Several surveys have been conducted in Nicaragua between 1996 and 2015 confirming the presence of high levels of arsenic (>10 μg/L). In this paper, these peer-reviewed (n = 2) and non-peer reviewed sources (n = 14) have been combined to provide an extensive overview of the arsenic contamination of drinking water sources in Nicaragua. So far, arsenic contamination has been detected in over 80 rural communities located in 34 municipalities of the country and arsenic poisoning has been identified in at least six of those communities. The source of arsenic contamination in Nicaragua is probably volcanic in origin, both from volcanic rocks and geothermal fluids which are distributed across the country. Arsenic may have directly entered into the groundwater by geothermally-influenced water bodies, or indirectly by reductive dissolution or alkali desorption, depending on the local geochemical conditions.

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This research evaluated the effect of different fluxes (16, 23 & 30 L/m ² h) and temperatures (31,35 & 43 °C) on the rejection of As(V) during nanofiltration (NF) of natural geothermal influenced groundwater in Nicaragua. A NF pilot plant powered by solar panels was built and operated in rural community Telica, exposed to As-rich drinking water sources due to geothermal influences. The results showed that even at high temperatures it is possible to obtain high rejection of As(V) (0.87–0.9) during NF filtration (recovery 10%; flux 16 L/m ² h) of geothermal influenced groundwater, with the additional advantage of requiring low operating pressures (1.2 bar ~ 12mwc). The permeate concentration (~5 μg/L) complied with the WHO guideline for drinking water and the concentrate (~55 μg/L) could be used by local villagers for daily activities (e.g., laundry and bathing). For all investigated fluxes and temperatures the order of rejection of As(V) (as HAsO ₄ ²⁻ ), compared with the other anions, could be interpreted on the basis of its charge, hydrated radius and hydration free energy. At lower temperatures (31 and 35 °C) permeate quality improved slightly (~3 μg/L), but although an increased temperature had a negative effect on the As rejection, As concentrations in the permeate never exceeded 5 μg/L, while the required TMP dropped - depending on the flux - with 0.5 to 1 bar. This decrease in required pressure might be of huge benefit in deserted, rural locations where electricity is scarce, as with an overhead tank of 10–15 m a gravity-fed NF system would be feasible.

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In Nicaragua, a Central American country, geothermally influenced waters are frequently found to be contaminated with arsenic (as As(V)). This study investigated the effect of high-temperatures (25–50 °C), as found in geothermally influenced source waters, on the rejection of monovalent H2AsO4 - and divalent HAsO4 2- species (at pH 6,7 and 8) during NF membrane filtration of a multi-component solution containing Cl- and HCO3 -. In this multi-component solution, As(V) rejection was found to be enhanced at higher temperatures, which was in contrast to the previous assumption that temperature increase would have a negative effect on As(V) rejection. Previous studies were conducted with deionized waters, where pore size expansion and decreased viscosity drove As(V) rejection; however, in the presence of other anions such as those utilized in this study, As(V) rejection was promoted at higher temperatures. The enhancement of As(V) rejection at high temperature was associated with the presence of HCO3 - and Cl-, which are considerably more permeable than both As(V) species. An additional advantage of the higher temperature was the lower feed pressure (down to 1.5 bar) needed to operate these NF membranes, compared to colder waters. The lower energy consumption in combination with the improvement in As(V) rejection at higher temperatures shows the potential application of this technology for efficient treatment of As(V) contaminated, geothermally influenced waters for decentralised, rural drinking water production, in As-affected countries such Nicaragua.@en