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Redox conditions and nutrients affect the mobility of arsenic in coastal sediments

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Abstract

In this study, the effects of redox conditions, nitrogen (NH4+–N and NO3−–N) and phosphate in the overlying water on the release of arsenic (As) in coastal sediments were investigated. The results indicated that the release of As under anaerobic conditions presented a release—dynamic equilibrium pattern. The reduction of arsenate (As(V)) to arsenite (As(III)) under anaerobic conditions was the main factor promoting the release of As. The reductive dissolution of Fe(III) oxides contributed very limited to the release; the release–remove–release pattern was observed under aerobic conditions. Although Fe(III) oxides has strong adsorption capacity for As, sulfide oxidation may be a source of As, which may continuously release As under aerobic conditions. In addition, low concentration (< 6 mg L−1) of nitrogen may stimulate anaerobic metabolism of microorganisms, resulting in reduction and dissolution of As. The low pH of high concentration (> 6 mg L−1) of nitrogen may affect the microbial community and thus decreased the concentration of As. Since the reduction of Fe(III) oxides decreased the adsorption sites, the competitive adsorption of phosphate had no significant effect on the release of As under anaerobic conditions. Totally, this study provides a new understanding of the behavior of As in coastal sediments under variable environments.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No.: XDA23050203). Additional support was from the Key Project of Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation (Grant No.: ZR2020KE048).

Funding

The study was funded by Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No.: XDA23050203) and Key Project of Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation (Grant No.: ZR2020KE048).

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  1. Xiaozhu Liu and Tao Ma contributed equally to this work and should be considered co-first authors.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Center for Coastal Environment Engineering Technology of Shandong Province, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai, 264003, China

    Xiaozhu Liu, Tao Ma, Qunqun Liu & Yanqing Sheng

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Xiaozhu Liu & Tao Ma

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  1. Xiaozhu Liu
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Liu, X., Ma, T., Liu, Q. et al. Redox conditions and nutrients affect the mobility of arsenic in coastal sediments. Environ Earth Sci 81, 451 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-022-10573-9

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