Remediation of groundwater contaminated by chromium and arsenic at sites in the UK and Alaska

Torrance, Keith and Keenan, Helen and Munk, LeeAnn (2010) Remediation of groundwater contaminated by chromium and arsenic at sites in the UK and Alaska. In: Scottish Environmental Technology Network Conference, 2010-05-07 - 2010-05-07, Glasgow. (Unpublished)

Abstract

Groundwater pollution by potentially toxic metals is an on-going issue in areas with a legacy of industrial or mining activity. Remediation of hexavalent chromium (Cr(+6)) to the less mobile and less toxic trivalent form (Cr(+3)) by chemical reduction may have the undesirable effect of mobilising other metal contaminants present in soil and groundwater. Arsenic, for example, can also be chemically reduced from the pentavalent As(+5) species, which is largely immobile, to the highly mobile trivalent As(+3) species, if a remediation process is set up with the sole purpose of addressing chromium contamination. The mobility of metal species, such as arsenic, is controlled by a wide range of chemical and bio-chemical parameters, as shown in Figure 1. This project will investigate the electro-chemical and bio-chemical environment needed to optimise remediation of mixed chromium and arsenic plumes, with an emphasis on nanoscale bio-mineralisation and bio-sorbants

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