Density Functional Theory Calculations on the Complexation of p-Arsanilic Acid with Hydrated Iron Oxide Clusters: Structures, Reaction Energies, and Transition States

Aromatic organoarsenicals, such as p-arsanilic acid (pAsA), are still used today as feed additives in the poultry and swine industries in developing countries. Through the application of contaminated litter as a fertilizer, these compounds enter the environment and interact with reactive soil components such as iron and aluminum oxides. Little is known about these surface interactions at the molecular level. We report density functional theory (DFT) calculations on the energies, optimal geometries, and vibrational frequencies for hydrated pAsA/iron oxide complexes, as well as changes in Gibbs free energy, enthalpy, and entropy for various types of ligand exchange reactions leading to both inner- and outer-sphere complexes. Similar calculations using arsenate are also shown for comparison, along with activation barriers and transition state geometries between inner-sphere complexes. Minimum energy calculations show that the formation of inner- and outer-sphere pAsA/iron oxide complexes is thermodynamically favorable, with the monodentate mononuclear complexes being the most favorable. Interatomic As-Fe distances are calculated to be between 3.3 and 3.5 angstrom for inner-sphere complexes and between 5.2 and 5.6 angstrom for outer-sphere complexes. In addition, transition state calculations show that activation energies greater than 23 kJ/mol are required to form the bidentate binuclear pAsA/iron oxide complexes, and that formation of arsenate bidentate binuclear complexes is thermodynamically -rather than kinetically- driven. Desorption thermodynamics using phosphate ions show that reactions are most favorable using HPO42- species. The significance of our results for the overall surface complexation mechanism of pAsA and arsenate is discussed.