Premium
Efficacy of Various Sorbic Media in Attenuation of Selenium
Author(s) -
Fritz Steven J.,
Hall Steven D.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq1988.00472425001700030023x
Subject(s) - selenium , adsorption , chemistry , arsenic , environmental chemistry , fly ash , organic chemistry
A series of adsorption tests were performed on material used in the construction of a clay‐lined fly‐ash waste pile at a lignite‐burning power plant in Texas to determine which soil component is the most effective in adsorbing selenium. Selenium, in the form of selenite, is adsorbed by hydrous iron oxides to a greater extent than selenite adsorbed by clays chemically treated to remove organics and free iron. In natural systems, clays will be coated by iron oxides and organic material, and these coatings may prevent anions like HSeO − 3 and SeO −2 3 from sorbing onto positive exchange sites of clay surfaces. However, anions can be effectively adsorbed by these highly reactive surface coatings. Thus, the efficacy of clay as an adsorption medium may be overestimated in construction of environmental barriers for retention of elements like selenium.