Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY, cilt.19, sa.6, ss.350-374, 2022 (SCI-Expanded)
Rationale and Hypothesis Groundwater is generally the most important water resource in mine areas, and its circulation processes need to be studied in more detail for rational resource exploitation. This work tested the hypothesis that the main factors controlling the evaluation of groundwater chemistry and recharge by using hydrogeochemical indicators and isotope tracers together in the Zeryan Stream Sub-Basin where an iron-copper mine is located. Metholohgy It mainly used different approaches such as hydrochemistry, piper diagram, saturation index, ionic ratios, and environmental isotopes, providing an effective way to analyze groundwater origin and hydrochemical processes affecting water chemistry. In this investigation, a total of 57 water samples were collected from 19 various points (15 wells, 3 springs, and 1 surface water) during the wet and dry periods. Results The results indicated that the dominance of cations and anions in the mine water follows the trend Mg2+>Ca2+>Na+>K+ and SO42->HCO3->Cl-, and most of the water samples are Mg-Ca-HCO3-SO4, Mg-Ca-SO4-HCO3, and Ca-HCO3, respectively. Discussion Evaluation of analyzed groundwater chemical data showed that dissolution or precipitation of silicate minerals was dominant in the hydrochemical evolution of groundwater in the study area, dissolution of carbonate minerals was a secondary process and to a lesser extent, ion exchange processes played an important role.The isotopic composition of the δD and δ18O contents indicated that the water samples were controlled by local atmospheric precipitation, and obviously affected by secondary evaporation during the recharge process.Tritium levels indicated some well waters are recharged from older groundwater resources compared to other wells and springs due to water-rock interaction and residence time. Findings The findings of this study were provided to the decision-makers in order to design sustainable implications for groundwater utilization on the basis of the sub-basin.