Geology topics

Lingyun Zheng

Publications and source records attributed to Lingyun Zheng.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2011

Geochemistry of environmentally sensitive trace elements in Permian coals from the Huainan coalfield, Anhui, China

To study the geochemical characteristics of 11 environmentally sensitive trace elements in the coals of the Permian Period from the Huainan coalfield, Anhui province, China, borehole samples of 336 coals, two partings, and four roof and floor mudstones were collected from mineable coal seams. Major elements and selected trace elements were determined by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry (HAAS). The depositional environment, abundances, distribution, and modes of occurrence of trace elements were investigated. Results show that clay and carbonate minerals are the principal inorganic constituents in the coals. A lower deltaic plain, where fluvial channel systems developed successively, was the likely depositional environment of the Permian coals in the Huainan coalfield. All major elements have wider variation ranges than those of Chinese coals except for Mg and Fe. The contents of Cr, Co, Ni, and Se are higher than their averages for Chinese coals and world coals. Vertical variations of trace elements in different formations are not significant except for B and Ba. Certain roof and partings are distinctly higher in trace elements than underlying coal bench samples. The modes of occurrence of trace elements vary in different coal seams as a result of different coal-forming environments. Vanadium, Cr, and Th are associated with aluminosilicate minerals, Ba with carbonate minerals, and Cu, Zn, As, Se, and Pb mainly with sulfide minerals.

Huainan coalfield↗

USGS2011

Transient changes in shallow groundwater chemistry during the MSU ZERT CO2 injection experiment

Food-grade CO 2 was injected into a shallow aquifer through a perforated pipe placed horizontally 1–2 m below the water table at the Montana State University Zero Emission Research and Technology (MSU-ZERT) field site at Bozeman, Montana. The possible impact of elevated CO 2 levels on groundwater quality was investigated by analyzing 80 water samples taken before, during, and following CO 2 injection. Field determinations and laboratory analyses showed rapid and systematic changes in pH, alkalinity, and conductance, as well as increases in the aqueous concentrations of trace element species. The geochemical data were first evaluated using principal component analysis (PCA) in order to identify correlations between aqueous species. The PCA findings were then used in formulating a geochemical model to simulate the processes likely to be responsible for the observed increases in the concentrations of dissolved constituents. Modeling was conducted taking into account aqueous and surface complexation, cation exchange, and mineral precipitation and dissolution. Reasonable matches between measured data and model results suggest that: (1) CO 2 dissolution in the groundwater causes calcite to dissolve. (2) Observed increases in the concentration of dissolved trace metals result likely from Ca +2 -driven ion exchange with clays (smectites) and sorption/desorption reactions likely involving Fe (hydr)oxides. (3) Bicarbonate from CO 2 dissolution appears to compete for sorption with anionic species such as HAsO 4 −2 , potentially increasing dissolved As levels in groundwater.

Conference Paper↗

USGS2010

Geochemistry of trace elements in coals from the Zhuji Mine, Huainan Coalfield, Anhui, China

The abundances of nine major elements and thirty-eight trace elements in 520 samples of low sulfur coals from the Zhuji Mine, Huainan Coalfield, Anhui, China, were determined. Samples were mainly collected from 10 minable coal seams of 29 boreholes during exploration. The B content in coals shows that the influence of brackish water decreased toward the top of coal seams; marine transgression and regression occurred frequently in the Lower Shihezi Formation. A wide range of elemental abundances is found. Weighted means of Na, K, Fe, P, Be, B, Co, Ni, Cr, Se, Sb, Ba, and Bi abundances in Zhuji coals are higher, and the remainder elements are either lower or equal to the average values of elements in coals of northern China. Compared to the Chinese coals, the Zhuji coals are higher in Na, K, Be, B, Cr, Co, Se, Sn, Sb, and Bi, but lower in Ti, P, Li, V and Zn. The Zhuji coals are lower only in S, P, V and Zn than average U.S. and world coals. Potassium, Mg, Ca, Mn, Sr, As, Se, Sb and light rare earth elements (LREE) had a tendency to be enriched in thicker coal seams, whereas Fe, Ti, P, V, Co, Ni, Y, Mo, Pb and heavy rare earth elements (HREE) were inclined to concentrate in thinner coal seams. The enrichment of some elements in the Shanxi or Upper Shihezi Formations is related to their depositional environments. The elements are classified into three groups based on their stratigraphic distributions from coal seams 3 to 11-2, and the characteristics of each group are discussed. Lateral distributions of selected elements are also investigated. The correlation coefficients of elemental abundances with ash content show that the elements may be classified into four groups related to modes of occurrence of these elements. ?? 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

International Journal of Coal Geology↗

USGS2008

Composition and quality of coals in the Huaibei Coalfield, Anhui, China

The Huaibei Coalfield, Anhui Province, China, is one of the largest coalfields in China. The coals of Permian age are used mainly for power generation. Coal compositions and 47 trace elements of the No. 10 Coal of the Shanxi Formation, the No. 7, 5, and 4 Coals of the Lower Shihezi Formation, and the No. 3 Coal of the Upper Shihezi Formation from the Huaibei Coalfield were studied. The results indicate that the Huaibei coals have low ash, moisture, and sulfur contents, but high volatile matter and calorific value. The ash yield increases stratigraphically upwards, but the volatile matter and total sulfur contents show a slight decrease from the lower to upper seams. Magmatic intrusion into the No. 5 Coal resulted in high ash, volatile matter, and calorific value, but low moisture value in the coal. Among the studied 47 trace elements, Ba, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Th, U, V, and Zn are of environmental concerns. Four elements Hg, Mo, Zn, and Sb are clearly enriched in the coals as compared with the upper continental crust. ?? 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Journal of Geochemical Exploration↗

USGS2007

The distribution, occurrence and environmental effect of mercury in Chinese coals

Mercury (Hg) is a toxic, persistent, and globally distributed pollutant due to its characteristic properties such as low melting and boiling points, conversion between chemical forms and participation in biological cycles. During combustion mercury in coal is almost totally emitted to the atmosphere. With a huge amount of coal consumed, coal combustion is one of the main anthropogenic sources of this element in the environment. In this study, Hg data of 1699 coal samples of China has been compiled, and the concentration, distribution, modes of occurrence, and the impact of Hg emissions on the environment are investigated. Most Chinese coals have Hg content in the range of 0.1 to 0.3??ppm, with an average of 0.19??ppm, which is slightly higher than the average Hg content of world coals and is close to that of the U.S. coals. The Hg content in coals varies in different coal basins, geological ages and coal ranks. The most likely mode of occurrences of Hg in high-sulfur and high Hg content coals is as solid solution in pyrite. But in low-sulfur coals, modes of occurrence of Hg are variable, and the organic-bound and sulfide-bound Hg may dominate. Silicate-bound Hg may be the main form in some coals because of magmatic intrusion. Mercury emissions during coal combustion have resulted in serious environmental contamination in China, particularly in the northeastern and southwestern China, where a high Hg content in the atmosphere occurs. ?? 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Science of the Total Environment↗

USGS2002

Adaptive moving mesh methods for simulating one-dimensional groundwater problems with sharp moving fronts

Accurate modelling of groundwater flow and transport with sharp moving fronts often involves high computational cost, when a fixed/uniform mesh is used. In this paper, we investigate the modelling of groundwater problems using a particular adaptive mesh method called the moving mesh partial differential equation approach. With this approach, the mesh is dynamically relocated through a partial differential equation to capture the evolving sharp fronts with a relatively small number of grid points. The mesh movement and physical system modelling are realized by solving the mesh movement and physical partial differential equations alternately. The method is applied to the modelling of a range of groundwater problems, including advection dominated chemical transport and reaction, non-linear infiltration in soil, and the coupling of density dependent flow and transport. Numerical results demonstrate that sharp moving fronts can be accurately and efficiently captured by the moving mesh approach. Also addressed are important implementation strategies, e.g. the construction of the monitor function based on the interpolation error, control of mesh concentration, and two-layer mesh movement. Copyright ?? 2002 John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.

International Journal for Numerical Methods in Eng↗