Conventional as well as Emerging Arsenic Removal Technologies—a Critical Review

Arsenic poisoning from contaminated drinking water has evolved as one of the major health hazards in recent times. High concentrations of arsenic in water and soil have been found in many parts of the world. Developing countries like Taiwan, Chile, Argentina, Bangladesh, Nepal and Vietnam are most affected by the contamination of groundwater with arsenic. These countries also cannot afford expensive and large-scale treatments to remove arsenic from drinking waters to acceptable limits (10 ppb, as recommended by WHO and US EPA). The aim of this review is to summarize low-cost, effective conventional technologies currently described in the literature for arsenic removal that can be used in the third world and developing countries, compare them with the emerging technologies and discuss their advantages and disadvantages along with a brief analysis of arsenic chemistry.