.50174°N
79.61696°W
1790'
79.64700°W
I860'
39.57781°N
79.65204°W
1970'
39.70181°N
79.59095°W
1980'
39.40402°N
79.78932°W
1820'
39.58840°N
79.89653°W
1670
Elk Lick
Bakers town
Bakerstown
Upper Freeport
Upper Freeport
Upper Freeport
Upper Freeport
Upper Freeport
About one and one-half
miles southeast of Mt.
Storm, Grant County.
Three-fourths mile
southeast of Valley
Point, Preston County.
One and one-half miles
northeast of Albright,
Preston County.
One-half mile west of
Valley Point, Preston
County.
About one-half mile
north of Site A.
Three miles northeast
of Brandonville, Preston
County.
Three and one-half miles
northeast of Newburg,
Preston County.
About one and one-half
miles south of Dellslow,
Monongalia County.
294
-------
Site
Latitude
Longitude
Surf. Elev.
Coal Seam
Detail of Site Location
RR
SS
0
EE
MM
39.47772°N
79.74409°W
2130'
39.51416°N
79.94556°W
1660'
39.69282"N
79.57849°W
1930'
39.65555°N
79.52010°W
2080'
38.16170°N
80.37627°W
4225'
38.15512°N
80.36376°W
4200'
Upper Freeport
Upper Freeport
Lower Kittanning
Lower Kittanning
Sewell
Sewell
One mile south of Manown,
Preston County.
About two and one-half
miles west of Gum Spring,
Monongalia County.
Two and one-half miles
northeast of Brandonville,
Preston County.
One-half mile east of
Hazelton, Preston County.
Five miles northwest of
Lobelia, Pocahontas
County. "'*•
Four miles northwest of
Lobelia, Pocahontas
County.
295
-------
APPENDIX E SITE MAP
ro
-------
APPENDIX F
Site locations for sandstones included in
petrographic study of sandstone weathering.
Site
Latitude
Longitude
Elev. (ft.)
Sandstone
Detail of Site Location
39.65586°N
79.77215°W
2260'
39.65464°N
79.76543°W
2140'
39.56435°N
79.76543°W
2090'
39.55967°N
79.84392°W
1940'
39.55914°N
79.85434°W
2100'
39.50114°N
79.91544°W
1950'
39.57308°N
79.88750°W
1880'
39.57886°N
79.87865°W
2100'
Connoquenes sing
Connoquenessing
Connoquenessing
Connoquenessing
Connoqueness ing
Homewood
Homewood
Homewood
Roadcut along Corridor E
0.5 mi. East of Coopers
Rock Entrance, Preston
County, W.Va.
Roadcut along Corridor E
2 mi. East of Coopers
Rock Entrance, Preston
County, W.Va.
2.5 mi. West of Mason-
town (Deckers Creek
Sandstone Quarry) Mon-
ongalia County, W.Va.
Quarry 2.5 mi. West of
Masontown, Preston
County, W.Va.
Quarry 3 mi. West of
Masontown, Monongalia
County, W.Va.
Deerfield Sand Quarry
10 mi. South of Morgantown
on Rt. 119, Monongalia
County, W-Va.
Quarry 0.5 mi. West of
Browns Chapel, Monon-
galia County, W.Va.
Quarry 0.5 mi. North of
Browns Chapel, Monon-
galia County, W.Va.
297
-------
Site
9
10
11
12
13
Latitude
Longitude
Elev. (ft.)
39. 38732 °N
80.08602°W
970'
38.15512°N
80.37628°W
4225'
38.15512°N
80. 36360 °W
4200'
38.31256°N
80. 84855 °W
1880 '
38^43394 °N
86.78395°W
2240'
Sandstone
Sandstone in
Pottsville series
Guyandot
Guyandot
Monitor
Allegheny
Detail of Site Location
Valley Falls State Park
South of Graf ton,
Marion County, W.Va.
Surface Mine 5 mi. West
of Lobelia, Pocahontas
County, W.Va.
Surface Mine 4 mi. West
of Lobelia, Pocahontas
County, W.Va.
Surface Mine 2 mi. North
of Summersville,
Nicholas County, W.Va.
Outcrop along Rt. 19 10
mi. North of Summers-
ville, Nicholas County,
W.Va.
14
15
16
17
39.69406°N
79.57373°W
1920'
39.40529°N
79.72815°W
1780'
39.45843PN
79-72174°W
1910'
39.44965°N
79.71473°W
2000'
Allegheny Sandstone
overlying Lower
Kittanning Coal
Mahoning
Mahoning
Mahoning
Surface Mine 3 mi. NE
of Brandonville, Preston
County, W.Va.
Surface Mine 2 mi. NE
of Tunnelton, Preston
County, W.Va.
Road Outcrop 2.5 mi. NE
of Tunnelton, Preston
County, W.Va.
Road Outcrop 0.2 mi. East
of Irona, Preston County
W.Va.
298
-------
Site
Latitude
Longitude
Elev. (ft.)
Sandstone
Detail of Site Location
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
39.55646°N
79.87518°W
2100'
39.40353°N
80.04607°W
1430'
39.59126°N
79.98156°W
940'
39.52128°N
80.02269°W
1390'
39.47753°N
80.10488°W
1110'
39.46850°N
80.13243°W
1200'
39.46294°N
80.13799°W
1040'
39.55671°N
79.98422°W
1150'
Mahoning
Mahoning
Buffalo
Sandstone in
Conemaugh Series
Sandstone in
Conemaugh Series
Sandstone in
Conemaugh Series
Sandstone in
Conemaugh Series
Sandstone in
Conemaugh Series
Surface Mine 2 mi. West
of Masontown, Preston
County, W.Va.
Road Outcrop 2 mi. South
of Quiet Dell School,
Marion County, W.Va.
Quarry NW of Uffington
across Monongahela
River, Monongalia
County, W.Va.
Roadcut along 1-79 2.1
mi. North of Weigh
Station between Fairmont
and Morgantdwri'. Monbn-
galia County, W.Va.
Roadcut along 1-79 1 mi.
North of Downtown Fair-
mont Exit, Marion
County, W.Va.
Roadcut along 1-79, 2 mi.
North of Pleasant Valley
Exit, Marion County,
W.Va.
Roadcut along 1-79 0.5
mi. North of Pleasant
Valley Exit, Marion
County, W.Va.
Roadcut along 1-79 1.5
mi. North of Gosheh
Road Exit, Monongalia
County, W.Va.
299
-------
Latitude
Longitude
Site Elev. (ft.) Sandstone Detail of Site Location
26 39.30978°N Sandstone in Road Outcrop at Inter-
80.05024°W Conemaugh Series section of Rt. 119 &
1030' 250 South of Grafton
Taylor County, W.Va.
27 39.66732°N Sandstone in Surface Mine 1 mi. North-
81.46079°W Monongahela Series east of Dexter City,
1020' Noble County, Ohio.
300
-------
APPENDIX F SITE MAP
-------
DEFICIENCY
EXCESS
co
to
E3£7§
)'iv_\
^}~\
i'i'»'i i
F
1
"
o
X
>
s
M
25
M
0
10080 60 40 10
ROCK TYPE
1 1 3
CoCOj EQUIVALENT
(TONS/THOUSAND TON S.I MATEftlAL)
4 68 10 10 40 60 M WO
FIGURE 50. FORM SUGGESTED FOR PRESENTATION OF DATA ILLUSTRATING TOXIC OR
POTENTIALLY TOXIC MATERIAL IN A SECTION OF COAL OVERBURDEN.
-------
TECHNICAL REPORT DATA
(Please read Instructions on the reverse before completing)
REPORT NO.
EPA-670/2-74-070
3. RECIPIENT'S ACCESSION-NO.
riTLE AND SUBTITLE
MINE SPOIL POTENTIALS FOR SOIL AND WATER
QUALITY
5. REPORT DATE
October 1974;Issuing Date
6. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION CODE
7. AUTHOR(S)
Richard M. Smith, Walter E. Grube, Jr.,
Thomas Arkle, Jr., and Andrew Sobek
8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NO.
9. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS
College of Agriculture and Forestry
West Virginia University
Morgantown, West Virginia 26506
10. PROGRAM ELEMENT NO.
1BB040/ROAP 21AFZ/TASK 05
11.0C»IXWX3t/GRANT NO.
S 800745
12. SPONSORING AGENCY NAME AND ADDRESS
National Environmental Research Center
Office of Research and Development
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Cincinnati, Ohio 45268
13. TYPE OF REPORT AND PERIOD COVERED
Final
14. SPONSORING AGENCY CODE
15. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES
16. ABSTRACT
Selected chemical, physical, and mineralogical measurements have been
adapted to coal overburden sections of the Monongahela, Conemaugh,
Allegheny, and New River formations of the Pennsylvanian in central
and northern West Virginia. Field studies, core logging, simulated
weathering, and laboratory measurements provide a basis for recognizing
toxic (pH below 4.0]) or potentially toxic (reduced sulfur sufficient for
mineral acid in excess of neutralization capacity) rock or soil as well
as superior materials (pH near neutral and high available phosphorus)
for topsoiling, mined lands. Laboratory measurements have been keyed to
regional trends of coal and rock types within the northern Appalachian
coal basin, confirming the validity of the three previously suggested
Surface Mining Provinces and providing a basis for useful extrapolation
of results beyond sampled sites. Improved classification of minesoils
within the comprehensive American system, Soil Taxonomy, based on
consistently observable properties of minesoil profiles, provides the
more satisfactory growth of plant combinations emphasizing legumes or
repeated nitrogen fertilization.
17.
KEY WORDS AND DOCUMENT ANALYSIS
DESCRIPTORS
b.lDENTIFIERS/OPEN ENDED TERMS
COSATl Field/Group
*Coal mines, *Strip mining,
*0verburden, *Chemical
properties, *Weathering
*Potential toxicity,
*Neutralization potential,
^Available nutrients,
*Minesoils, Spolents,
Preplanning, *Analytical
properties, *Soil formation
8G
13B
8. DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT
RELEASE .TO PUBLIC
19. SECURITY CLASS (ThisReport)
UNCLASSIFIED
319
20. SECURITY CLASS (Thispage)
UNCLASSIFIED
22. PRICE
EPA Form 2220-1 (9-73)
303
I). S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 197V657-586/5303 Region No. 5-II
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