Arsenic

Arsenic is a chemical element in the periodic table that has the symbol As and atomic number 33. This is a notorious poisonous metalloid that has three allotropic forms; yellow, black and grey. Arsenic and its compounds are used as pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and various alloys.

History

The word Arsenic is borrowed from the Persian word ????? Zarnik meaning "yellow orpiment". Zarnik was borrowed by Greek as arsenikon. Arsenic has been known and used in Persia and elsewhere since ancient times. As the symptoms of arsenic poisoning were somewhat ill-defined, it was frequently used for murder until the advent of the Marsh test, a sensitive chemical test for its presence. (Another less sensitive but more general test is the Reinsch test.) Due to its use by the ruling class to bump each other off and its incredible potency and discreetness, arsenic has been called the Poison of Kings and the King of Poisons.

Related Topics:
Persian - Orpiment - Greek - Persia - Arsenic poisoning - Murder - Marsh test - Reinsch test

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During the Bronze Age, arsenic was often included in the bronze (mostly as an impurity), which made the alloy harder.

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Albertus Magnus is believed to have been the first to isolate the

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element in 1250. In 1649 Johann Schroeder published two ways of preparing arsenic.

Related Topics:
1250 - 1649 - Johann Schroeder

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The alchemical symbol for arsenic is shown opposite.

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In Victorian times, arsenic was mixed with vinegar and chalk and eaten by women to improve the complexion of their faces.

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There is a massive epidemic of arsenic poisoning in Bangladesh{{an|bangladesh}}, where it is estimated that approximately 57 million people are drinking groundwater with arsenic concentrations elevated above the World Health Organization's standard of 50 parts per billion. The arsenic in the groundwater is of natural origin, and is released from the sediment into the groundwater due to the anoxic conditions of the subsurface. This groundwater began to be used after western NGOs instigated a massive tube well drinking-water program in the late twentieth century. This program was designed to prevent drinking of bacterially-contaminated surface waters, but unfortunately failed to test for arsenic in the groundwater.(2) Many other countries in South East Asia, such as Vietnam, Cambodia, and Tibet, are thought to have geological environments similarly conducive to generation of high-arsenic groundwaters.

Related Topics:
Bangladesh - Groundwater - World Health Organization - Parts per billion - NGO - Well - Twentieth century - South East Asia - Vietnam - Cambodia - Tibet

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