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Geochemical evaluation of fluoride and groundwater quality for drinking and irrigation purposes in a weathered gneissic rock aquifer of southern penisular India

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Abstract

Assessment of groundwater chemistry of a region is important to determine its usability. The objective of this study is to understand the hydrochemistry and groundwater quality especially with respect to fluoride in the Perambalur District, Tamil Nadu, India where groundwater is used without treatment for drinking and agricultural purposes. Groundwater samples were collected from 44 locations once every three months between September 2015 and July 2018. Mixed Ca–Mg–Cl, Ca–HCO3, Na–Cl and mixed Ca–Na–HCO3 types were the predominant hydrochemical facies. Fissile hornblende biotite gneissic rocks had more fluoride concentration than the charnockite rocks in the study area. These weathered rocks leach high concentration of fluoride to groundwater. Ion exchange processes played a major role in fluoride dynamics in groundwater. Fluoride concentration was comparatively high in the wells where the groundwater level fluctuation is at deeper levels. Groundwater in most of the wells were suitable for drinking purpose based on the ions analysed, but few wells were unsuitable for drinking and irrigation purposes. Based on health risk assessment, children are likely to be more affected than infants and adults through intake of high fluoride groundwater from the study area.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the University Grants Commission, New Delhi, for the financial support for this work (F 17-68/2008 (SA-1)).

Funding

The first author thanks the University Grants Commission and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research - National Eligibility Test scheme (Sr.No.2121220427, dt: 23/12/2012) for financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology, Anna University, Guindy, Chennai, 600 025, India

    Anbarasu Subramaniyan & Elango Lakshmanan

  2. Hydrogeology Working Group, Institute of Geological Sciences, Freie University, 12249, Berlin, Germany

    Brindha Karthikeyan

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  1. Anbarasu Subramaniyan
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Correspondence to Elango Lakshmanan.

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This article is part of a Topical Collection in Environmental Earth Sciences on ‘‘Recent Advances in Environmental Sustainability’’, guest edited by Peiyue Li.

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Subramaniyan, A., Karthikeyan, B. & Lakshmanan, E. Geochemical evaluation of fluoride and groundwater quality for drinking and irrigation purposes in a weathered gneissic rock aquifer of southern penisular India. Environ Earth Sci 81, 273 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-022-10395-9

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