Removal of As(III) with sodium isopropylic xanthate at natural pH by ionicflotation

It is well known that arsenic can be found in water from natural deposits o r industrial wastes; it is highly toxic and it does not represent any mater ial or economic benefit. A number of wells containing considerable amounts of arsenic, which renders them unusable, have been detected. Isopropyl xant hate reacts with As(III) producing a badly flocculated solid which is diffi cult to filtrate, nevertheless the bubbles in the solution catalyze the flo cculation of the solid making possible its separation by ftotation. In this study, the possibility of using the ion flotation technique as an alternat ive for the elimination of As(III) from aqueous milieu using sodium isoprop yl xanthate as collector was evaluated, taking advantage of the simplicity of the process. Using this process, wells with contaminated water can repre sent industrial or economic benefits.