Journal of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Research (ISSN : 0975-7384)

Defluoridation of Drinking Water : Efficacy and Need

Author(s): Anurag Tewari and Ashutosh Dubey

Fluorine is the 13th most abundant naturally occurring element in the Earth’s crust and is the lightest member of the halogens. It is the most electronegative and reactive of all the elements and as a result, elemental fluorine does not occur in nature but found as a fluoride mineral complexes. Exposure to fluoride beyond the recommended level for longer duration causes fluorosis. Several physical and chemical defluoridation methods have been designed to treat high fluoride concentration in ground water. There is need to develop such methods for defluoridation which would be cost effective and biodegradable.

Fluorine is the 13th most abundant naturally occurring element in the Earth’s crust and is the lightest member of the halogens. It is the most electronegative and reactive of all the elements and as a result, elemental fluorine does not occur in nature but found as a fluoride mineral complexes. Exposure to fluoride beyond the recommended level for longer duration causes fluorosis. Several physical and chemical defluoridation methods have been designed to treat high fluoride concentration in ground water. There is need to develop such methods for defluoridation which would be cost effective and biodegradable. PDF