The sorption of thallium (Tl) onto manganese (Mn) oxides critically influences its environmental fate and geochemical cycling and is also of interest in water treatment. Combined quantitative and mechanistic understanding of Tl sorption onto Mn oxides, however, is limited. We investigated the uptake of dissolved Tl(I) by environmentally relevant phyllo- and tectomanganates and used X-ray absorption spectroscopy to determine the oxidation state and local coordination of sorbed Tl. We show that extremely strong sorption of Tl onto vacancy-containing layered δ-MnO₂ at low dissolved Tl(I) concentrations (log K_d ≥ 7.4 for ≤10^-8 M Tl(I); K_d in (L/kg)) is due to oxidative uptake of Tl and that less specific nonoxidative Tl uptake only becomes dominant at very high Tl(I) concentrations (>10^-6 M). Partial reduction of δ-MnO₂ induces phase changes that result in inhibited oxidative Tl uptake and lower Tl sorption affinity (log K_d 6.2-6.4 at 10^-8 M Tl(I)) and capacity. Triclinic birnessite, which features no vacancy sites, and todorokite, a 3 × 3 tectomanganate, bind Tl with lower sorption affinity than δ-MnO₂, mainly as hydrated Tl⁺ in interlayers (triclinic birnessite; log K_d 5.5 at 10^-8 M Tl(I)) or tunnels (todorokite). In cryptomelane, a 2 × 2 tectomanganate, dehydrated Tl⁺ replaces structural K⁺. The new quantitative and mechanistic insights from this study contribute to an improved understanding of the uptake of Tl by key Mn oxides and its relevance in natural and engineered systems.

Iron(III)-precipitates formed by the oxidation of dissolved Fe(II) are important sorbents for major and trace elements in aquatic and terrestrial systems. Their reductive dissolution in turn may result in the release of associated elements. We examined the reductive dissolution kinetics of an environmentally relevant set of Fe(II)-derived arsenate-containing Fe(III)-precipitates whose structure as function of phosphate (P) and silicate (Si) content varied between poorly-crystalline lepidocrocite, amorphous Fe(III)-phosphate, and Si-containing ferrihydrite. The experiments were performed with 0.2–0.5 mM precipitate-Fe(III) using 10 mM Na-ascorbate as reductant, 5 mM bipyridine as Fe(II)-complexing ligand, and 10 mM MOPS/5 mM NaOH as pH 7.0 buffer. Times required for the dissolution of half of the precipitate (t_50%) ranged from 1.5 to 39 h; spanning a factor 25 range. At loadings up to ~ 0.2 P/Fe (molar ratio), phosphate decreased the t_50% of Si-free precipitates, probably by reducing the crystallinity of lepidocrocite. The reductive dissolution of Fe(III)-phosphates formed at higher P/Fe ratios was again slower, possibly due to P-inhibited ascorbate binding to precipitate-Fe(III). The slowest reductive dissolution was observed for P-free Si-ferrihydrite with ~ 0.1 Si/Fe, suggesting that silicate binding and polymerization may reduce surface accessibility. The inhibiting effect of Si was reduced by phosphate. Dried-resuspended precipitates dissolved 1.0 to 1.8-times more slowly than precipitates that were kept wet after synthesis, most probably because drying enhanced nanoparticle aggregation. Variations in the reductive dissolution kinetics of Fe(II) oxidation products as reported from this study should be taken into account when addressing the impact of such precipitates on the environmental cycling of co-transformed nutrients and contaminants.

We investigated the adsorption of Tl⁺ onto purified Illite du Puy (IdP). Distribution coefficients (K_d) for trace Tl adsorption indicated a moderate pH-dependence from pH 2.5 to 11. Adsorption isotherms measured at Tl⁺ concentrations from 10^–9 to 10^–2 M at near-neutral pH on illite saturated with Na⁺ (100 mM), K⁺ (1 and 10 mM), NH₄⁺ (10 mM) or Ca²⁺ (5 mM) revealed a high adsorption affinity of Tl⁺ in Na⁺- and Ca²⁺-electrolytes and strong competition with K⁺ and NH₄⁺. Cation exchange selectivity coefficients for Tl⁺ with respect to Na⁺, K⁺, NH₄⁺, and Ca²⁺ were derived using a 3-site sorption model. They confirmed the strong adsorption of Tl⁺ at the frayed edges of illite, with Tl selectivity coefficients between those reported for Rb⁺ and Cs⁺. X-ray absorption spectra of Tl adsorbed onto Na-exchanged IdP indicated a shift from adsorption of (dehydrated) Tl⁺ at the frayed edges at low loadings to adsorption of (hydrated) Tl⁺ on planar sites at the highest loadings. Our results suggest that illite is an important adsorbent for Tl in soils and sediments, considering its often high abundance and its stability relative to other potential adsorbents and the selective nature of Tl⁺ uptake by illite.

The co-precipitation of arsenate (As(V)) with Fe(III)-precipitates is of great importance in water treatment and critically affects the fate of As in environmental systems. We studied the effects of dissolved phosphate (P; 0-1 mM), silicate (Si; 0 or 0.5 mM) and Ca (0, 0.5 and 4 mM) on the sequestration of 7 μM As(V) by Fe(III)-precipitates formed by the oxidation of 0.5 mM Fe(II) in aerated bicarbonate-buffered solutions with an initial pH of 7.0 as well as the retention or release of As(V) after precipitate aging for 30 d at 40 °C. Dissolved As(V) concentrations in fresh precipitate suspensions greatly varied as a function of the initial dissolved P/Fe ratio ((P/Fe)_init) and the concentrations of Ca and Si. Limited As(V) removal was observed at (P/Fe)_init that exceeded the critical ratio (P/Fe)_crit above which exclusively (Ca-)Fe(III)-phosphate forms. Effective As(V) removal was observed at (P/Fe)_init < (P/Fe)_crit, where initial formation of (Ca-)Fe(III)-phosphate is followed by the formation of Si-ferrihydrite in Si-containing electrolytes and of poorly-crystalline lepidocrocite and hydrous ferric oxide in the Si-free electrolytes. The retention of As(V) and P by fresh Fe(III)-precipitates was most effective in systems containing both Ca and Si. In the Si- and Ca-free electrolytes at (P/Fe)_init of ~0.2–0.6, the rapid onset of precipitate aging with conversion of Fe(III)-phosphate to ferrihydrite resulted in a substantial remobilization of As(V) (up to 55% of initially precipitated As(V)). Ca reduced As remobilization during aging by stabilizing Ca-Fe(III)-phosphate and promoting Ca-phosphate formation, and Si by stabilizing Si-ferrihydrite against transformation. Consequently, also after aging, the lowest dissolved As(V) and P fractions were observed in precipitate suspensions containing both Ca and Si.