Exploratory experiments to determine the effect of alternative operations on the efficiency of subsurface arsenic removal in rural Bangladesh

Abstract

The principle of subsurface arsenic (As) removal (SAR) is to extract anoxic groundwater, aerate it and re-inject it. Oxygen in the injected water reacts with iron in the resident groundwater to form hydrous ferric oxide (HFO). Dissolved As sorbs onto the HFO, which allows for the extraction of groundwater with lower As concentrations. SAR was applied at a rural location in Bangladesh (As in groundwater = 200 μg/L) to study the effect of different operational parameters on SAR performance, including repeated injection and extraction of an equal volume, lower pumping rate, and intermittent pumping. Larger injection volume, lower pumping rate, and intermittent pumping all had positive effects on As removal indicating that As adsorption is kinetically limited. Repeated injection–extraction of an equal volume improved As removal efficiency by providing more HFO for sorption. After injection of 1,000 L, a maximum of 3,000 L of ‘safe’ water, as defined by the Bangladesh national standard for As (<50 μg/L), was extracted, of which 2,000 L can be used as drinking water and the remainder is used for re-injection. Under this setup, the estimated cost for 1,000 L of As-safe drinking water is US$2.00, which means that SAR is a viable mitigation option for rural areas.