Том: 186 , Год издания: 2018

This article presents the results of field and laboratory experiments performed to determine the compositions of gases in the air above the Komsomolsk sulfide tailings. Concentrations of SO₂ were measured using a GANK-4 portable gas analyzer. The possibility of the gaseous transport of trace elements was estimated by pumping air through a bubbler with an absorber. Qualitative analyses of sulfur gases (CS₂, C₂H₆S₂, C₂H₆S₃, S₈, S₇, and S₆) were performed using a field chromatography-mass spectrometer. The SO₂ concentrations in the air above the surface of the Komsomolsk tailings can reach up to 2.5 mg/m3 and vary significantly during the day, depending on the difference between the temperature of the tailings surface and that of the ambient air. A wide range of chemical elements (i.e., rock-forming elements, metals, and anionic elements) can migrate with the gaseous phase from both sulfide tailings and background sites. Correlation analysis indicates that the main source of trace elements in gas streams from tailings material is unstable crystalline hydrates, which are represented by sulfates and sulfarsenates of Al, Fe, Mg, Zn, and Cu. The emissions of alkaline and alkaline earth elements are mainly caused by the compositions of pore solutions.