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Geochemical Processes Controlling Fluoride Enrichment in Groundwater at the Western Part of Kumamoto Area, Japan

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Abstract

This paper first time reports the geochemical processes that are controlling fluoride enrichment in the groundwater of western Kumamoto area, Japan. Fifty (50) groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for the study where fluoride (F−) concentration ranges from 0.1 to 1.57 mg/L. About 58 % of the shallow groundwater and 26 % of the deep groundwater samples contain fluoride concentration beyond the Japanese drinking water permissible limit (0.8 mg/L). High F− is largely accumulated in the stagnant zone of the Kumamoto Plain area and associated with Na-HCO3-type groundwater. High pH, high HCO3, low Ca2+, and high Na+ are the major characteristics of high-F− groundwater. Hydrolysis of F−-bearing minerals and desorption of F− from hydrous metal oxides are considered to be the primary sources of fluoride in groundwater. A positive correlation between F− and Na+/Ca2+ ratio (r 2 = 0.53) indicates that major ion chemistry plays a significant role in fluoride mobilization. Weakly alkaline nature of groundwater with high pH (7.05–9.45) expedites the leaching process of exchangeable F− from F−-bearing minerals as well as favors desorption of F− from metal oxide surfaces. High HCO3 − and high PO4 3− in the groundwater facilitate desorption process as competing anions, while high Na+/Ca2+ ratio largely control this process by decreasing positive-charge density of the metal-oxide surfaces. High Na+/Ca2+ ratio is attributed due to the cation-exchange process, while high pH and HCO3 − are the result of both silicate hydrolysis and microbial reduction processes. In addition, calcite and fluorite seem to have a control on groundwater fluoride geochemistry.

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Acknowledgments

This research was financially supported partly by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) with additional budget from Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A) (no. 24681007). The authors wish to thank Dr. Kimpei Ichiyanagi and Dr. Makoto Kagabu of Kumamoto University for their useful suggestions during seminar discussion. We are grateful to Mr. Kiyoshi Ide and Midori Matsunaga for their cordial help during sample collection and chemical analyses. We are also grateful to the Kumamoto City Government, Prefectural Government, and Ministry of Land and Infrastructure Development of Japan for their kind support and permission for groundwater sampling from their own managed wells. Finally, sincere thanks to the anonymous reviewers’ for their constructive and suggestions to improve this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Science and Technology (GSST), Kumamoto University, 2-39-1 Kurokami, Kumamoto-Shi, 860-8555, Japan

    Shahadat Hossain, Heejun Yang & Jun Shimada

  2. Atomic Energy Center, Chittagong, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission, Chittagong, 4209, Bangladesh

    Shahadat Hossain

  3. Priority Organization for Innovation and Excellence, Kumamoto University, 2-39-1 Kurokami, Kumamoto-Shi, 860-8555, Japan

    Takahiro Hosono

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  1. Shahadat Hossain
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  2. Takahiro Hosono
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Correspondence to Shahadat Hossain.

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Hossain, S., Hosono, T., Yang, H. et al. Geochemical Processes Controlling Fluoride Enrichment in Groundwater at the Western Part of Kumamoto Area, Japan. Water Air Soil Pollut 227, 385 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-016-3089-3

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