Assessment of toxicity and electrochemical sensing of arsenic in aqueous sources

A variety of contaminants present in potable water, including heavy metals, cause numerous health hazards. Arsenic (As) is studied as one of the chief heavy elements hazardous to human beings and other categories of life. Arsenic as a natural constituent of the earth’s crust is present in mineral rocks, which are deposited through various natural processes. Moreover, arsenic is also added to groundwater anthropogenically through the burning of fossil fuels, arsenical agrochemicals, wood preservatives and so on. Arsenic (III) (As^III) and arsenic (V) (As^V) are toxic inorganic forms in aqueous solution and are responsible for cancer, arsenicosis, vascular diseases and toxicity related to genes, cells, epidemiology and so on. In view of these problems, it is necessary to detect and decontaminate arsenic contamination in potable water. In this paper, brief descriptions are given of the most significant electrochemical methods, due to their advantages such as robustness, speed, accuracy and simplicity. Moreover, techniques such as differential pulse voltammetry, square-wave voltammetry (SWV), stripping chronopotentiometry, anodic stripping voltammetry and cyclic voltammetry (CV) have kept the electrochemical method as a diverse and advanced technique for the sensing process. Furthermore, details of the determination and decontamination of arsenic in potable water through an electrochemical process with a particular focus on SWV and CV are discussed.