Effects of manganese oxide on arsenic reduction and leaching from contaminated floodplain soil

TY - JOUR

T1 - Effects of manganese oxide on arsenic reduction and leaching from contaminated floodplain soil

AU - Ehlert, Katrin

AU - Mikutta, Christian

AU - Kretzschmar, Ruben

PY - 2016/9/6

Y1 - 2016/9/6

N2 - Reductive release of the potentially toxic metalloid As from Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides has been identified as an important process leading to elevated As porewater concentrations in soils and sediments. Despite the ubiquitous presence of Mn oxides in soils and their oxidizing power toward As(III), their impact on interrelated As, Fe, and Mn speciation under microbially reducing conditions remains largely unknown. For this reason, we employed a column setup and X-ray absorption spectroscopy to investigate the influence of increasing birnessite concentrations (molar soil Fe-to-Mn ratios: 4.8, 10.2, and 24.7) on As speciation and release from an As-contaminated floodplain soil (214 mg As/kg) under anoxic conditions. Our results show that birnessite additions significantly decreased As leaching. The reduction of both As and Fe was delayed, and As(III) accumulated in birnessite-rich column parts, indicating the passivation of birnessite and its transformation products toward As(III) oxidation and the precipitation of Fe(III)(oxyhydr)oxides. Microbial Mn reduction resulted in elevated soil pH values, which in turn lowered the microbial activity in the birnessite-enriched soil. We conclude that in Mn-oxide-rich soil environments undergoing redox fluctuations, the enhanced As adsorption to newly formed Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides under reducing conditions leads to a transient stabilization of As.

AB - Reductive release of the potentially toxic metalloid As from Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides has been identified as an important process leading to elevated As porewater concentrations in soils and sediments. Despite the ubiquitous presence of Mn oxides in soils and their oxidizing power toward As(III), their impact on interrelated As, Fe, and Mn speciation under microbially reducing conditions remains largely unknown. For this reason, we employed a column setup and X-ray absorption spectroscopy to investigate the influence of increasing birnessite concentrations (molar soil Fe-to-Mn ratios: 4.8, 10.2, and 24.7) on As speciation and release from an As-contaminated floodplain soil (214 mg As/kg) under anoxic conditions. Our results show that birnessite additions significantly decreased As leaching. The reduction of both As and Fe was delayed, and As(III) accumulated in birnessite-rich column parts, indicating the passivation of birnessite and its transformation products toward As(III) oxidation and the precipitation of Fe(III)(oxyhydr)oxides. Microbial Mn reduction resulted in elevated soil pH values, which in turn lowered the microbial activity in the birnessite-enriched soil. We conclude that in Mn-oxide-rich soil environments undergoing redox fluctuations, the enhanced As adsorption to newly formed Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides under reducing conditions leads to a transient stabilization of As.

KW - Journal Article

U2 - 10.1021/acs.est.6b01767

DO - 10.1021/acs.est.6b01767

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 27508335

SN - 0013-936X

VL - 50

SP - 9251

EP - 9261

JO - Environmental Science & Technology

JF - Environmental Science & Technology

IS - 17

ER -