Physicochemical modeling as applied to study of sulfoarsenide complexes in hydrothermal solutions

System As–Na–S–Cl–H–O was studied. The research was carried out in three stages: (1) selection of the most likely complexes resulting from arsenic sulfide dissolution, (2) calculation of their thermodynamic constants, and (3) comparison of calculated data with thermodynamic database obtained in tests with the solution of inverse thermodynamic problems using the Selektor program complex. The system As–Na–S–Cl–H–O included more than 230 dependent components, which were divided into two groups, base and functional. The former group includes components of the solution (NaCl, NaOH, Na₂S, NaHS, HCl, H₂S, H₂SO₄, sulfates, H₂SO₃, sulfites, thiosulfates, Na⁺, Cl⁻,HS⁻, S²⁻), gas phase (43 components), and solid phase (orpiment, red arsenic, arsenolite, claudetite, arsenic, sulfur, sodium salts). Thermodynamic constants of the base components are contained in the Selektor database (they were borrowed from reference-books). The latter group includes 77 complexes labile in the solution but determining the solubility of arsenic and stability of its solid phases. Physicochemical modeling was performed in H₂S (≥0.01 m, pH = 1–10), Na₂S, and NaHS solutions at 25–250 °C and saturated-vapor pressure. It has been established that the dissolution of arsenic sulfide mineral phases in subneutral and alkaline solutions at low oxidation potential is favored by the formation of sulfoarsenides, which are more stable than arsenides and arsenates. Thermodynamic constants of functional complexes determining the orpiment solubility were calculated within the experimental error. It is shown that in hydrothermal iron-free systems with a low oxidation potential, the concentration of As in the solution decreases on cooling and with acidity increase.