Reconciling kinetic and equilibrium observations of iron(III) solubility in aqueous solutions with a polymer-based model

Due to hydrolysis reactions, iron(III) forms oxyhydroxide precipitates in natural waters that minimise its availability to living organisms. Thermodynamic studies have established equilibrium concentrations of dissolved iron at various pH values, however these studies offer no insight into the kinetics of iron(III) polymerisation and subsequent precipitation. In recent work, the kinetics of iron(III) precipitation and dissolution of the precipitate have been investigated, but there are apparent discrepancies between the equilibrium solubility of iron(III) calculated from the kinetic parameters and its solubility measured by separation of the solid and dissolved phases at equilibrium. In this work, we reconcile kinetic and thermodynamic measurements using a polymer-based mechanistic model of the processes responsible for iron(III) precipitation in aqueous solutions based on a variety of previously published experimental data. This model is used to explain the existence of a solubility limit, including the effect of precipitate ageing on its solubility. We suggest that the model provides a unified approach for examining aqueous systems containing dissolved, solid-phase and surface species.