Trace Elements and Arsenic Species in Drinking Water in Endemic Arsenism Areas in Shanyin county, Shanxi

Objective To know the distribution of arsenic and trace elements in drinking water in the endemic arsenism areas in Shanyin County, Shanxi Province. Methods Drinking water samples were collected from the chronic endemic arsenic poisoning areas of Silizhuang and Shanghexi, Shanyin County, Shanxi Province and HPLC-HG-AFS system was used to analyze the arsenic contents, valence and speciation. The trace elements were determined by ICP-MS. The data were analyzed by SPSS13.0 for windows. Results A total of 63 drinking water samples were determined, 39.68% of them exceeded the standard limit of arsenic level, inorganic arsenic was the main arsenical in drinking water, iAs3+/(iAs3++iAs5+) ratio was 56.17% in the water sample (arsenic was higher than 50 μg/L) . The contents of Fe, Mn, Hg, Se and Pb in part of drinking water samples exceed the standard limits. No significant difference was seen between the arsenic results determined by HPLC-HG-AFS and ICP-MS. Conclusion Arsenic contamination of drinking water in Shanyin County, Shanxi Province is severe. The most frequently seen arsenic valence state in drinking water is iAs3+. Some trace elements in part of drinking water samples exceed the standard limits, this may aggravate arsenic poisoning.