Modelling of arsenic retention in constructed wetlands

•As retention processes in constructed wetlands were implemented in RCB-ARSENIC.•As precipitation and sorption, and root oxygen release were included.•Data from two planted prototypes were used to test the model.•The simulated data closely matched the data measured in all evaluated cases.•The RCB-ARSENIC model has provided reasonably good response values. A new model was developed in order to simulate the most significant arsenic retention processes that take place in constructed wetlands (CWs) treating high arsenic waters. The present contribution presents the implementation phases related to plants (arsenic uptake and accumulation, root arsenic adsorption, and root oxygen release), showing the first simulation results of the complete model. Different approaches with diverse influent configurations were simulated. In terms of total arsenic concentrations in effluent, the simulated data closely matched the data measured in all evaluated cases. The iron and arsenic species relationships, and the arsenic retention percentages obtained from simulations, were in agreement with the experimental data and literature. The arsenic retention efficiency increased whenever a new phase was implemented, reaching a maximum efficiency range of 85–95%. According to the quality of the obtained results, it can be considered that the implementation of all steps of RCB-ARSENIC provided reasonably good response values.