Bauxite residue in Apulia Region - Spinazzola (BT, Italy)

Contamination monitoring and potential raw material recovery using hyperspectral imagery

Geological and mining historical facts:

  • Main mineralization of the deposits: karst bauxite, dominated by boehmite
  • Other geological features: presence of kaolinite, silica-bearing and ferroginous nodules
  • Deposit types and thickness: white (poor in SiO2, rich Al2O3) and red (rich in Fe2O3) bauxite; 20 m thick
  • Mining activity: 1950-1978
  • Presence of processing besides the mining area: no
  • Current use of the area: natural park

 

Project activities:

Techical visit - July 2020

  • Permission from Alta Murgia National Park;
  • Survey of the area;
  • Collection of in situ samples;
  • Topographic analysis for reconstruction of volumes of tailings;
  • Spectroradiometer analysis for further integration with satellite images.

Lab analysis - Autumn 2020

  • XRF analysis - performed by Department BIGEA of UNIBO;
  • SEM and EDS - performed by SSPT-PROMAS of ENEA.

Topographic survey - May 2021

  • Visual inspection and checks of areas around the abandoned mining area identified by hyperspectral bands
  • Topographic and spectroradiometer analysis in poromising points, confirmed by visual inspection
  • Collection of few samples around the abandoned mining areas in promising points

Potential case study analysed by: University of Bologna, with the support of ENEA

Bauxite stockpiles in Apulia

Technical activity - July 2020

  • Bauxite Apulia 2
  • Bauxite Apulia 1
  • Bauxite Apulia 3
  • Bauxite Apulia 4
  • Bauxite Apulia 6
  • Bauxite Apulia 5