Radiological characterization of the phosphate deposit in Al-Jalamid phosphate mining area, Saudi Arabia

Abdulsalam M. Alhawsawi; E. I. Shababa; Maher M. T. Qutub; Essam M. Banoqitah; A. A. Kinsara

Open Access

Radiological characterization of the phosphate deposit in Al-Jalamid phosphate mining area, Saudi Arabia

Abdulsalam M. Alhawsawi

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| Mar 06, 2021

Volume 66 (2021): Issue 1 (March 2021)

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Published Online: Mar 06, 2021

Page range: 35 - 44

Received: Jun 29, 2020

Accepted: Oct 02, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nuka-2021-0005

Keywords
Al-Jalamid site, Uranium and thorium in phosphate rocks, Phosphate deposits, Natural radioactivity, Environmental radioactivity and pollution, Groundwater

© 2021 Abdulsalam M. Alhawsawi et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

A map of Saudi Arabia showing the location of the mining site (A), the processing complex (B), and the fertilizer exportation marine port (C).

Results of analysing uranium and thorium isotopes in IAEA reference materials (RGU-1 and RGTh-1)

Sample	Measured values			Reference value	Measured values		Reference value
Sample	²³⁸U	²³⁴U	²³⁰Th	Reference value	²³²Th	²²⁸Th	Reference value
RGU-1	4649 ± 418	4893 ± 427	5004 ± 374	4940 ± 30	5 ± 2	6 ± 2	<4
	4557 ± 338	4777 ± 365	4811 ± 365		7 ± 3	6 ± 2
	4797 ± 425	4723 ± 402	4886 ± 378		4 ± 3	5 ± 2
	5288 ± 376	5489 ± 431	4768 ± 361		6 ± 2	5 ± 2
Average	4823 ± 39	4970 ± 40	4867 ± 38		6 ± 3	6 ± 3
CV*	0.81	0.82	0.78		50	50
RGTh-1	75 ± 11	71 ± 11	70 ± 8	78 ± 6	3319 ± 206	3453 ± 214	3250 ± 90
	88 ± 10	89 ± 9	73 ± 9		2987 ± 214	3173 ± 226
	83 ± 9	84 ± 10	75 ± 8		3358 ± 231	2794 ± 205
	79 ± 9	78 ± 9	69 ± 8		3335 ± 184	3252 ± 181
Average	81 ± 6	81 ± 6	72 ± 6		3250 ± 29	3168 ± 29
CV*	7.41	7.41	8.33		0.89	0.92

International values for 238U and 232Th in phosphate sedimentary rocks of different countries excluding the Tethys Sea

Country	Activity concentration (Bq/kg)

	²³⁸U	²³²Th
Sudan (Kurun) [15]	684	0.83
Sudan (Uro) [15]	2598	2.5
Sudan [31]	–	7.5
Tanzania (Arusha) [25]	4641	717
South Africa (Togo) [13]	1300	30
South Africa (Togo) [26]	1300	110
USA (Western) [13]	1000	20
USA (South Carolina) [32]	4800	–
Brazil [33]	–	3238
Russia (Kola) [13]	40	80
Russia (Kola) [26]	90	–
Russia (Kola) [14]	30	80
Pakistan (Hazara) [4]	–	48
Pakistan [34]	440	50
China [26]	150	–
Finland [12]	10	10

International values (averages) for 238U and 232Th in different phosphate deposits of the Tethys Sea

Country	Activity concentration (Bq/kg)

	²³⁸U	²³²Th
Al-Jalamid, Saudi Arabia, this study	378 ± 125	8 ± 6
Saudi Arabia [20]	–	39
Jordan [28]	–	2
Jordan [26]	1300–1850	–
Jordan [4]	–	19
Israel [28]	–	11
Israel [26]	1500–1700	–
Egypt [29]	–	395
Egypt [18]	–	19 ± 2
Egypt [30]	408	23.7
Tunisia [28]	–	29
Algeria [28]	–	64
Morocco [26]	1700	30
Morocco [26]	1500	30
Morocco [13]	1700	20
Morocco [19]	1600	10
Sahara Western [13]	900	7
USA (Florida) [19]	1000	–
USA (Florida) [13]	1500	20

Activity concentrations of uranium and thorium in the topsoil and waste layers

Sample	Activity concentration (Bq/kg)

	U isotopes		Th isotopes

	²³⁸U	²³⁴U	²³²Th	²³⁰Th	²²⁸Th
Topsoil	47 ± 8	51 ± 8	137 ± 13	46 ± 4	129 ± 11
	89 ± 9	82 ± 9	66 ± 8	63 ± 7	67 ± 7
	61 ± 8	66 ± 10	112 ± 10	71 ± 8	104 ± 10
	44 ± 7	40 ± 7	135 ± 11	47 ± 6	111 ± 10
	96 ± 10	110 ± 10	86 ± 9	114 ± 10	96 ± 9
	59 ± 7	55 ± 7	97 ± 10	56 ± 7	95 ± 10
Average	66 ± 7	67 ± 7	106 ± 8	66 ± 6	100 ± 8
CV*	10.61	10.45	7.55	9.1	8
Overburden waste layer	64 ± 6	68 ± 7	12 ± 3	63 ± 5	13 ± 3
	52 ± 6	57 ± 6	9 ± 2	48 ± 6	9 ± 2
	55 ± 7	62 ± 9	7 ± 2	56 ± 5	7 ± 2
	85 ± 7	86 ± 7	9 ± 2	82 ± 9	8 ± 2
	71 ± 6	76 ± 6	12 ± 3	77 ± 8	11 ± 3
Average	65 ± 6	70 ± 6	10 ± 3	65 ± 6	10 ± 3
CV*	9.23	8.57	30	9.23	30
Intermediate waste layer	312 ± 25	311 ± 25	5 ± 2	290 ± 27	5 ± 2
	177 ± 18	189 ± 19	4 ± 2	168 ± 11	4 ± 2
	150 ± 14	160 ± 16	5 ± 2	174 ± 12	5 ± 2
	214 ± 21	234 ± 23	6 ± 2	222 ± 13	5 ± 2
	263 ± 22	276 ± 26	4 ± 2	271 ± 15	5 ± 3
Average	223 ± 10	234 ± 10	5 ± 3	225 ± 9	5 ± 3
CV*	4.48	4.27	60	4	60

Activity concentration of uranium and thorium in high-grade raw phosphate ore and its physical beneficiation products (concentrate and reject)

Sample	Activity concentration (Bq/kg)

	U isotopes		Th isotopes

	²³⁸U	²³⁴U	²³²T	²³⁰Th	²²⁸Th
Raw rock	350 ± 35	396 ± 49	6 ± 1	388 ± 48	5 ± 2
	351 ± 47	375 ± 50	9 ± 3	348 ± 53	8 ± 3
	367 ± 46	406 ± 41	10 ± 3	325 ± 42	7 ± 2
	454 ± 33	468 ± 38	8 ± 2	489 ± 36	8 ± 2
	389 ± 46	411 ± 42	8 ± 1	422 ± 43	9 ± 2
	364 ± 33	358 ± 32	11 ± 3	349 ± 52	12 ± 2
	353 ± 36	388 ± 45	4 ± 1	345 ± 43	3 ± 2
	367 ± 36	375 ± 45	7 ± 2	382 ± 43	6 ± 3
	405 ± 58	423 ± 61	7 ± 2	395 ± 57	8 ± 2
Average	378 ± 19	400 ± 20	8 ± 5	383 ± 18	7 ± 4
CV*	5	5	62.5	4.7	57.1
Concentrate	459 ± 47	471 ± 49	7 ± 1	463 ± 36	5 ± 2
	542 ± 55	569 ± 57	5 ± 2	520 ± 41	4 ± 2
	557 ± 53	568 ± 55	11 ± 3	544 ± 49	7 ± 2
	442 ± 45	466 ± 45	10 ± 2	430 ± 47	9 ± 2
	475 ± 48	578 ± 58	6 ± 2	548 ± 54	8 ± 2
	622 ± 59	684 ± 61	7 ± 2	671 ± 66	8 ± 2
	399 ± 48	413 ± 46	4 ± 1	385 ± 50	4 ± 2
	555 ± 56	540 ± 54	5 ± 2	697 ± 56	4 ± 2
	439 ± 54	485 ± 59	6 ± 2	466 ± 49	4 ± 2
	488 ± 48	491 ± 51	8 ± 2	454 ± 50	6 ± 2
	539 ± 57	566 ± 59	5 ± 2	525 ± 47	4 ± 2
	503 ± 50	526 ± 57	9 ± 2	478 ± 47	7 ± 2
Average	502 ± 25	530 ± 25	7 ± 2	515 ± 24	6 ± 2
CV*	5	4.72	28.57	4.66	33.33
Reject	327 ± 43	365 ± 43	5 ± 2	371 ± 45	5 ± 3
	378 ± 42	383 ± 43	6 ± 2	376 ± 39	7 ± 2
	366 ± 47	412 ± 48	5 ± 2	346 ± 50	6 ± 2
	355 ± 41	403 ± 44	6 ± 2	563 ± 46	6 ± 2
	337 ± 44	394 ± 47	5 ± 1	386 ± 39	5 ± 2
	346 ± 42	344 ± 43	5 ± 2	361 ± 46	7 ± 2
Average	352 ± 16	384 ± 16	5 ± 3	401 ± 16	6 ± 4
CV*	4.55	4.71	60	4	66.67

Activity concentration of uranium and thorium in low-grade raw phosphate ore and the chemical beneficiation products (concentrate and reject)

Sample	Activity concentration (Bq/kg)

	U isotopes		Th isotopes

	²³⁸U	²³⁴U	²³²Th	²³⁰Th	²²⁸Th
Raw rock	293 ± 30	260 ± 23	9 ± 2	267 ± 18	7 ± 2
	243 ± 26	255 ± 30	6 ± 2	256 ± 19	7 ± 3
	268 ± 32	253 ± 27	6 ± 2	251 ± 22	6 ± 3
	316 ± 34	274 ± 31	8 ± 3	298 ± 18	7 ± 3
Average	280 ± 11	261 ± 10	7 ± 3	268 ± 9	7 ± 3
CV*	3.93	3.83	42.86	3.36	42.86
Concentrate	393 ± 52	421 ± 54	6 ± 2	408 ± 58	7 ± 2
	508 ± 55	534 ± 61	8 ± 2	601 ± 64	8 ± 2
	436 ± 63	416 ± 60	10 ± 2	430 ± 47	8 ± 2
	422 ± 52	414 ± 51	7 ± 2	437 ± 54	6 ± 2
	390 ± 46	417 ± 45	7 ± 2	382 ± 53	6 ± 2
	440 ± 46**	457 ± 45	7 ± 2	446 ± 51	6 ± 2
	490 ± 55**	486 ± 61	11 ± 2	430 ± 47	8 ± 2
Average	440 ± 19	449 ± 19	8 ± 4	448 ± 19	7 ± 4
CV*	4.32	4.23	50	4.24	57.14
Reject	86 ± 7	82 ± 7	3 ± 2	92 ± 8	2 ± 1
	97 ± 7	91 ± 7	4 ± 2	103 ± 9	5 ± 2
	62 ± 7	68 ± 6	3 ± 1	75 ± 7	3 ± 2
	113 ± 12	96 ± 9	5 ± 2	101 ± 10	4 ± 2
	78 ± 9	91 ± 9	4 ± 2	88 ± 11	5 ± 2
Average	87 ± 6	86 ± 6	4 ± 3	92 ± 6	4 ± 3
CV*	6.9	6.98	75	6.52	75

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Radiological characterization of the phosphate deposit in Al-Jalamid phosphate mining area, Saudi Arabia

Article Category: Original Paper

Published Online: Mar 06, 2021

Page range: 35 - 44

Received: Jun 29, 2020

Accepted: Oct 02, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nuka-2021-0005

Keywords
Al-Jalamid site, Uranium and thorium in phosphate rocks, Phosphate deposits, Natural radioactivity, Environmental radioactivity and pollution, Groundwater

© 2021 Abdulsalam M. Alhawsawi et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Fig. 1

Results of analysing uranium and thorium isotopes in IAEA reference materials (RGU-1 and RGTh-1)

International values for 238U and 232Th in phosphate sedimentary rocks of different countries excluding the Tethys Sea

International values (averages) for 238U and 232Th in different phosphate deposits of the Tethys Sea

Activity concentrations of uranium and thorium in the topsoil and waste layers

Activity concentration of uranium and thorium in high-grade raw phosphate ore and its physical beneficiation products (concentrate and reject)

Activity concentration of uranium and thorium in low-grade raw phosphate ore and the chemical beneficiation products (concentrate and reject)

Radiological characterization of the phosphate deposit in Al-Jalamid phosphate mining area, Saudi Arabia

Article Category: Original Paper

Published Online: Mar 06, 2021

Page range: 35 - 44

Received: Jun 29, 2020

Accepted: Oct 02, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nuka-2021-0005

KeywordsAl-Jalamid site, Uranium and thorium in phosphate rocks, Phosphate deposits, Natural radioactivity, Environmental radioactivity and pollution, Groundwater

© 2021 Abdulsalam M. Alhawsawi et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Fig. 1

Results of analysing uranium and thorium isotopes in IAEA reference materials (RGU-1 and RGTh-1)

International values for 238U and 232Th in phosphate sedimentary rocks of different countries excluding the Tethys Sea

International values (averages) for 238U and 232Th in different phosphate deposits of the Tethys Sea

Activity concentrations of uranium and thorium in the topsoil and waste layers

Activity concentration of uranium and thorium in high-grade raw phosphate ore and its physical beneficiation products (concentrate and reject)

Activity concentration of uranium and thorium in low-grade raw phosphate ore and the chemical beneficiation products (concentrate and reject)

Keywords
Al-Jalamid site, Uranium and thorium in phosphate rocks, Phosphate deposits, Natural radioactivity, Environmental radioactivity and pollution, Groundwater