Tracing the Scientific History of Fe0-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers

The technology of using metallic iron (Fe0) for in situ generation of iron oxides for water treatment is a very old one. The Fe0 remediation technology has been re-discovered in the framework of groundwater remediation using permeable reactive barriers (...

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Main Authors:	Viet Cao, Huichen Yang, Arnaud Igor Ndé-Tchoupé, Rui Hu, Willis Gwenzi, Chicgoua Noubactep
Format:	Article
Language:	English
Published:	MDPI AG 2020-08-01
Series:	Processes
Subjects:	corrosion products dissolved oxygen permeable reactive barriers water treatment zero-valent iron
Online Access:	https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/8/8/977

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spelling	doaj-267e541e8fc44d28a82261578bf0d6802020-11-25T03:04:41ZengMDPI AGProcesses2227-97172020-08-01897797710.3390/pr8080977Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive BarriersViet Cao0Huichen Yang1Arnaud Igor Ndé-Tchoupé2Rui Hu3Willis Gwenzi4Chicgoua Noubactep5Faculty of Natural Sciences, Hung Vuong University, Nguyen Tat Thanh Street, Viet Tri 35120, Phu Tho, VietnamDepartment of Applied Geology, University of Göttingen, Goldschmidtstraße 3, D-37077 Göttingen, GermanySchool of Earth Science and Engineering, Hohai University, Fo Cheng Xi Road 8, Nanjing 211100, ChinaSchool of Earth Science and Engineering, Hohai University, Fo Cheng Xi Road 8, Nanjing 211100, ChinaBiosystems and Environmental Engineering Research Group, Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Engineering, University of Zimbabwe, P.O. Box MP167, Mt. Pleasant, Harare, ZimbabweDepartment of Applied Geology, University of Göttingen, Goldschmidtstraße 3, D-37077 Göttingen, GermanyThe technology of using metallic iron (Fe<sup>0</sup>) for in situ generation of iron oxides for water treatment is a very old one. The Fe<sup>0</sup> remediation technology has been re-discovered in the framework of groundwater remediation using permeable reactive barriers (PRBs). Despite its simplicity, the improvement of Fe<sup>0</sup> PRBs is fraught with difficulties regarding their operating modes. The literature dealing with Fe<sup>0</sup> remediation contains ambiguities regarding its invention and its development. The present paper examines the sequence of contributions prior to the advent of Fe<sup>0</sup> PRBs in order to clarify the seemingly complex picture. To achieve this, the current paper addresses the following questions: (i) What were the motivations of various authors in developing their respective innovations over the years?, (ii) what are the ancient achievements which can accelerate progress in knowledge for the development of Fe<sup>0</sup> PRBs?, and (iii) was Fe<sup>0</sup> really used for the removal of organic species for the first time in the 1970s? A careful examination of ancient works reveals that: (i) The wrong questions were asked during the past three decades, as Fe<sup>0</sup> was premised as a reducing agent, (ii) credit for using Fe<sup>0</sup> for water treatment belongs to no individual scientist, and (iii) credit for the use of Fe<sup>0</sup> in filtration systems for safe drinking water provision belongs to scientists from the 1850s, while credit for the use of Fe<sup>0</sup> for the removal of aqueous organic species does not belong to the pioneers of the Fe<sup>0</sup> PRB technology. However, it was these pioneers who exploited Fe<sup>0</sup> for groundwater remediation, thereby extending its potential. Complementing recent achievements with the chemistry of the Fe<sup>0</sup>/H<sub>2</sub>O system would facilitate the design of more sustainable Fe<sup>0</sup>-remediation systems.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/8/8/977corrosion productsdissolved oxygenpermeable reactive barrierswater treatmentzero-valent iron
collection	DOAJ
language	English
format	Article
sources	DOAJ
author	Viet Cao Huichen Yang Arnaud Igor Ndé-Tchoupé Rui Hu Willis Gwenzi Chicgoua Noubactep
spellingShingle	Viet Cao Huichen Yang Arnaud Igor Ndé-Tchoupé Rui Hu Willis Gwenzi Chicgoua Noubactep Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers Processes corrosion products dissolved oxygen permeable reactive barriers water treatment zero-valent iron
author_facet	Viet Cao Huichen Yang Arnaud Igor Ndé-Tchoupé Rui Hu Willis Gwenzi Chicgoua Noubactep
author_sort	Viet Cao
title	Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers
title_short	Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers
title_full	Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers
title_fullStr	Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers
title_full_unstemmed	Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers
title_sort	tracing the scientific history of fe<sup>0</sup>-based environmental remediation prior to the advent of permeable reactive barriers
publisher	MDPI AG
series	Processes
issn	2227-9717
publishDate	2020-08-01
description	The technology of using metallic iron (Fe<sup>0</sup>) for in situ generation of iron oxides for water treatment is a very old one. The Fe<sup>0</sup> remediation technology has been re-discovered in the framework of groundwater remediation using permeable reactive barriers (PRBs). Despite its simplicity, the improvement of Fe<sup>0</sup> PRBs is fraught with difficulties regarding their operating modes. The literature dealing with Fe<sup>0</sup> remediation contains ambiguities regarding its invention and its development. The present paper examines the sequence of contributions prior to the advent of Fe<sup>0</sup> PRBs in order to clarify the seemingly complex picture. To achieve this, the current paper addresses the following questions: (i) What were the motivations of various authors in developing their respective innovations over the years?, (ii) what are the ancient achievements which can accelerate progress in knowledge for the development of Fe<sup>0</sup> PRBs?, and (iii) was Fe<sup>0</sup> really used for the removal of organic species for the first time in the 1970s? A careful examination of ancient works reveals that: (i) The wrong questions were asked during the past three decades, as Fe<sup>0</sup> was premised as a reducing agent, (ii) credit for using Fe<sup>0</sup> for water treatment belongs to no individual scientist, and (iii) credit for the use of Fe<sup>0</sup> in filtration systems for safe drinking water provision belongs to scientists from the 1850s, while credit for the use of Fe<sup>0</sup> for the removal of aqueous organic species does not belong to the pioneers of the Fe<sup>0</sup> PRB technology. However, it was these pioneers who exploited Fe<sup>0</sup> for groundwater remediation, thereby extending its potential. Complementing recent achievements with the chemistry of the Fe<sup>0</sup>/H<sub>2</sub>O system would facilitate the design of more sustainable Fe<sup>0</sup>-remediation systems.
topic	corrosion products dissolved oxygen permeable reactive barriers water treatment zero-valent iron
url	https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/8/8/977
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Tracing the Scientific History of Fe<sup>0</sup>-Based Environmental Remediation Prior to the Advent of Permeable Reactive Barriers

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