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Study on Screening of Chromium-Contaminated Soil Eluents and Optimization of Elution Conditions

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Abstract

For selecting the best leaching agent and optimizing the leaching conditions, the present study investigated the effects of six leaching agents (hydrochloric acid, oxalic acid, water, citric acid, phosphoric acid, and EDTA) on chromium elution from contaminated soil under various elution conditions. To determine the total chromium concentration in soil, 0.10 g soil sample was digested with a mixture of HNO3-HClO4-HF (5 mL:2 mL:1 mL) for 12 h at 180 °C. The total chromium content in soil and the chromium concentration in the leaching agent were determined using a flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer. During the comparative study, the removal of total chromium by multiple leaching agents with the best eluent was studied. Also, the optimum elution conditions and the optimal number of leaches were determined. Conclusively, the removal efficiency of total chromium by composite eluent was investigated. The results showed that high concentrations (1 mol/L) of citric acid and oxalic acid had better chromium removal efficiencies, with removal rates of 58.6% and 54.8%, respectively. The combined eluent composed of equal volumes of 0.6 mol/L oxalic acid and 0.6 mol/L citric acid has a better elution efficiency, with a total chromium removal rate of 62.0%. Citric acid is an environmentally friendly eluent that can avoid secondary pollution. In conclusion, citric acid with a 0.6 mol/L concentration is the best eluent, which conveys higher efficiency (58.6%) at a solid–liquid ratio of 1:10 for 8 h of leaching. This study provides a theoretical basis for the efficient remediation of chromium-contaminated soil by ectopic leaching.

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Data Availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41907137); Anhui Provincial Natural Science Foundation, China (2008085QD181); Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Provincial Department of Education, China (KJ2020A0051); and Major Science and Technology Projects of Anhui Province, China (201903a06020001).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Resource and Environment, Anhui Science and Technology University, Fengyang, 233100, China

    Wanzheng Ma, Hong Wang, Xiaoliang Li & Yongbing Cai

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  1. Wanzheng Ma
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  2. Hong Wang
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  3. Xiaoliang Li
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  4. Yongbing Cai
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Contributions

Wanzheng Ma: conceptualization, formal analysis, investigation, data curation, methodology, software, visualization, project administration, and writing of original draft; Hong Wang: data curation, investigation, and methodology; Xiaoliang Li: project administration and resources; Yongbing Cai: conceptualization, visualization, and writing including review and editing. The authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Yongbing Cai.

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Ma, W., Wang, H., Li, X. et al. Study on Screening of Chromium-Contaminated Soil Eluents and Optimization of Elution Conditions. Water Air Soil Pollut 233, 527 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-022-06011-y

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