Arsenic
(Data in metric tons of arsenic unless otherwise noted)
Domestic Production and Use: There has been no U.S. domestic production of arsenic trioxide or arsenic metal since 1985. Imports of arsenic trioxide averaged over 20,000 tons annually during 2001-03 and were used mainly in the production of chromated copper arsenate (CCA), and small-arms ammunition used by the United States military was wood preservatives. The grids in lead-acid storage batteries were strengthened by the addition of arsenic metal hardened by the addition of less than 1% arsenic metal. Other applications of arsenic metal include its use as an antifriction additive for bearings, in lead shot, and in clip-on wheel weights. Arsenic compounds were used in fertilizers, fireworks, herbicides, and insecticides. The electronics industry used high-purity arsenic (99.9999%) for gallium-arsenide semiconductors that are used for solar cells, space research, and telecommunication. Arsenic may be used for germanium-arsenide-selenide specialty optical materials. Indium-gallium-arsenide was used for short wave infrared technology. The value of arsenic compounds and metal consumed in the United States in 2008 was estimated to be about $7 million.
U.S. Recycling: Electronic circuit boards, relays, and switches may contain arsenic and should be disposed of at sites that recycle arsenic-containing, end-of-service electronics or at hazardous waste sites. Arsenic contained in the process water at wood treatment plants where CCA was used was recycled. Approximately 7 tons of arsenic was recovered from gallium-arsenide scrap from semiconductor manufacturing. There was no recovery or recycling of arsenic from arsenic-containing residues and dusts at nonferrous smelters in the United States.
U.S. Import Sources (2004-2007): Metal: China, 86%; Japan, 10%; and other, 4%. Trioxide: China, 49%; Morocco, 37%; Hong Kong, 5%; Mexico, 3%; and other, 6%.
U.S. Tariff:
Item
Number
Normal trade relations 12/31/2008
Acid
2811.19.1000
2.3% ad val
U.S. Depletion Allowance: 14% (Domestic and foreign).
Events, Trends, and Issues: Exposure to arsenic may affect breathing, heart rhythm, and possibly increase the risk for bladder cancer. Therefore, in response to these human health issues, the wood-preserving industry made a voluntary decision to stop using CCA to treat wood used for decks and outdoor residential use by yearend 2003. Because of known performance and lower cost, CCA may still be used to treat wood used for nonresidential applications. Human health concerns, regulation, use of alternative wood preservation material, and the substitution of concrete or plasticized wood products will affect the long-term demand for arsenic.
Exports of arsenic metal have increased dramatically since 2004. Exports classified as arsenic metal may include arsenic-containing “e-waste” such as computers and other electronics destined for reclamation and recycling. The exported arsenic may also have been used directly in electronics applications or in the production of small-arms ammunition. Export destinations for arsenic metal were Germany (35%), Japan (34%), and China (31%).
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning to consumers and recalled certain brands of mineral water that were found to contain from 454 to 674 micrograms per liter (µg/l) arsenic; FDA’s standard of quality for bottled water allows no more than 10 µg/l. Geologic sources of arsenic and the effects of high levels of arsenic on humans are the focus of global government and university research.
Rice grown in the United States may contain from one to five times the arsenic contained in rice from Bangladesh, Europe, and India. Arsenic was added to chicken feed in order to promote growth, kill parasites, and improve pigmentation of chicken meat; therefore, chicken manure may introduce arsenic to agricultural fields and ultimately to ground water. Arsenic may also be released from coal-burning powerplant emissions and from buried World War I ammunition. Researchers estimated that 1,740 tons of arsenic may be contained in CCA-treated wood and construction debris left by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. Arsenic trioxide may be used to treat leukemia.
World Production, Reserves and Reserve Base:
Production
(Arsenic trioxide)
Reserves & Reserve Base
(Arsenic content)
2007
2008 (e)
World reserves and reserve base are thought to be about 20 and 30 times, respectively, annual world production. The reserve base for the United States is estimated to be 80,000 tons.
Belgium
1,000
1,000
Chile
11,400
11,500
China
25,000
25,000
France
1,000
1,000
Kazakhstan
1,500
1,500
Mexico
1,600
1,500
Morocco
8,950
7,000
Peru
4,320
4,000
Russia
1,500
1,500
Other Countries
630
500
World total (rounded)
55,900
3,500
World Resources: Arsenic may be obtained from roasting arsenopyrite, the most abundant ore mineral of arsenic, as well as from copper, gold, and lead smelter dust. Arsenic may be recovered from enargite, a copper mineral, and associated alteration products; realgar and orpiment in China, Peru, and the Philippines; copper-gold ores in Chile; and associated with gold occurrences in Canada. In Sichuan Province, China, orpiment and realgar from gold mines are stockpiled for transport and later recovery of arsenic. Global resources of copper and lead contain approximately 11 million tons of arsenic.
Substitutes: Wood-treatment substitutes include alkaline copper quaternary, ammoniacal copper quaternary, ammoniacal copper zinc arsenate, copper azole, and copper citrate. In humid areas, silver-containing biocides are being considered as an alternative wood preservative. Other CCA-treated wood substitutes include concrete, steel, plasticized wood scrap, or plastic composites.
(e) Estimated
NA Not available
U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries, January 2009
