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Adsorption of As(III) versus As(V) from aqueous solutions by cerium-loaded volcanic rocks

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Abstract

Contamination of drinking water with arsenic causes severe health problems in various world regions. Arsenic exists predominantly as As(III) and As(V) depending on the prevailing redox conditions of the environment. Most of the techniques developed for treating As(V) are not very effective for As(III), which is more toxic and mobile than As(V). In this study, novel cerium-loaded pumice (Ce-Pu) and red scoria (Ce-Rs) adsorbents were developed to remove both As(III) and As(V) ions from water. The Ce-Pu and Ce-Rs adsorbents were characterized using ICP-OES, EDX, and SEM. The experimental equilibrium sorption data fitted well Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) isotherms. The adsorption was very fast and reached an equilibrium within 2 h. Both Ce-Rs and Ce-Pu showed high As(III) and As(V) removal efficiency in a wide pH range between 3 and 9, which is an important asset for practical applications. The Ce-Pu and Ce-Rs adsorbents can be recycled and used up to three adsorption cycles without significant loss of their original efficiency. Accordingly, Ce-Pu and Ce-Rs seem to be suitable for removal of arsenic from aqueous systems.

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Acknowledgements

The first author would like to thank Ghent University, Belgium, for the financial support through a Special Research Fund (BOF) fellowship. We are grateful to Elien Wallaert, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Ghent University, Belgium, for the SEM and EDX measurements. The authors are also thankful to Tom Planckaert and Karen Leus, Department of Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Ghent University, Belgium, for the BET analysis of the adsorbents.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry and Applied Ecochemistry, Ghent University (UGent), Coupure Links 653, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Tsegaye Girma Asere & Gijs Du Laing

  2. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Ghent University (UGent), Technologiepark 903, 9052, Zwijnaarde, Belgium

    Kim Verbeken

  3. Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Region, Welkite University, Welkite, Ethiopia

    Dejene A. Tessema

  4. Department of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, Jimma University, P.O. Box 378, Jimma, Ethiopia

    Fekadu Fufa

  5. Department of Sustainable Organic Chemistry and Technology, Ghent University, Campus Coupure, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Christian V. Stevens

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  1. Tsegaye Girma Asere
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  2. Kim Verbeken
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  3. Dejene A. Tessema
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  4. Fekadu Fufa
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  5. Christian V. Stevens
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  6. Gijs Du Laing
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Correspondence to Tsegaye Girma Asere.

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Asere, T.G., Verbeken, K., Tessema, D.A. et al. Adsorption of As(III) versus As(V) from aqueous solutions by cerium-loaded volcanic rocks. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24, 20446–20458 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-9692-z

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