Rondano Gómez, Karina del ValleLópez Pasquali, C. E.Paniagua González, GemaFernández Hernando, PilarGarcinuño Martínez, Rosa Mª2024-05-202024-05-202020-111674-9871 - eISSN 2588-9192https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsf.2020.02.018https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14468/11590This study investigates the suitability of statistical techniques for evaluating the fluoride content and the groundwater quality from Robles Department (RD) and Banda Department (BD) areas in Santiago del Estero (Argentina). Groundwater mineralization is driven by many processes such as, weathering of volcanic products, geothermal activity and human activities. The original matrix consisted of 9 parameters estimated (fluoride content, pH, conductivity, environmental and water temperatures, total dissolved solids, chloride concentration, hardness and alkalinity) from 110 groundwater samples collected of 23 selected scattered rural areas. Groundwater samples were obtained by sampling in wells at different depths. The fluoride levels were determined by a standard colorimetric method in two seasonal periods, dry (from April to September) and rainy (from October to March). Parameters such as pH and total dissolved solids (TDS) reached their highest values in the rainy season; while the temperature, alkalinity, chloride concentration and hardness did it in the dry season. In both seasons, the environmental temperature average was 22 °C. Regarding the fluoride content, approximately the fifty percent of the analyzed groundwater samples exceeded the upper limit (1.0 mg/L) established by the current legislation, obtaining concentration levels between 0.01-2.80 mg/L. This study demonstrates the usefulness of univariate (quartiles calculation, interquartile range IQR) and multivariate statistical method of principal component analysis (PCA) and clusters to establish a better understanding of the environmental status of the region studied and the degree of pollution.Atribución-NoComercial-SinDerivadas 4.0 Internacionalinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessartículoSource water protectionSantiago del EsteroMultivariate statistical analysisFluorideSpectrophotometry