The present study focuses on the geochemical characteristics and quality of potable groundwater in mining area, particularly with reference to fluoride (F⁻). Spatial variability in physicochemical parameters of groundwater samples (32) collected from Katras block coal mine area was analysed. Parameters such as total hardness, total alkalinity, calcium (Ca²⁺), sodium (Na⁺), bicarbonate ($\text{H}\text{C}{{\text{O}}_3}^{-}$) and concentration of fluoride (F⁻) were found to be exceeding the Bureau of Indian standard (BIS) guidelines. The contributions of major cations and anions were found to be in the order of Ca²⁺ (44 %) > Na⁺ (40 %) > Mg²⁺ (15 %) > K⁺ (1%) and $\text{H}\text{C}{{\text{O}}_3}^{-}$ (50 %) > Cl⁻ (34 %) > SO₄^2- (14 %) respectively, and aggregates of minor anions such as nitrate and fluoride constituted approximately 2% respectively. Piper trilinear diagram suggested dominance of Ca-Mg-Cl, CaCl and NaCl type of water, resulting in hard brackish water. Alkaline pH and high bicarbonate concentration provide suitable conditions for release of fluoride from fluorite and fluorapatite. Water quality index (WQI) indicated that most of the samples (53 %) of the study area belonged to "poor water", 41 % to "good water" and one sample was categorized as "excellent" type of water. Moreover, only one sample was classified as "not suitable for drinking purposes" with WQI value of 322.94. Health risk assessment for ingestion and dermal routes were carried out for various age groups based on chronic daily dose and hazard quotient, and results indicated that fluoride uptake through ingestion was more severe. Infants (6−12 months) were found to be at a higher risk when compared to higher age group population. To improve the existing groundwater quality and reduce associated human risks, suitable water management measures is also recommended.

本研究的重点是地球化学特征和矿区饮用水地下水的质量，特别是参考氟化物（F ^- ）。分析了从Katras区块煤矿区采集的地下水样品（32）的理化参数的空间变异性。总硬度，总碱度，钙（Ca ²⁺），钠（Na ⁺），碳酸氢盐（$\text{H}\text{C}{{\text{Ø}}_3}^{--}$）和氟（F浓度^- ）被发现要超过印度标准（BIS）的指导方针局。发现主要阳离子和阴离子的贡献顺序为Ca ²⁺（44％）> Na ⁺（40％）> Mg ²⁺（15％）> K ⁺（1％）和$\text{H}\text{C}{{\text{Ø}}_3}^{--}$（50％）>氯^-（34％）> SO ₄ ^2-（分别为14％）和微量阴离子，例如硝酸根和氟化物的聚集体分别约占2％。Piper三线性图表明，Ca-Mg-Cl，CaCl和NaCl型水占主导地位，从而产生硬咸水。碱性pH和高碳酸氢盐浓度为从萤石和氟磷灰石中释放氟化物提供了合适的条件。水质指数（WQI）表明，研究区域的大部分样本（53％）属于“劣质水”，41％属于“良水”，其中一个样本被归类为“优质”水。此外，只有一个样本被分类为“不适合饮用”，WQI值为322.94。根据慢性每日剂量和危险因素，对各个年龄段的摄入和皮肤途径进行健康风险评估，结果表明，通过摄入摄入的氟更加严重。与较高年龄段的人群相比，婴儿（6-12个月）的风险更高。为了改善现有的地下水水质并减少相关的人为风险，还建议采取适当的水管理措施。