To assess the feasibility of biogenic schwertmannite to act as a sorbent for removing arsenite from groundwater, a series of biogenic schwertmannite-packed column adsorption experiments were conducted on simulated As（III）-containing groundwater. Empty bed contact time （EBCT）, As（III） concentration in effluent, and the removal efficiency of As（III） through the column were investigated at pH 8.0 and temperature 25 ± 0.5 ℃. The results showed that the breakthrough curves were mainly dependent on EBCT values when the influent As（III） concentration was 500 μg L-1 and the optimum EBCT was 4.0 min. When the effluent As（III） concentration reached 10 and 50 μg L-1, the breakthrough volumes for the schwertmannite adsorption column were 4200 and 5600 bed volume （BV）, with As（III） adsorption capacity of 2.1 and 2.8 mg g-1, respectively. Biogenic schwertmannite could be regenerated by 1.0 mol L-1 NaOH solution, and more than 80% of As（III） adsorbed on the surface of schwertmannite could be released after 3 successive regenerations. The breakthrough volume for the regenerated sehwertmannite-packed column still maintained 4 000-4 200 BV when the As（III） concentration in effluent was below 10 μg L-1. Compared with other sorbents for As（III） removal, the biogenic schwertmannite- packed column had a higher breakthrough volume and a much higher adsorption capacity, implying that biogenic schwertmannite was a highly efficient and potential sorbent to purify As（III）-contaminated groundwater.
