Removai of arsenic using naturally occurring iron

Abstract
It has corne to light that countries like India (West Bengal region) and Bangladesh are facing serious problems with elevated concentrations of Arsenic in ground water with more than 40 million people exposed to Arsenic concentrations above 50 ppb, being the most laxed guideline. The removal of Arsenic (0.23-0.7 mg/l) from the groundwater with elevated concentration of Iron (3.3-5.5 mg/l) with an Fe/As molar ratio of 10-15 showed that Arsenic can be removed from the groundwater, but the presence of Phosphate and Silicate decreases the removal efficiency. The removal mechanisms indicate that Phosphate will be removed first by precipitating Fe(OH) ₃ and there will be a competition for the remaining absorption sites between Arsenic and Silicate. The effect of water storage container material on the removal of Arsenic showed that Aluminium and Brass containers have a positive effect on the removal of Arsenic, whereas Clay and Plastic have no effect on removal of Arsenic.