Bakatula, EN, Tutu, H & Cukrowska, EM 2008, 'Characterization of Cyanide in Gold Mine Tailings of the Witwatersrand, South Africa', in AB Fourie, M Tibbett, I Weiersbye & P Dye (eds), Mine Closure 2008: Proceedings of the Third International Seminar on Mine Closure, Australian Centre for Geomechanics, Perth, pp. 689-694, https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_repo/852_64
(https://papers.acg.uwa.edu.au/p/852_64_Bakatula/)
Abstract: Numerous old gold sand and slimes tailings dumps on the Witwatersrand have been reprocessed since the 
1980s for residual gold extraction using cyanide as a lixiviant. There are numerous technologies available 
by which many cyanide species may be decomposed. However, at most gold mines in South Africa, cyanide is 
simply discharged with the effluent and tailings based on the assumption it will decompose within a 
relatively short period of time. However the distribution and fate of cyanide in the environment upon release 
from the tailings dumps depends on its physical-chemical speciation. This study describes the 
characterization of cyanide in the superficial deposits of a reprocessed gold tailings dump in the two years 
after slurry re-deposition by the cycloning method, and the implications for its potential release and 
redistribution during the hydraulic re-working and re-deposition of old tailing slurries. Sampling was done 
in 2006 and 2007 on a third-generation gold slimes dam to assess the impact of tailings acidification 
immediately after deposition on cyanide release over that period. The total concentrations of cyanide 
observed were higher than could be accounted for by the most  recent processing event , and suggest that 
residual cyanide from the historical processing had persisted in the tailings since the original deposition (a 
period of 30 to 80 years, depending on the tailings facility). The re-working of the old slurries in the new 
facility resulted in a fairly rapid decline in pH of the superficial, drying, layer of the facility after deposition 
ceased. Elevated concentrations of total cyanide (CNT) and weak acid dissociable cyanide (CNWAD) were 
obtained for 2006. The concentrations of free cyanide (CNfree), cyanates (CNO
-) and thiocyanates (SCN-) 
were higher for 2007 than 2006, and conversely the concentrations of metal-cyanide complexes, namely 
Cu(CN)3
2- (up to 35 mgkg-1), Fe(CN)6
4- (more than 80 mgkg-1) and Ni(CN)4
2- (up to 30 mgkg-1) were higher in 
2006 compared to 2007. Decreases of 25% for Cu(CN)3
2-, >30% for Fe(CN)6
4-, and 40% for Ni(CN)4
2- were 
observed in some cases between the sampling periods. These findings indicate that metal cyanide species in 
the superficial layers of the tailings rapidly degraded post-deposition as a result, primarily, of a decrease in 
pH. The released cyanide is either volatilized as HCN, or transported in solution with the contamination 
plume.