Fluoridation and Defluoridation

By
gunawan
 introduction
The element fluorine is found in every water
supply used for drinking purposes. Fluorine is
required for the formation of bones and teeth,
and fluoride ions are essensial to the normal
growth and development of humans.
 Fluoride research
During the past century, US immigration
officials noticed that people arriving from
certain parts of Europe were severely
afflicted by a disfigurement of the teeth
known as mottled enamel or dental
fluorosis. This led dental authorities to
believe that the disfifurement was due to a
local factor endemic to the immigrants
native land.
Substantial evidence that fluorides were the cause of
mottled enamel was obtained by HV Churchill in 1930.
The people of Bauxite, Arkansas reported a high
incidence of mottled enamel. Churchill, by spectrograpic
analysis found the appreciable amounts of fluoride ion in
the bauxite water supply.
-It is found that excessive amount of fluoride levels in the
drinking water caused the mottled enamel. Further proof,
mottled enamel could be produced in white rats, by
adding their diets either small amounts of fluoride salts
or the concentrated residues .
-Gottlieb 1934 reported on the relationship between
fluoride concentration and mottling. She found that in
Kansas communities reporting mottled enamel when
fluoride more that 2 mg/L.
Relationship between dental caries
and fluoride level in drinking water
1100
(permanent teeth/100 children

1000
Dental caries experience

900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100

0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0

Flouride content / mg/L
 A dental caries-fluoride
relationship evolved:
1. Fluoride level > 2,5 mg/L, any further increase
does not significantly decrease incidence of
decayed, missing, or filled teeth, but does
increase the occurence and severity of mottling.
2. At flouride appr. 1.0 mg/L , the optimum effect
occurs, that is, maximum reduction in caries
with no aesthetically significant mottling.
3. At fluoride <1.0 mg/L, some benefit occurs, but
dental caries reductio is not great, and it
gradually decreases as the fluoride level, no
observable inprovement occurs.
 All water supply fluoridated, fluoride <0.7
mg/L does not have appreciable dental
significance, referred as naturally fluoridated.
For drinking water fluoride below 0.7 mg/L
control fluoridation is used to increase the
concentration.
 fluoridation
Florine sources:
1. it must be sufficiently soluble to be used in
routine water practice.
2. the compound must not have any
undesirable characteristics.
3. the material used should be readily
available and relatively inexpensive.
 Commonly used fluoride
compounds

NaF (sodium fluoride)

NaSiF6 (sodium silicofluoride), the cheapest
and very popular for used in fluoridation.
H2SiF6 (fluosilicic acid)

Other fluoride compounds:

CaF2 and (NH4)2SiF6.
 defluoridation
Two methods of fluoridation have found
practical application.
One involves passage of water through
defluoridation media such as bone meal, bone
char, ion exchage resins, or activated alumina.
the second involves addition of chemicals
such as lime or alumina prior to rapid mixing.
Flocculation and sedimentation in a
waterwork.
 Defluoridation media
The uptake of fluoride onto the surface of bone
(apatite comprising bone, Ca(PO4)2.CaCO3).
Ca(PO4)2.CaCO3+ F- Ca(PO4)2.CaF2 + CO32-
similar as bone char Ca(PO4)3
Paired cation and anion exchange resin beds has
also been used for defluoridation.
CE: 2NaF + H2R+ H2F2 + Na2R+
AE: 2R- + H2F2 2R-HF
 Chemical addition: lime and alum have been
used successfully for fluoride removal.
Alum:
Al2(SO4)3.14.3H2O + Ca(HCO3)2 2Al(OH)3
+ 3CaSO4 + 14.3H2O + 6CO2
Fluoride is removed by adsorption onto the
Al(OH)3 particles.
Lime softening:
Ca(OH)2 + 2HF CaF2(s) + 2H2O