Low-cost technologies based on heterogeneous photocatalysis and zerovalent iron for arsenic removal in the Chacopampean Plain, Argentina.

IVANA K. LEVY; MARIA EUGENIA MORGADA; MIGUEL MATEU; VANESA N. SALOMONE; GERARDO LOPEZ; MARTA I. LITTER

Chihuahua

Conferencia; 10th International Conference on the Biogeochemistry of trace elements; 2009

Abstract Results obtained in synthetic and natural waters using Heterogeneous Photocatalysis (HP) and Zerovalent Iron (ZVI) are presented. For HP tests, PET plastic bottles with their inner surfaces covered with a thin film of TiO2 and exposed to solar or artificial UV radiation were used. Arsenic removal rates of more than 80% were obtained by irradiating arsenic-containing solutions during 6 hours with artificial UV light, in the presence of iron packing wire. The treatment of natural well waters (Santiago del Estero) exposed to solar radiation with subsequent addition of ferric chloride resulted in removals higher than 94%. For ZVI tests, arsenical solutions in PET bottles were irradiated in the presence of iron wool or packing wire. Iron wool demonstrated to be a better iron source. Solar irradiation, in synthetic as well as in natural samples seems to definitively improve As removal, avoiding the use of high amounts of iron. Arsenic removal was notably accelerated using iron nanoparticles, and NanoFe®, a new material, was tested. As(III) and As(V) removal by NanoFe® was carried out, analyzing the effect of iron mass, presence of humic acids and UV light irradiation.