Skip to main content
Log in

Arsenite oxidation and arsenic adsorption on birnessite in the absence and the presence of citrate or EDTA

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Environmental Science and Pollution Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Birnessite not only oxidizes arsenite into arsenate but also interacts with organic matter in various ways. However, effects of organic matter on interaction between As and birnessite remain unclear. This study investigated effects of citrate and EDTA (3.12 and 2.05 mM, respectively) on oxidation of As(III) (1.07 mM) and adsorption of As(V) (0.67 mM) on birnessite (5.19 mM as Mn) at near-neutral pH. We found that As(V) adsorption on birnessite was enhanced by citrate and EDTA, which resulted from the increase in active adsorption sites via dissolution of birnessite. In comparison with citrate batches, more As was adsorbed on birnessite in EDTA batches, where dissolved Mn was mainly presented as Mn(III)-EDTA complex. Citrate or EDTA-induced dissolution of birnessite did not decrease the As(III) oxidation rate in the initial stage where As(III) oxidation rate was rapid. Afterwards, As(III) oxidation was conspicuously suppressed in citrate-amended batches, which was mainly attributed to the decrease in adsorption sites by adsorption of citrate/Mn(II)-citrate complex. This suppression was enhanced by the increase in concentrations of dissolved Mn(II). Citrate inhibited As adsorption after As(III) oxidation due to the strong competitive adsorption of citrate/Mn(II)-citrate complex. However, the As(III) oxidation rate was increased in EDTA-amended batches in the late stage, which mainly derived from the increase in the active sites via birnessite dissolution. The strong complexation ability of EDTA led to formation of Mn(III)-EDTA complex. Arsenic adsorption was not affected due to the limited competitive adsorption of the complex on the solid. This work reveals the critical role of low molecular weight organic acids in geochemical behaviors of As and Mn in aqueous environment.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11

Similar content being viewed by others

References

Download references

Funding

The study was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 41825017, 41672225, and 41702272), Project 111 (No. B20010), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (grant nos. 2652017165 and 2652017051).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Huaming Guo.

Additional information

Responsible editor: Ioannis A. Katsoyiannis

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Electronic supplementary material

ESM 1

(DOCX 524 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Liang, M., Guo, H. & Xiu, W. Arsenite oxidation and arsenic adsorption on birnessite in the absence and the presence of citrate or EDTA. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27, 43769–43785 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-10292-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-10292-3

Keywords

Navigation