Use of Subpermafrost Groundwater Resources for Drinking Water Supply in Yakutia

Abstract

In central Yakutia, Russia, the use of subpermafrost water for domestic purposes is limited due to the elevated levels of lithium and some other elements. Based on a review of available data on well water chemistry, this study estimated lithium contents in groundwater of the southern Yakutian Artesian Basin. The highest concentrations of lithium were found to occur in subpermafrost water of the Lower Jurassic – Middle Cambrian aquifer system due to the presence of clay rocks. The ion exchange method was demonstrated experimentally to be capable of reducing lithium levels to the drinking water standard. A series of laboratory experiments performed by the author produced graphical curves of lithium removal from model solutions and natural subpermafrost waters. They also provided the kinetic and dynamic characteristics of the lithium removal process. In the course of the experimental studies on the subpermafrost water purification of casting by the ion exchange method, content of lithium reduced from 0.41 to 0.006 mg/L. The results of this study may be useful for developing subpermafrost water treatment schemes for drinking purposes