High efficiency removal of As(III) from waters using a new and friendly adsorbent based on sugarcane bagasse and corncob husk Fe-coated biochars.

Water contamination of As is a big issue in many areas around the globe. Therefore, cheap and efficient techniques are essential facing traditional treatment methods. Then, biochars (BC) emerged recently as material that can be used for As removal. However, research about efficiency of BC produced from local feedstock is still needed. The purpose of this study is to assess the efficiency of BC produced from sugarcane bagasse (SB) together with corncob husk (CH) with and without Fe(III) (BCFe) modification to be used for removal of As(III) from waters. The BC and BCFe produced at different pyrolysis temperatures were characterised using FTIR and SEM/EDS. Adsorption capacities of BC and BCFe were evaluated via batch adsorption, desorption and column tests and their performance was compared with adsorption using activated carbon. The results showed that Fe modification improve substantially the As(III) adsorption in a way that both BCFe-SB and BCFe-CH removed from 85% to 99.9% from 1000 µg/L As(III) solutions. Both materials fitted well in Langmuir model and the maximum adsorption capacity was 20 mg/g for BCFe-SB and 50 mg/g for BCFe-CH. The adsorption kinetics of BCFe was fast (≤ 30 min) and it had a better performance than activated carbon. The column tests showed that the process is efficient even at high As(III) concentrations. The fast removal process and good removal results make the BCFe-SB and BCFe-CH attractive for in situ and commercial (filters) use, since time and efficiency are required in new technologies.

Removal of arsenite by reductive precipitation in dithionite solution activated by UV light.

This study investigates the removal of arsenite (As(III)) from water using dithionite activated by UV light. This work evaluated the removal kinetics of As(III) under UV light irradiation as affected by dithionite dose and light intensity, and characterized the nature of the precipitated solids using XPS and SEM-EDS. Photolysis of dithionite was observed by measuring dithionite concentration using UV absorbance at 315nm. This study also investigated the effect of UV light path length on soluble As concentrations to understand resolubilization mechanisms. Total soluble As concentrations were observed to decrease with reaction time due to reduction of arsenite to form solids having a yellow-orange color. The removal mechanism was found to be reductive precipitation that formed solids of elemental arsenic or arsenic sulfide. However, these solids were observed to resolubilize at later times after dithionite had been consumed. Resolubilization of As was prevented and additional As removal was obtained by frequent dosing of dithionite throughout the experiment. As(III) removal is attributed to photolysis of dithionite by UV light and production of reactive radicals that reduce As(III) and convert it to solid forms.

Production of bioflocculants prepared from formaldehyde wastewater for the potential removal of arsenic.

A novel bioflocculant (MBF-79) prepared using formaldehyde wastewater as carbon resource was investigated in the study. The optimal conditions for bioflocculant production were determined to be an inoculum size of 7.0%, initial pH of 6.0, and formaldehyde concentration of 350 mg/L. An MBF-79 of 8.97 g/L was achieved as the maximum yield. Three main elements, namely C, H, and O, were present in MBF-79 with relative weigh percentages of 39.17%, 6.74%, and 34.55%, respectively. The Gel permeation chromatography analysis indicated that the approximate molecular weight (MW) of MBF-79 was 230 kDa. MBF-79 primarily comprised polysaccharide (71.2%) and protein (27.9%). Additionally, conditions for the removal of arsenic by MBF-79 were found to be MBF-79 at 120 mg/L, an initial pH 7.0, and a contact time 60 min. Under the optimal conditions, the removal efficiencies of arsenate (0.5 mg/L) and arsenite (0.5 mg/L) were 98.9% and 84.6%, respectively. Overall, these findings indicate bioflocculation offers an effective alternative method of decreasing arsenic during water treatment.

Hybrid flow system for automatic dynamic fractionation and speciation of inorganic arsenic in environmental solids.

An integrated flow analysis system and protocol are proposed for the first time for automatic dynamic flow-through fractionation of inorganic arsenic (arsenite and arsenate) in environmental solids in combination with its real-time speciation. Four extractants (i.e., (1) 0.05 M ammonium sulfate, (2) 0.05 M ammonium dihydrogen phosphate, (3) 0.2 M ammonium oxalate, and (4) a mixture of 0.2 M ammonium oxalate and 0.1 M ascorbic acid at 96 °C) are applied sequentially to the sample to measure bioaccessible inorganic arsenic associated with (1) nonspecifically sorbed phases, (2) specifically sorbed phases, (3) amorphous plus poorly crystalline hydrous oxides of iron and aluminum, and (4) well-crystallized hydrous oxides of Fe and Al, respectively. The kinetic extraction profiles of arsenite and total inorganic arsenic are obtained for each extractant by automatic collection of a given number of its aliquots (subfractions) exposed to the solid sample. Arsenite and total inorganic arsenic in each subfraction are converted to arsine sequentially by hydride generation at pH 4.50 and in 1.14 M hydrochloric acid, respectively. Arsine is absorbed into a potassium permanganate solution, the discoloration of which is related to the concentration of the corresponding arsenic species. The proposed method is successfully validated by analyzing a soil reference material (NIST 2710a) and a sediment sample.

Improving the Reactivity of Zerovalent Iron by Taking Advantage of Its Magnetic Memory: Implications for Arsenite Removal.

Premagnetization was employed to enhance the reactivity of zerovalent iron (ZVI) toward As(III) sequestration for the first time. Compared to the pristine ZVI (Pri-ZVI), the rate of As(III) elimination by the premagnetized ZVI (Mag-ZVI) was greater over the pHini range of 4.0-9.0 and increased progressively with increasing intensity of the magnetic field for premagnetization. Mag-ZVI could keep its reactivity for a long time and showed better performance than Pri-ZVI for As(III) removal from synthetic groundwater in column tests. The Fe K-edge XAFS analysis for As(III)-treated ZVI samples unraveled that premagnetization promoted the transformation of ZVI to iron (hydr)oxides and shifted the corrosion products from maghemite and magnetite to lepidocrocite, which favored the arsenic sequestration. The arsenic species analysis revealed that premagnetization facilitated the oxidation of As(III) to As(V). ZVI pretreated with grinding was very different from Mag-ZVI with regard to As(III) removal, indicating that the improved reactivity of Mag-ZVI should not be associated with the physical squeezing effect of the ZVI grains during magnetization. The positive correlation between the remanence of Mag-ZVI and the rate constants of total arsenic removal indicated that the enhanced reactivity of Mag-ZVI was mainly ascribed to its magnetic memory, i.e., the remanence kept by Mag-ZVI.

Enhanced removal performance of arsenate and arsenite by magnetic graphene oxide with high iron oxide loading.

Magnetic iron oxide/graphene oxide (MGO) with high iron loading (51 wt%) has been successfully synthesized using the co-precipitation method, and then used as adsorbents for the removal of arsenate and arsenite from aqueous solutions. The resulting MGO possesses desirable magnetic properties (12.8 emu g(-1)) and excellent adsorption properties for the removal of As(III) and As(IV) with significantly enhanced adsorption capacities of 54.18 mg g(-1) and 26.76 mg g(-1), respectively. These values are much higher than those of other GO-based composites reported previously. The kinetic, equilibrium and environmental effects (pH, ionic strength, coexist anion) of MGO were obtained experimentally. A synchrotron-based X-ray fluorescent microprobe was used to generate elemental distribution maps of adsorbents; the results suggest that As(v) became preferentially associated with iron oxides during the adsorption process, and that the distribution of Fe is directly correlated with the distribution of As.

A high-throughput oxidative stress biosensor based on Escherichia coli roGFP2 cells immobilized in a k-carrageenan matrix.

Biosensors fabricated with whole-cell bacteria appear to be suitable for detecting bioavailability and toxicity effects of the chemical(s) of concern, but they are usually reported to have drawbacks like long response times (ranging from hours to days), narrow dynamic range and instability during long term storage. Our aim is to fabricate a sensitive whole-cell oxidative stress biosensor which has improved properties that address the mentioned weaknesses. In this paper, we report a novel high-throughput whole-cell biosensor fabricated by immobilizing roGFP2 expressing Escherichia coli cells in a k-carrageenan matrix, for the detection of oxidative stress challenged by metalloid compounds. The E. coli roGFP2 oxidative stress biosensor shows high sensitivity towards arsenite and selenite, with wide linear range and low detection limit (arsenite: 1.0 × 10(-3)-1.0 × 10(1) mg·L(-1), LOD: 2.0 × 10(-4) mg·L(-1); selenite: 1.0 × 10(-5)-1.0 × 10(2) mg·L(-1), LOD: 5.8 × 10(-6) mg·L(-1)), short response times (0-9 min), high stability and reproducibility. This research is expected to provide a new direction in performing high-throughput environmental toxicity screening with living bacterial cells which is capable of measuring the bioavailability and toxicity of environmental stressors in a friction of a second.

Simultaneous photooxidation and sorptive removal of As(III) by TiO2 supported layered double hydroxide.

The present study focused on the enhanced removal of As(III) by the simultaneous photooxidation and removal process using TiO2 nanoparticles supported layered double hydroxide (TiO2/LDH). The TiO2/LDH nanocomposites were synthesized using a flocculation method, and nanosized (30-50 nm) TiO2 particles were well-distributed on the LDH surface. The XPS and DLS data revealed that the TiO2/LDH nanocomposites were both chemically and physically stable in the aquatic system. The optimum ratio of TiO2 was 20 wt.% and the calcination process of LDH enhanced the removal capacity of As(III) by the reconstruction process. In the kinetic removal experiment, UV irradiation improved the removal rate of As(III), based on the continuous conversion of As(III) to As(V), and that the removal rate was faster under alkaline conditions than acidic and neutral conditions due to the abundance of oxidants and negative charged As(III) species (pKa: 9.2). The main mechanism of As(III) photooxidation is the direct oxidation by [Formula: see text] , which is generated by supported TiO2 nanoparticles. X-ray near edge structure results also confirmed that the As(III) was completely oxidized to As(V). Consequently, the simultaneous photooxidation and removal process of As(III) by TiO2/LDH nanocomposites may be the effective removal option in As(III) contaminated water.

Speciation analysis of inorganic arsenic in river water by Amberlite IRA 910 resin immobilized in a polyacrylamide gel as a selective binding agent for As(V) in diffusive gradient thin film technique.

In this study, a method is proposed for the selective retention of As(V) using diffusive gradient in thin film (DGT) samplers containing a strongly basic anion exchange resin (Amberlite IRA 910) supported on a polyacrylamide gel. In addition, the total arsenic content is determined by ferrihydrite gel discs. Subsequently, the concentration of As(III) was obtained by determining the difference between the total As and As(V). DGT experiments showed linear accumulation of As(V) (up to 280 ng) until a deployment time of 8 h deployment (R(2) > 0.99). The retention of As(V) was appropriate (97.9-112.3%) between pH 5 and 9. For a solution with an ionic strength ranging from 0.001 to 0.05 mol L(-1), the As(V) uptake ranged from 90-120%. The proposed method was applied for the speciation of arsenic in river water. For the analysis of spiked samples collected at the Furnas stream, the recoveries of total arsenic content ranged between 103.9% and 118.8%. However, the recoveries of As(III) and As(V) were 43.3-75.2% and 147.3-153.4%, respectively. These differences were probably because of the oxidation of As(III) to As(V) during deployments. For spiked samples collected at the Ribeirão Claro, the recoveries of dissolved As(III), As(V) and As(T) were 103.1%, 108.0% and 106.3%, respectively. Thus, the DGT technique with Amberlite IRA 910 resin as the binding phase can be employed for the in situ redox speciation of inorganic arsenic.

Effect of weak magnetic field on arsenate and arsenite removal from water by zerovalent iron: an XAFS investigation.

In this study, a weak magnetic field (WMF), superimposed with a permanent magnet, was utilized to improve ZVI corrosion and thereby enhance As(V)/As(III) removal by ZVI at pHini 3.0-9.0. The experiment with real arsenic-bearing groundwater revealed that WMF could greatly improve arsenic removal by ZVI even in the presence of various cations and anions. The WMF-induced improvement in As(V)/As(III) removal by ZVI should be primarily associated with accelerated ZVI corrosion, as evidenced by the pH variation, Fe(2+) release, and the formation of corrosion products as characterized with X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy. The arsenic species analysis in solution/solid phases at pHini 3.0 revealed that As(III) oxidation to As(V) in aqueous phase preceded its subsequent sequestration by the newly formed iron (hydr)oxides. However, both As(V) adsorption following As(III) oxidation to As(V) in solution and As(III) adsorption preceding its conversion to As(V) in solid phase were observed at pHini 5.0-9.0. The application of WMF accelerated the transformation of As(III) to As(V) in both aqueous and solid phases at pHini 5.0-9.0 and enhanced the oxidation of As(III) to As(V) in solution at pHini 3.0.

Equilibria, kinetics, and spectroscopic analyses on the uptake of aqueous arsenite by two-line ferrihydrite.

Arsenite sorption from aqueous solutions was investigated using two-line ferrihydrite at room temperature, as a function of solution pH and arsenite loading. The isotherms, pH envelopes, and kinetics of arsenite sorption were characterized and its mechanism was elucidated via X-ray absorption spectroscopic studies. Arsenite sorption showed only slight pH dependence with a sorption maximum centered around pH 8.0. The Langmuir isotherm is most appropriate for arsenite sorption over the wide range of pH, indicating the homogenous and monolayer sorption of arsenite. The kinetic study demonstrated that arsenite sorption onto two-line ferrihydrite is considerably fast and the equilibrium is achieved within the reaction time of 3 h. X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy elucidated a slight change in oxidation state of arsenite for the initial concentration of 13.35 mM at pH 4. The extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy results indicate that types of surface complexes of arsenite appeared to be very similar to those proposed by the previous studies in that the bidentate binuclear corner-sharing (2C) complex is predominant at all the surface loadings. However, our EXAFS results suggest that regardless ofpH, the mixed complexes of2C and bidentate mononuclear edge-sharing surface complex (2E) as well as the 2C complex are favoured at low and intermediate surface loadings, but only the 2C complex is dominant at high surface loading. Overall, the EXAFS results support the efficient removal of arsenite by the two-line ferrihydrite through the formation of highly stable inner-sphere surface complexes, such as 2C complex.

Photocatalytical removal of inorganic and organic arsenic species from aqueous solution using zinc oxide semiconductor.

The photocatalytic removal of arsenite [As(III)] and monomethylarsonic acid [MMA(V)] was investigated in the presence of UV light (350 nm) and aqueous suspensions of ZnO synthesized by the sol-gel technique. Photocatalytic removal of these potent arsenic compounds results in the effective and rapid mineralization to less toxic inorganic arsenate [As(V)]. The effect of ZnO loading and solution pH on the treatment efficiency of the UV/ZnO photocatalytic process was evaluated. The optimal conditions for the removal of 5 mg L(-1) [As(III)] and [MMA(V)] aqueous solutions were observed at catalyst loadings of 0.25 and 0.50 g L(-1) with solution pH values of 7 and 8, respectively. Under these conditions, the activity of photocatalyst sol-gel ZnO was compared with TiO2 Degussa P25 and commercial ZnO catalyst. The results demonstrate that the high adsorption capacity of ZnO synthesized by sol-gel gives enhanced removal of arsenic species from water samples, indicating that this catalyst is a promising material for treatment of arsenic contaminated groundwater.

Ferrate(VI)-induced arsenite and arsenate removal by in situ structural incorporation into magnetic iron(III) oxide nanoparticles.

We report the first example of arsenite and arsenate removal from water by incorporation of arsenic into the structure of nanocrystalline iron(III) oxide. Specifically, we show the capability to trap arsenic into the crystal structure of γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles that are in situ formed during treatment of arsenic-bearing water with ferrate(VI). In water, decomposition of potassium ferrate(VI) yields nanoparticles having core-shell nanoarchitecture with a γ-Fe2O3 core and a γ-FeOOH shell. High-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and in-field (57)Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy give unambiguous evidence that a significant portion of arsenic is embedded in the tetrahedral sites of the γ-Fe2O3 spinel structure. Microscopic observations also demonstrate the principal effect of As doping on crystal growth as reflected by considerably reduced average particle size and narrower size distribution of the "in-situ" sample with the embedded arsenic compared to the "ex-situ" sample with arsenic exclusively sorbed on the iron oxide nanoparticle surface. Generally, presented results highlight ferrate(VI) as one of the most promising candidates for advanced technologies of arsenic treatment mainly due to its environmentally friendly character, in situ applicability for treatment of both arsenites and arsenates, and contrary to all known competitive technologies, firmly bound part of arsenic preventing its leaching back to the environment. Moreover, As-containing γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles are strongly magnetic allowing their separation from the environment by application of an external magnet.

Biosorption of arsenite (As(+3)) and arsenate (As(+5)) from aqueous solution by Arthrobacter sp. biomass.

In this study we investigated the role of arsenic-resistant bacteria Arthrobacter sp. biomass for removal of arsenite as well as arsenate from aqueous solution. The biomass sorption characteristics were studied as a function of biomass dose, contact time and pH. Langmuir, Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) models were applied to describe the biosorption isotherm. The Langmuir model fitted the equilibrium data better than the Freundlich isotherm. The biosorption capacity of the biomass for As(+3) and As(+5) was found to be 74.91 mg/g (pH 7.0) and 81.63 mg/g (pH 3.0), respectively using 1 g/L biomass with a contact time of 30 min at 28 degrees C. The mean sorption energy values calculated from the D-R model indicated that the biosorption of As(+3) and As(+5) onto Arthrobacter sp. biomass took place by chemical ion-exchange. The thermodynamic parameters showed that the biosorption of As(+3) and As(+5) ions onto Arthrobacter sp. biomass was feasible, spontaneous and exothermic in nature. Kinetic evaluation of experimental data showed that biosorption of As(+3) and As(+5) followed pseudo-second-order kinetics. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis indicated the involvement of possible functional groups (-OH, -C=O and -NH) in the As(+3) and As(+5) biosorption process. Bacterial cell biomass can be used as a biosorbent for removal of arsenic from arsenic-contaminated water.

Intraparticle reduction of arsenite (As(III)) by nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) investigated with In Situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy.

While a high efficiency of contaminant removal by nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) has often been reported for several contaminants of great concern, including aqueous arsenic species, the transformations and translocation of contaminants at and within the nanoparticles are not clearly understood. By analysis using in situ time-dependent X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) of the arsenic core level for nZVI in anoxic As(III) solutions, we have observed that As(III) species underwent two stages of transformation upon adsorption at the nZVI surface. The first stage corresponds to breaking of As-O bonds at the particle surface, and the second stage involves further reduction and diffusion of arsenic across the thin oxide layer enclosing the nanoparticles, which results in arsenic forming an intermetallic phase with the Fe(0) core. Extended X-ray absorption fine-structure (EXAFS) data from experiments conducted at different iron/arsenic ratios indicate that the reduced arsenic species tend to be enriched at the surface of the Fe(0) core region and had limited mobility into the interior of the metal core within the experimental time frame (up to 22 h). Therefore, there was an accumulation of partially reduced arsenic at the Fe(0)/oxide interface when a relatively large arsenic content was present in the solid phase. These results illuminate the role of intraparticle diffusion and reduction in affecting the chemical state and spatial distribution of arsenic in nZVI materials.

Adsorption of arsenic on polyaluminum granulate.

The kinetics and efficiencies of arsenite and arsenate removal from water were evaluated using polyaluminum granulates (PAG) with high content of aluminum nanoclusters. PAG was characterized to be meso- and macroporous, with a specific surface area of 35 ± 1 m(2) g(-1). Adsorption experiments were conducted at pH 7.5 in deionized water and synthetic water with composition of As-contaminated groundwater in the Pannonian Basin. As(III) and As(V) sorption was best described by the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm, respectively, with a maximum As(V) uptake capacity of ~200 µmol g(-1) in synthetic water. While As(III) removal reached equilibrium within 40 h, As(V) was removed almost entirely within 20 h. Micro X-ray fluorescence and electron microscopy revealed that As(III) was distributed uniformly within the grain, whereas As(V) diffused up to 81 µm into PAG. The results imply that As(V) is adsorbed 3 times faster while being transported 10(5) times slower than As(III) in Al hydroxide materials.

Photocatalytic oxidation and removal of arsenite by titanium dioxide supported on granular activated carbon.

Arsenic contamination in drinking water is a worldwide concern. Photocatalysis can rapidly oxidize arsenite, i.e. As(III), to less labile arsenate, i.e. As(V), which then can be removed by adsorption on to various adsorbents. This study investigated the photocatalytic oxidation of arsenite in aqueous solution by granular activated carbon supporting a titanium dioxide photocatalyst (GAC-TiO2). The effects of photocatalyst dosage, solution pH values, initial concentration of As(III) and co-anions (SO4(2-), PO4(3-), SiO3(2-) and Cl-) on the oxidation of As(III) were studied. The photocatalytic oxidation of As(III) took place in minutes and followed first-order kinetics. The presence of phosphate and silicate significantly decreased As(III) oxidation, while the effect of sulphate, chloride was insignificant. The oxidation efficiency of As(III) was observed to increase with increasing pH. The results suggest that the supported photocatalyst developed in this study is an ideal candidate for pre-oxidation treatment of arsenic-contaminated water.

Removal of arsenate and arsenite from aqueous solution by waste cast iron.

The removal of As(III) and As(V) from aqueous solution was investigated using waste cast iron, which is a byproduct of the iron casting process in foundries. Two types of waste cast iron were used in the experiment: grind precipitate dust (GPD) and cast iron shot (CIS). The X-ray diffraction analysis indicated the presence of Feo on GPD and CIS. Batch experiments were performed under different concentrations of As(III) and As(V) and at various initial pH levels. Results showed that waste cast iron was effective in the removal of arsenic. The adsorption isotherm study indicated that the Langmuir isotherm was better than the Freundlich isotherm at describing the experimental result. In the adsorption of both As(IH) and As(V), the adsorption capacity of GPD was greater than CIS, mainly due to the fact that GPD had higher surface area and weight percent of Fe than CIS. Results also indicated the removal of As(III) and As(V) by GPD and CIS was influenced by the initial solution pH, generally decreasing with increasing pH from 3.0 to 10.5. In addition, both GPD and CIS were more effective at the removal of As(III) than As(V) under given experimental conditions. This study demonstrates that waste cast iron has potential as a reactive material to treat wastewater and groundwater containing arsenic.

Mechanisms of efficient arsenite uptake by arsenic hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata.

Arsenate (AsV) and arsenite (AsIII) are two dominant arsenic species in the environment. While arsenate uptake is via phosphate transporter in plants, including arsenic hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata , AsIII uptake mechanisms by P. vittata are unclear. In this study, we investigated AsIII uptake by P. vittata involving root radial transport from external medium to cortical cells and xylem loading. In the root symplastic solution, AsIII was the predominant species (90-94%) and its concentrations were 1.6-21 times those in the medium. AsIII influx into root symplast followed Michaelis-Menten kinetics with K(m) of 77.7 µM at external AsIII concentrations of 2.6-650 µM. In the presence of metabolic inhibitor 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP), arsenic concentrations in the root symplast were reduced to the levels lower than in the medium, indicating that a transporter-mediated active process was mainly responsible for AsIII influx into P. vittata roots. Unlike radial transport, AsIII loading into xylem involved both high- and low-affinity systems with K(m) of 8.8 µM and 70.4 µM, respectively. As indicated by the effect of 2,4-DNP, passive diffusion became more important in arsenic loading into xylem at higher external AsIII. The unique AsIII uptake system in P. vittata makes it a valuable model to understand the mechanisms of arsenic hyperaccumulation in the plant kingdom.

Sequential extraction method for speciation of arsenate and arsenite in mineral soils.

A novel sequential extraction method for the speciation of As(III) and As(V) in oxic and anoxic mineral soils was developed and tested. The procedure consists of seven extraction steps targeting various As pools ranging from weakly adsorbed to well-crystalline species. Each step was specifically designed to preserve the As(III) and As(V) redox states, e.g., by complexation of As(III) with diethyldithiocarbamate or pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate, using mild reductive (NH(2)OH.HCl) or oxidative (hot HNO(3)) extractions, and complexing (Fe(3+) with Cl(-), acetate, and oxalate) or precipitating (S(2-) with Hg(2+)) matrix elements, which may cause As redox transformations. Using high-performance liquid chromatography-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (HPLC-ICP-MS) for the quantification of dissolved As(III) and As(V) in the extracts, the detection limit for each step was in the range of 1.0-75 ng As/g, depending on the extraction matrix. Thus, the procedure is also well-suited for As speciation in soils or sediments with low As concentrations, where analyses by X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) may be difficult. The entire extraction sequence can be performed under normal atmosphere, which greatly simplifies sample handling. The proposed method was tested using model minerals spiked with As(III) or As(V), two strongly As-polluted soil previously characterized for As speciation by XAS, and three less-polluted soils.