Geochemical Evaluation of Groundwater and Mineral Wastewater In The Area of Joghatay Chromite Mine In Khorasan Razavi

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 PhD Graduate, Department of Science, Faculty of Science, Ashford University, California, USA.

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Stratigraphy, School of Geology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

3 MSc Graduate, Department of Mining, School of Mining Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.

10.29252/aridbiom.2026.4207

Abstract

Chromite (FeCr2O4) is the most important chromium mineral ore that occurs in ultrabasic rocks and ophiolites, and in these rocks, chromium is usually associated with magnesium, iron, nickel, and cobalt. The Joghatay chromite mining area is located in the northwest of the Sabzevar ophiolite zone and has a hot and dry foothill climate. This mining area has several exploration-extraction trenches that are mined using open-pit mining techniques. Groundwater in this area flows in the form of springs caused by erosion faults and aqueducts dug in alluvial plains. The hydrogeochemistry of the aqueduct water and mineral effluent in this area was investigated using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) to analyze water samples. The results of chemical analysis of water samples from the Qanats of the Chaghatai region and the chromite mine effluents showed that both ophiolite units and chromite mine effluents have high concentrations of chromium and magnesium, with chromium mainly present in the form of chromium (IV) and chromate ion (CrO4-2). A total of 25 samples (7 samples from mine effluents and 18 samples from the Aqtapeh, Darvish, and Qaraghach qanats) were analyzed, and the maximum concentration of chromium in the mine effluent was 99.23 mlg/l and the maximum concentration of chromium in the qanat water was 66.11 mlg/l, both of which are higher than the international standard. The relatively high concentration of chromium in the qanat water is affected by natural factors (water passing through the ophiolite bedrock of the aquifer) and the high concentration of chromium in the mineral effluent is due to mining activity. Drawing a Papier diagram for water samples indicates high levels of magnesium, which is indicative of calcium bicarbonate springs, and the high EC levels of water samples prove high dissolution of dissolved ions from ophiolite bedrock in water.

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References

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Journal of Arid Biome
Volume 15, Issue 2
September 2025
Pages 103-123

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