Blast furnace residues for arsenic removal from mining-contaminated groundwater

In this work, blast furnace (BF) residues were well characterized and then evaluated as an adsorbent material for arsenic removal from a mining-contaminated groundwater. The adsorption process was analysed using the theories of Freundlich and Langmuir. BF residues were found to be an effective sorbent for As (V) ions. The modelling of adsorption isotherms by empirical models shows that arsenate adsorption is fitted by the Langmuir model, suggesting a monolayer adsorption of arsenic onto adsorbents. Arsenate adsorption onto BF residue is explained by the charge density surface affinity and by the formation of Fe (II) and Fe (III) corrosion products onto BF residue particles. The results indicate that BF residues represent an attractive low-cost absorbent option for the removal of arsenic in wastewater treatment.