Comparative toxicity and speciation of two hexavalent chromium salts in acute toxicity tests

The comparative acute toxicity of potassium chromate and dichromate salts to six aquatic species including both freshwater and marine forms was investigated. A thermodynamic equilibrium model was developed to aid in interpreting toxicity data with respect to hexavalent chromium speciation. Although parallel acute toxicity tests conducted with both salts yielded similar LC50 values, toxicity differences tended to become more pronounced as the sensitivity of the test species to the chemical decreased. Observed changes in pH and predicted changes in chromium speciation that occurred between the two salts in tests with less sensitive species were postulated to explain these findings. The implication of the aqueous chromium species to the relative toxicity of the hexavalent chromium are discussed. If hexavalent chromium is widely adopted as a standard reference toxicant for aquatic toxicity testing then the chromate salt should be used since it does not appreciably alter the initial pH of the dilution water and subsequent speciation to the extent that would be expected if the dichromate salt was employed. Standardization of the source of hexavalent chromium used in reference tests will facilitate intralaboratory comparison of toxicity data.