HR: 1340h
AN: H43C-1504    [Abstracts]
TI: Controls on Arsenic Retention in Surface and Subsurface Environments: Resolving the Impact of Iron Reduction
AU: * Tufano, K
EM: ktufano@stanford.edu
AF: Stanford University, Braun Hall, Bldg 320, Room 118, Stanford, CA 94305, United States
AU: Fendorf, S
EM: fendorf@stanford.edu
AF: Stanford University, Braun Hall, Bldg 320, Room 118, Stanford, CA 94305, United States
AB: A transition from oxidizing to reducing conditions has long been implicated in increasing aqueous As concentrations. Confounding processes controlling the release of As, reductive transformation of ferrihydrite, a common Fe(III) (hydr)oxide, has recently been shown to promote As retention rather than release. Elucidating the processes controlling As desorption and subsequent migration in surface and subsurface environments and how environmental factors (for example, availability of labile carbon and duration/extent of flooding) affect these processes will allow predictions to be made regarding long-term stability of As in soil and sediment. In turn, this can aid in evaluating the likelihood of having measurable As in groundwater. To better resolve these processes, here we examine As desorption from ferrihydrite-coated sands pre-sorbed with As(III) at circumneutral pH under Fe-reducing conditions with the dissimilatory iron reducing bacterium (DIRB) Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN- 32. We reveal that upon iron reduction, transformation of As-bearing ferrihydrite results in As(III) retention. However, over time there is a shift from reductive transformation to reductive dissolution of the As-bearing Fe phase(s) coupled with prolonged release of As to the aqueous phase. Our results suggest that arsenic retention may increase or decrease depending on the type of iron oxide, secondary iron transformations, and duration of reducing conditions. Immediately following a transition to anaerobic conditions there is potential for As retention on newly formed ferric/ferrous (hydr)oxide phases; however prolonged reduction will result in both the dissolution of ferric/ferrous (hydr)oxides and release of aqueous arsenic.
DE: 0409 Bioavailability: chemical speciation and complexation
DE: 0414 Biogeochemical cycles, processes, and modeling (0412, 0793, 1615, 4805, 4912)
DE: 0432 Contaminant and organic biogeochemistry (0792)
DE: 0461 Metals
DE: 1831 Groundwater quality
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting