Monitoring of heavy metal concentrations in home outdoor air using moss bags

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rivera, Marcela; Zechmeister, Harald; Medina-Ramon, Mercedes; Basagana, Xavier; Foraster, Maria; Bouso, Laura; Moreno, Teresa; Solanas, Pascual; Ramos, Rafael; Koellensperger, Gunda; Deltell, Alexandre; Vizcaya, David

2011-01-01

One monitoring station is insufficient to characterize the high spatial variation of traffic-related heavy metals within cities. We tested moss bags (Hylocomium splendens), deployed in a dense network, for the monitoring of metals in outdoor air and characterized metals' long-term spatial distribution and its determinants in Girona, Spain. Mosses were exposed outside 23 homes for two months; NO 2 was monitored for comparison. Metals were not highly correlated with NO 2 and showed higher spatial variation than NO 2 . Regression models explained 61-85% of Cu, Cr, Mo, Pb, Sb, Sn, and Zn and 72% of NO 2 variability. Metals were strongly associated with the number of bus lines in the nearest street. Heavy metals are an alternative traffic-marker to NO 2 given their toxicological relevance, stronger association with local traffic and higher spatial variability. Monitoring heavy metals with mosses is appealing, particularly for long-term exposure assessment, as mosses can remain on site many months without maintenance. - Research highlights: → Moss bags can be used to measure the metal's long-term spatial distribution within cities. → Heavy metals in mosses are not highly correlated with ambient NO 2 concentrations. → Heavy metals show higher spatial variation and association with traffic than NO 2 . → Bus lines in the nearest street explain 75-85% of Mo, Cr, Sb, Sn and Cu variability. → Moss bags are useful for long-term at home exposure assessment in epidemiological studies. - The long-term spatial distribution of heavy metals, measured with moss bags, is mainly determined by proximity to bus lines.

Low-cost bioremediation of heavy metals and radionuclides of contaminated soils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sathiyamoorthy, P.; Golan-Goldhrish, A.

2005-01-01

The environmental pollution by toxic metals, especially lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), selenium (Se), chromium (Cr) and radionuclides ( 137 Cs, 90 Sr, 238 Pu, 226 Ra) is a potential hazard to health and welfare of mankind. Rapid industrial revolution has left an international legacy of soil and water contaminated with a combination of toxic and potentially carcinogenic compounds and heavy metals. Many of the contaminated sites were abandoned due to high cost of traditional clean-up approaches. Various approaches are being practiced to decontaminate heavy metals and radionuclides from polluted-soil. Remediation of heavy metal and radionuclides contaminated soils poses a significant expense to many industries and government organizations. Remediation cost in the United States and European Union alone is expected to exceed US$20 billion annually. Bioremediation strategy depends on the limitations of technology, cost and nature of the contaminant in the soil. Certain higher plants are capable of accumulation of heavy metals (2-5 %) in roots and shoots to the level far exceeding those present in the soils, these are called hyper-accumulators. Using heavy metal hyper-accumulating higher plants for environmental clean-up of contaminated soil is a recently emerged technology known as 'phytoremediation'. Genetically engineered (Transgenic) plants have a remarkable potential to absorb heavy metals and show a new avenue for biotechnology technique in Phytoremediation. The cost-effective approach of using heavy metal and radionuclide hyper-accumulators in phytoremediation is discussed. (author)

Biosolids and heavy metals in soils

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Silveira Maria Lucia Azevedo

2003-01-01

Full Text Available The application of sewage sludge or biosolids on soils has been widespread in agricultural areas. However, depending on their characteristics, they may cause increase in heavy metal concentration of treated soils. In general, domestic biosolids have lower heavy metal contents than industrial ones. Origin and treatment method of biosolids may markedly influence their characteristics. The legislation that controls the levels of heavy metal contents in biosolids and the maximum concentrations in soils is still controversial. In the long-term, heavy metal behavior after the and of biosolid application is still unknown. In soils, heavy metals may be adsorbed via specific or non-specific adsorption reactions. Iron oxides and organic matter are the most important soil constituents retaining heavy metals. The pH, CEC and the presence of competing ions also affect heavy metal adsorption and speciation in soils. In solution, heavy metals can be present either as free-ions or complexed with organic and inorganic ligands. Generally, free-ions are more relevant in environmental pollution studies since they are readily bioavailable. Some computer models can estimate heavy metal activity in solution and their ionic speciation. Thermodynamic data (thermodynamic stability constant, total metal and ligand concentrations are used by the GEOCHEM-PC program. This program allows studying heavy metal behavior in solution and the effect of changes in the conditions, such as pH and ionic strength and the application of organic and inorganic ligands caused by soil fertilization.

Contamination features and health risk of soil heavy metals in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Haiyang; Teng, Yanguo; Lu, Sijin; Wang, Yeyao; Wang, Jinsheng

2015-01-01

China faces a big challenge of environmental deterioration amid its rapid economic development. To comprehensively identify the contamination characteristics of heavy metals in Chinese soils on a national scale, data set of the first national soil pollution survey was employed to evaluate the pollution levels using several pollution indicators (pollution index, geoaccumulation index and enrichment factor) and to quantify their exposure risks posed to human health with the risk assessment model recommended by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The results showed that, due to the drastically increased industrial operations and fast urban expansion, Chinese soils were contaminated by heavy metals in varying degrees. As a whole, the exposure risk levels of soil metals in China were tolerable or close to acceptable. Comparatively speaking, children and adult females were the relatively vulnerable populations for the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks, respectively. Cadmium and mercury have been identified as the priority control metals due to their higher concentrations in soils or higher health risks posed to the public, as well as, arsenic, lead, chromium and nickel. Spatial distribution pattern analysis implied that the soil metal pollutions in southern provinces of China were relatively higher than that in other provinces, which would be related to the higher geochemical background in southwest regions and the increasing human activities in southeast areas. Meanwhile, it should be noticed that Beijing, the capital of China, also has been labeled as the priority control province for its higher mercury concentration. These results will provide basic information for the improvement of soil environment management and heavy metal pollution prevention and control in China. - Highlights: • Soil contamination with heavy metals in China was systematically studied. • Spatial distribution patterns of heavy metals in Chinese soils were identified. • Monte

Contamination features and health risk of soil heavy metals in China

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Haiyang [Engineering Research Center of Groundwater Pollution Control and Remediation, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100875 (China); College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875 (China); Teng, Yanguo, E-mail: Teng1974@163.com [Engineering Research Center of Groundwater Pollution Control and Remediation, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100875 (China); College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875 (China); Lu, Sijin; Wang, Yeyao [China National Environmental Monitoring Center, Beijing 100012 (China); Wang, Jinsheng [Engineering Research Center of Groundwater Pollution Control and Remediation, Ministry of Education, Beijing 100875 (China); College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875 (China)

2015-04-15

China faces a big challenge of environmental deterioration amid its rapid economic development. To comprehensively identify the contamination characteristics of heavy metals in Chinese soils on a national scale, data set of the first national soil pollution survey was employed to evaluate the pollution levels using several pollution indicators (pollution index, geoaccumulation index and enrichment factor) and to quantify their exposure risks posed to human health with the risk assessment model recommended by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The results showed that, due to the drastically increased industrial operations and fast urban expansion, Chinese soils were contaminated by heavy metals in varying degrees. As a whole, the exposure risk levels of soil metals in China were tolerable or close to acceptable. Comparatively speaking, children and adult females were the relatively vulnerable populations for the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks, respectively. Cadmium and mercury have been identified as the priority control metals due to their higher concentrations in soils or higher health risks posed to the public, as well as, arsenic, lead, chromium and nickel. Spatial distribution pattern analysis implied that the soil metal pollutions in southern provinces of China were relatively higher than that in other provinces, which would be related to the higher geochemical background in southwest regions and the increasing human activities in southeast areas. Meanwhile, it should be noticed that Beijing, the capital of China, also has been labeled as the priority control province for its higher mercury concentration. These results will provide basic information for the improvement of soil environment management and heavy metal pollution prevention and control in China. - Highlights: • Soil contamination with heavy metals in China was systematically studied. • Spatial distribution patterns of heavy metals in Chinese soils were identified. • Monte

Heavy metals in the volcanic environment and thyroid cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Vigneri, R; Malandrino, P; Gianì, F; Russo, M; Vigneri, P

2017-12-05

In the last two decades thyroid cancer incidence has increased worldwide more than any other cancer. Overdiagnosis of subclinical microcarcinomas has certainly contributed to this increase but many evidences indicate that a true increase, possibly due to environmental factors, has also occurred. Thyroid cancer incidence is markedly increased in volcanic areas. Thus, the volcanic environment is a good model to investigate the possible factors favoring thyroid cancer. In the volcanic area of Mt. Etna in Sicily, as well as in other volcanic areas, a non-anthropogenic pollution with heavy metals has been documented, a consequence of gas, ash and lava emission. Soil, water and atmosphere contamination, via the food chain, biocontaminate the residents as documented by high levels in the urines and the scalp hair compared to individuals living in adjacent non-volcanic areas. Trace amounts of metals are essential nutrients but, at higher concentrations, can be toxic for living cells. Metals can behave both as endocrine disruptors, perturbing the hormonal system, and as carcinogens, promoting malignant transformation. Similarly to other carcinogens, the transforming effect of heavy metals is higher in developing organisms as the fetus (contaminated via the mother) and individuals in early childhood. In the last decades environment metal pollution has greatly increased in industrialized countries. Although still within the "normal" limits for each single metal the hormesis effect (heavy metal activity at very low concentration because of biphasic, non linear cell response) and the possible potentiation effect resulting from the mixture of different metals acting synergistically can explain cell damage at very low concentrations. The effect of metals on the human thyroid is poorly studied: for some heavy metals no data are available. The scarce studies that have been performed mainly focus on metal effect as thyroid endocrine disruptors. The metal concentration in tissues has

Monitoring of heavy metal concentrations in home outdoor air using moss bags

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rivera, Marcela, E-mail: arivera@creal.ca [Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology CREAL, Barcelona (Spain); Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM-Hospital del Mar), Barcelona (Spain); Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona (Spain); CIBER Epidemiologia y Salud Publica (CIBERESP) (Spain); Zechmeister, Harald [University of Vienna, Faculty of Life Sciences, Vienna (Austria); Medina-Ramon, Mercedes; Basagana, Xavier [Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology CREAL, Barcelona (Spain); Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM-Hospital del Mar), Barcelona (Spain); CIBER Epidemiologia y Salud Publica (CIBERESP) (Spain); Foraster, Maria [Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology CREAL, Barcelona (Spain); Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM-Hospital del Mar), Barcelona (Spain); Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona (Spain); CIBER Epidemiologia y Salud Publica (CIBERESP) (Spain); Bouso, Laura [Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology CREAL, Barcelona (Spain); Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM-Hospital del Mar), Barcelona (Spain); CIBER Epidemiologia y Salud Publica (CIBERESP) (Spain); Moreno, Teresa [Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA-CSIC), Barcelona (Spain); Solanas, Pascual; Ramos, Rafael [Research Unit, Family Medicine, Girona, Jordi Gol Institute for Primary Care Research (IDIAP Jordi Gol), Catalan Institute of Health, Catalunya (Spain); Department of Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Girona (Spain); Koellensperger, Gunda [University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna (Austria); Deltell, Alexandre [Polytechnic School, GREFEMA, University of Girona (Spain); Vizcaya, David [Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology CREAL, Barcelona (Spain); Municipal Institute of Medical Research (IMIM-Hospital del Mar), Barcelona (Spain); Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona (Spain); CIBER Epidemiologia y Salud Publica (CIBERESP) (Spain)

2011-04-15

One monitoring station is insufficient to characterize the high spatial variation of traffic-related heavy metals within cities. We tested moss bags (Hylocomium splendens), deployed in a dense network, for the monitoring of metals in outdoor air and characterized metals' long-term spatial distribution and its determinants in Girona, Spain. Mosses were exposed outside 23 homes for two months; NO{sub 2} was monitored for comparison. Metals were not highly correlated with NO{sub 2} and showed higher spatial variation than NO{sub 2}. Regression models explained 61-85% of Cu, Cr, Mo, Pb, Sb, Sn, and Zn and 72% of NO{sub 2} variability. Metals were strongly associated with the number of bus lines in the nearest street. Heavy metals are an alternative traffic-marker to NO{sub 2} given their toxicological relevance, stronger association with local traffic and higher spatial variability. Monitoring heavy metals with mosses is appealing, particularly for long-term exposure assessment, as mosses can remain on site many months without maintenance. - Research highlights: > Moss bags can be used to measure the metal's long-term spatial distribution within cities. > Heavy metals in mosses are not highly correlated with ambient NO{sub 2} concentrations. > Heavy metals show higher spatial variation and association with traffic than NO{sub 2}. > Bus lines in the nearest street explain 75-85% of Mo, Cr, Sb, Sn and Cu variability. > Moss bags are useful for long-term at home exposure assessment in epidemiological studies. - The long-term spatial distribution of heavy metals, measured with moss bags, is mainly determined by proximity to bus lines.

Heavy metal sorption by microalgae

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sandau, E.; Sandau, P.; Pulz, O.

1996-01-01

Viable microalgae are known to be able to accumulate heavy metals (bioaccumulation). Against a background of the increasing environmental risks caused by heavy metals, the microalgae Chlorella vulgaris and Spirulina platensis and their potential for the biological removal of heavy metals from aqueous solutions were taken as an example for investigation. Small-scale cultivation tests (50 l) with Cd-resistant cells of Chlorella vulgaris have shown that approx. 40% of the added 10 mg Cd/l was removed from the solution within seven days. At this heavy metal concentration sensitive cells died. Non-viable microalgae are able to eliminate heavy metal ions in a short time by biosorption in uncomplicated systems, without any toxicity problems. Compared with original biomasses, the sorption capacity of microalgal by-products changes only insignificantly. Their low price makes them economical. (orig.)

Heavy Metal Content in Terraced Rice Fields at Sruwen Tengaran Semarang - Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Hindarwati, Yulis; Soeprobowati, Tri Retnaningsih; Sudarno

2018-02-01

The presence of heavy metal on agricultural soils can be caused not only natural factors but also due to human intervention. Differences in management and lack of understanding of farmers in the production input of fertilizers and pesticides ensued in land ravaged. Periodic testing of paddy fields is necessary to minimize the contaminants from being absorbed by plants that will have an impact on health decline. The purpose of the assessment was to identify the heavy metal content in the terraced rice field in Sruwen Village, Tengaran District, Semarang Regency. Survey was conducted in February 2017. Sampling on terraced rice fields of different heights consisted of upper, middle, and upper down. Taken as many as eight single points and composed at a depth of 0-20 cm and 20-40 cm. The identification results showed that heavy metal content of Pb, Cd, and Cu were present at all altitudes. Heavy Metals Pb and Cd at a depth of 0-20 cm were higher from 20-40 cm in the upper and lower rice fields but lower in the middle rice field. Cu heavy metal at a depth of 0-20 cm was higher than 20-40 cm in all altitude land. The heavy metal content of Pb, Cd, and Cu was still below the heavy metal standard set by the European Union and India.

A novel heavy metal ATPase peptide from Prosopis juliflora is involved in metal uptake in yeast and tobacco.

Science.gov (United States)

Keeran, Nisha S; Ganesan, G; Parida, Ajay K

2017-04-01

Heavy metal pollution of agricultural soils is one of the most severe ecological problems in the world. Prosopis juliflora, a phreatophytic tree species, grows well in heavy metal laden industrial sites and is known to accumulate heavy metals. Heavy Metal ATPases (HMAs) are ATP driven heavy metal pumps that translocate heavy metals across biological membranes thus helping the plant in heavy metal tolerance and phytoremediation. In the present study we have isolated and characterized a novel 28.9 kDa heavy metal ATPase peptide (PjHMT) from P. juliflora which shows high similarity to the C-terminal region of P 1B ATPase HMA1. It also shows the absence of the invariant signature sequence DKTGT, and the metal binding CPX motif but the presence of conserved regions like MVGEGINDAPAL (ATP binding consensus sequence), HEGGTLLVCLNS (metal binding domain) and MLTGD, GEGIND and HEGG motifs which play important roles in metal transport or ATP binding. PjHMT, was found to be upregulated under cadmium and zinc stress. Heterologous expression of PjHMT in yeast showed a higher accumulation and tolerance of heavy metals in yeast. Further, transgenic tobacco plants constitutively expressing PjHMT also showed increased accumulation and tolerance to cadmium. Thus, this study suggests that the transport peptide from P. juliflora may have an important role in Cd uptake and thus in phytoremediation.

Irradiation of Liquid Fungi Isolated Media from Contaminated Sources with Heavy Metals Additive

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tawfiq, E.; Mohamed, A.A.; El-Kabbany, H.M.

2012-01-01

Occupational lead exposure is an important health issue in Egyptian workers, employees of paint factories, workers of copying centres, drivers, and tile making factories are in higher risk of lead toxicity. Wastewater, particularly from electroplating, paint, leather, metal and tanning industries, contain enormous amount of heavy metals. Microorganisms including fungi have been reported to exclude heavy metals from wastewater through bioaccumulation and bio sorption at low cost and in eco-friendly way. Low level lead exposure can significantly induce motor dis functions and cognitive impairment in children. Seventy six fungal isolates tolerant to heavy metals like Pb, Cd, Cr and Ni were isolated from sewage, sludge and industrial effluents containing heavy metals. Four fungi (Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Aspergillus awamori, Aspergillus flavus, Trichoderma viride) were included in this study. The majority of the fungal isolates were able to tolerate up to 400 ppm concentration of Pb, Cd, Cr and Ni. The most heavy metal tolerant fungi were studied for removal of heavy metals from liquid media at 50 ppm concentration. Results indicated removal of substantial amount of heavy metals by some of the fungi with respect to Pb, Cd, Cr and Ni with maximum uptake of 59.67, 16.25, 0.55 and 0.55 mg/g by fungi Pb 3 (Aspergillus terreus), Trichoderma viride, C r 8 (Trichoderma longibrachiatum), and isolate Ni 27 (A. niger), respectively. This indicated the potential of these fungi as bio sorbent for removal of heavy metals from wastewater and industrial effluents containing higher concentration of heavy metals. The F-ratio was 0.55 and gives non-significant as irradiated

THE STUDY OF HEAVY METAL FROM ENVIRONMENTAL SAMPLES BY ATOMIC TECHNIQUES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ion V. POPESCU

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Using the Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS and Energy Dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDXRF techniques we analyzed the contents of heavy metals ( Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb, Ti, Sr, Co, Bi from eight wild mushrooms and soil substrate samples (48 samples of eight fungal species and 32 underlying soil samples, collected from ten forest sites of Dambovița County Romania. It was determined that the elements, especially heavy metals, in soil were characteristic of the acidic soils of the Romanian forest lands and are influenced by industrial pollution. Analytical possibilities of AAS and EDXRF analytical techniques have been compared and the heavy metal transfer from substrate to mushrooms has been studied. The coefficient of accumulation of essential and heavy metals has been calculated as well. Heavy metal contents of all analyzed mushrooms were generally higher than previously reported in literature.

Carbonization of heavy metal impregnated sewage sludge oriented towards potential co-disposal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dou, Xiaomin [Thermal & Environmental Engineering Institute, Tongji University, Shanghai 201804 (China); Chen, Dezhen, E-mail: chendezhen@tongji.edu.cn [Thermal & Environmental Engineering Institute, Tongji University, Shanghai 201804 (China); Hu, Yuyan; Feng, Yuheng [Thermal & Environmental Engineering Institute, Tongji University, Shanghai 201804 (China); Dai, Xiaohu [National Engineering Research Centre for Urban Pollution Control, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092 (China); College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai 200092 (China)

2017-01-05

Highlights: • The carbonization of SS with externally impregnated heavy metals was investigated. • Externally impregnated heavy metals can be immobilized in the SSC. • Higher carbonization temperature help produce non-hazardous SSC. • Incineration FA can be kneaded into SS for co-disposal through co-carbonization. - Abstract: Sewage sludge (SS) is adopted as a stabilizer to immobilize externally impregnated heavy metals through carbonization oriented towards the co-disposal of SS and some hazardous wastes. Firstly Cu and Pb were impregnated into SS to ascertain the impregnating capacity and leaching behaviours of heavy metals in the resulting sewage sludge char (SSC). Meanwhile, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were employed to detect the heavy metal phase in the SSC. The results showed that within 400–800 °C and an impregnating concentration ≨0.5 wt%, more than 90% of the externally impregnated Cu and Pb were remained in the SSC and immobilized. And higher temperatures helped produce non-hazardous SSC. In addition, SEM and XRD analyses revealed that externally impregnated heavy metals could be converted into stable forms and evenly distributed throughout the SSC. In the second step municipal solid waste incineration fly ash (FA) was kneaded into SS and subjected to carbonization; it has been proved that the heavy metals in FA can be well immobilized in the resulting char when FA: SS mass ratio is 1:5. Those results show that sewage sludge can be co-carbonized with wastes contaminated with heavy metals to achieve co-disposal.

Carbonization of heavy metal impregnated sewage sludge oriented towards potential co-disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dou, Xiaomin; Chen, Dezhen; Hu, Yuyan; Feng, Yuheng; Dai, Xiaohu

2017-01-01

Highlights: • The carbonization of SS with externally impregnated heavy metals was investigated. • Externally impregnated heavy metals can be immobilized in the SSC. • Higher carbonization temperature help produce non-hazardous SSC. • Incineration FA can be kneaded into SS for co-disposal through co-carbonization. - Abstract: Sewage sludge (SS) is adopted as a stabilizer to immobilize externally impregnated heavy metals through carbonization oriented towards the co-disposal of SS and some hazardous wastes. Firstly Cu and Pb were impregnated into SS to ascertain the impregnating capacity and leaching behaviours of heavy metals in the resulting sewage sludge char (SSC). Meanwhile, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were employed to detect the heavy metal phase in the SSC. The results showed that within 400–800 °C and an impregnating concentration ≨0.5 wt%, more than 90% of the externally impregnated Cu and Pb were remained in the SSC and immobilized. And higher temperatures helped produce non-hazardous SSC. In addition, SEM and XRD analyses revealed that externally impregnated heavy metals could be converted into stable forms and evenly distributed throughout the SSC. In the second step municipal solid waste incineration fly ash (FA) was kneaded into SS and subjected to carbonization; it has been proved that the heavy metals in FA can be well immobilized in the resulting char when FA: SS mass ratio is 1:5. Those results show that sewage sludge can be co-carbonized with wastes contaminated with heavy metals to achieve co-disposal.

Heavy Metallic Element Distribution in Cisadane River Estuary's Water and Sediment

OpenAIRE

M. Taufik Kaisupy; Abdul Rozak; Endang Rochyatun

2006-01-01

Observation of heavy metallic elements in Cisadane River Estuary has been done in July and November 2005. The results show that heavy metallic elements content in seawater is lower and still below the treshold value stated by government for fisheries. There was an indication of heavy metallic elements on sediment. Distribution of Pb on July and of Cu on November 2005 were found higher near the coast and decrease towards the sea, and commonly were found in front of estuary such as Cisadane, Mu...

Heavy metal uptake of Geosiphon pyriforme

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scheloske, Stefan E-mail: stefan.scheloske@mpi-hd.mpg.de; Maetz, Mischa; Schuessler, Arthur

2001-07-01

Geosiphon pyriforme represents the only known endosymbiosis between a fungus, belonging to the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, and cyanobacteria (blue-green algae). Therefore we use Geosiphon as a model system for the widespread AM symbiosis and try to answer some basic questions regarding heavy metal uptake or resistance of AM fungi. We present quantitative micro-PIXE measurements of a set of heavy metals (Cu, Cd, Tl, Pb) taken up by Geosiphon-cells. The uptake is studied as a function of the metal concentration in the nutrient solution and of the time Geosiphon spent in the heavy metal enriched medium. The measured heavy metal concentrations range from several ppm to some hundred ppm. Also the influence of the heavy metal uptake on the nutrition transfer of other elements will be discussed.

Heavy Metal Pollution from Gold Mines: Environmental Effects and Bacterial Strategies for Resistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Fashola, Muibat Omotola; Ngole-Jeme, Veronica Mpode; Babalola, Olubukola Oluranti

2016-10-26

Mining activities can lead to the generation of large quantities of heavy metal laden wastes which are released in an uncontrolled manner, causing widespread contamination of the ecosystem. Though some heavy metals classified as essential are important for normal life physiological processes, higher concentrations above stipulated levels have deleterious effects on human health and biota. Bacteria able to withstand high concentrations of these heavy metals are found in the environment as a result of various inherent biochemical, physiological, and/or genetic mechanisms. These mechanisms can serve as potential tools for bioremediation of heavy metal polluted sites. This review focuses on the effects of heavy metal wastes generated from gold mining activities on the environment and the various mechanisms used by bacteria to counteract the effect of these heavy metals in their immediate environment.

Divergent biology of facultative heavy metal plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Bothe, Hermann; Słomka, Aneta

2017-12-01

Among heavy metal plants (the metallophytes), facultative species can live both in soils contaminated by an excess of heavy metals and in non-affected sites. In contrast, obligate metallophytes are restricted to polluted areas. Metallophytes offer a fascinating biology, due to the fact that species have developed different strategies to cope with the adverse conditions of heavy metal soils. The literature distinguishes between hyperaccumulating, accumulating, tolerant and excluding metallophytes, but the borderline between these categories is blurred. Due to the fact that heavy metal soils are dry, nutrient limited and are not uniform but have a patchy distribution in many instances, drought-tolerant or low nutrient demanding species are often regarded as metallophytes in the literature. In only a few cases, the concentrations of heavy metals in soils are so toxic that only a few specifically adapted plants, the genuine metallophytes, can cope with these adverse soil conditions. Current molecular biological studies focus on the genetically amenable and hyperaccumulating Arabidopsis halleri and Noccaea (Thlaspi) caerulescens of the Brassicaceae. Armeria maritima ssp. halleri utilizes glands for the excretion of heavy metals and is, therefore, a heavy metal excluder. The two endemic zinc violets of Western Europe, Viola lutea ssp. calaminaria of the Aachen-Liège area and Viola lutea ssp. westfalica of the Pb-Cu-ditch of Blankenrode, Eastern Westphalia, as well as Viola tricolor ecotypes of Eastern Europe, keep their cells free of excess heavy metals by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi which bind heavy metals. The Caryophyllaceae, Silene vulgaris f. humilis and Minuartia verna, apparently discard leaves when overloaded with heavy metals. All Central European metallophytes have close relatives that grow in areas outside of heavy metal soils, mainly in the Alps, and have, therefore, been considered as relicts of the glacial epoch in the past. However, the current

Trees as bioindicator of heavy metal pollution in three European cities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sawidis, T. [Department of Botany, University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki (Greece); Breuste, J., E-mail: juergen.breuste@sbg.ac.at [Department of Geography and Geology, University of Salzburg, 5010 Salzburg (Austria); Mitrovic, M.; Pavlovic, P. [Department of Ecology, Institute for Biological Research ' Sinisa Stankovic' , University of Belgrade, Bulevar despota Stefana 142, 11060 Belgrade (Serbia); Tsigaridas, K. [Department of Botany, University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki (Greece)

2011-12-15

Concentrations of four heavy metals were determined in tree leaves and bark collected from polluted and non-polluted areas of three European cities (Salzburg, Belgrade and Thessaloniki) for a comparative study. Platanus orientalis L. and Pinus nigra Arn., widespread in urban northern and southern Europe, were tested for their suitability for air quality biomonitoring. Leaves and barks were collected uniformly of an initial quantity of about 30 g of each sample. Analysis was accomplished by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry after total digestion. Site-dependent variations were found with the highest concentration level measured in Belgrade, followed by Thessaloniki and Salzburg. A higher accumulation of heavy metals was found in bark compared to leaves. Pine tree bark, accumulating higher concentrations of trace metals compared to plane tree bark, shows a higher efficiency as bioindicator for urban pollution. Both indicator species are suitable for comparative studies on bioindication of urban air pollution. - Highlights: > Oriental plane and Austrian pine are suitable for comparative urban air quality biomonitoring of heavy metal pollution. > Pine tree is excellently suitable as urban bioindicator as it accumulates high concentrations of trace metals. > The highest heavy metal pollution was found in Belgrade followed by Thessaloniki and Salzburg. - Oriental plane (Platanus orientalis L.) and Austrian pine (Pinus nigra Arn.), widespread in urban northern and southern Europe, are suitable for comparative biomonitoring of urban air pollution.

Trees as bioindicator of heavy metal pollution in three European cities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sawidis, T.; Breuste, J.; Mitrovic, M.; Pavlovic, P.; Tsigaridas, K.

2011-01-01

Concentrations of four heavy metals were determined in tree leaves and bark collected from polluted and non-polluted areas of three European cities (Salzburg, Belgrade and Thessaloniki) for a comparative study. Platanus orientalis L. and Pinus nigra Arn., widespread in urban northern and southern Europe, were tested for their suitability for air quality biomonitoring. Leaves and barks were collected uniformly of an initial quantity of about 30 g of each sample. Analysis was accomplished by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry after total digestion. Site-dependent variations were found with the highest concentration level measured in Belgrade, followed by Thessaloniki and Salzburg. A higher accumulation of heavy metals was found in bark compared to leaves. Pine tree bark, accumulating higher concentrations of trace metals compared to plane tree bark, shows a higher efficiency as bioindicator for urban pollution. Both indicator species are suitable for comparative studies on bioindication of urban air pollution. - Highlights: → Oriental plane and Austrian pine are suitable for comparative urban air quality biomonitoring of heavy metal pollution. → Pine tree is excellently suitable as urban bioindicator as it accumulates high concentrations of trace metals. → The highest heavy metal pollution was found in Belgrade followed by Thessaloniki and Salzburg. - Oriental plane (Platanus orientalis L.) and Austrian pine (Pinus nigra Arn.), widespread in urban northern and southern Europe, are suitable for comparative biomonitoring of urban air pollution.

Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in fauna from wet detention ponds for stormwater runoff

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stephansen, Diana; Nielsen, Asbjørn Haaning; Hvitved-Jacobsen, Thorkild

2012-01-01

Stormwater detention ponds remove pollutants e.g. heavy metals and nutrients from stormwater runoff. These pollutants accumulate in the pond sediment and thereby become available for bioaccumulation in fauna living in the ponds. In this study the bioaccumulation was investigated by fauna samples...... from 5 wet detention ponds for analyses of heavy metal contents. Five rural shallow lakes were included in the study to survey the natural occurrence of heavy metals in water-dwelling fauna. Heavy metal concentrations in water-dwelling fauna were generally found higher in wet detention ponds compared...

Microbial functional genes enriched in the Xiangjiang River sediments with heavy metal contamination.

Science.gov (United States)

Jie, Shiqi; Li, Mingming; Gan, Min; Zhu, Jianyu; Yin, Huaqun; Liu, Xueduan

2016-08-08

Xiangjiang River (Hunan, China) has been contaminated with heavy metal for several decades by surrounding factories. However, little is known about the influence of a gradient of heavy metal contamination on the diversity, structure of microbial functional gene in sediment. To deeply understand the impact of heavy metal contamination on microbial community, a comprehensive functional gene array (GeoChip 5.0) has been used to study the functional genes structure, composition, diversity and metabolic potential of microbial community from three heavy metal polluted sites of Xiangjiang River. A total of 25595 functional genes involved in different biogeochemical processes have been detected in three sites, and different diversities and structures of microbial functional genes were observed. The analysis of gene overlapping, unique genes, and various diversity indices indicated a significant correlation between the level of heavy metal contamination and the functional diversity. Plentiful resistant genes related to various metal were detected, such as copper, arsenic, chromium and mercury. The results indicated a significantly higher abundance of genes involved in metal resistance including sulfate reduction genes (dsr) in studied site with most serious heavy metal contamination, such as cueo, mer, metc, merb, tehb and terc gene. With regard to the relationship between the environmental variables and microbial functional structure, S, Cu, Cd, Hg and Cr were the dominating factor shaping the microbial distribution pattern in three sites. This study suggests that high level of heavy metal contamination resulted in higher functional diversity and the abundance of metal resistant genes. These variation therefore significantly contribute to the resistance, resilience and stability of the microbial community subjected to the gradient of heavy metals contaminant in Xiangjiang River.

Assessment of heavy metal pollution of topsoils and plants in the City of Belgrade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrejić Gordana

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In order to assess heavy metal pollution in the city of Belgrade (Serbia concentrations of V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb were measured on 18 topsoil samples collected in the proximity to central urban boulevards and in urban parks. In addition, concentrations of specified elements were determined in leaves of three evergreen plant species Buxus sempervirens L., Mahonia aquifolium (Pursh Nutt. and Prunus laurocerasus L. so as to estimate their sensitivity to heavy metal pollution. Even though various types of soils from different quarts of Belgrade were sampled, their heavy metal contents were very similar, with somewhat higher concentrations of almost all elements detected in the proximity to high traffic roads. Generally, concentrations of heavy metals in leaves of investigated plant species paralleled the heavy metal concentrations found in their respective soils and were higher in plants sampled from boulevards then from urban parks. Since investigated plant show no visible injuries induced by detected heavy metal pollution these species are suitable for the successful urban landscaping. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 173030

Aldehyde dehydrogenase expression in Metaphire posthuma as a bioindicator to monitor heavy metal pollution in soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Panday, Raju; Bhatt, Padam Shekhar; Bhattarai, Tribikram; Shakya, Kumudini; Sreerama, Lakshmaiah

2016-11-21

Soil contamination and associated pollution plays a detrimental role in soil flora and fauna. Soil is processed and remodeled by subterranean earthworms, accordingly are referred to as soil chemical engineers. These worms, besides processing carbon and nitrogen, serve as minors for processing metals. In heavy metal contaminated soils, they accumulate heavy metals, which in turn cause altered gene expression, including aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) enzymes. This study explores the possibility of ALDH expression in earthworms as a novel biomarker for the heavy metal contamination of soil. Earthworms cultured in contaminated soils accumulated significantly higher levels of Pb and Cd. Similarly, significantly higher levels of ALDH enzyme activities were observed in earthworms cultured in soils contaminated with Pb and Cd. The ALDH activity was found to be highest in worms cultured in 5 ppm heavy metal contaminated soils. Although, ALDH activities decreased as the heavy metal concentration in soil increased, they were significantly higher when compared to control worms cultured in uncontaminated soils. The accumulation of heavy metal in earthworms measured after 28 days decreased as the heavy metal concentration in soil increased. Levels of ALDH expression correlated with total Pb and Cd concentration in the earthworm tissue. This study showed that the ALDH activity in earthworms could potentially be used as a biomarker to show heavy metal pollution in soil.

Heavy metal ion adsorption onto polypyrrole-impregnated porous carbon.

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Moonjung; Jang, Jyongsik

2008-09-01

Polypyrrole-impregnated porous carbon was readily synthesized using vapor infiltration polymerization of pyrrole monomers. The results show that the functionalized polymer layer was successfully coated onto the pore surface of carbon without collapse of mesoporous structure. The modified porous carbon exhibited an improved complexation affinity for heavy metal ions such as mercury, lead, and silver ions due to the amine group of polypyrrole. The introduced polypyrrole layer could provide the surface modification to be applied for heavy metal ion adsorbents. Especially, polymer-impregnated porous carbon has an enhanced heavy metal ion uptake, which is 20 times higher than that of adsorbents with amine functional groups. Furthermore, the relationship between the coated polymer amount and surface area was also investigated in regard to adsorption capacity.

Heavy Metal Contaminated Soil Imitation Biological Treatment Overview

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Chang; Chen, Jun; Wu, Ke; Zhou, Zhongkai; Cheng, Tingting

2018-01-01

In this paper, the treatment methods of heavy metal pollution in soils were analyzed, the existence and transformation of heavy metals in soil were explored, and the mechanism of heavy metal absorption by plants was studied. It was concluded that the main form of plants absorb heavy metals in the soil is exchangeable. The main mechanism was that the plant cell wall can form complex with heavy metals, so that heavy metals fixed on the cell wall, and through the selective absorption of plasma membrane into the plant body. In addition, the adsorption mechanism of the adsorbed material was analyzed. According to the results of some researchers, it was found that the mechanism of adsorption of heavy metals was similar to that of plants. According to this, using adsorbent material as the main material, Imitate the principle of plant absorption of heavy metals in the soil to removing heavy metals in the soil at one-time and can be separated from the soil after adsorption to achieve permanent removal of heavy metals in the soil was feasibility.

Stress induced by heavy metals on breeding of magpie (Pica pica) from central Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Zarrintab, Mohammad; Mirzaei, Rouhollah

2017-09-01

The aim of this study was to address the impacts of some heavy metals (Cd, Pb, Zn, Ni and Cu) contamination on laying behavior, egg quality and breeding performance of Pica pica in north of Isfahan Province, Iran. During the breeding season of 2013, magpie's egg content and eggshell as well as nestling excrements and feathers were collected and total concentrations of heavy metals were measured by ICP-OES. Except for Zn in nestling feathers, the significantly higher concentrations of heavy metals were observed in nestling excrements than other samples. Also, comparison of heavy metals concentrations in egg content and eggshell showed that egg content had significantly higher concentrations of Zn and Pb, instead eggshell had significantly higher amount of Cu and Cd. Except for Cu, all heavy metals concentrations in eggshell had a negative relationship with morphological characters; and also concentration of Cu in egg content showed a significantly negative correlation with egg weight and volume. The most of heavy metals in nestling feathers and excrements had strongly positive correlations with each other. Also all heavy metals levels in eggshell and egg content had significantly positive correlations (except for Cu). Unhatched eggs had significantly lower weight but also greater levels of Zn, Cd, and Pb, than randomly collected eggs. No significant differences were observed for morphometric measurements of eggs between different sites, however, a decreased gradient was observed in egg volume toward the brick kiln site. Samples collected in brick kiln site accumulated higher concentrations of heavy metals than other sites. Although numbers of clutch size in brick kiln site were significantly higher than other sites, however, other breeding variable were lower than other sites. It can be suggested that ecosystem contamination may be caused to decrease the reproduction rate of Pica pica in brick kiln, probably by laying more poor quality eggs per clutch and nestling

Physicochemical Characteristics and Levels of Some Heavy Metals ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Michael Horsfall

indicated a significant degree of soil contamination for Pd, Cd, Co, Cu and Zn in the soils studied showing a higher ... disposed waste. These metals which are not biodegradable are accumulated in living organisms when released into the environment. Although trace ... heavy metals in Nigerian soils if such solid waste.

Source of atmospheric heavy metals in winter in Foshan, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Ji-Hua; Duan, Jing-Chun; Ma, Yong-Liang; Yang, Fu-Mo; Cheng, Yuan; He, Ke-Bin; Yu, Yong-Chang; Wang, Jie-Wen

2014-09-15

Foshan is a ceramics manufacturing center in the world and the most polluted city in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) in southern China measured by the levels of atmospheric heavy metals. PM2.5 samples were collected in Foshan in winter 2008. Among the 22 elements and ions analyzed, 7 heavy metals (Zn, V, Mn, Cu, As, Cd and Pb) were studied in depth for their levels, spatiotemporal variations and sources. The ambient concentrations of the heavy metals were much higher than the reported average concentrations in China. The levels of Pb (675.7 ± 378.5 ng/m(3)), As (76.6 ± 49.1 ng/m(3)) and Cd (42.6 ± 45.2 ng/m(3)) exceeded the reference values of NAAQS (GB3095-2012) and the health guidelines of the World Health Organization. Generally, the levels of atmospheric heavy metals showed spatial distribution as: downtown site (CC, Chancheng District)>urban sites (NH and SD, Nanhai and Shunde Districts)>rural site (SS, Shanshui District). Two sources of heavy metals, the ceramic and aluminum industries, were identified during the sampling period. The large number of ceramic manufactures was responsible for the high levels of atmospheric Zn, Pb and As in Chancheng District. Transport from an aluminum industry park under light north-west winds contributed high levels of Cd to the SS site (Shanshui District). The average concentration of Cd under north-west wind was 220 ng/m(3), 20.5 times higher than those under other wind directions. The high daily maximum enrichment factors (EFs) of Cd, Pb, Zn, As and Cu at all four sites indicated extremely high contamination by local emissions. Back trajectory analysis showed that the heavy metals were also closely associated with the pathway of air mass. A positive matrix factorization (PMF) method was applied to determine the source apportionment of these heavy metals. Five factors (industry including the ceramic industry and coal combustion, vehicle emissions, dust, transportation and sea salt) were identified and industry was the most

Process for removing heavy metal compounds from heavy crude oil

Science.gov (United States)

Cha, Chang Y.; Boysen, John E.; Branthaver, Jan F.

1991-01-01

A process is provided for removing heavy metal compounds from heavy crude oil by mixing the heavy crude oil with tar sand; preheating the mixture to a temperature of about 650.degree. F.; heating said mixture to up to 800.degree. F.; and separating tar sand from the light oils formed during said heating. The heavy metals removed from the heavy oils can be recovered from the spent sand for other uses.

Mobile heavy metal fractions in soils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horak, O.; Kamel, A.A.; Ecker, S.; Benetka, E.; Rebler, R.; Lummerstorfer, E.; Kandeler, E.

1994-01-01

A long term outdoor experiment was conducted in plastic containers (50 litres) with three soils, contaminated by increasing concentrations of zinc, copper, nickel, cadmium and vanadium. The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of heavy metal contamination on soil microbial processes as well as the accumulation of heavy metals in plants. Spring barley, followed by winter endive were grown as experimental crops in a first vegetation period, while spring wheat was grown during the second year. The soil microbial activities, indicated by arylsulfatase, dehydrogenase, and substrate-induced respiration, decreased with increasing heavy metal contamination. Significant correlations were observed between the inhibition of soil microorganisms and the easily mobilizable heavy metal fractions of soils, extracted by a solution of 1 M ammoniumacetate at pH = 7. The heavy metal accumulation in vegetative and generative parts of the crop plants also showed a good agreement with mobilizable soil fractions. The results of the experiment indicate, that the extraction with ammoniumacetate can be used as a reference method for determination of tolerable heavy metal concentrations in soils. (authors)

(17) ACCUMULATION OF HEAVY METAL

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Adeyinka Odunsi

Spectrophotometer (AAS) 2ID using their respective lamp and wavelengths. Calculation ... (Table 2). Concentration of heavy metals in the cassava. Lead and chromium were not significantly ..... Market basket survey for some heavy metals in ...

Elimination of radionuclides and heavy metals from soils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Navarcik, I.; Cipakova, A.; Palagyl, S.

1994-01-01

Sorption and desorption of radionuclides and heavy metals, their vertical migration and gradual extraction from soils were studied. Tessier sequential extraction method was used for determination the physicochemical forms of radionuclides and heavy metals absorbed by root system of plants and leached into ground water. Fixed forms of heavy metals and radionuclides are prevailing in soils. As to artificial ( 90 Sr, 137 Cs) isotope ratio of fixed forms bound with soil components, it is higher for 137 Cs (black earth - 95%, sandy soil - 62%) as compared to 90 Sr. Mobilization procedures for elimination of unfavourable influence of these pollutants in soils were used. The bacteria Pseudomonas sp. and Micrococcus l. are applied for this purpose. At the same time the growing of technical plants (Linum usitatissimum L. and Brassica napus L. var.) was studied as a method for mobilizing the heavy metals and radionuclides from soils. Retardation influence of bacteria on 85 Sr was noticed after as much as 3 months. The sum of water-soluble and exchangeable fractions reached 60%. Values of Cs distribution proved that microorganisms or plants used had no appreciable influence on Cs-mobility. After 3 months the relative ratio of accessible fraction increased with about 5%. As to heavy metals, both bacteria and plant growing influenced their retardation. In the case of Cd, one month operation of microorganisms resulted in important increase of easily available Cd-ratio (about 25%) in soils. (author)

Poisoning of domestic animals with heavy metals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Velev Romel

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The term heavy metal refers to a metal that has a relatively high density and is toxic for animal and human organism at low concentrations. Heavy metals are natural components of the Earth's crust. They cannot be degraded or destroyed. To a small extent they enter animal organism via food, drinking water and air. Some heavy metals (e.g cooper, iron, chromium, zinc are essential in very low concentrations for the survival of all forms of life. These are described as essential trace elements. However, when they are present in greater quantities, like the heavy metals lead, cadmium and mercury which are already toxic in very low concentrations, they can cause metabolic anomalies or poisoning. Heavy metal poisoning of domestic animals could result, for instance, from drinking-water contamination, high ambient air concentrations near emission sources, or intake via the food chain. Heavy metals are dangerous because they tend to bioaccumulate in a biological organism over time. Manifestation of toxicity of individual heavy metals varies considerably, depending on dose and time of exposure, species, gender and environmental and nutritional factors. Large differences exist between the effects of a single exposure to a high concentration, and chronic exposures to lower doses. The aim of this work is to present the source of poisoning and toxicity of some heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, thallium, arsenic, as well as new data about effects of those heavy metals on the health of domestic animals. .

Assessment of spatial distribution of soil heavy metals using ANN-GA, MSLR and satellite imagery.

Science.gov (United States)

Naderi, Arman; Delavar, Mohammad Amir; Kaboudin, Babak; Askari, Mohammad Sadegh

2017-05-01

This study aims to assess and compare heavy metal distribution models developed using stepwise multiple linear regression (MSLR) and neural network-genetic algorithm model (ANN-GA) based on satellite imagery. The source identification of heavy metals was also explored using local Moran index. Soil samples (n = 300) were collected based on a grid and pH, organic matter, clay, iron oxide contents cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) concentrations were determined for each sample. Visible/near-infrared reflectance (VNIR) within the electromagnetic ranges of satellite imagery was applied to estimate heavy metal concentrations in the soil using MSLR and ANN-GA models. The models were evaluated and ANN-GA model demonstrated higher accuracy, and the autocorrelation results showed higher significant clusters of heavy metals around the industrial zone. The higher concentration of Cd, Pb and Zn was noted under industrial lands and irrigation farming in comparison to barren and dryland farming. Accumulation of industrial wastes in roads and streams was identified as main sources of pollution, and the concentration of soil heavy metals was reduced by increasing the distance from these sources. In comparison to MLSR, ANN-GA provided a more accurate indirect assessment of heavy metal concentrations in highly polluted soils. The clustering analysis provided reliable information about the spatial distribution of soil heavy metals and their sources.

Heavy metals from Kueishantao shallow-sea hydrothermal vents, offshore northeast Taiwan

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xue-Gang; Lyu, Shuang-Shuang; Garbe-Schönberg, Dieter; Lebrato, Mario; Li, Xiaohu; Zhang, Hai-Yan; Zhang, Ping-Ping; Chen, Chen-Tung Arthur; Ye, Ying

2018-04-01

Shallow water hydrothermal vents are a source of heavy metals leading to their accumulation in marine organisms that manage to live under extreme environmental conditions. This is the case at Kueishantao (KST) shallow-sea vents system offshore northeast Taiwan, where the heavy metal distribution in vent fluids and ambient seawater is poorly understood. This shallow vent is an excellent natural laboratory to understand how heavy and volatile metals behave in the nearby water column and ecosystem. Here, we investigated the submarine venting of heavy metals from KST field and its impact on ambient surface seawater. The total heavy metal concentrations in the vent fluids and vertical plumes were 1-3 orders of magnitude higher than the overlying seawater values. When compared with deep-sea hydrothermal systems, the estimated KST end-member fluids exhibited much lower concentrations of transition metals (e.g., Fe and Mn) but comparable concentrations of toxic metals such as Pb and As. This may be attributed to the lower temperature of the KST reaction zone and transporting fluids. Most of the heavy metals (Fe, Mn, As, Y, and Ba) in the plumes and seawater mainly originated from hydrothermal venting, while Cd and Pb were largely contributed by external sources such as contaminated waters (anthropogenic origin). The spatial distribution of heavy metals in the surface seawater indicated that seafloor venting impacts ambient seawater. The measurable influence of KST hydrothermal activity, however, was quite localized and limited to an area of heavy metals emanating from the yellow KST hydrothermal vent were: 430-2600 kg Fe, 24-145 kg Mn, 5-32 kg Ba, 10-60 kg As, 0.3-1.9 kg Cd, and 2-10 kg Pb. This study provides important data on heavy metals from a shallow-sea hydrothermal field, and it helps to better understand the environmental impact of submarine shallow hydrothermal venting.

Factorial experimental design for recovering heavy metals from sludge with ion-exchange resin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, I.H.; Kuan, Y.-C.; Chern, J.-M.

2006-01-01

Wastewaters containing heavy metals are usually treated by chemical precipitation method in Taiwan. This method can remove heavy metals form wastewaters efficiently, but the resultant heavy metal sludge is classified as hazardous solid waste and becomes another environmental problem. If we can remove heavy metals from sludge, it becomes non-hazardous waste and the treatment cost can be greatly reduced. This study aims at using ion-exchange resin to remove heavy metals such as copper, zinc, cadmium, and chromium from sludge generated by a PCB manufacturing plant. Factorial experimental design methodology was used to study the heavy metal removal efficiency. The total metal concentrations in the sludge, resin, and solution phases were measured respectively after 30 min reaction with varying leaching agents (citric acid and nitric acid); ion-exchange resins (Amberlite IRC-718 and IR-120), and temperatures (50 and 70 deg. C). The experimental results and statistical analysis show that a stronger leaching acid and a higher temperature both favor lower heavy metal residues in the sludge. Two-factors and even three-factor interaction effects on the heavy metal sorption in the resin phase are not negligible. The ion-exchange resin plays an important role in the sludge extraction or metal recovery. Empirical regression models were also obtained and used to predict the heavy metal profiles with satisfactory results

IMPACT OF BIOSLUDGE APPLICATION ON HEAVY METALS CONTENT IN SUNFLOWER

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marek Slávik

2012-02-01

Full Text Available The application of decomposed substrate after continual biogas production is one of the possible ways how to use alternative energy sources with following monitoring of its complex influence on the hygienic state of soil with the emphasis on heavy metal input. The substances from bilge and drain sediments from water panels, also biosludge gained by continual co-fermentation of animal excrements belong to these compounds. The biosludge application is connected with possible risk of cadmium and lead, also other risky elements input into the soil. The analyses of applicated sludge prove that the determined heavy metals contents are compared with limitary value. These facts - hygienic state of soil, pH influence this limitary value and biosludge is suitable for soil application. The total heavy metals content in soil is related to the increased cadmium, nickel, chromium and cobalt contents. The analyses of heavy metals contents in sunflower seeds show that the grown yield does not comply with the legislative norms from the stand point of heavy metals content due to high zinc and nickel contents. Copper, cadmium, lead, chromium contents fulfil limitary values, for cobalt content the value is not mentioned in Codex Alimentarius. The nickel value in the control variant seeds is 2.2 times higher than the highest acceptable amount, then in variant where the sludge was applicated the nickel content was increased by 1.6 times. In the case of zinc there was increasing content in individual variants 4.7, or 4.8 times. The direct connection with the higher accumulation of zinc and nickel in soil by the influence of biosludge application is not definitely surveyed, the increased heavy metals contents in sunflower were primarily caused by their increased contents in soils.

Recovering heavy rare earth metals from magnet scrap

Science.gov (United States)

Ott, Ryan T.; McCallum, Ralph W.; Jones, Lawrence L.

2017-08-08

A method of treating rare earth metal-bearing permanent magnet scrap, waste or other material in a manner to recover the heavy rare earth metal content separately from the light rare earth metal content. The heavy rare earth metal content can be recovered either as a heavy rare earth metal-enriched iron based alloy or as a heavy rare earth metal based alloy.

Characterization of landfill leachates and studies on heavy metal removal.

Science.gov (United States)

Ceçen, F; Gürsoy, G

2000-10-01

This study covers a thorough characterisation of landfill leachates emerging from a sanitary landfill area. The landfill leachates were obtained in the acidic stage of landfill stabilisation. Their organic content was high as reflected by the high BOD5 (5 day biological oxygen demand) and COD (chemical oxygen demand) values. They were also highly polluted in terms of the parameters TKN (total Kjeldahl nitrogen), NH4-N, alkalinity, hardness and heavy metals. Nickel was present in these wastewaters at a significant concentration. With regard to the high heavy metal content of these wastewaters, several physicochemical removal alternatives for the heavy metals Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, Cd, Cr, Mn and Fe were tested using coagulation, flocculation, precipitation, base addition and aeration. Additionally, COD removal and ammonia stripping were examined. Co-precipitation with either alum or iron salts did not usually lead to significantly higher heavy metal removal than lime alone. The major methods leading to an effective heavy metal removal were aeration and lime addition. Nickel and cadmium seemed to be strongly complexed and were not removed by any method. Also lead removal proved to be difficult. The results are also discussed in terms of compliance with standards.

Factors Affecting the Binding of a Recombinant Heavy Metal-Binding Domain (CXXC motif Protein to Heavy Metals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kamala Boonyodying

2012-06-01

Full Text Available A number of heavy metal-binding proteins have been used to study bioremediation. CXXC motif, a metal binding domain containing Cys-X-X-Cys motif, has been identified in various organisms. These proteins are capable of binding various types of heavy metals. In this study, heavy metal binding domain (CXXC motif recombinant protein encoded from mcsA gene of S. aureus were cloned and overexpressed in Escherichia coli. The factors involved in the metal-binding activity were determined in order to analyze the potential of recombinant protein for bioremediation. A recombinant protein can be bound to Cd2+, Co2+, Cu2+ and Zn2+. The thermal stability of a recombinant protein was tested, and the results showed that the metal binding activity to Cu2+ and Zn2+ still exist after treating the protein at 85ºC for 30 min. The temperature and pH that affected the metal binding activity was tested and the results showed that recombinant protein was still bound to Cu2+ at 65ºC, whereas a pH of 3-7 did not affect the metal binding E. coli harboring a pRset with a heavy metal-binding domain CXXC motif increased the resistance of heavy metals against CuCl2 and CdCl2. This study shows that metal binding domain (CXXC motif recombinant protein can be effectively bound to various types of heavy metals and may be used as a potential tool for studying bioremediation.

Characterizing heavy metal build-up on urban road surfaces: Implication for stormwater reuse

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, An; Liu, Liang; Li, Dunzhu; Guan, Yuntao

2015-01-01

Stormwater reuse is increasingly popular in the worldwide. In terms of urban road stormwater, it commonly contains toxic pollutants such as heavy metals, which could undermine the reuse safety. The research study investigated heavy metal build-up characteristics on urban roads in a typical megacity of South China. The research outcomes show the high variability in heavy metal build-up loads among different urban road sites. The degree of traffic congestion and road surface roughness was found to exert a more significant influence on heavy metal build-up rather than traffic volume. Due to relatively higher heavy metal loads, stormwater from roads with more congested traffic conditions or rougher surfaces might be suitable for low-water-quality required activities while the stormwater from by-pass road sections could be appropriate for relatively high-water-quality required purposes since the stormwater could be relatively less polluted. Based on the research outcomes, a decision-making process for heavy metals based urban road stormwater reuse was proposed. The new finding highlights the importance to undertaking a “fit-for-purpose” road stormwater reuse strategy. Additionally, the research results can also contribute to enhancing stormwater reuse safety. - Highlights: • Heavy metal (HM) build-up varies with traffic and road surface conditions. • Traffic congestion and surface roughness exert a higher impact on HM build-up. • A “fit-for-purpose” strategy could suit urban road stormwater reuse

Characterizing heavy metal build-up on urban road surfaces: Implication for stormwater reuse

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, An [Research Centre of Environmental Engineering and Management, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, 518055 Shenzhen (China); Cooperative Research and Education Centre for Environmental Technology, Kyoto University–Tsinghua University, 518055 Shenzhen (China); Liu, Liang; Li, Dunzhu [Research Centre of Environmental Engineering and Management, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, 518055 Shenzhen (China); Guan, Yuntao, E-mail: guanyt@tsinghua.edu.cn [Research Centre of Environmental Engineering and Management, Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, 518055 Shenzhen (China); School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China)

2015-05-15

Stormwater reuse is increasingly popular in the worldwide. In terms of urban road stormwater, it commonly contains toxic pollutants such as heavy metals, which could undermine the reuse safety. The research study investigated heavy metal build-up characteristics on urban roads in a typical megacity of South China. The research outcomes show the high variability in heavy metal build-up loads among different urban road sites. The degree of traffic congestion and road surface roughness was found to exert a more significant influence on heavy metal build-up rather than traffic volume. Due to relatively higher heavy metal loads, stormwater from roads with more congested traffic conditions or rougher surfaces might be suitable for low-water-quality required activities while the stormwater from by-pass road sections could be appropriate for relatively high-water-quality required purposes since the stormwater could be relatively less polluted. Based on the research outcomes, a decision-making process for heavy metals based urban road stormwater reuse was proposed. The new finding highlights the importance to undertaking a “fit-for-purpose” road stormwater reuse strategy. Additionally, the research results can also contribute to enhancing stormwater reuse safety. - Highlights: • Heavy metal (HM) build-up varies with traffic and road surface conditions. • Traffic congestion and surface roughness exert a higher impact on HM build-up. • A “fit-for-purpose” strategy could suit urban road stormwater reuse.

Some heavy metals in Luciobarbus esocinus for public consumption and consumer protection.

Science.gov (United States)

Düşükcan, M; Canpolat, Ö; Eroğlu, M

2017-09-30

In this study, the concentrations of some heavy metals were determined in the muscle of Luciobarbus esocinus Heckel, 1843 and in water where they live. The results were evaluated in term of potential human risk of consumption of this fish and the relationship between the heavy metal load of fish and some of their biological aspects (weight, length and sex). In addition, the accumulation factor of heavy metals in the muscle of L. esocinus were also determined. The Cr, Pb and Ni were not found in detectable levels according to results obtained by ICP. Only Cu, Zn and Fe were detected. It was found that heavy metals concentrations in the muscle of L. esocinus were higher than that in the water. The concentration of heavy metals showed differences according to weight, length and sex of fish. The results were discussed and compared with tolerable values for heavy metals provided from the EPA, FAO and WHO in order to determine whether this fish species has any risk for human consumption.

Heavy metals in the finest size fractions of road-deposited sediments.

Science.gov (United States)

Lanzerstorfer, Christof

2018-08-01

The concentration of heavy metals in urban road-deposited sediments (RDS) can be used as an indicator for environmental pollution. Thus, their occurrence has been studied in whole road dust samples as well as in size fractions obtained by sieving. Because of the limitations of size separation by sieving little information is available about heavy metal concentrations in the road dust size fractions heavy metals concentrations and size distribution. According to the Geoaccumulation Index the pollution of the road dust samples deceased in the following order: Sb » As > Cu ≈ Zn > Cr > Cd ≈ Pb ≈ Mn > Ni > Co ≈ V. For all heavy metals the concentration was higher in the fine size fractions compared to the coarse size fractions, while the concentration of Sr was size-independent. The enrichment of the heavy metals in the finest size fraction compared to the whole RDS  Sb > (Cu) ≈ Zn ≈ Pb > As ≈ V » Mn. The approximation of the size dependence of the concentration as a function of the particle size by power functions worked very well. The correlation between particle size and concentration was high for all heavy metals. The increased heavy metals concentrations in the finest size fractions should be considered in the evaluation of the contribution of road dust re-suspension to the heavy metal contamination of atmospheric dust. Thereby, power functions can be used to describe the size dependence of the concentration. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Heavy Metal Displacement in Chelate-Assisted Phytoremediation of Biosolids Soil

Science.gov (United States)

Kirkham, M. B.; Liphadzi, M. S.

2005-05-01

. However, the wood, which contains the xylem, from plants grown with EDTA had a higher concentration of Ni and Pb than did wood from plants grown with no EDTA. The results showed that heavy metals in soil with sludge treated with EDTA could contaminate ground water, even in the presence of plant roots. (This research is part of the dissertation of M.S. Liphadzi, who was supported by a Fulbright Fellowship.)

Nutrients and heavy metal distribution in thermally treated pig manure

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kuligowski, Ksawery; Poulsen, Tjalfe G.; Stoholm, Peder

2008-01-01

Ash from pig manure treated by combustion and thermal gasification was characterized and compared in terms of nutrient, i.e., potassium (K), phosphorus (P) and heavy metal, i.e., cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni) and zinc (Zn) contents. Total nutrient and metal concentrations...... that ash from gasified manure contained more water-extractable K in comparison with combusted manure whereas the opposite was the case with respect to P. Heavy metals Ni, Cr and Cd were present in higher concentrations in the fine particle size fractions (

Heavy metals precipitation in sewage sludge

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Marchioretto, M.M.; Rulkens, W.H.; Bruning, H.

2005-01-01

There is a great need for heavy metal removal from strongly metal-polluted sewage sludges. One of the advantages of heavy metal removal from this type of sludge is the possibility of the sludge disposal to landfill with reduced risk of metals being leached to the surface and groundwater. Another

Heavy metals in Australian grown and imported rice and vegetables on sale in Australia: health hazard.

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Rahman, M Azizur; Rahman, Mohammad Mahmudur; Reichman, Suzie M; Lim, Richard P; Naidu, Ravi

2014-02-01

Dietary exposure to heavy metals is a matter of concern for human health risk through the consumption of rice, vegetables and other major foodstuffs. In the present study, we investigated concentrations of cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), and zinc (Zn) in Australian grown and imported rice and vegetables on sale in Australia. The mean concentrations of Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn in Australian grown rice were 7.5 µg kg(-1), 21 µg kg(-1), 144 µg kg(-1), 2.9 mg kg(-1), 24.4 mg kg(-1), 166 µg kg(-1), 375 µg kg(-1), and 17.1 mg kg(-1) dry weight (d. wt.), respectively. Except Cd, heavy metal concentrations in Australian grown rice were higher than Bangladeshi rice on sale in Australia. However, the concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, and Ni in Indian rice on sale in Australia were higher than Australian grown rice. The concentrations of Cu and Ni in Vietnamese rice, and that of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Pb in Thai rice on sale in Australia were also higher than Australian grown rice. Heavy metal concentrations in Pakistani rice on sale in Australia were substantially lower than that in Australian grown rice. In Australian grown rice varieties, the concentrations of heavy metals were considerably higher in brown rice varieties than white rice varieties, indicating Australian brown rice as a potential source of dietary heavy metals for Australian consumers. The mean concentrations of heavy metals in Australian grown and Bangladeshi vegetables on sale in Australia were also determined. Some of the Australian grown and Bangladeshi vegetables contained heavy metals higher than Australian standard maximum limits indicating them as potential sources of dietary heavy metals for Australian consumers. Further investigation is required to estimate health risks of heavy metals from rice and vegetables consumption for Australian consumers. © 2013 Published by Elsevier Inc.

[Research advances in heavy metals pollution ecology of diatom].

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Teng-Da; Ni, Wan-Min; Zhang, Jian-Ying

2012-03-01

Diatom, due to its high sensitivity to environmental change, is one of the bio-indicators of aquatic ecosystem health, and some typical diatom species have been applied to indicate the heavy metals pollution of water body. With the focus on the surface water heavy metals pollution, this paper reviewed the research advances in the toxic effect of heavy metals pollution on diatom, biosorption and bioaccumulation of heavy metals by diatom, ecological adaptation mechanisms of diatom to heavy metals pollution, and roles of diatom as bio-indicator and in ecological restoration of heavy metals pollution. The growth tendency of diatom and the morphological change of frustule under heavy metals pollution as well as the differences in heavy metals biosorption and bioaccumulation by diatom, the ecological adaptation mechanisms of diatom on heavy metals surface complexation and ion exchange, and the roles of diatom as bio-indicator and in ecological restoration of heavy metals polluted water body were also discussed. This review could provide scientific evidences for the prevention of aquatic ecosystems heavy metals pollution and related early warning techniques.

Heavy metals contamination of soils in response to wastewater irrigation in Rawalpindi region

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mushtaq, N.; Khan, K.S.

2010-01-01

The study was conducted to evaluate the quality of effluents/ waste water samples from Rawalpindi region for irrigation purpose and to elucidate effects of their application on heavy metal contents in soils of area. Results indicated that the EC, SAR, RSC and TDS of most effluent/ waste water samples were above the critical limits. Cadmium and Cr were above the critical limits in almost all the effluent samples, whereas Ni was high in 14, Pb was high in 10, Cu was high in 5 and the Fe was high in 3 effluent samples as compared to critical limits. Regarding heavy metals contents of soils irrigated by these effluents/ waste water, total Fe, total Cd and total Ni were higher in almost all the sampled sites, whereas total Cr was high at 7 sampled sites. AB-DTPA extractable Fe and Zn were higher at all the sampled sites, while the extractable Cd was higher at 2 sampled sites. Overall, the effluent samples collected from Adiala showed high concentrations of heavy metals, whereas soils of Wah factory and Islamabad area had higher heavy metal contents (total and AB-DTPA extractable). On the basis of results it is concluded that quality of effluents/ waste water samples collected from different locations of Rawalpindi is not good for irrigation and the long term use of these effluents for crop production caused accumulation of some toxic metals in soils above critical limits which is harmful for soil health and may lead to elevated levels of heavy metals in crop plants. (author)

Estimation of Heavy Metal Contamination in Groundwater and Development of a Heavy Metal Pollution Index by Using GIS Technique.

Science.gov (United States)

Tiwari, Ashwani Kumar; Singh, Prasoon Kumar; Singh, Abhay Kumar; De Maio, Marina

2016-04-01

Heavy metal (Al, As, Ba, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Se and Zn) concentration in sixty-six groundwater samples of the West Bokaro coalfield were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectroscopy for determination of seasonal fluctuation, source apportionment and heavy metal pollution index (HPI). Metal concentrations were found higher in the pre-monsoon season as compared to the post-monsoon season. Geographic information system (GIS) tool was attributed to study the metals risk in groundwater of the West Bokaro coalfield. The results show that 94 % of water samples were found as low class and 6 % of water samples were in medium class in the post-monsoon season. However, 79 % of water samples were found in low class, 18 % in medium class and 3 % in high class in the pre-monsoon season. The HPI values were below the critical pollution index value of 100. The concentrations of Al, Fe, Mn, and Ni are exceeding the desirable limits in many groundwater samples in both seasons.

Characterization of Heavy metals from banana farming soils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lin, Dian; Huang, Cheng He; Huang, Dong Yi [College of Agronomy, Hainan University, Haikou City, Hainan Province (China); Ouyang, Ying [Department of Water Resources, St. Johns River Water Management District, Palatka, FL (United States)

2010-06-15

There is a growing public concern about the contamination of heavy metals in agricultural soils in China due to the increasingly applications of chemical fertilizers and pesticides during the last two decades. This study characterized the variability of heavy metals, including copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and nickel (Ni), from the banana farming soils in western Hainan Island, China. Five banana farms from different locations in the island were selected to collect 69 mixed-soil samples in this study. Experimental data showed that concentrations of Cu ranged from 3.38 to 54.52, Zn from 24.0 to 189.8, Pb from 15.98 to 58.42, Cd from 0.43 to 3.21, and Ni from 3.47 to 121.86 mg kg{sup -1} dry wt. In general, concentrations of the heavy metals varied with metal species and changed from location to location, which occurred presumably due to the variations of soil parent materials and to a certain extent due to the use of different types of agrochemicals. Our study further revealed that concentrations of Cu and Zn were higher in the banana farming soils than in the natural (control) soils among all of the five locations, whereas mixed results were observed for Pb, Cd, and Ni in both the banana farming and control soils, depending on the locations. Comparisons of the heavy metal concentrations with the Chinese Soil Quality Standards (CSQSs) showed that Cu, Zn, and Pb contents were lower but Cd and Ni contents were higher in the banana farming soils than the Class II standard of the CSQSs. Results suggested that accumulation of Cu, Zn, and Pb in the soils is safe for banana fruit production, whereas accumulation of Cd and Ni in the same soils could potentially pose threats to banana fruit safety. (Abstract Copyright [2010], Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Body burdens of heavy metals in Lake Michigan wetland turtles.

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Smith, Dayna L; Cooper, Matthew J; Kosiara, Jessica M; Lamberti, Gary A

2016-02-01

Tissue heavy metal concentrations in painted (Chrysemys picta) and snapping (Chelydra serpentina) turtles from Lake Michigan coastal wetlands were analyzed to determine (1) whether turtles accumulated heavy metals, (2) if tissue metal concentrations were related to environmental metal concentrations, and (3) the potential for non-lethal sampling techniques to be used for monitoring heavy metal body burdens in freshwater turtles. Muscle, liver, shell, and claw samples were collected from painted and snapping turtles and analyzed for cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, magnesium, manganese, and zinc. Turtle tissues had measurable quantities of all eight metals analyzed. Statistically significant correlations between tissue metal concentrations and sediment metal concentrations were found for a subset of metals. Metals were generally found in higher concentrations in the larger snapping turtles than in painted turtles. In addition, non-lethal samples of shell and claw were found to be possible alternatives to lethal liver and muscle samples for some metals. Human consumption of snapping turtles presents potential health risks if turtles are harvested from contaminated areas. Overall, our results suggest that turtles could be a valuable component of contaminant monitoring programs for wetland ecosystems.

Using Moss to Assess Airborne Heavy Metal Pollution in Taizhou, China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoli Zhou

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Bryophytes act as bioindicators and bioaccumulators of metal deposition in the environment. To understand the atmospheric deposition of heavy metals (cadmium (Cd, chromium (Cr, copper (Cu, mercury (Hg, nickel (Ni, lead (Pb, and zinc (Zn in Taizhou, East China, samples of moss (Haplocladium microphyllum were collected from 60 sites selected by a systematic sampling method during the summer of 2012, and the concentrations of these heavy metals were determined by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES. The results suggested that the concentrations of these metals varied moderately among different sites, indicating a similar contamination level for each element throughout the monitoring region. The mean values under investigation were higher than those from neighboring cities, such as Wuxi, Xuzhou, and Nanjing, and much higher than those in Europe based on a 2010 survey. Significant (p < 0.01 correlations were identified among some of the heavy metals, suggesting that these originated from identical sources. There was no statistically significant correlation between Hg and all the other elements. Spatial distribution maps of the elements over the sampled territory were created using Arc-GIS 9.0. The potential ecological risk index indicated that the air was heavily polluted by Cd and Hg, and that there was a considerable potential ecological risk from all the heavy metals studied.

Heavy metals and soil microbes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Giller, K.E.; Witter, E.; McGrath, S.

2009-01-01

The discovery in the early 1980s that soil microorganisms, and in particular the symbiotic bacteria Rhizobium, were highly sensitive to heavy metals initiated a new line of research. This has given us important insights into a range of topics: ecotoxicology, bioavailability of heavy metals, the role

Children with health impairments by heavy metals in an e-waste recycling area.

Science.gov (United States)

Zeng, Xiang; Xu, Xijin; Boezen, H Marike; Huo, Xia

2016-04-01

E-waste recycling has become a global environmental health issue. Pernicious chemicals escape into the environment due to informal and nonstandard e-waste recycling activities involving manual dismantling, open burning to recover heavy metals and open dumping of residual fractions. Heavy metals derived from electronic waste (e-waste), such as, lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), aluminum (Al) and cobalt (Co), differ in their chemical composition, reaction properties, distribution, metabolism, excretion and biological transmission. Our previous studies showed that heavy metal exposure have adverse effects on children's health including lower birth weight, lower anogenital distance, lower Apgar scores, lower current weight, lower lung function, lower hepatitis B surface antibody levels, higher prevalence of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and higher DNA and chromosome damage. Heavy metals influence a number of diverse systems and organs, resulting in both acute and chronic effects on children's health, ranging from minor upper respiratory irritation to chronic respiratory, cardiovascular, nervous, urinary and reproductive disease, as well as aggravation of pre-existing symptoms and disease. These effects of heavy metals on children's health are briefly discussed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Shells of Nerita gastropod bio-monitors of heavy metals pollution around the Indian Ocean

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Badran, M.I.

1999-01-01

Minor and heavy metals Mg, Sr, Mn, Fe and Zn were measured in individual shells of four different Nerita species collected from Phuket Island, Thailand. Shell weight and crystallography were also recorded. Heavy metal concentrations were poorly correlated with both shell weight and crystallography. Out of the four species, N. albicilla acquired the highest heavy metal concentrations. Subsequently shells of N. albicilla collected from different sites around the Indian Ocean were compared for their metal concentrations. Shells of industrial sites in Kenya and India had significantly higher heavy metal concentrations than shells from pristine sites in Mauritius and Aldabra. Discussing the factors that may affect the shell metal concentration, the variations encountered herein are best attributed to the ambient bio-available metal concentration. (author)

Selection of ectomycorrhizal willow genotype in phytoextraction of heavy metals.

Science.gov (United States)

Hrynkiewicz, Katarzyna; Baum, Christel

2013-01-01

Willow clones are used for the phytoextraction of heavy metals from contaminated soils and are usually mycorrhizal. The receptiveness of willow clones for mycorrhizal inoculum varies specific to genotype; however, it is unknown if this might have a significant impact on their efficiency in phytoextraction of heavy metals. Therefore, a model system with mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal willows of two different genotypes--one with usually stronger natural mycorrhizal colonization (Salix dasyclados), and one with lower natural mycorrhizal colonization (S. viminalis)--was investigated for its efficiency of phytoextraction of heavy metals (Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn) from contaminated soil. Inoculation with the ectomycorrhizal fungus Amanita muscaria significantly decreased the biomass of leaves of both inoculated willow clones, and increased or had no effect on the biomass of trunks and roots of S. dasyclados and S. viminalis, respectively. The concentrations of heavy metals in the biomass of S. dasyclados were in general higher than in S. viminalis irrespective of inoculation with the ectomycorrhizal fungus. Inoculation with A. muscaria significantly decreased the concentration of Cu in the trunks of both Salix taxa, but did not affected the concentrations of other heavy metals in the biomass. In conclusion, stronger receptiveness of willow clones for mycorrhizal inoculum was correlated with an increased total extraction of heavy metals from contaminated soils. Therefore, this seems to be a suitable criterion for effective willow clone selection for phytoremediation. Increased biomass production with relatively constant metal concentrations seems to be a major advantage of mycorrhizal formation of willows in phytoremediation of contaminated soils.

Heavy metals hazards from Nigerian spices.

Science.gov (United States)

Asomugha, Rose Ngozi; Udowelle, Nnaemeka Arinze; Offor, Samuel James; Njoku, Chinonso Judith; Ofoma, Ifeoma Victoria; Chukwuogor, Chiaku Chinwe; Orisakwe, Orish Ebere

Natural spices are commonly used by the people in Nigeria. They may be easily contaminated with heavy metals when they are dried and then pose a health risk for the consumers. The aim of this study was to determine the levels of heavy metals in some commonly consumed natural spices namely Prosopis Africana, Xylopia aethiopica, Piper gineense, Monodora myristica, Monodora tenuifolia and Capsicum frutescens sold in the local markets of Awka, Anambra state, South East Nigeria to estimate the potential health risk. The range of heavy metal concentration was in the order: Zn (14.09 - 161.04) > Fe (28.15 - 134.59) > Pb (2.61 - 8.97) > Cr (0.001 - 3.81) > Co (0.28 - 3.07) > Ni (0.34 - 2.89). Pb, Fe and Zn exceeded the maximum allowable concentrations for spices. The Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) of the spices varied from 0.06-0.5. Estimated daily intakes (EDI) were all below the tolerable daily intake (TDI). The lead levels in Prosopis africana, Xylopia aethiopica, Piper gineense, Monodora myristica and Capsicum frutescens which are 8-30 times higher than the WHO/FAO permissible limit of 0.3 mg/kg. Lead contamination of spices sold in Awka (south east Nigeria) may add to the body burden of lead. A good quality control for herbal food is important in order to protect consumers from contamination. food products, spices, potential toxic metals, risk assessment, public health.

[Pollution Characteristics and Potential Ecological Risk of Heavy Metals in Urban Surface Water Sediments from Yongkang].

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Peng; Yu, Shu-quan; Zhang, Chao; Liang, Li-cheng; Che, Ji-lu

2015-12-01

In order to understand the pollution characteristics of heavy metals in surface water sediments of Yongkang, we analyzed the concentrations of 10 heavy metals including Ti, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Pb and Fe in 122 sediment samples, explored the underlying source of heavy metals and then assessed the potential ecological risks of those metals by methods of the index of geo-accumulation and the potential ecological risk. The study results showed that: 10 heavy metal contents followed the order: Fe > Ti > Mn > Zn > Cr > Cu > Ph > Ni > As > Co, all heavy metals except for Ti were 1. 17 to 3.78 times higher than those of Zhejiang Jinhua- Quzhou basin natural soils background values; The concentrations of all heavy metals had a significantly correlation between each other, indicating that those heavy metals had similar sources of pollution, and it mainly came from industrial and vehicle pollutions; The pollution extent of heavy metals in sediments by geo-accumulation index (Igeo) followed the order: Cr > Zn > Ni > Cu > Fe > As > Pb >Mn > Ti, thereinto, Cr, Zn, Cu and Ni were moderately polluted or heavily polluted at some sampling sites; The potential ecological risk of 9 heavy metals in sediments were in the following order: Cu > As > Ni > Cr > Pb > Co > Zn > Mn > Ti, Cu and As contributed the most to the total potential ecological risk, accounting for 22.84% and 21. 62% , others had a total of 55.54% , through the ecological risk assessment, 89. 34% of the potential ecological risk indexes ( RI) were low and 10. 66% were higher. The contamination level of heavy metals in Yongkang was slight in total, but was heavy in local areas.

Heavy Metals Bioaccumulation by Iranian and Australian Earthworms (Eisenia fetida in the Sewage Sludge Vermicomposting

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MR Shahmansouri, H Pourmoghadas, AR Parvaresh, H Alidadi

2005-01-01

Full Text Available Vermicomposting of organic waste has an important part to play in an integrated waste management strategy. In this study, the possibility of heavy metals accumulation with two groups of Iranian and Australian earthworms in sewage sludge vermicompost was investigated. Eisenia fetida was the species of earthworms used in the vermicomposting process. The bioaccumulation of Cr, Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn as heavy metals by Iranian and Australian earthworms was studied. The results indicated that heavy metals concentration decreased with increasing vermicomposting time. Comparison of the two groups of earthworms showed that the Iranian earthworms consumed higher quantities of micronutrients such as Cu and Zn comparing with the Australian earthworms, while the bioaccumulation of non-essential elements such as Cr, Cd, and Pb by the Australian group was higher. The significant decrease in heavy metal concentrations in the final vermicompost indicated the capability of both Iranian and Australian E.fetida species in accumulating heavy metals in their body tissues.

Heavy metals contamination and their risk assessment around the abandoned base metals and Au-Ag mines in Korea

Science.gov (United States)

Chon, Hyo-Taek

2017-04-01

Heavy metals contamination in the areas of abandoned Au-Ag and base metal mines in Korea was investigated in order to assess the level of metal pollution, and to draw general summaries about the fate of toxic heavy metals in different environments. Efforts have been made to compare the level of heavy metals, chemical forms, and plant uptake of heavy metals in each mine site. In the base-metals mine areas, significant levels of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn were found in mine dump soils developed over mine waste materials and tailings. Leafy vegetables tend to accumulate heavy metals(in particular, Cd and Zn) higher than other crop plants, and high metal concentrations in rice crops may affect the local residents' health. In the Au-Ag mining areas, arsenic would be the most characteristic contaminant in the nearby environment. Arsenic and heavy metals were found to be mainly associated with sulfide gangue minerals, and the mobility of these metals would be enhanced by the effect of continuing weathering and oxidation. According to the sequential extraction of metals in soils, most heavy metals were identified as non-residual chemical forms, and those are very susceptible to the change of ambient conditions of a nearby environment. The concept of pollution index(PI) of soils gives important information on the extent and degree of multi-element contamination, and can be applied to the evaluation of mine soils before their agricultural use and remediation. The risk assessment process comprising exposure assessment, dose-response assessment, and risk characterization was discussed, and the results of non-cancer risk of As, Cd, and Zn, and those of cancer risk of As were suggested.

Persimmon leaf bio-waste for adsorptive removal of heavy metals from aqueous solution.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Seo-Yun; Choi, Hee-Jeong

2018-03-01

The aim of this study was to investigate heavy metal removal using waste biomass adsorbent, persimmon leaves, in an aqueous solution. Persimmon leaves, which are biomaterials, have a large number of hydroxyl groups and are highly suitable for removal of heavy metals. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the possibility of removal of Cu, Pb, and Cd in aqueous solution by using raw persimmon leaves (RPL) and dried persimmon leaves (DPL). Removal of heavy metals by RPL and DPL showed that DPL had a 10%-15% higher removal than RPL, and the order of removal efficiency was found to be Pb > Cu > Cd. The pseudo-second order model was a better fit to the heavy metal adsorption experiments using RPL and DPL than the pseudo-first order model. The adsorption of Cu, Pb, and Cd by DPL was more suitable with the Freundlich isothermal adsorption and showed an ion exchange reaction which occurred in the uneven adsorption surface layer. The maximum adsorption capacity of Cu, Pb, and Cd was determined to be 19.42 mg/g, 22.59 mg/g, and 18.26 mg/g, respectively. The result of the adsorption experiments showed that the n value was higher than 2 regardless of the dose, indicating that the heavy metal adsorption on DPL was easy. In the thermodynamic experiment, ΔG° was a negative value, and ΔH° and ΔS° were positive values. It can be seen that the heavy metal adsorption process using DPL was spontaneous in nature and was an endothermic process. Moreover, as the temperature increased, the adsorption increased, and the affinity of heavy metal adsorption to DPL was very good. This experiment, in which heavy metals are removed using the waste biomass of persimmon leaves is an eco-friendly new bioadsorbent method because it can remove heavy metals without using chemicals while utilizing waste recycling. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Historical trend in heavy metal pollution in core sediments from the Masan Bay, Korea.

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Jinhyung; Hyun, Sangmin; Han, J-H; Kim, Suhyun; Shin, Dong-Hyeok

2015-06-15

The spatiotemporal distribution and their mass accumulation rate (MAR) of heavy metals were investigated to evaluate the time-dependent historical trends of heavy metal concentration. The three short cores used for this study were collected from the catchment area (MS-PC5, 60cm length), the central part (MS-PC4, 40cm length) and the offshore (MS-PC2, 60cm length) of the Masan Bay, Korea. The concentration of heavy metals (Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cr and Pb) in catchment area is as much as 1.5-2 times higher than central part of the Bay, and about 2 times higher than offshore area approximately. In particular, MAR of metals (Cu, Zn and Pb) show clear spatiotemporal variation, so that MAR's of heavy metal may provide more accurate information in evaluating the degree of pollution. Temporally, the heavy metal concentration had been increased since the late 1970s, but it seems to decrease again since the 2004yr in catchment area. This may came from concentrated efforts for the government to reduce industrial waste release. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Distribution, Fraction, and Ecological Assessment of Heavy Metals in Sediment-Plant System in Mangrove Forest, South China Sea

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Ruili; Chai, Minwei; Qiu, Guo Yu

2016-01-01

Overlying water, sediment, rhizosphere sediment and mangrove seedlings in the Futian mangrove forest were analyzed for heavy metals. The results showed that mangrove plant acidified sediment and increased organic matter contents. Except for chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni) and copper (Cu) in Aegiceras corniculatum sediment, heavy metals in all sediments were higher than in overlying water, rhizosphere sediment and mangrove root. Heavy metals in Avicennia marina sediments were higher than other sediments. The lower heavy metal biological concentration factors (BCFs) and translocation factors (TFs) indicated that mangrove plant adopted exclusion strategy. The geo-accumulation index, potential ecological risk index and risk assessment code (RAC) demonstrated that heavy metals have posed a considerable ecological risk, especially for cadmium (Cd). Heavy metals (Cr, Ni, Cu and Cd) mainly existed in the reducible fractions. These findings provide actual heavy metal accumulations in sediment-plant ecosystems in mangrove forest, being important in designing the long-term management and conservation policies for managers of mangrove forest. PMID:26800267

Effect of heavy metals ondecolorization of reactive brilliant red by newly isolated microorganisms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nosheen, S.; Arshad, M.

2011-01-01

This study involves aerobic decolorisation of reactive azo dye reactive brilliant red 2KBP by newly isolated microbial strains (two bacterial and one fungal strain) in presence of heavy metals including cobalt chloride, ferric chloride, zinc sulphate, copper sulphate and nickel chloride. Many heavy metals are necessary for microbial growth and are required in very small amounts however at higher levels they become toxic. So was the objective of present work to check the effect of concentration of heavy metals on the potential of microbial strains to decolorize azo dyes. All the heavy metals under consideration were added in range of 0.5 gl-1-2.5gl/sup -1/. All heavy metals showed inhibitory effect on decolorization capacity of bacterial as well as fungal strain .At optimum conditions bacterial strains named as B1 and B2 removed 84% and 78% while fungal strain decolorized 90.4% of dye. Cobalt and nickel showed greater inhibitors on% decolorization of dyes than Zinc and iron. Fungal strain showed greater negative effect. Heavy metals might affect enzyme activities and thus reducing removal of dye. (author)

Heavy metals in municipal solid waste deposits

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Flyhammar, P.

1997-12-01

Extensive use of heavy metals in modern society influences routes followed by fluxes on the surface of the Earth. The changed flow paths may be harmful for the balance of biological systems at different levels, micro-organisms, human beings and whole ecosystems, since the toxicity of heavy metals is determined by their concentrations and chemical forms. Despite the low mobility of heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Pb, Cr, Ni and Cd) in municipal landfills, it was found that extensive transformations of the binding forms of heavy metal take place within the waste mass during the degradation of the waste. These changes appear to be closely related to the development of early diagenetic solid phases, i.e. new secondary solid phases formed in the waste. The heavy metals often constitute a minor part of these phases and the bindings include several forms such as adsorption, complexation, coprecipitation, precipitation, etc. It was also found that the associations between heavy metals and solid phases are dominated by several binding forms to one specific substrate rather than bindings to various solid phases. The mobility of iron and manganese seems to increase during the processes involved in waste degradation due to the solution of oxide/hydroxide phases, while the heavy metals appear to become less mobile due to their binding to organic compounds and sulphides. However, one exception in this case may be nickel. Another aspect of the transformation of heavy metals is the accumulation of pools of heavy metals which can become susceptible to environmental changes, such as oxidation or acidification. However, the risk of increased mobilization caused by lower pH values seem to be limited since municipal solid waste has a large buffer capacity. 66 refs, 9 figs, 3 tabs 66 refs, 9 figs, 3 tabs

Heavy metal pollution among autoworkers. II. Cadmium, chromium, copper, manganese, and nickel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Clausen, J.; Rastogi, S.C.

1977-08-01

Garages and auto-repair workshops may be polluted with other heavy metals besides lead. Blood of autoworkers with high lead content was analyzed for cadmium, chromium, copper, manganese, nickel, ALAD activity and carboxyhaemoglobin level. Cadmium and copper levels in blood of autoworkers were comparable with those of the control subjects while chromium and nickel levels were significantly higher (P < 0.01 for both metals), and scattered raised values of manganese were found. There was no significant mutual correlation between levels of various heavy metals determined in whole blood. High copper levels were slightly related to decreasing ALAD activity (P < 0.1). Nineteen percent of autoworkers were found to have an abnormally high blood level of carboxyhemoglobin. The amount of particulate heavy metal in autoworkshop air was not related to biochemical abnormalities found in the autoworkers. Various sources of pollution of these heavy metals in autoworkshops are discussed.

Peroxidase activity in Raphanus sativus and its relationship with soil heavy metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alipour, H.; Zare Myvan, H.; Sharifi, M.

2009-01-01

Today heavy metals are important environmental pollutants which generated from human activities and are one of the most important environmental stresses that cause molecular damages to plants through reactive oxygen species formation such as H2O2. Heavy metals are absorbed and accumulated by plants thus are absorbed by human bodies through the food chain. Raphanus sativus is a herbaceous plant within the Brassicaceae family that has different varieties and is used as a food plant in different parts of Iran. Peroxidase is one of the most important enzyme in oxidoreductase super family that can metabolize H2O2. In this research we studied some growth parameters, peroxidase activity and their relationships with heavy metal content and other soil factors in three different populations of radish collected from Sari, Semnan and south of Tehran. After harvesting the plants shoots and roots Peroxidase activity was assayed spectrophotometrically at 470 nm. Our results showed total heavy metal content of shomal 3 station soil and radish plants was higher than other stations, so plants collected from this station had lowest root and shoot lengths, fresh weights, dry weights, protein content and leaf collrophyll content. The peroxidase activity in both leaves and roots of these plants was higher than plants of other stations Therefore our results showed that with increasing heavy metal concentrations in soils peroxidase activity increased.

Microplastics as vector for heavy metal contamination from the marine environment

Science.gov (United States)

Brennecke, Dennis; Duarte, Bernardo; Paiva, Filipa; Caçador, Isabel; Canning-Clode, João

2016-09-01

The permanent presence of microplastics in the marine environment is considered a global threat to several marine animals. Heavy metals and microplastics are typically included in two different classes of pollutants but the interaction between these two stressors is poorly understood. During 14 days of experimental manipulation, we examined the adsorption of two heavy metals, copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), leached from an antifouling paint to virgin polystyrene (PS) beads and aged polyvinyl chloride (PVC) fragments in seawater. We demonstrated that heavy metals were released from the antifouling paint to the water and both microplastic types adsorbed the two heavy metals. This adsorption kinetics was described using partition coefficients and mathematical models. Partition coefficients between pellets and water ranged between 650 and 850 for Cu on PS and PVC, respectively. The adsorption of Cu was significantly greater in PVC fragments than in PS, probably due to higher surface area and polarity of PVC. Concentrations of Cu and Zn increased significantly on PVC and PS over the course of the experiment with the exception of Zn on PS. As a result, we show a significant interaction between these types of microplastics and heavy metals, which can have implications for marine life and the environment. These results strongly support recent findings where plastics can play a key role as vectors for heavy metal ions in the marine system. Finally, our findings highlight the importance of monitoring marine litter and heavy metals, mainly associated with antifouling paints, particularly in the framework of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD).

Reports of 5. International scientific-practical conference 'Heavy metals and radionuclides in the environment'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2008-01-01

To the collection, consisting of 3 chapters, are included more 185 reports of plenary and sectional meetings of the conference, reflecting biogeochemical problems of heavy metals and radionuclides, modeling of processes of their migration and accumulation in natural and anthropogenic landscapes; physiology-biochemical aspects of metabolism and the participation of heavy metals and radionuclides in ecology-tropic system; the sources of entering of heavy metals and radionuclides to the natural components, ecological regulation of their loadings and the organization of environment monitoring; new methods of defining of heavy metals and radionuclides in the natural objects; of top-soil and natural water polluted by heavy metals and radionuclides; bio indicational methods of evaluation the condition of natural and anthropogenic landscapes, the problems of heavy metals and radionuclides in the context of education of higher educational establishments. The materials are made for the specialists, who work in the sphere of protection of environment, biogeochemists, ecologists, hydro chemists, biologists, pedologists, scientists, teachers and students of educational institutions

Heavy Metallic Element Distribution in Cisadane River Estuary's Water and Sediment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Taufik Kaisupy

2006-04-01

Full Text Available Observation of heavy metallic elements in Cisadane River Estuary has been done in July and November 2005. The results show that heavy metallic elements content in seawater is lower and still below the treshold value stated by government for fisheries. There was an indication of heavy metallic elements on sediment. Distribution of Pb on July and of Cu on November 2005 were found higher near the coast and decrease towards the sea, and commonly were found in front of estuary such as Cisadane, Muara Saban and Tanjung Pasir. High Pb and Zn distributions on November 2005 were found only in front of Cisadane estuary. Cd distribution of Cisadane estuary was constant at all station but did not show any correlation with the distance of station and estuary. The Cd content on July and November 2005 is lower than 0,001 ppm. Generally, heavy metallic elements content have a uniform distribution at all stations inspite of its distance to estuary.

Remediating sites contaminated with heavy metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swartzbaugh, J.; Sturgill, J.; Cormier, B.; Williams, H.D.

1992-01-01

This article is intended to serve as a reference for decision makers who must choose an approach to remediate sites contaminated with heavy metals. Its purpose is to explain pertinent chemical and physical characteristics of heavy metals, how to use these characteristics to select remedial technologies, and how to interpret and use data from field investigations. Different metal species are typically associated with different industrial processes. The contaminant species behave differently in various media (i.e., groundwater, soils, air), and require different technologies for containment and treatment. We focus on the metals that are used in industries that generate regulated waste. These include steelmaking, paint and pigment manufacturing, metal finishing, leather tanning, papermaking, aluminum anodizing, and battery manufacturing. Heavy metals are also present in refinery wastes as well as in smelting wastes and drilling muds

Bioremoval of heavy metals by bacterial biomass.

Science.gov (United States)

Aryal, Mahendra; Liakopoulou-Kyriakides, Maria

2015-01-01

Heavy metals are among the most common pollutants found in the environment. Health problems due to the heavy metal pollution become a major concern throughout the world, and therefore, various treatment technologies such as reverse osmosis, ion exchange, solvent extraction, chemical precipitation, and adsorption are adopted to reduce or eliminate their concentration in the environment. Biosorption is a cost-effective and environmental friendly technique, and it can be used for detoxification of heavy metals in industrial effluents as an alternative treatment technology. Biosorption characteristics of various bacterial species are reviewed here with respect to the results reported so far. The role of physical, chemical, and biological modification of bacterial cells for heavy metal removal is presented. The paper evaluates the different kinetic, equilibrium, and thermodynamic models used in bacterial sorption of heavy metals. Biomass characterization and sorption mechanisms as well as elution of metal ions and regeneration of biomass are also discussed.

Leaching of heavy metals from steelmaking slags

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomez, J. F. P.; Pino, C. G.

2006-01-01

Leaching tests with EAF and Ladle slags were performed, using a flow through tests and the standard batch test DIN 38414-S4. The previous method was used to simulate the leaching behaviour of steel slags under landfill. the chemical analysis of the leachates during this period shows, in general, for both types of slag, and increase of heavy metal releases with ageing. Standard test method DIN 38414-S4 was used to evaluate leachability of heavy metals by water in unprocessed slags. After more than one year of trials, slang samples submitted to these trials presented very low total leaching levels. The most extracted elements are calcium and magnesium. Nevertheless, in flow-though test, calcium and magnesium leached from solid slags are below 0.5% and all other metals below 0.1%. Leachates obtained with DIN 38414-S4 present, as expected, higher leaching values; however, these are inferior to 5% (Ca) and 1% (other elements). (Author) 12 refs

Present status and future perspective of R and D on lead heavy metal-cooled fast reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahashi, Minoru

2007-01-01

Since a lead heavy metal (lead-bismuth eutectic) is chemically inert and has higher boiling point compared to a sodium, a lead heavy metal-cooled fast reactor can be inherently safe and has good nuclear characteristics and is so suitable to a medium-small size of the reactor. R and D on corrosion of a lead heavy metal has been carried out in the world and this issue might be solved to choose specific corrosion resistant alloys for structural materials and fuel cans of a lead heavy metal-cooled reactor. This article reviews present status and future perspective on lead heavy metal-cooled fast reactors. (T. Tanaka)

Transfer of heavy metals through terrestrial food webs: a review.

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Gall, Jillian E; Boyd, Robert S; Rajakaruna, Nishanta

2015-04-01

Heavy metals are released into the environment by both anthropogenic and natural sources. Highly reactive and often toxic at low concentrations, they may enter soils and groundwater, bioaccumulate in food webs, and adversely affect biota. Heavy metals also may remain in the environment for years, posing long-term risks to life well after point sources of heavy metal pollution have been removed. In this review, we compile studies of the community-level effects of heavy metal pollution, including heavy metal transfer from soils to plants, microbes, invertebrates, and to both small and large mammals (including humans). Many factors contribute to heavy metal accumulation in animals including behavior, physiology, and diet. Biotic effects of heavy metals are often quite different for essential and non-essential heavy metals, and vary depending on the specific metal involved. They also differ for adapted organisms, including metallophyte plants and heavy metal-tolerant insects, which occur in naturally high-metal habitats (such as serpentine soils) and have adaptations that allow them to tolerate exposure to relatively high concentrations of some heavy metals. Some metallophyte plants are hyperaccumulators of certain heavy metals and new technologies using them to clean metal-contaminated soil (phytoextraction) may offer economically attractive solutions to some metal pollution challenges. These new technologies provide incentive to catalog and protect the unique biodiversity of habitats that have naturally high levels of heavy metals.

Carbonization of heavy metal impregnated sewage sludge oriented towards potential co-disposal.

Science.gov (United States)

Dou, Xiaomin; Chen, Dezhen; Hu, Yuyan; Feng, Yuheng; Dai, Xiaohu

2017-01-05

Sewage sludge (SS) is adopted as a stabilizer to immobilize externally impregnated heavy metals through carbonization oriented towards the co-disposal of SS and some hazardous wastes. Firstly Cu and Pb were impregnated into SS to ascertain the impregnating capacity and leaching behaviours of heavy metals in the resulting sewage sludge char (SSC). Meanwhile, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were employed to detect the heavy metal phase in the SSC. The results showed that within 400-800°C and an impregnating concentration ≨0.5wt%, more than 90% of the externally impregnated Cu and Pb were remained in the SSC and immobilized. And higher temperatures helped produce non-hazardous SSC. In addition, SEM and XRD analyses revealed that externally impregnated heavy metals could be converted into stable forms and evenly distributed throughout the SSC. In the second step municipal solid waste incineration fly ash (FA) was kneaded into SS and subjected to carbonization; it has been proved that the heavy metals in FA can be well immobilized in the resulting char when FA: SS mass ratio is 1:5. Those results show that sewage sludge can be co-carbonized with wastes contaminated with heavy metals to achieve co-disposal. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Heavy Metal Poisoning and Cardiovascular Disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eman M. Alissa

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Cardiovascular disease (CVD is an increasing world health problem. Traditional risk factors fail to account for all deaths from CVD. It is mainly the environmental, dietary and lifestyle behavioral factors that are the control keys in the progress of this disease. The potential association between chronic heavy metal exposure, like arsenic, lead, cadmium, mercury, and CVD has been less well defined. The mechanism through which heavy metals act to increase cardiovascular risk factors may act still remains unknown, although impaired antioxidants metabolism and oxidative stress may play a role. However, the exact mechanism of CVD induced by heavy metals deserves further investigation either through animal experiments or through molecular and cellular studies. Furthermore, large-scale prospective studies with follow up on general populations using appropriate biomarkers and cardiovascular endpoints might be recommended to identify the factors that predispose to heavy metals toxicity in CVD. In this review, we will give a brief summary of heavy metals homeostasis, followed by a description of the available evidence for their link with CVD and the proposed mechanisms of action by which their toxic effects might be explained. Finally, suspected interactions between genetic, nutritional and environmental factors are discussed.

Investigation of heavy metal pollutants at various depths in the Gulf of Izmit

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ergül, Halim Aytekin; Varol, Tolga; Ay, Ümit

2013-01-01

Highlights: • Monitoring seasonal variations in heavy metal pollution. • Heavy metal levels according to depth in seawater from the Gulf of Izmit. • Industrial activity and biological life co-exist in Izmit Bay. -- Abstract: In this study, we report results concerning the accumulation of heavy metals in seawater from Izmit Bay. The bay was divided into the three parts: the eastern, the central and the western basins. The goal of this study was to determine levels of heavy metals at various depths in the bay between April 2008 and May 2010. Liquid–liquid extractions were performed on seawater samples. An atomic absorption spectrophotometer was used to measure levels of six metals: lead, cadmium, chromium, iron, manganese and zinc. We applied our results to evaluate the status of pollution in the Gulf of Izmit. Significant seasonal differences in metal concentrations and higher concentrations of many metals in water near the shore are evidence for uncontrolled release of pollutants in the water

Bioassessment of heavy metal toxicity and enhancement of heavy metal removal by sulfate-reducing bacteria in the presence of zero valent iron.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Jing; Kang, Yong; Feng, Ying

2017-12-01

A simple and valid toxicity evaluation of Zn 2+ , Mn 2+ and Cr 6+ on sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and heavy metal removal were investigated using the SRB system and SRB+Fe 0 system. The heavy metal toxicity coefficient (β) and the heavy metal concentration resulting in 50% inhibition of sulfate reduction (I) from a modeling process were proposed to evaluate the heavy metal toxicity and nonlinear regression was applied to search for evaluation indices β and I. The heavy metal toxicity order was Cr 6+  > Mn 2+  > Zn 2+ . Compared with the SRB system, the SRB+Fe 0 system exhibited a better capability for sulfate reduction and heavy metal removal. The heavy metal removal was above 99% in the SRB+Fe 0 system, except for Mn 2+ . The energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analysis showed that the precipitates were removed primarily as sulfide for Zn 2+ and hydroxide for Mn 2+ and Cr 6+ .The method of evaluating the heavy metal toxicity on SRB was of great significance to understand the fundamentals of the heavy metal toxicity and inhibition effects on the microorganism and regulate the process of microbial sulfate reduction. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A novel method for the sequential removal and separation of multiple heavy metals from wastewater.

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, Li; Li, Liang; Qu, Zan; Xu, Haomiao; Xu, Jianfang; Yan, Naiqiang

2018-01-15

A novel method was developed and applied for the treatment of simulated wastewater containing multiple heavy metals. A sorbent of ZnS nanocrystals (NCs) was synthesized and showed extraordinary performance for the removal of Hg 2+ , Cu 2+ , Pb 2+ and Cd 2+ . The removal efficiencies of Hg 2+ , Cu 2+ , Pb 2+ and Cd 2+ were 99.9%, 99.9%, 90.8% and 66.3%, respectively. Meanwhile, it was determined that solubility product (K sp ) of heavy metal sulfides was closely related to adsorption selectivity of various heavy metals on the sorbent. The removal efficiency of Hg 2+ was higher than that of Cd 2+ , while the K sp of HgS was lower than that of CdS. It indicated that preferential adsorption of heavy metals occurred when the K sp of the heavy metal sulfide was lower. In addition, the differences in the K sp of heavy metal sulfides allowed for the exchange of heavy metals, indicating the potential application for the sequential removal and separation of heavy metals from wastewater. According to the cumulative adsorption experimental results, multiple heavy metals were sequentially adsorbed and separated from the simulated wastewater in the order of the K sp of their sulfides. This method holds the promise of sequentially removing and separating multiple heavy metals from wastewater. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Environmental and Body Concentrations of Heavy Metals at Sites Near and Distant from Industrial Complexes in Ulsan, Korea.

Science.gov (United States)

Sung, Joo Hyun; Oh, Inbo; Kim, Ahra; Lee, Jiho; Sim, Chang Sun; Yoo, Cheolin; Park, Sang Jin; Kim, Geun Bae; Kim, Yangho

2018-01-29

Industrial pollution may affect the heavy metal body burden of people living near industrial complexes. We determined the average concentrations of atmospheric heavy metals in areas close to and distant from industrial complexes in Korea, and the body concentrations of these heavy metals in residents living near and distant from these facilities. The atmospheric data of heavy metals (lead and cadmium) were from the Regional Air Monitoring Network in Ulsan. We recruited 1,148 participants, 872 who lived near an industrial complex ("exposed" group) and 276 who lived distant from industrial complexes ("non-exposed" group), and measured their concentrations of blood lead, urinary cadmium, and urinary total mercury. The results showed that atmospheric and human concentrations of heavy metals were higher in areas near industrial complexes. In addition, residents living near industrial complexes had higher individual and combined concentrations (cadmium + lead + mercury) of heavy metals. We conclude that residents living near industrial complexes are exposed to high concentrations of heavy metals, and should be carefully monitored. © 2018 The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences.

Effects of heavy metals (other than mercury) on marine and estuarine organisms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bryan, G W

1971-01-01

Heavy metals such as copper, zinc and lead are normal constituents of marine and estuarine environments. When additional quantities are introduced from industrial wastes or sewage they enter the biogeochemical cycle and, as a result of being potentially toxic, may interfere with the ecology of a particular environment. In different marine organisms, the behavior of heavy metals is described in terms of their absorption, storage, excretion and regulation when different concentrations are available in the environment. At higher concentrations, the detrimental effects of heavy metals become apparent and their different toxic effects and factors affecting them are also described. 78 references, 9 figures, 4 tables.

Heavy metals contamination of soil and fodder: a possible risk to livestock

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahmad, K.; Shaheen, M.; Khan, Z.I.

2013-01-01

Heavy metals are significant ecological pollutant, principally in areas with sky-scraping anthropogenic stress. Their existence in the environment, soil and water, still in traces can cause severe tribulations to all organisms; heavy metal bioaccumulation in the food chain particularly can be extremely hazardous to animal and human health. Heavy metals generally come into the body by breathing and eating, ingestion being the most important route of contact to these elements in animals. The current study was conducted to examine lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd) and chromium (Cr) in the soil and fodders. Representative samples of soil were collected during two different seasons from two different sites, known as feeding sites for ruminants and analysed for heavy metals after wet digestion, using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The results showed that location and season had a significant effect (P>0.001) on soil and heavy metal concentrations. Soil and forage Pb, Cd, and Cr concentrations were higher in summer than in winter. From the results of the current study, it was determined that all the metals in soil were lower than deadly levels, posing no probable threat to both plant and animal life. There is an incessant need for monitoring the bioavailability of these heavy metals to grazing livestock, principally in summer season when these metals were found in relatively elevated concentrations, so that their possible toxic consequence to the grazing livestock can not be permitted. Agronomic practices, such as, manure and water managements as well as crop alternation system, can affect bioavailability and crop accretion of heavy metals, thus influencing the thresholds for assessing nutritional toxicity of heavy metals in the foodstuff. This study would be important for livestock owners and scientists working in extension services in Pakistan and other countries with same ecological condition. (author)

[Comparison of heavy metal elements between natural and plantation forests in a subtropical Montane forest].

Science.gov (United States)

Nie, Ming; Wan, Jia-Rong; Chen, Xiao-Feng; Wang, Li; Li, Bo; Chen, Jia-Kuan

2011-11-01

Heavy metals as one of major pollutants is harmful to the health of forest ecosystems. In the present paper, the concentrations of thirteen heavy metals (Fe, Al, Ti, Cr, Cu, Mn, V, Zn, Ni, Co, Pb, Se and Cd) were compared between natural and plantation forests in the Mt. Lushan by ICP-AES and atomic absorption spectroscopy. The results suggest that the soil of natural forest had higher concentrations of Fe, Al, Ti, Cu, Mn, V, Zn, Ni, Co, Pb, Se, and Cd than the plantation forest except for Cr. The soil of natural forest had a higher level of heavy metals than that of the plantation forest as a whole. This might be due to that the natural forest has longer age than the plantation forest, and fixed soil heavy metals take a longer period of time than the plantation forest.

Decontamination of soils polluted with heavy metals using plants as determined by nuclear technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lotfy, S.M

2010-01-01

The objectives of this work were three folds. First, to study the mobility and fate of heavy metals in two polluted sites (Mostorud soil, irrigated with contaminated water for more than 30 years and El-Gabal EL-Asfar soil, subjected to sewage effluent irrigation for more than 50 years) utilizing a modified tessier's sequential extraction procedure to evaluate the effect of total metal concentrations on metal partitioning into different fractions. Second, to evaluate the efficiency of some plant species (sunflower, cotton, penakium, Napier grass, and Squash) to extract heavy metals out of polluted soils. Third, to enhance the phyto-extraction of heavy metals by sunflower plant using some chemical chelators (citric acids, EDTA, and Ammonium nitrate) in order to improve the remediation of pollutants as well as to protect soil quality.It was observed that the distribution of heavy metals in various chemical fractions depends on the total heavy metals content. The distribution of heavy metals forms in the studied soils was in the following decreasing order: residual > Fe-Mn oxides > carbonates > organic > exchangeable > water soluble.Either higher metal accumulation in shoots or enhanced metal accumulation in roots was mainly due to improved phyto-extraction or rhizo-filtration efficiency, respectively. Heavy metals accumulation in shoots and roots of the investigated plant species was as follow: sunflower > cotton > penakium > Napier grass > Squash with a lower order of magnitude. Sunflower showed superiority for heavy metals extraction.Application of chemical chelators (soil amendments) enhanced the phyto-extraction efficiency of heavy metals by sunflower in both Mostorud and El-Gabal El-Asfar soils. Citric acid enhanced metals accumulation in shoots and roots more than EDTA and ammonium nitrate. Citric acid with rate of 20 m mole/kg soil was the best chelators to enhance phyto- extraction of heavy metals by sunflower.

Correlation between heavy metal contents and antioxidants in medicinal plants grown in mining areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maharia, R.; Dutta, R.K.; Acharya, R.; Reddy, A.V.R.

2010-01-01

Full texts: Medicinal plants are widely used as alternate therapeutic agents for various diseases. Three medicinal plants grown in copper mining regions of Khetri in Rajasthan was analyzed for heavy metal contents by instrumental neutron activation analysis. The copper levels were found to be two to three folds higher in these plant leaves as compared to the reported copper levels in the medicinal plants grown in environmentally friendly regions. In our previous study on heavy metals in soil and medicinal plant of Khetri region we have shown bioaccumulation of Cu in the medicinal plants. In addition, the levels of Cr, Fe and Zn were also higher. Antioxidant properties of medicinal plants are one of their major therapeutic functionalities. The role of elevated levels of heavy metals in the medicinal plants was studied with respect to their antioxidant properties. Standard procedures were used for measuring total phenols, flavanoids and DPPH assay of these medicinal plants which were correlated with the heavy metals contents of these plants

Performance of Raphidocelis subcapitata exposed to heavy metal mixtures.

Science.gov (United States)

Expósito, Nora; Kumar, Vikas; Sierra, Jordi; Schuhmacher, Marta; Giménez Papiol, Gemma

2017-12-01

Microalgae growth inhibition assays are candidates for referent ecotoxicological assays, and are a fundamental part in the strategy to reduce the use of fish and other animal models in aquatic toxicology. In the present work, the performance of Raphidocelis subcapitata exposed to heavy metals following standardized growth inhibition assays has been assessed in three different scenarios: 1) dilutions of single heavy metals, 2) artificial mixture of heavy metals at similar levels than those found in natural rivers and, 3) natural samples containing known mixtures of contaminants (heavy metals). Chemical speciation of heavy metals has been estimated with Eh-pH diagram and Visual MINTEQ software; heavy metal and free heavy metal ion concentrations were used as input data, together with microalgae growth inhibition, for Dr. Fit software. The final goal was to assess the suitability of the ecotoxicological test based on the growth inhibition of microalgae cultures, and the mathematic models based on these results, for regulatory and decision-making purposes. The toxicity of a given heavy metal is not only determined by its chemical speciation; other chemical and biological interaction play an important role in the final toxicity. Raphidocelis subcapitata 48h-h-EC50 for tested heavy metals (especially Cu and Zn) were in agreement with previous studies, when ion metal bioavailability was assumed to be 100%. Nevertheless, the calculated growth inhibition was not in agreement with the obtained inhibition when exposed to the artificial mixture of heavy metals or the natural sample. Interactions between heavy metal ions and the compounds of the culture media and/or the natural sample determine heavy metal bioavailability, and eventually their toxicity. More research is needed for facing the challenge posed by pollutant mixtures as they are present in natural environments, and make microalgae-based assays suitable for pollution management and regulatory purposes. Copyright �

[Evaluation of soil heavy metals accumulation in the fast economy development region].

Science.gov (United States)

Zhong, Xian-Lan; Zhou, Sheng-Lu; Li, Jiang-Tao; Zhao, Qi-Guo

2010-06-01

Evaluation of soil heavy metals accumulation was studied in Kunshan City, a typical region of the fast economy development region in China. 126 soil samples were collected and analyzed, and evaluation indexes of soil heavy metal accumulation, which including total concentration of soil heavy metal index (THMI), soil available heavy metal index (AHMI) and fractionation of soil heavy metal index (FHMI), were established, and the heavy metal accumulation conditions of soil in this region were also discussed. Results showed as follows: the spatial variability of THMI was relative lower, with a mean value of 42.57%, whereas strong variability was found in AHMI and FHMI (especially active fraction of soil heavy metals), with the average value of 82.75% and 77.83%, respectively. Judging by each index reference standard of C Horizon, THMI was low-grade with a mean value of 1.01, while the AHMI and FHMI reached to medium accumulation and serious accumulation, with the average values of 2.46 and 4.32, respectively. The synthetic accumulation index of soil heavy metals (SHMI) was 2.56, reaching to medium grade level and with strong variability. 21.54% land area was in low-grade accumulation and 54.70% land area was in medium grade accumulation, while 23.76% land area was in serious accumulation under SHMI evaluation system. All the accumulation evaluation indexes in livestock breeding zone were the lowest, while the indexes in the smelting and plating zone were the highest, but the indexes difference between two zones were unobvious. There were markedly differences in soil types, which the accumulation indexes in Wushan soil were significantly higher than those in Huangni soil and Qingni soil.

Distribution and source apportionment studies of heavy metals in soil of cotton/wheat fields.

Science.gov (United States)

Rafique, Nazia; Tariq, Saadia R

2016-05-01

Heavy metals enriched agricultural soils have been the subject of great concern because these metals have potential to be transferred to the soil solution and afterward accumulated in food chain. To study the trace metal persistence in crop soil, 90 representative soil samples were collected and analyzed for heavy metal (As, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) and anions (chloride, nitrates, phosphates and sulfates). Cluster and factor analysis techniques were used for the source identification of these excessive heavy metal levels and ecological risk was determined with potential ecological risk assessment. The degree of enrichment of eight studied heavy metals in comparison with the corresponding background levels decreased in order: Cd > Pb > Fe > Ni > Mn > As > Cu ~ Zn. Arsenic and cadmium exhibited 1.30- and 1.64-fold exceeded levels than threshold limits set by National environment quality standards, respectively. Cd in cotton field's soil may lead to higher potential risk than other heavy metals. On overall basis, the cumulative mean potential ecological risk for the district (207.75) corresponded to moderate risk level with higher contributions from As and Pb especially from Cd. Cadmium formed strong positive correlation with phosphate content of soil at p < 0.01. Cluster analysis indicated that Cluster 1 (extremely polluted) probably originated from anthropogenic inputs of phosphate fertilizer and past usage of arsenical pesticides.

Atmospheric heavy metal deposition in the Copenhagen area

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Andersen, A; Hovmand, M F; Johnsen, I

1978-10-01

Transport of heavy metals from the atmosphere to the soil and vegetation takes place by dust fall, bulk precipitation, and gas/aerosol adsorption processes. Atmospheric dry and wet deposition of the heavy metals lead, zinc, nickel, vanadium, iron, and copper over the Copenhagen area was measured by sampling in plastic funnels from 17 stations throughout the area for 12 months. Epigeic bryophytes, epiphytic lichen, and topsoil samples were analyzed. A linear correlation between bulk precipitation and heavy metal concentration in lichens and bryophytes was found. An exponential correlation between bulk precipitation and heavy metal concentration in soil was noted. Regional variation of the heavy metal levels in the Copenhagen area was described, and three sub-areas with high metal burdens were distinguished. (10 diagrams, 8 graphs, 13 references, 2 tables)

Effects of heavy metals on soil microbial community

Science.gov (United States)

Chu, Dian

2018-02-01

Soil is one of the most important environmental natural resources for human beings living, which is of great significance to the quality of ecological environment and human health. The study of the function of arable soil microbes exposed to heavy metal pollution for a long time has a very important significance for the usage of farmland soil. In this paper, the effects of heavy metals on soil microbial community were reviewed. The main contents were as follows: the effects of soil microbes on soil ecosystems; the effects of heavy metals on soil microbial activity, soil enzyme activities and the composition of soil microbial community. In addition, a brief description of main methods of heavy metal detection for soil pollution is given, and the means of researching soil microbial community composition are introduced as well. Finally, it is concluded that the study of soil microbial community can well reflect the degree of soil heavy metal pollution and the impact of heavy metal pollution on soil ecology.

[Investigation and analysis of heavy metal pollution related to soil-Panax notoginseng system].

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Lu; Mi, Yan-Hua; Lin, Xin; Liu, Da-Hui; Zeng, Min; Chen, Xiao-Yan

2014-07-01

In this study, five heavy metals contamination of soil and different parts of Panax notoginseng in the plantation area was investigated. Analysis of heavy metals correlation between the planting soil and P. notoginseng; and the absorption and accumulation characteristics and translocation of soil heavy metals by P. notoginseng plants was revealed. Through field investigation and laboratory analytical methods, analysis of China's 30 different soil P. notoginseng origin and content of heavy metals in five different parts of the P. notoginseng plant content of heavy metals. The results revealed that the soil heavy metals should not be neglected in the plantation area Referring to the national soil quality standards (GB15608-1995), the excessive degree of soil heavy metals pollution showed Hg > As > Cd > Cr in the plantation area, and Pb content of soil was in the scope of the standard. Refer to 'Green Industry Standards for Import and Export of Medical Plants and Preparations', the excessive degree of heavy metals content of P. notoginseng plants showed As > Pb > Cr > Cd, and Hg content of plants was in the scope of the standard. Concentrations of five heavy metals of underground parts of P. notoginseng plants are higher than aboveground, and heavy metals elements are more concentrated in the root, followed by the rhizome of P. notoginseng plants. Heavy metal accumulation characteristics of the different parts of the P. notoginseng of the overall performance is the root > the rhizome > the root tuber > leaves > stems. From the point of view BCF value analysis of various parts of the P. notoginseng plants to absorb heavy metals in soil, BCF values of all samples were less than 1, description P. notoginseng not belong Hyperaccumulator. From the view of transportation and related analysis of the soil-P. notoginseng systems, the rhizome of P. notoginseng and the content of As and Cr in soil was significantly correlated, the root of P. notoginseng and the content of Cd in

Heavy metals pollution status in surface sediments (rivers and artifical lakes, Serbia)

Science.gov (United States)

Sakan, Sanja; Đorđević, Dragana

2017-04-01

Potentially hazardous trace elements, often in literature referred as "heavy metals", are deemed serious pollutants due to their toxicity, persistence and non-degradability in the environment. These elements play an important role in extent of water pollution and threaten the health of populations and ecosystems. As the sink of heavy metals, sediment beds adsorb metals in quantities that are many times higher than those found in the water column in the long-term polluted water environment. It is believed that most of the metal content, as much as 90% in aquatic sediments is bound to sediments. Metal contamination in these sediments could be directly affect the river water quality, resulting in potential consequences to the sensitive lowest levels of the food chain and ultimately to human health. The objective of this research was the evaluation of heavy metal contamination level in sediments of the most important rivers and artificial lakes in Serbia. The heavy metal enrichment in studied sediments was conducted by using: determination of total metal content, sequential extraction procedure for the fractionation of studied elements, quantification of the metal enrichment degree in the sediments by calculating geo-accumulation indices, determination of actual and potential element availability and application of BRAI index for the assessment of heavy metal bioavailability. The sediments were found to be contaminated by heavy metals to various extents, mostly with Cd, Cu, and Zn. The significant variation in heavy metal distribution among samples collected in this large region, encompassing all Serbian watersheds, suggests the selective contamination of sediments by heavy metals. Elevated concentrations of elements in most cases were detected in samples of river sediments, since artificial lake reservoirs are usually built in rural areas, where the less anthropogenic pollution. Rivers often flow through the towns and these water basins less or more loaded

Heavy metal accumulation in soils, plants, and hair samples: an assessment of heavy metal exposure risks from the consumption of vegetables grown on soils previously irrigated with wastewater.

Science.gov (United States)

Massaquoi, Lamin Daddy; Ma, Hui; Liu, Xue Hui; Han, Peng Yu; Zuo, Shu-Mei; Hua, Zhong-Xian; Liu, Dian-Wu

2015-12-01

It is common knowledge that soils irrigated with wastewater accumulate heavy metals more than those irrigated with cleaner water sources. However, little is known on metal concentrations in soils and cultivars after the cessation of wastewater use. This study assessed the accumulation and health risk of heavy metals 3 years post-wastewater irrigation in soils, vegetables, and farmers' hair. Soils, vegetables, and hair samples were collected from villages previously irrigating with wastewater (experimental villages) and villages with no history of wastewater irrigation (control villages). Soil samples were digested in a mixture of HCL/HNO3/HCLO4/HF. Plants and hair samples were digested in HNO3/HCLO4 mixture. Inductive coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES) was used to determine metal concentrations of digested extracts. Study results indicate a persistence of heavy metal concentration in soils and plants from farms previously irrigated with wastewater. In addition, soils previously irrigated with wastewater were severely contaminated with cadmium. Hair metal concentrations of farmers previously irrigating with wastewater were significantly higher (P metal concentrations in hair samples of farmers previously irrigating with wastewater were not associated with current soil metal concentrations. The study concludes that there is a persistence of heavy metals in soils and plants previously irrigated with wastewater, but high metal concentrations in hair samples of farmers cannot be associated with current soil metal concentrations.

Selected Heavy Metals Content in Soil and Arundina graminifolia from Pelepah Kanan Mine, Kota Tinggi, Johor, Malaysia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sahibin Abdul Rahim; Zulfahmi Ali Rahman; Wan Mohd Razi Idris; Azman Hashim; Tukimat Lihan; Muhd Barzani Gasim; Jumaat Adam; Lim, F.N.

2009-01-01

Heavy metals composition of Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb and Zn in Arundina graminifolia collected from mining area at Lombong Pelepah Kanan, Kota Tinggi, Johor were determined. The heavy metal content was also analysed in their soil substrates. The plants were separated into different portions for example root, stem and leaf and extracted for their heavy metal content by digestion method whereas the soils heavy metal content was extracted by sequential extraction. Heavy metal content in soil and plant extract was determined using the Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. Heavy metal contents of Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb in plants were compared with their content in the control plant, whereas the Co and Zn contents were three to five folds higher. As for heavy metal content in different plant parts, it was found that Cd concentration was high in roots (2.03 mg/ kg) followed by leaf (1.67 mg/ kg) and stem (1.49 mg/ kg). Co concentration was high in leaf (9.26 mg/ kg) followed by root (9.18 mg/ kg) and stem (6.94 mg/ kg). For Cr, the concentration in decreasing sequence was root (0.46 mg/ kg) > leaf (0.19 mg/ kg) > stem (0.08 mg/ kg). Ni concentration was higher in leaf (2.78 mg/ kg) followed by root (2.71 mg/ kg) and stem (1.66 mg/ kg). Concentration in decreasing order was root (10.34 mg/ kg) > leaf (4.18 mg/ kg) > stem (3.75 mg/ kg). Zn concentration was higher in leaf (44.03 mg/ kg) followed by root (32.30 mg/ kg) and stem (13.21 mg/ kg). Total heavy metal content in soil was 2.07 - 5.59 mg/ kg, 8.72 - 39.93 mg/ kg, 1.81 - 2.14 mg/ kg, 2.66 - 6.87 mg/ kg, 23.02 - 51.56 mg/ kg and 0.64 - 2.61 mg/ kg for Ni, Zn, Cd, Pb, Co and Cr, respectively. The available fraction of heavy metals in soil was 21.9 % for Ni, 15.3 % for Zn, 49.9 % for Cd, 19.3 % for Pb, 45.7 % for Co and nil percent for Cr. Biological adsorption coefficient for the heavy metals studied was very low except for Zn where BAC value slightly higher than 1. This plant was not suitable to be used as a phyto

One-century sedimentary record of heavy metal pollution in western Taihu Lake, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yan; Zhou, Shenglu; Zhu, Qing; Li, Baojie; Wang, Junxiao; Wang, Chunhui; Chen, Lian; Wu, Shaohua

2018-05-16

Long-term trends of sediment compositions are important for assessing the impact of human activities on the sediment and protecting the sediment environment. In this study, based on the contents of heavy metals and the Pb isotope ratios in lake sediments, atmospheric dustfall and soil in Yixing, China, the representative heavy metals (Zn, Pb, Cr and Cd) in lake sediments from western Taihu Lake were studied. The evolution history of heavy metals in the local environment was constructed for the past 100 years. From 1892 to the 1990s, the anthropogenic fluxes of the representative heavy metals were negligible, indicating minimal anthropogenic emissions of heavy metals. Since the 1990s, anthropogenic fluxes of the representative heavy metals began to increase, concurrent with the economic growth and development in the western Taihu Lake Basin after the Chinese economic reform. The maximum flux percentage of the heavy metals in the sediments, caused by human activities, is 23.0% for Zn, 31.6% for Pb, 39.5% for Cr and 85.3% for Cd, indicating that most of the Cd comes from human activities. The Cd content in the western Taihu Lake Basin was significantly higher than that in the other areas, and the rapid development of the industry in the western Taihu Lake Basin and ceramics in Yixing led to the enrichment of heavy metals in local sediments. Since the 21st century, measures have been taken to control the pollution of heavy metals, including the increase in local government attention and the deployment of environmental monitoring technology. However, heavy metal content remains high, and the Pb content is still increasing. The ratios of Pb isotopes show that the main sources of heavy metals in the western Taihu Lake sediments, the local soil of Yixing and the atmospheric dustfall are coal combustion, leaded gasoline combustion, industrial wastewater and domestic sewage. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electrodialytic removal of heavy metals from different fly ashes. Influence of heavy metal speciation in the ashes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Anne Juul; Ottosen, Lisbeth M.; Villumsen, Arne

2003-01-01

Electrodialytic Remediation has recently been suggested as a potential method for removal of heavy metals from fly ashes. In this work electrodialytic remediation of three different fly ashes, i.e. two municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) fly ashes and one wood combustion fly ash was studied...... in lab scale, and the results were discussed in relation to the expected heavy metal speciation in the ashes. In initial leaching experiments the pH-dependent desorption characteristics of the heavy metals Cd, Pb, Zn and Cu were analogous in the two MSWI ashes, and thus it was expected......-moval efficiencies were observed, especially for Pb and Zn. Cd, the sole heavy metal of environmental concern in the wood ash, was found more tightly bonded in this ash than in the two MSWI ashes. It was suggested that complex Cd-silicates are likely phases in the wood ash whereas more soluble, condensed phases...

An optimised method for electrodialytic removal of heavy metals from harbour sediments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Kristine B.; Jensen, Pernille Erland; Ottosen, Lisbeth M.

2015-01-01

A 2-compartment electrodialytic cell set-up for treatment of solid materials has in many respects proven superior to other types of cells in removing heavy metals from sediments. Most notably, remediation times were shorter, energy consumption was lower and higher removal efficiencies were observed....... By employing m1ultivariate modelling and investigating additional experimental variables, the relative importance of variables effecting remediation was determined and response surfaces for heavy metal removal were calculated. Employing optimal conditions it was possible to remove targeted metals (Pb, Cu, Zn...

Bioethanol production from recovered napier grass with heavy metals.

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Chun-Han; Yu, Fan-Chun; Chang, Fang-Chih; Yang, Bing-Yuan; Chen, Wen-Hua; Hwang, Wen-Song; Tu, Ta-Chih

2017-12-01

Using plants to absorb and accumulate heavy metals from polluted soil, followed by the recycling of explants containing heavy metals, can help achieve the goal of reverting contaminated soil to low heavy-metal content soil. However, the re-use of recovered explants can also be problematic. Meanwhile, bioethanol has become a popular energy source. In this study, napier grass was used for the remediation of soil contaminated with heavy metals (artificially contaminated soil). The influence of bioethanol production from napier grass after phytoremediation was also investigated. The concentration of Zn, Cd, and Cr in the contaminated soil was 1000, 100, and 250 mg/kg, respectively. After napier grass phytoremediation, the concentration (dry biomass) of Zn, Cd, and Cr in the explants was 2701.97 ± 173.49, 6.1 ± 2.3, and 74.24 ± 1.42 mg/kg, respectively. Biomass production in the unpolluted soil was 861.13 ± 4.23 g. The biomass production ratio in high Zn-polluted soil was only 3.89%, while it was 4.68% for Cd and 21.4% for Cr. The biomass obtained after napier grass phytoremediation was pretreated using the steam explosion conditions of 180 °C, for 10 min, with 1.5% H 2 SO 2 , followed by enzymatic hydrolysis. The efficiency of enzymatic hydrolysis for Zn-polluted biomass was 90% of the unpolluted biomass, while it was 77% for Cd, and approximately the same for Cr. The fermentation efficiency of the heavy-metal-containing biomass was higher than the control biomass. The fermentation ethanol concentration obtained was 8.69-12.68, 13.03-15.50, and 18.48-19.31 g/L in Zn, Cd, and Cr environments, respectively. Results show that the heavy metals had a positive effect on bacteria fermentation. However, the fermentation efficiency was lower for biomass with severe heavy metal pollution. Thus, the utilization of napier grass phytoremediation for bioethanol production has a positive effect on the sustainability of environmental resources. Copyright © 2017

Sewage sludge pyrolysis - the distribution of heavy metals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kistler, R.; Widmer, F.; Brunner, P.

1986-01-01

The paper informs about the heavy metal contents of sewage sludges and discusses the origin of household, industry and surface sewerage of the respective heavy metals. The study aimed at assessing whether and in how far heavy metal volatility may be checked by reducing the temperature during sewage sludge pyrolysis. The testing equipment used was made of glass/silica glass. Instead of in particles heavy metals were precipitated in the gaseous state. Except from mercury heavy metals are retained by the ashes up to temperatures from 450 to 555/sup 0/C. Due to the persistence of mercury care should be taken to keep the sewerage clear of it from the very beginning. Emissions caused by reactor materials can be avoided by choosing appropriate pyrolysis reactors.

Toxicity of heavy metals in the environment

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Oehme, F.W

1978-01-01

... as the fundamental mechanisms of toxicity resulting from heavy metal chemicals. The more common toxic heavy metals, along with their biochemistry and associated clinical syndromes, are then described...

Review of heavy metal accumulation on aquatic environment in Northern East Mediterrenean Sea part I: some essential metals.

Science.gov (United States)

Yılmaz, Ayşe Bahar; Yanar, Alper; Alkan, Ela Nur

2017-03-01

All pollutants can reach the aquatic environments and the levels of heavy metals in upper members of the food web like fish can reach values many times higher than those found in aquatic environment or in sediments. Although heavy metals are essential or non-essential, all heavy metals are potentially harmful to humans and most organisms at some level of exposure and absorption. Marine organisms are good indicators for long-term monitoring of metal accumulation. The present review study is for evaluation of the data from previous studies about the toxic effects of selected heavy metals, like essential metals (copper, zinc, iron, chromium, and manganese), on seawater, sediment, and in different tissues of aquatic animals (demersal and bentic fish, invertabres) collected from different areas in Northern East Mediterrenean Sea since the 1990s. Some concern arose from previous studies, particularly in terms of safety for human consumption. For this purpose, 86 articles and 4 theses were examined and information was collected on the table to open a forward-looking view of the pollution of studied area. In previous studies, the variations in feeding habits, habitats, and the level of copper found in edible muscles of the demersal fish species (deep water fish species, carnivore) such as Mullus barbatus barbatus, Solea lascaris, Sparus aurata were always higher than those found in pelagic (omnivore) Mugil cephalus, Liza aurata. Results show discrepancies caused by many factors; thus, more work must be done carefully.

Speciation of Aquatic Heavy Metals in Humic Substances by$^{111m}$Cd/$^{199m}$Hg-TDPAC

CERN Multimedia

2002-01-01

Humic substances are ubiquitous in waters and soils and act as complexing agents for different heavy metals, e.g. Cd, Hg. Toxicity, reactivity, fixation and migration are therefore strongly influenced by the interactions between heavy metals and humic substances. Humic substances derive from postmortal materials such as rotten plants, have dark colours and usually a molecular weight between 500 and 10~000 Dalton. Complex formation studies with different heavy metal ions indicate at least two different kinds of metal sites. Usually, these studies are restricted to heavy metal concentrations 2 to 3 orders of magnitude higher than the natural heavy metal abundance (i.e. 10$^{-10}$ molar). This serious limitation can be overcome by the use of suitable radiosotope techniques capable of metal speciation at extreme sensitivity levels such as TDPAC (Time Differential Perturbed Angular Correlation of~$\\gamma$-rays). Thus, we studied the interaction of heavy metals with humic substances by monitoring the nuclear quadru...

Heavy metals in water, sediments and submerged macrophytes in ponds around the Dianchi Lake, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zhixiu; Yao, Lu; Liu, Guihua; Liu, Wenzhi

2014-09-01

Through retaining runoff and pollutants such as heavy metals from surrounding landscapes, ponds around a lake play an important role in mitigating the impacts of human activities on lake ecosystems. In order to determine the potential for heavy metal accumulation of submerged macrophytes, we investigated the concentrations of 10 heavy metals (i.e., As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in water, sediments, and submerged macrophytes collected from 37 ponds around the Dianchi Lake in China. Our results showed that both water and sediments of these ponds were polluted by Pb. Water and sediments heavy metal concentrations in ponds received urban and agricultural runoff were not significantly higher than those in ponds received forest runoff. This result indicates that a large portion of heavy metals in these ponds may originate from atmospheric deposition and weathering of background soils. Positive relationships were found among heavy metal concentrations in submerged macrophytes, probably due to the coaccumulation of heavy metals. For most heavy metals, no significant relationships were found between submerged macrophytes and their water and sediment environments. The maximum concentrations of Cr, Fe and Ni in Ceratophyllum demersum were 4242, 16,429 and 2662mgkg(-1), respectively. The result suggests that C. demersum is a good candidate species for removing heavy metals from polluted aquatic environments. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

National pattern for heavy metal contamination of topsoil in remote farmland impacted by haze pollution in China

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Zhuanxi; Gao, Meirong; Luo, Xiaosan; Yan, Changzhou

2016-03-01

The influence of haze pollution on heavy metal transport into farmland topsoil has received little attention. This study reports on heavy metal concentrations in topsoil from remote farmland in China as well as the spatial similarity and correlation to such heavy metals in atmospheric particulate matter (APM). Heavy metal concentrations in topsoil from remote farmland significantly increased over time. Moreover, stations in the mid-eastern region of China accounted for greater than 55% of total stations that exhibited higher concentrations in 2010 than 2005. This spatial trend was consistent with changes observed in APM where mass concentrations of heavy metals were also found to be higher in the mid-eastern region of China. Heavy metals in APM have already likely caused contamination in remote farmland topsoil, particularly in the mid-eastern region of China. This is primarily due to long-range transport and deposition of APM owing that no pesticides or fertilizers have been used in the remote farmland stations selected and no industries were situated nearby. Regarding the large-scale, severe haze pollution occurring in China today, it is urgent to ascertain the accumulation of heavy metals in farmland topsoil resulting from APM as well as its subsequent potential mechanisms and ecological risks.

MICROBIAL REMOVAL OF HEAVY METALS FROM WASTEWATER

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Justyna Koc-Jurczyk

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Industrialization and urbanization result in increase of heavy metals released into the environment (soil, lakes, rivers, seas, oceans, groundwater. Studies on biosorption of heavy metals are aimed to specify types of microorganisms which could efficiently bind metals. This approach has a very important significance for both slowing down metals exploitation by recovery, and also reduction of environmental pollution by decrease of their excessive concentration. Recent studies have reported about the capabilities of fungi, algae, yeasts, bacteria, waste and agricultural residues or materials containing chitosan derived from crustacean shells as a biosorbents. Biohydrometallurgy could be considered as a new “green” technology of heavy metals removal from wastewater.

Bioavailability of Sediment-bound Heavy Metals on the East African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The results revealed that heavy metal levels at some locations were higher than at others. Cd, Mn and Co were more concentrated in labile fractions compared to the other elements. These metals are easily liberated into overlying water, making them available for biological uptake. More than 62% of the total concentrations ...

Heavy metal contamination of soil and water in the vicinity of an abandoned e-waste recycling site: implications for dissemination of heavy metals.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Qihang; Leung, Jonathan Y S; Geng, Xinhua; Chen, Shejun; Huang, Xuexia; Li, Haiyan; Huang, Zhuying; Zhu, Libin; Chen, Jiahao; Lu, Yayin

2015-02-15

Illegal e-waste recycling activity has caused heavy metal pollution in many developing countries, including China. In recent years, the Chinese government has strengthened enforcement to impede such activity; however, the heavy metals remaining in the abandoned e-waste recycling site can still pose ecological risk. The present study aimed to investigate the concentrations of heavy metals in soil and water in the vicinity of an abandoned e-waste recycling site in Longtang, South China. Results showed that the surface soil of the former burning and acid-leaching sites was still heavily contaminated with Cd (>0.39 mg kg(-1)) and Cu (>1981 mg kg(-1)), which exceeded their respective guideline levels. The concentration of heavy metals generally decreased with depth in both burning site and paddy field, which is related to the elevated pH and reduced TOM along the depth gradient. The pond water was seriously acidified and contaminated with heavy metals, while the well water was slightly contaminated since heavy metals were mostly retained in the surface soil. The use of pond water for irrigation resulted in considerable heavy metal contamination in the paddy soil. Compared with previous studies, the reduced heavy metal concentrations in the surface soil imply that heavy metals were transported to the other areas, such as pond. Therefore, immediate remediation of the contaminated soil and water is necessary to prevent dissemination of heavy metals and potential ecological disaster. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tissue heavy metal concentrations of stranded California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) in Southern California

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Harper, Erin R. [SeaWorld San Diego, 500 SeaWorld Drive, San Diego, CA 92109 (United States)]. E-mail: erin-harper@hotmail.com; St Leger, Judy A. [SeaWorld San Diego, 500 SeaWorld Drive, San Diego, CA 92109 (United States); Westberg, Jody A. [SeaWorld San Diego, 500 SeaWorld Drive, San Diego, CA 92109 (United States); Mazzaro, Lisa [Mystic Aquarium and Institute for Exploration, 55 Coogan Blvd, Mystic, CT 06355 (United States); Schmitt, Todd [SeaWorld San Diego, 500 SeaWorld Drive, San Diego, CA 92109 (United States); Reidarson, Tom H. [SeaWorld San Diego, 500 SeaWorld Drive, San Diego, CA 92109 (United States); Tucker, Melinda [SeaWorld San Diego, 500 SeaWorld Drive, San Diego, CA 92109 (United States); Cross, Dee H. [SeaWorld San Diego, 500 SeaWorld Drive, San Diego, CA 92109 (United States); Puschner, Birgit [California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California at Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616 (United States)

2007-06-15

Concentrations of nine heavy metals (As, Cd, Cu, Fe, Hg, Pb, Mn, Mo and Zn) were determined in the hepatic and renal tissues of 80 stranded California sea lions (Zalophus californianus). Significant age-dependant increases were observed in liver and kidney concentrations of cadmium and mercury, and renal zinc concentrations. Hepatic iron concentrations were significantly higher in females than males. Animals with suspected domoic acid associated pathological findings had significantly higher concentrations of liver and kidney cadmium; and significantly higher liver mercury concentrations when compared to animals classified with infectious disease or traumatic mortality. Significantly higher hepatic burdens of molybdenum and zinc were found in animals that died from infectious diseases. This is the largest study of tissue heavy metal concentrations in California sea lions to date. These data demonstrate how passive monitoring of stranded animals can provide insight into environmental impacts on marine mammals. - Tissue heavy metal concentrations are valuable in population and environmental monitoring.

Behaviour of heavy metals in soils

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Harmsen, K.

1977-01-01

Fractions of Zn, Cd, Cu, Pb, Fe and Mn extractable with water, a salt solution and dilute acid, and residual fractions were determined in soils with raised contents of heavy metals, near zinc smelters, along a river formerly discharging heavy metals, and in a sewage farm. Special attention

Modeling of Heavy Metal Transformation in Soil Ecosystem

Science.gov (United States)

Kalinichenko, Kira; Nikovskaya, Galina N.

2017-04-01

The intensification of industrial activity leads to an increase in heavy metals pollution of soils. In our opinion, sludge from biological treatment of municipal waste water, stabilized under aerobic-anaerobic conditions (commonly known as biosolid), may be considered as concentrate of natural soil. In their chemical, physical and chemical and biological properties these systems are similar gel-like nanocomposites. These contain microorganisms, humic substances, clay, clusters of nanoparticles of heavy metal compounds, and so on involved into heteropolysaccharides matrix. It is known that microorganisms play an important role in the transformation of different nature substances in soil and its health maintenance. The regularities of transformation of heavy metal compounds in soil ecosystem were studied at the model of biosolid. At biosolid swelling its structure changing (gel-sol transition, weakening of coagulation contacts between metal containing nanoparticles, microbial cells and metabolites, loosening and even destroying of the nanocomposite structure) can occur [1, 2]. The promotion of the sludge heterotrophic microbial activities leads to solubilization of heavy metal compounds in the system. The microbiological process can be realized in alcaligeneous or acidogeneous regimes in dependence on the type of carbon source and followed by the synthesis of metabolites with the properties of flocculants and heavy metals extragents [3]. In this case the heavy metals solubilization (bioleaching) in the form of nanoparticles of hydroxycarbonate complexes or water soluble complexes with oxycarbonic acids is observed. Under the action of biosolid microorganisms the heavy metals-oxycarbonic acids complexes can be transformed (catabolised) into nano-sizing heavy metals- hydroxycarbonates complexes. These ecologically friendly complexes and microbial heteropolysaccharides are able to interact with soil colloids, stay in the top soil profile, and improve soil structure due

Heavy metal toxicity in rice and soybean plants cultivated in contaminated soil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Lígia de Souza Silva

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Heavy metals can accumulate in soil and cause phytotoxicity in plants with some specific symptoms. The present study evaluated the specific symptoms on rice and soybeans plants caused by excess of heavy metals in soil. Rice and soybean were grown in pots containing soil with different levels of heavy metals. A completely randomized design was used, with four replications, using two crop species and seven sample soils with different contamination levels. Rice and soybean exhibited different responses to the high concentrations of heavy metals in the soil. Rice plants accumulated higher Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn concentrations and were more sensitive to high concentrations of these elements in the soil, absorbing them more easily compared to the soybean plants. However, high available Zn concentrations in the soil caused phytotoxicity symptoms in rice and soybean, mainly chlorosis and inhibited plant growth. Further, high Zn concentrations in the soil reduced the Fe concentration in the shoots of soybean and rice plants to levels considered deficient.

The influence of heavy metals on the production of extracellular polymer substances in the processes of heavy metal ions elimination.

Science.gov (United States)

Mikes, J; Siglova, M; Cejkova, A; Masak, J; Jirku, V

2005-01-01

Wastewaters from a chemical industry polluted by heavy metal ions represent a hazard for all living organisms. It can mean danger for ecosystems and human health. New methods are sought alternative to traditional chemical and physical processes. Active elimination process of heavy metals ions provided by living cells, their components and extracellular products represents a potential way of separating toxic heavy metals from industrial wastewaters. While the abilities of bacteria to remove metal ions in solution are extensively used, fungi have been recognized as a promising kind of low-cost adsorbents for removal of heavy-metal ions from aqueous waste sources. Yeasts and fungi differ from each other in their constitution and in their abilities to produce variety of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) with different mechanisms of metal interactions. The accumulation of Cd(2+), Cr(6+), Pb(2+), Ni(2+) and Zn(2+) by yeasts and their EPS was screened at twelve different yeast species in microcultivation system Bioscreen C and in the shaking Erlenmayer's flasks. This results were compared with the production of yeast EPS and the composition of yeast cell walls. The EPS production was measured during the yeast growth and cell wall composition was studied during the cultivations in the shaking flasks. At the end of the process extracellular polymers and their chemical composition were isolated and amount of bound heavy metals was characterized. The variable composition and the amount of the EPS were found at various yeast strains. It was influenced by various compositions of growth medium and also by various concentrations of heavy metals. It is evident, that the amount of bound heavy metals was different. The work reviews the possibilities of usage of various yeast EPS and components of cell walls in the elimination processes of heavy metal ions. Further the structure and properties of yeasts cell wall and EPS were discussed. The finding of mechanisms mentioned

[Mapping Critical Loads of Heavy Metals for Soil Based on Different Environmental Effects].

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Ya-xing; Wu, Shao-hua; Zhou, Sheng-lu; Wang, Chun-hui; Chen, Hao

2015-12-01

China's rapid development of industrialization and urbanization causes the growing problem of heavy metal pollution of soil, threatening environment and human health. Therefore, prevention and management of heavy metal pollution become particularly important. Critical loads of heavy metals are an important management tool that can be utilized to prevent the occurrence of heavy metal pollution. Our study was based on three cases: status balance, water environmental effects and health risks. We used the steady-state mass balance equation to calculate the critical loads of Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn at different effect levels and analyze the values and spatial variation of critical loads. In addition, we used the annual input fluxes of heavy metals of the agro-ecosystem in the Yangtze River delta and China to estimate the proportion of area with exceedance of critical loads. The results demonstrated that the critical load value of Cd was the minimum, and the values of Cu and Zn were lager. There were spatial differences among the critical loads of four elements in the study area, lower critical loads areas mainly occurred in woodland and high value areas distributed in the east and southwest of the study area, while median values and the medium high areas mainly occurred in farmland. Comparing the input fluxes of heavy metals, we found that Pb and Zn in more than 90% of the area exceeded the critical loads under different environmental effects in the study area. The critical load exceedance of Cd mainly occurred under the status balance and the water environmental effect, while Cu under the status balance and water environmental effect with a higher proportion of exceeded areas. Critical loads of heavy metals at different effect levels in this study could serve as a reference from effective control of the emissions of heavy metals and to prevent the occurrence of heavy metal pollution.

Quantification of Heavy Metals in Mining Affected Soil and Their Bioaccumulation in Native Plant Species.

Science.gov (United States)

Nawab, Javed; Khan, Sardar; Shah, Mohammad Tahir; Khan, Kifayatullah; Huang, Qing; Ali, Roshan

2015-01-01

Several anthropogenic and natural sources are considered as the primary sources of toxic metals in the environment. The current study investigates the level of heavy metals contamination in the flora associated with serpentine soil along the Mafic and Ultramafic rocks northern-Pakistan. Soil and wild native plant species were collected from chromites mining affected areas and analyzed for heavy metals (Cr, Ni, Fe, Mn, Co, Cu and Zn) using atomic absorption spectrometer (AAS-PEA-700). The heavy metal concentrations were significantly (p soil as compared to reference soil, however Cr and Ni exceeded maximum allowable limit (250 and 60 mg kg(-1), respectively) set by SEPA for soil. Inter-metal correlations between soil, roots and shoots showed that the sources of contamination of heavy metals were mainly associated with chromites mining. All the plant species accumulated significantly higher concentrations of heavy metals as compared to reference plant. The open dumping of mine wastes can create serious problems (food crops and drinking water contamination with heavy metals) for local community of the study area. The native wild plant species (Nepeta cataria, Impatiens bicolor royle, Tegetis minuta) growing on mining affected sites may be used for soil reclamation contaminated with heavy metals.

Perilous Effects of Heavy Metals Contamination on Human Health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Naseem Zahra

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Heavy metals form a versatile group of high density elements that vary considerably in their biological roles and chemical properties. Although many heavy metals are essential trace elements yet they have long been recognized as environmental pollutants due their toxic effects. Increased industrialization, urbanization anthropogenic activities like mining, smelting and other agricultural activities have resulted in accumulation of heavy metals in the environment. Heavy metals such as nickel, cadmium, zinc, copper, mercury, arsenic and chromium are not easily degradable and tend to build up in soil. These heavy metals through various routes such as fish and plants make their way into the human body and are known to have serious detrimental effects on human health at elevated levels. The harmful effects of some important heavy metals on human health have been discussed.

The respective effects of soil heavy metal fractions by sequential extraction procedure and soil properties on the accumulation of heavy metals in rice grains and brassicas.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Ling; Guan, Dongsheng; Peart, M R; Chen, Yujuan; Li, Qiqi

2017-01-01

This study was carried out to examine heavy metal accumulation in rice grains and brassicas and to identify the different controls, such as soil properties and soil heavy metal fractions obtained by the Community Bureau of Reference (BCR) sequential extraction, in their accumulation. In Guangdong Province, South China, rice grain and brassica samples, along with their rhizospheric soil, were collected from fields on the basis of distance downstream from electroplating factories, whose wastewater was used for irrigation. The results showed that long-term irrigation using the electroplating effluent has not only enriched the rhizospheric soil with Cd, Cr, Cu, and Zn but has also increased their mobility and bioavailability. The average concentrations of Cd and Cr in rice grains and brassicas from closest to the electroplating factories were significantly higher than those from the control areas. Results from hybrid redundancy analysis (hRDA) and redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that the BCR fractions of soil heavy metals could explain 29.0 and 46.5 % of total eigenvalue for heavy metal concentrations in rice grains and brassicas, respectively, while soil properties could only explain 11.1 and 33.4 %, respectively. This indicated that heavy metal fractions exerted more control upon their concentrations in rice grains and brassicas than soil properties. In terms of metal interaction, an increase of residual Zn in paddy soil or a decrease of acid soluble Cd in the brassica soil could enhance the accumulation of Cd, Cu, Cr, and Pb in both rice grains and brassicas, respectively, while the reducible or oxidizable Cd in soil could enhance the plants' accumulation of Cr and Pb. The RDA showed an inhibition effect of sand content and CFO on the accumulation of heavy metals in rice grains and brassicas. Moreover, multiple stepwise linear regression could offer prediction for Cd, Cu, Cr, and Zn concentrations in the two crops by soil heavy metal fractions and soil properties.

Using microbiological leaching method to remove heavy metals from sludge

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhuyu Gu

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Microbial leaching is one of the most effective methods to remove heavy metals from sludge. In the conducted researches, the sludge samples were processed with Thiobacillus ferrooxidans and Thiobacillus thiooxidans obtained via cultivation, extraction and purification processes. Heavy metals such as Pb, Cd, Cu and Ni were leached from sludge by Thiobacillus ferrooxidans and Thiobacillus thiooxidans within different substrate concentration and pH value conditions. It is defined that from the point of view of economy and efficiency the optimal concentration of FeSO4.7H2O and sulfur for bio-leaching process was 0.2 g. The leaching rates of heavy metals such as Pb, Cd, Cu and Ni of the same concentration were 74.72%, 81.54%, 70.46% and 77.35% respectively. However, no significant differences depending on the pH value among the leaching rates were defined, even for the pH value of 1.5. Along with the removal of heavy metals from sludge, the organic matter, N, P, K were also leached to some extent. The losing rate of phosphorus was the highest and reached 38.44%. However, the content of organic matter, N, P, K in the processed sludge were higher in comparison with level I of the National Soil Quality Standards of China. Ecological risk of heavy metals in sludge before and after leaching was assessed by Index of Geo-accumulation (Igeo and comprehensive potential risk (RI. The results of research defined that the content of heavy metals in sludge meets the level of low ecological risk after leaching and their contents is lower in comparison with the National Agricultural Sludge Standard of China. Sludge leached by biological methods is possible to use for treatment for increasing soil fertility.

Heavy Metal Blood Test: MedlinePlus Lab Test Information

Science.gov (United States)

... this page: https://medlineplus.gov/labtests/heavymetalbloodtest.html Heavy Metal Blood Test To use the sharing features ... this page, please enable JavaScript. What is a Heavy Metal Blood Test? A heavy metal blood test ...

Poultry litter-based activated carbon for removing heavy metal ions in water.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Mingxin; Qiu, Guannan; Song, Weiping

2010-02-01

Utilization of poultry litter as a precursor material to manufacture activated carbon for treating heavy metal-contaminated water is a value-added strategy for recycling the organic waste. Batch adsorption experiments were conducted to investigate kinetics, isotherms, and capacity of poultry litter-based activated carbon for removing heavy metal ions in water. It was revealed that poultry litter-based activated carbon possessed significantly higher adsorption affinity and capacity for heavy metals than commercial activated carbons derived from bituminous coal and coconut shell. Adsorption of metal ions onto poultry litter-based carbon was rapid and followed Sigmoidal Chapman patterns as a function of contact time. Adsorption isotherms could be described by different models such as Langmuir and Freundlich equations, depending on the metal species and the coexistence of other metal ions. Potentially 404 mmol of Cu2+, 945 mmol of Pb2+, 236 mmol of Zn2+, and 250-300 mmol of Cd2+ would be adsorbed per kg of poultry litter-derived activated carbon. Releases of nutrients and metal ions from litter-derived carbon did not pose secondary water contamination risks. The study suggests that poultry litter can be utilized as a precursor material for economically manufacturing granular activated carbon that is to be used in wastewater treatment for removing heavy metals.

Advances in Understanding How Heavy Metal Pollution Triggers Gastric Cancer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wenzhen Yuan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available With the development of industrialization and urbanization, heavy metals contamination has become a major environmental problem. Numerous investigations have revealed an association between heavy metal exposure and the incidence and mortality of gastric cancer. The mechanisms of heavy metals (lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium, and arsenic contamination leading to gastric cancer are concluded in this review. There are four main potential mechanisms: (1 Heavy metals disrupt the gastric mucosal barrier by decreasing mucosal thickness, mucus content, and basal acid output, thereby affecting the function of E-cadherin and inducing reactive oxygen species (ROS damage. (2 Heavy metals directly or indirectly induce ROS generation and cause gastric mucosal and DNA lesions, which subsequently alter gene regulation, signal transduction, and cell growth, ultimately leading to carcinogenesis. Exposure to heavy metals also enhances gastric cancer cell invasion and metastasis. (3 Heavy metals inhibit DNA damage repair or cause inefficient lesion repair. (4 Heavy metals may induce other gene abnormalities. In addition, heavy metals can induce the expression of proinflammatory chemokine interleukin-8 (IL-8 and microRNAs, which promotes tumorigenesis. The present review is an effort to underline the human health problem caused by heavy metal with recent development in order to garner a broader perspective.

Microbial treatment of heavy metal leachates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alvarez Aliaga, M. T.

2009-01-01

Ore-mining metallurgy and other industrial activities represent the source of heavy metal and radionuclide contamination in terrestrial and aquatic environments. Physico-chemical processes are employed for heavy metal removal from industrial wastewaters. However, limitations due to the cost-effectiveness and use of contaminating reagents make these processes not environmentally friendly. (Author)

Biosorption of heavy metals from wastewater by biosolids

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Orhan, Y.; Bueyuekguengoer, H. [Ondokuz Mayis University, Engineering Faculty, Environmental Engineering Department, 55139 Samsun (Turkey); Hrenovic, J. [University of Zagreb, Faculty of Science, Department of Biology, Rooseveltov trg 6, 10000 Zagreb (Croatia)

2006-08-15

In a study where the removal of heavy metals from wastewater is the primary aim, the biosorption of heavy metals onto biosolids prepared as Pseudomonas aeruginosa immobilized onto granular activated carbon was investigated in batch and column systems. In the batch system, adsorption equilibriums of heavy metals were reached between 20 and 50 min, and the optimal dosage of biosolids was 0.3 g/L. The biosorption efficiencies were 84, 80, 79, 59 and 42 % for Cr(VI), Ni(II), Cu(II), Zn(II) and Cd(II) ions, respectively. The rate constants of biosorption and pore diffusion of heavy metals were 0.013-0.089 min{sup -1} and 0.026-0.690 min{sup -0.5}. In the column systems, the biosorption efficiencies for all heavy metals increased up to 81-100 %. The affinity of biosorption for various metal ions towards biosolids was decreased in the order: Cr = Ni > Cu > Zn > Cd. (Abstract Copyright [2006], Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Simultaneous decontamination of cross-polluted soils with heavy metals and PCBs using a nano-metallic Ca/CaO dispersion mixture.

Science.gov (United States)

Mallampati, Srinivasa Reddy; Mitoma, Yoshiharu; Okuda, Tetsuji; Sakita, Shogo; Simion, Cristian

2014-01-01

In the present work, we investigated the use of nano-metallic calcium (Ca) and calcium oxide (CaO) dispersion mixture for the simultaneous remediation of contaminated soils with both heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, and Pb) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Regardless of soil moisture content, nano-metallic Ca/CaO dispersion mixture achieved about 95-99% of heavy metal immobilization by a simple grinding process. During the same treatment, reasonable PCB hydrodechlorination efficiencies were obtained (up to 97%), though higher hydrodechlorination efficiency by preliminary drying of soil was observed.

Health risks associated with heavy metals in the drinking water of Swat, northern Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Yonglong; Khan, Hizbullah; Zakir, Shahida; Ihsanullah; Khan, Sardar; Khan, Akbar Ali; Wei, Luo; Wang, Tieyu

2013-10-01

The concentrations of heavy metals such as Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn were investigated in drinking water sources (surface and groundwater) collected from Swat valley, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The potential health risks of heavy metals to the local population and their possible source apportionment were also studied. Heavy metal concentrations were analysed using atomic absorption spectrometer and compared with permissible limits set by Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency and World Health Organization. The concentrations of Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb were higher than their respective permissible limits, while Cu, Mn and Zn concentrations were observed within their respective limits. Health risk indicators such as chronic daily intake (CDI) and health risk index (HRI) were calculated for adults and children separately. CDIs and HRIs of heavy metals were found in the order of Cr > Mn > Ni > Zn > Cd > Cu > Pb and Cd > Ni > Mn > Cr > Cu > Pb > Zn, respectively. HRIs of selected heavy metals in the drinking water were less than 1, indicating no health risk to the local people. Multivariate and univariate statistical analyses showed that geologic and anthropogenic activities were the possible sources of water contamination with heavy metals in the study area.

Heavy metal accumulation in Littoraria scabra along polluted and pristine mangrove areas of Tanzania

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wolf, H. de [Ecophysiology, Biochemistry and Toxicology Group, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, B-2020 Antwerp (Belgium)], E-mail: hans.dewolf@ua.ac.be; Rashid, R. [Ecophysiology, Biochemistry and Toxicology Group, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, B-2020 Antwerp (Belgium)

2008-04-15

The periwinkle Littoraria scabra was collected at polluted and pristine mangrove sites along the Tanzanian coastline, including Msimbazi, Mbweni (i.e. Dar es Salaam) and Kisakasaka, Nyamanzi and Maruhubi (i.e. Zanzibar). Periwinkles were morphologically characterized, sexed and their heavy metal content was determined using ICP-MS. Analysis revealed that L. scabra from polluted areas contained higher soft tissue heavy metal levels, were significantly smaller and weighed less compared to their conspecifics from the unpolluted mangroves. The current morphological observations may be explained in terms of growth and/or mortality rate differences between the polluted and non-polluted sites. Although a variety of stressors may account for these adverse morphological patterns, our data suggest a close relationship with the soft tissue heavy metal content. Compared to soft tissue heavy metal levels that were measured in L. scabra along the same area in 1998, most metals, except for arsenic, chromium and iron have decreased dramatically. - Anthropogenic activities result in heavy metal accumulation and adverse morphological effects in the mangrove gastropod Littoraria scabra.

Heavy metal accumulation in Littoraria scabra along polluted and pristine mangrove areas of Tanzania

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wolf, H. de; Rashid, R.

2008-01-01

The periwinkle Littoraria scabra was collected at polluted and pristine mangrove sites along the Tanzanian coastline, including Msimbazi, Mbweni (i.e. Dar es Salaam) and Kisakasaka, Nyamanzi and Maruhubi (i.e. Zanzibar). Periwinkles were morphologically characterized, sexed and their heavy metal content was determined using ICP-MS. Analysis revealed that L. scabra from polluted areas contained higher soft tissue heavy metal levels, were significantly smaller and weighed less compared to their conspecifics from the unpolluted mangroves. The current morphological observations may be explained in terms of growth and/or mortality rate differences between the polluted and non-polluted sites. Although a variety of stressors may account for these adverse morphological patterns, our data suggest a close relationship with the soft tissue heavy metal content. Compared to soft tissue heavy metal levels that were measured in L. scabra along the same area in 1998, most metals, except for arsenic, chromium and iron have decreased dramatically. - Anthropogenic activities result in heavy metal accumulation and adverse morphological effects in the mangrove gastropod Littoraria scabra

Risk and toxicity assessments of heavy metals in sediments and fishes from the Yangtze River and Taihu Lake, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Jie; Hu, Xin; Tao, Xiancong; Yu, Hongxia; Zhang, Xiaowei

2013-11-01

Heavy metal pollution is one of the most serous environmental issues globally. To evaluate the metal pollution in Jiangsu Province of China, the total concentrations of heavy metals in sediments and fishes from the Yangtze River and Taihu Lake were analyzed. Ecological risk of sediments and human health risk of fish consumption were assessed respectively. Furthermore, toxicity of samples on expression of the stress responsive genes was evaluated using microbial live cell-array method. The results showed that the heavy metals concentrations in sediments from the Yangtze River were much higher than those in sediments from the Taihu Lake. However, the fishes from the Taihu Lake had higher concentrations of heavy metals than fishes from the Yangtze River. Ecological risk evaluation showed that the heavy metal contaminants in sediments from the Yangtze River posed higher risk of adverse ecological effects, while sediments from the study areas of Taihu Lake were relatively safe. Health risk assessment suggested that the heavy metals in fishes of both Yangtze River and Taihu Lake might have risk of adverse health effects to human. The toxicity assessment indicated that the heavy metals in these sediments and fishes showed transcriptional effects on the selected 21 stress responsive genes, which were involved in the pathways of DNA damage response, chemical stress, and perturbations of electron transport. Together, this field investigation combined with chemical analysis, risk assessment and toxicity bioassay would provide useful information on the heavy metal pollution in Jiangsu Province. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microalgae - A promising tool for heavy metal remediation.

Science.gov (United States)

Suresh Kumar, K; Dahms, Hans-Uwe; Won, Eun-Ji; Lee, Jae-Seong; Shin, Kyung-Hoon

2015-03-01

Biotechnology of microalgae has gained popularity due to the growing need for novel environmental technologies and the development of innovative mass-production. Inexpensive growth requirements (solar light and CO2), and, the advantage of being utilized simultaneously for multiple technologies (e.g. carbon mitigation, biofuel production, and bioremediation) make microalgae suitable candidates for several ecofriendly technologies. Microalgae have developed an extensive spectrum of mechanisms (extracellular and intracellular) to cope with heavy metal toxicity. Their wide-spread occurrence along with their ability to grow and concentrate heavy metals, ascertains their suitability in practical applications of waste-water bioremediation. Heavy metal uptake by microalgae is affirmed to be superior to the prevalent physicochemical processes employed in the removal of toxic heavy metals. In order to evaluate their potential and to fill in the loopholes, it is essential to carry out a critical assessment of the existing microalgal technologies, and realize the need for development of commercially viable technologies involving strategic multidisciplinary approaches. This review summarizes several areas of heavy metal remediation from a microalgal perspective and provides an overview of various practical avenues of this technology. It particularly details heavy metals and microalgae which have been extensively studied, and provides a schematic representation of the mechanisms of heavy metal remediation in microalgae. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Threat of heavy metal pollution in halophytic and mangrove plants of Tamil Nadu, India

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Agoramoorthy, Govindasamy; Chen, F.-A. [Department of Pharmacy, Tajen University, Yanpu, Pingtung 907, Taiwan (China); Hsu, Minna J. [Department of Biological Sciences, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung 80424, Taiwan (China)], E-mail: hsumin@mail.nsysu.edu.tw

2008-09-15

Mangrove and halophytic plants occur along the coastal areas of Tamil Nadu, south India and these plants have been used in traditional medicine for centuries. Heavy metals are known to pose a potential threat to terrestrial and aquatic biota. However, little is known on the toxic levels of heavy metals found in mangrove and halophytic plants that are used in traditional medicine in India. To understand heavy metal toxicity, we investigated the bioconcentration factors (BCF) of heavy metals in leaves collected from eight mangroves and five halophytes in the protected Pichavaram mangrove forest reserve in Tamil Nadu State, south India. Data presented in this paper describe the impact of essential (Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn and Zn) and non-essential/environmentally toxic trace metals (Hg, Pb and Sn) in mangrove and halophytic medicinal plants. The concentrations of Pb among 13 plant species were higher than the normal range of contamination reported for plants. The average concentration of Hg in the halophytic plants (0.43 {+-} 0.37 {mu}g/g) was seven times higher than mangrove plants (0.06 {+-} 0.03 {mu}g/g) and it indicated pollutants from industrial sources affecting halophytes more than mangroves. - Metal effects occur in India's mangrove ecosystem.

Threat of heavy metal pollution in halophytic and mangrove plants of Tamil Nadu, India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agoramoorthy, Govindasamy; Chen, F.-A.; Hsu, Minna J.

2008-01-01

Mangrove and halophytic plants occur along the coastal areas of Tamil Nadu, south India and these plants have been used in traditional medicine for centuries. Heavy metals are known to pose a potential threat to terrestrial and aquatic biota. However, little is known on the toxic levels of heavy metals found in mangrove and halophytic plants that are used in traditional medicine in India. To understand heavy metal toxicity, we investigated the bioconcentration factors (BCF) of heavy metals in leaves collected from eight mangroves and five halophytes in the protected Pichavaram mangrove forest reserve in Tamil Nadu State, south India. Data presented in this paper describe the impact of essential (Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn and Zn) and non-essential/environmentally toxic trace metals (Hg, Pb and Sn) in mangrove and halophytic medicinal plants. The concentrations of Pb among 13 plant species were higher than the normal range of contamination reported for plants. The average concentration of Hg in the halophytic plants (0.43 ± 0.37 μg/g) was seven times higher than mangrove plants (0.06 ± 0.03 μg/g) and it indicated pollutants from industrial sources affecting halophytes more than mangroves. - Metal effects occur in India's mangrove ecosystem

Characterization study of heavy metal-bearing phases in MSW slag

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saffarzadeh, Amirhomayoun; Shimaoka, Takayuki; Motomura, Yoshinobu; Watanabe, Koichiro

2009-01-01

Slag products derived from the pyrolysis/melting and plasma/melting treatment of municipal solid waste (MSW) in Japan were examined for the characterization study of heavy metal-bearing phases using petrographic techniques. Detailed microscopic observations revealed that the shapes of heavy metal-rich inclusions are generally spherical to semi-spherical and their sizes range from submicron to scarcely large size spheres (over 100 μm). The experiments (both optical microscopy and electron probe microanalysis) indicated that Fe and Cu participate in mutual substitution and different proportions, and form mainly two-phase Fe-Cu alloys that bound in the silicate glass. This alloy characterizes the composition of more than 80% of the metal-rich inclusions. Other metals and non-metals (such as Pb, Ni, Sb, Sn, P, Si, Al and S) with variable amounts and uneven distributions are also incorporated in the Fe-Cu alloy. In average, the bulk concentration of heavy metals in samples from pyrolysis/melting type is almost six times greater than samples treated under plasma/arc processing. The observations also confirmed that slag from pyrolysis origin contains remarkably higher concentration of metallic inclusions than slag from plasma treatment. In the latter, the metallic compounds are separately tapped from molten slag during the melting treatment that might lead to the generation of safer slag product for end users from environmental viewpoint.

Heavy metal decontamination of sludges and soils. Pt. 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Niemann, J.

1993-06-01

This research project deals with decontamination technology for contaminated soil and sediments. A pilot plant for the decontamination of soil contaminated with heavy metals has been erected and is operated. The process is arranged in two steps: - heavy metal contaminated solid is decontaminted with acidic extraction. - the heavy metals are separated in a recyclable formation from the process solution you gain in the first process step. Heavy metal contaminated soil, heavy metal contaminated sediments (habour sediments) as well as residue from a soil regeneration plant have been successfully decontaminated in the pilot plan. An adaption of the process is necessary for various materials. High rates of mobilisation of heavy metals (e.g. lead, cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, zinc) were obtained, especially with soil which contains less organic matter. (orig.). 54 figs., 30 tabs., 45 refs [de

Heavy Metals in the Vegetables Collected from Production Sites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hassan Taghipour

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Contamination of vegetable crops (as an important part of people's diet with heavy metals is a health concern. Therefore, monitoring levels of heavy metals in vegetables can provide useful information for promoting food safety. The present study was carried out in north-west of Iran (Tabriz on the content of heavy metals in vegetable crops. Methods: Samples of vegetables including kurrat (n=20 (Allium ampeloprasumssp. Persicum, onion (n=20 (Allium cepa and tomato (n=18 (Lycopersiconesculentum var. esculentum, were collected from production sites in west of Tabriz and analyzed for presence of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS after extraction by aqua regia method (drying, grounding and acid digestion. Results: Mean ± SD (mg/kg DW concentrations of Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni and Zn were 0.32 ± 0.58, 28.86 ± 28.79, 1.75 ± 2.05, 6.37± 5.61 and 58.01 ± 27.45, respectively. Cr, Cu and Zn were present in all the samples and the highest concentrations were observed in kurrat (leek. Levels of Cd, Cr and Cu were higher than the acceptable limits. There was significant difference in levels of Cr (P<0.05 and Zn (P<0.001 among the studied vegetables. Positive correlation was observed between Cd:Cu (R=0.659, P<0.001 Cr:Ni (R=0.326, P<0.05 and Cr:Zn (R=0.308, P<0.05. Conclusion: Level of heavy metals in some of the analyzed vegetables, especially kurrat samples, was higher than the standard levels. Considering the possible health outcomes due to the consumption of contaminated vegetables, it is required to take proper actions for avoiding people's chronic exposure.

Accumulation of heavy metal in scalp hair of people exposed in Beijing sewage discharge channel sewage irrigation area in Tianjin, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zuwei; Yu, Xiaoman; Geng, Mingshuo; Wang, Zilu; Wang, Qianqian; Zeng, Xiangfeng

2017-05-01

Heavy metal concentrations in soil, wheat, and scalp hair exposed to Beijing sewage discharge channel sewage irrigation area (BSIA) in Tianjin were studied to evaluate the influence of sewage irrigation. Results showed that the continuous application of wastewater has led to an accumulation of heavy metals in the soil, with 55.2 and 8.62% of soil samples accumulating Cd and Zn, respectively, at concentrations exceeding the permissible limits in China. Concentrations of heavy metals in wheat grain from BSIA were higher than these from the clean water irrigation area by 63.2% for Cd, 3.8% for Cu, 100% for Pb, 6.6% for Zn, and 326.7% for Cr. The heavy metal bioaccumulation factor (BAF) of wheat/soil in BSIA showed the following order: Zn > Cd > Cu > Pb > Cr. Interestingly, these accumulation of heavy metals in soil after sewage irrigation could increase the migration ability of heavy metals (particularly Zn and Cd) from soil to wheat. Mean concentrations of heavy metals in the hair of residents followed the decreasing trend of Zn > Cu > Pb > Cr > Cd, which were higher than the control area by 110.0% for Cd, 20.0% for Cu, 55.9% for Zn, 36.6% for Pb, and 64.6% for Cr. Concentrations of heavy metals in male human hair in BSIA were higher than those of females. And the concentrations of heavy metals except for Pb in human hair increased with their increasing ages. The heavy metal BAF values of wheat/soil in BSIA showed the trend of Zn (98.0057) > Pb (7.0162) > Cr (5.5788) > Cu (5.4853) > Cd (3.5584); heavy metals had obvious biological amplification from wheat to human hair. These results indicated that local population health was potentially exposed to the heavy metal risk via wheat consumption.

Optimization of heavy metals total emission, case study: Bor (Serbia)

Science.gov (United States)

Ilić, Ivana; Bogdanović, Dejan; Živković, Dragana; Milošević, Novica; Todorović, Boban

2011-07-01

The town of Bor (Serbia) is one of the most polluted towns in southeastern Europe. The copper smelter which is situated in the centre of the town is the main pollutant, mostly because of its old technology, which leads to environmental pollution caused by higher concentrations of SO 2 and PM 10. These facts show that the word is about a very polluted region in Europe which, apart from harming human health in the region itself, poses a particular danger for wider area of southeastern Europe. Optimization of heavy metal's total emission was undertaken because years of long contamination of the soil with heavy metals of anthropogenic origin created a danger that those heavy metals may enter the food chains of animals and people, which can lead to disastrous consequences. This work represents the usage of Geographic Information System (GIS) for establishing a multifactor assessment model to quantitatively divide polluted zones and for selecting control sites in a linear programming model, combined with PROMETHEE/GAIA method, Screen View modeling system, and linear programming model. The results show that emissions at some control sites need to be cut for about 40%. In order to control the background of heavy metal pollution in Bor, the ecological environment must be improved.

Heavy metals in Mindhola river estuary, India

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Zingde, M.D.; Rokade, M.A; Mandalia, A

The heavy metal concentrations are studied along the Mindhola river estuary. Surface and bottom water samples were collected using Niskin Sampler. The sediment samples were collected using a Van Veen grab. The heavy metal concentration is estimated...

Heavy Metal Pollution Around International Hatay Airport

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdullah Özkan

2017-02-01

Full Text Available In this study, it was aimed to determine the heavy metal pollution in the agricultural lands around Hatay airport and travel possible alteration in the amount of heavy metal on the land in accordance with the distance to the airport. For this purpose, the airport was chosen as the center and 27 soil samples were obtained around the airport at 2 km intervals in depth ranging from 0 to 30 cm. Lead (Pb, cadmium (Cd, nickel (Ni, chrome (Cr, cobalt (Co, aluminium (Al, iron (Fe, copper (Cu, manganese (Mn and zinc (Zn elements in soil samples were analysed using MP-AES instrument by DTPA method. (3 repetition for each sample. As a result of the analysis, heavy metal concentrations were found as Pb 0-1.45 mg/kg, Cd 0-0.220 mg/kg, Ni 0-3.95 mg/kg, Cr 0-0.780 mg/kg, Co 0-0.270 mg/kg, Al 0-0.700 mg/kg, Fe 1.47- 16.2 mg/kg, Cu 0.400-5.35 mg/kg, Mn 0-19 mg/kg and Zn 0.050-3.14 mg/kg. When comparing the obtained data through this study with allowable concentrations of heavy metals in soil of Environment and Forest Directorates Guidance, it was determined that the heavy metal concentration of the soil does not pose any problems in terms of heavy metal pollution. Besides, iron concentration was decreased when the distance to the airport is increased.

Remediation of biochar on heavy metal polluted soils

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Shuguang; Xu, Yan; Norbu, Namkha; Wang, Zhan

2018-01-01

Unreasonable mining and smelting of mineral resources, solid waste disposal, sewage irrigation, utilization of pesticides and fertilizers would result in a large number of heavy metal pollutants into the water and soil environment, causing serious damage to public health and ecological safety. In recent years, a majority of scholars tried to use biochar to absorb heavy metal pollutants, which has some advantages of extensive raw material sources, low-cost and high environmental stability. This paper reviewed the definition, properties of biochar, the mechanism of heavy metal sorption by biochar and some related problems and prospects, to provide some technical support for the application of biochar into heavy metal polluted soils.

HEAVY METALS IN VINEYARDS AND ORCHARD SOILS

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GUSTAVO BRUNETTO

Full Text Available ABSTRACT The application of foliar fungicides in vineyards and orchards can increase soil concentration of heavy metals such as copper (Cu and zinc (Zn, up to the toxicity threshold for fruit trees and cover crops. However, some agronomic practices, such as liming, addition of organic fertilizers, cultivation of soil cover crops and inoculation of young plants with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can decrease the availability and the potential of heavy metal toxicity to fruit trees. This review aims to compile and present information about the effects of increasing concentrations of heavy metals, especially Cu and Zn, on soils cultivated with fruit trees and provides some agronomic practices of remediation. Information about the sources of heavy metals found in soils cultivated with fruit trees are presented; mechanisms of absorption, transport, accumulation and potential toxicity to plants are described.

A review of phytoremediation technology: heavy metals uptake by plants

Science.gov (United States)

Sumiahadi, A.; Acar, R.

2018-03-01

Heavy metal is one of the serious environmental pollutions for now days as impact of industrial development in several countries. Heavy metals give toxic effects on human health and cause several serious diseases. Several techniques have been using for removing heavy metal contaminants from the environmental but these techniques have limitations such as high cost, long time, logistical problems and mechanical complexity. Phytoremediation can be used as an alternative solution for heavy metal remediation process because of its advantages as a cost-effective, efficient, environment- and eco-friendly technology based on the use of metal-accumulating plants. According to previous studies, several plants have a high potential as heavy metals bioaccumulator and can be used for phytoremediation process of heavy metals.

Effects of sulfate on heavy metal release from iron corrosion scales in drinking water distribution system.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Huifang; Shi, Baoyou; Yang, Fan; Wang, Dongsheng

2017-05-01

Trace heavy metals accumulated in iron corrosion scales within a drinking water distribution system (DWDS) could potentially be released to bulk water and consequently deteriorate the tap water quality. The objective of this study was to identify and evaluate the release of trace heavy metals in DWDS under changing source water conditions. Experimental pipe loops with different iron corrosion scales were set up to simulate the actual DWDS. The effects of sulfate levels on heavy metal release were systemically investigated. Heavy metal releases of Mn, Ni, Cu, Pb, Cr and As could be rapidly triggered by sulfate addition but the releases slowly decreased over time. Heavy metal release was more severe in pipes transporting groundwater (GW) than in pipes transporting surface water (SW). There were strong positive correlations (R 2  > 0.8) between the releases of Fe and Mn, Fe and Ni, Fe and Cu, and Fe and Pb. When switching to higher sulfate water, iron corrosion scales in all pipe loops tended to be more stable (especially in pipes transporting GW), with a larger proportion of stable constituents (mainly Fe 3 O 4 ) and fewer unstable compounds (β-FeOOH, γ-FeOOH, FeCO 3 and amorphous iron oxides). The main functional iron reducing bacteria (IRB) communities were favorable for the formation of Fe 3 O 4 . The transformation of corrosion scales and the growth of sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB) accounted for the gradually reduced heavy metal release with time. The higher metal release in pipes transporting GW could be due to increased Fe 6 (OH) 12 CO 3 content under higher sulfate concentrations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Leaching of heavy metals from timah langat amang

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shukri bin Othman

1990-01-01

Accelerated leaching studies of amang from Timah Langat for heavy metals showed that the material was rather stable. From almost 24 types of heavy metals contained in the material, the metal that leached out most was Al, followed by Pb, U, Cu, Mn, Fe, Mg, Y and La but at smaller quantities. The studies also showed that amang was very porous. The high seepage rate resulted in the solubilities of the metals not reaching equilibrium. In that situation, the leaching of heavy metals from amang was dependent on the seepage rate of water, the height of the material, the volume of water that seeped through and the solubility of the metals

[Pollution by heavy metals in the petrochemical sewage waters of the sea area of Daya Bay and assessment on potential ecological risks].

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Shan-Nan; Li, Chun-Hou; Xu, Jiao-Jiao; Xiao, Ya-Yuan; Lin, Lin; Huang, Xiao-Ping

2014-06-01

This study aimed to gain a clear understanding on the status of pollution by heavy metals in the petrochemical sewage and the potential ecological risk caused by heavy metal pollution in the sea area of Daya Bay. The contents and spatial distributions of heavy metals including Zn, Pb, Cu, Cd, Cr, As and Hg in seawater, sediment and fishes collected from Daya Bay were analyzed. The comprehensive pollution index (CPI) and ecological risk indexes (ERIs) were used to evaluate the contaminated severity and potential ecological risks of heavy metals in seawater and sediment. The results showed that the contents of these heavy metals, except for those of Zn and Pb, in several stations set in Daya Bay from 2011 to 2012 were relatively low, which were lower than the quality standard of class I according to the China National Standard Criteria for Seawater Quality, suggesting that the seawater in Daya Bay has not been polluted yet by these heavy metals. The average CPI of heavy metals in seawater during flooding season (0.72) was higher than that during dry season (0.38) whereas the average CPI of heavy metals in sediment during dry season (7.77) was higher than that during flooding season (5.70). Hg was found to be the primary contaminating heavy metal in sediment during dry season, which was followed by As and Zn whereas during flooding season, Hg was the primary contaminating metal in sediment, followed by Zn and Cu. The contents of these 7 heavy metals in fishes collected from the surveyed areas were lower than those of the standard requirements. A correlation analysis indicated that there were significant differences in the correlations between the midst of the heavy metals in sea water and the different periods. The ERIs of heavy metals in sediment during dry season (129.20) was higher than that during flooding season (102.86), and 25% of the sampling sites among all stations were under the risk of high-level alarm. The potential ERIs of heavy metals in sediment in

Characterization of a heavy metal translocating P-type ATPase gene from an environmental heavy metal resistance Enterobacter sp. isolate.

Science.gov (United States)

Chien, Chih-Ching; Huang, Chia-Hsuan; Lin, Yi-Wei

2013-03-01

Heavy metals are common contaminants found in polluted areas. We have identified a heavy metal translocating P-type ATPase gene (hmtp) via fosmid library and in vitro transposon mutagenesis from an Enterobacter sp. isolate. This gene is believed to participate in the bacterium's heavy metal resistance traits. The complete gene was identified, cloned, and expressed in a suitable Escherichia coli host cell. E. coli W3110, RW3110 (zntA::Km), GG48 (ΔzitB::Cm zntA::Km), and GG51 (ΔzitB::Cm) were used to study the possible effects of this gene for heavy metal (cadmium and zinc in particular) resistance. Among the E. coli strains tested, RW3110 and GG48 showed more sensitivity to cadmium and zinc compared to the wild-type E. coli W3110 and strain GG51. Therefore, strains RW3110 and GG48 were chosen for the reference hosts for further evaluation of the gene's effect. The results showed that expression of this heavy metal translocating P-type ATPase gene could increase the ability for zinc and cadmium resistance in the tested microorganisms.

Adsorption of heavy metal in freeway by asphalt block

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Chaocheng

2017-08-01

Heavy metals are toxic, persistent, and carcinogenic in freeway. Various techniques are available for the removal of heavy metals from waste water among soils during freeway including ion-exchange, membrane filtration, electrolysis, coagulation, flotation, and adsorption. Among them, bio-sorption processes are widely used for heavy metal and other pollutant removal due to its sustainable, rapid and economic. In this paper, heavy metal removal facilitated by adsorption in plants during freeway was illustrated to provide concise information on exploring the adsorption efficiency.

Impact of heavy metals on the female reproductive system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Piotr Rzymski

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Introduction. It has been recognized that environmental pollution can affect the quality of health of the human population. Heavy metals are among the group of highly emitted contaminants and their adverse effect of living organisms has been widely studied in recent decades. Lifestyle and quality of the ambient environment are among these factors which can mainly contribute to the heavy metals exposure in humans. Objective. A review of literature linking heavy metals and the female reproductive system and description of the possible associations with emission and exposure of heavy metals and impairments of female reproductive system according to current knowledge. Results. The potential health disorders caused by chronic or acute heavy metals toxicity include immunodeficiency, osteoporosis, neurodegeneration and organ failures. Potential linkages of heavy metals concentration found in different human organs and blood with oestrogen-dependent diseases such as breast cancer, endometrial cancer, endometriosis and spontaneous abortions, as well as pre-term deliveries, stillbirths and hypotrophy, have also been reported. Conclusions. Environmental deterioration can lead to the elevated risk of human exposure to heavy metals, and consequently, health implications including disturbances in reproduction. It is therefore important to continue the investigations on metal-induced mechanisms of fertility impairment on the genetic, epigenetic and biochemical level.

Heavy metal anomalies in the Tinto and Odiel River and estuary system, Spain

Science.gov (United States)

Nelson, C.H.; Lamothe, P.J.

1993-01-01

The Tinto and Odiel rivers drain 100 km from the Rio Tinto sulphide mining district, and join at a 20-km long estuary entering the Atlantic Ocean. A reconnaissance study of heavy metal anomalies in channel sand and overbank mud of the river and estuary by semi-quantitative emission dc-arc spectrographic analysis shows the following upstream to downstream ranges in ppm (??g g-1): As 3,000 to TOC), sandysilty overbank clay has been analyzed to represent suspended load materials. The high content of heavy metals in the overbank clay throughout the river and estuary systems indicates the importance of suspended sediment transport for dispersing heavy metals from natural erosion and anthropogenic mining activities of the sulfide deposit. The organic-poor (0.21-0.37% TOC) river bed sand has been analyzed to represent bedload transport of naturally-occurring sulfide minerals. The sand has high concentrations of metals upstream but these decrease an order of magnitude in the lower estuary. Although heavy metal contamination of estuary mouth beach sand has been diluted to background levels estuary mud exhibits increased contamination apparently related to finer grain size, higher organic carbon content, precipitation of river-borne dissolved solids, and input of anthropogenic heavy metals from industrial sources. The contaminated estuary mud disperses to the inner shelf mud belt and offshore suspended sediment, which exhibit metal anomalies from natural erosion and mining of upstream Rio Tinto sulphide lode sources (Pb, Cu, Zn) and industrial activities within the estuary (Fe, Cr, Ti). Because heavy metal contamination of Tinto-Odiel river sediment reaches or exceeds the highest levels encountered in other river sediments of Spain and Europe, a detailed analysis of metals in water and suspended sediment throughout the system, and epidemiological analysis of heavy metal effects in humans is appropriate. ?? 1993 Estuarine Research Federation.

Bioaccumulation and toxic effects of some heavy metals in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The contamination of the aquatic systems with heavy metals from natural anthropogenic sources has become a global problem which poses threats to ecosystems and natural communities. Hence this study reviews the effects of heavy metals in freshwater fishes. Fishes bioaccumulate heavy metals (including cadmium, zinc ...

Heavy metals effect in Drosophila melanogaster germinal cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosa Duque de la, M.E.

1984-01-01

Heavy metals occur naturally and some of them are very important in cellular metabolism. Industrial development has increased metal concentration in the environment and in the living organisms tissues. This increase promotes the human risk to suffer teratogenesis, carcinogenesis and mutagenesis. Different biological systems have been used to proof the genetic effect of heavy metals including Drosophila. In the present work chromium, cadmium, lead, zinc and arsenic salts were administered to Drosophila females and males adults in order to determine the genetic effect produced by these compounds, in both femenine and masculine germinal cells. The mating system used (''Oster males'' and y 2 wsup(a)/y 2 wsup(a); e/e females) permited to determine among two succesive generations, the mutagenic effects produced by heavy metals in Drosophila. The salts administration to adult flies was made by injection. Non-disjunction, X-chromosome loss, and sex linked recessive lethals frequency was increased by heavy metals. It was observed a fertility disminution between F 1 descendants from individuals treated with the metalic salts. It was demonstrated that heavy metals can interact with genetic material at different levels in the two types of gametic cells to produce genetic damage. (author)

Heavy metal ions are potent inhibitors of protein folding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharma, Sandeep K.; Goloubinoff, Pierre; Christen, Philipp

2008-01-01

Environmental and occupational exposure to heavy metals such as cadmium, mercury and lead results in severe health hazards including prenatal and developmental defects. The deleterious effects of heavy metal ions have hitherto been attributed to their interactions with specific, particularly susceptible native proteins. Here, we report an as yet undescribed mode of heavy metal toxicity. Cd 2+ , Hg 2+ and Pb 2+ proved to inhibit very efficiently the spontaneous refolding of chemically denatured proteins by forming high-affinity multidentate complexes with thiol and other functional groups (IC 50 in the nanomolar range). With similar efficacy, the heavy metal ions inhibited the chaperone-assisted refolding of chemically denatured and heat-denatured proteins. Thus, the toxic effects of heavy metal ions may result as well from their interaction with the more readily accessible functional groups of proteins in nascent and other non-native form. The toxic scope of heavy metals seems to be substantially larger than assumed so far

Does heavy metal exposure affect the condition of Whitethroat (Sylvia communis) nestlings?

Science.gov (United States)

Turzańska-Pietras, Katarzyna; Chachulska, Justyna; Polechońska, Ludmiła; Borowiec, Marta

2018-03-01

Anthropogenic pollution results in high concentrations of heavy metals in the environment. Due to their persistence and a high potential for bioaccumulation, metals are a real threat for birds breeding in industrial areas. The aim of the present study has been to explore the contents of heavy metals (arsenic As, cadmium Cd, chromium Cr, copper Cu, iron Fe, nickel Ni, lead Pb and zinc Zn) in the excreta of Whitethroat (Sylvia communis) nestlings living in polluted environment and to investigate the relationship between these contents and the nestlings' condition. Excrement samples contained all the studied elements. The contents of arsenic, cadmium, copper and zinc in the excreta of nestlings from nests located close to a slag dump were several times higher than in the soil near the dump, which suggested accumulation in food consumed by the birds. Condition parameters (body mass and haemoglobin concentration) were not related to heavy metal concentrations in the nestlings' excreta, except of Zn. It is possible that Whitethroats are able to detoxicate heavy metals to a certain extent. Detailed, multi-element analysis of the environment, food and bird tissues or excreta should be performed to explore relations between different chemicals and bird condition.

Bio-geochemical studies of indus delta mangrove ecosystem through heavy metal assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ismail, S.; Saifullah, S.M.

2014-01-01

In the present study monitoring of heavy metal pollution was done in the mangrove habitats of Indus Delta. Different levels of four heavy metal (Pb, Cu, Cd, and Zn) in abiotic component (sediments and water) and biotic components (mangrove plants parts like, (Pneumatophores, bark, leaves, flowers, and fruits) were determined. The highest average concentration of heavy metals (111 ppm Zn, 60.0 ppm Pb, 52.2 ppm Cu, 1.43 ppm Cd) were measured in sediments and the lowest in the water (0.13 ppm Zn, 0.0014 ppm Cu, 0.0007 ppm Pb , 0.00061 ppm Cd). Among the four heavy metals, Zn was the most abundant metal in all components of the ecosystem, followed by Cu, Pb, and Cd (Zn>Cu>Pb>Cd), and hence A. marina can be proposed as a hyper-accumulator for Zn, which opens doors for further research. The pollution load index (PLI) had values higher than 1 and varied between 2.02-1.70 at Indus Delta, whereas at MianiHor the PLI was 0.65, which indicated that Indus Delta mangrove Ecosystem was under threat of pollution under the present scenario. (author)

Heavy metal partitioning of suspended particulate matter-water and sediment-water in the Yangtze Estuary.

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, Chenghong; Guo, Xiaoyu; Yin, Su; Tian, Chenhao; Li, Yangyang; Shen, Zhenyao

2017-10-01

The partitioning of ten heavy metals (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Zn) between the water, suspended particulate matter (SPM), and sediments in seven channel sections during three hydrologic seasons in the Yangtze Estuary was comprehensively investigated. Special attention was paid to the role of tides, influential factors (concentrations of SPM and dissolved organic carbon, and particle size), and heavy metal speciation. The SPM-water and sediment-water partition coefficients (K p ) of the heavy metals exhibited similar changes along the channel sections, though the former were larger throughout the estuary. Because of the higher salinity, the K p values of most of the metals were higher in the north branch than in the south branch. The K p values of Cd, Co, and As generally decreased from the wet season to the dry season. Both the diagonal line method and paired samples t-test showed that no specific phase transfer of heavy metals existed during the flood and ebb tides, but the sediment-water K p was more concentrated for the diagonal line method, owing to the relatively smaller tidal influences on the sediment. The partition coefficients (especially the K p for SPM-water) had negative correlations with the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) but positive correlations were noted with the particle size for most of the heavy metals in sediment. Two types of significant correlations were observed between K p and metal speciation (i.e., exchangeable, carbonate, reducible, organic, and residual fractions), which can be used to identify the dominant phase-partition mechanisms (e.g., adsorption or desorption) of heavy metals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Prosopis juliflora--a green solution to decontaminate heavy metal (Cu and Cd) contaminated soils.

Science.gov (United States)

Senthilkumar, P; Prince, W S P M; Sivakumar, S; Subbhuraam, C V

2005-09-01

Soil and plant samples (root and shoot) of Prosopis juliflora were collected in the vicinity of metal based foundry units in Coimbatore and assessed for their heavy metal content (Cu and Cd) to ascertain the use of P. juliflora as a green solution to decontaminate soils contaminated with Cu and Cd. The results showed that Cu and Cd content was much higher in plant components compared to their extractable level in the soil. Furthermore, there exist a strong correlation between the distance of the sources of industrial units and accumulation of heavy metals in plants. Accumulation of Cd in roots is comparatively higher than that of shoots. However, in case of Cu no such clear trend is seen. Considering the accumulation efficiency and tolerance of P. juliflora to Cd and Cu, this plant can be explored further for the decontamination of metal polluted soils. On the other hand, in view of heavy metal accumulate the practice of providing foliage and pods as fodder for live stock should be avoided.

The remediation of heavy metals contaminated sediment.

Science.gov (United States)

Peng, Jian-Feng; Song, Yong-Hui; Yuan, Peng; Cui, Xiao-Yu; Qiu, Guang-Lei

2009-01-30

Heavy metal contamination has become a worldwide problem through disturbing the normal functions of rivers and lakes. Sediment, as the largest storage and resources of heavy metal, plays a rather important role in metal transformations. This paper provides a review on the geochemical forms, affecting factors and remediation technologies of heavy metal in sediment. The in situ remediation of sediment aims at increasing the stabilization of some metals such as the mobile and the exchangeable fractions; whereas, the ex situ remediation mainly aims at removing those potentially mobile metals, such as the Mn-oxides and the organic matter (OM) fraction. The pH and OM can directly change metals distribution in sediment; however oxidation-reduction potential (ORP), mainly through changing the pH values, indirectly alters metals distribution. Mainly ascribed to their simple operation mode, low costs and fast remediation effects, in situ remediation technologies, especially being fit for slight pollution sediment, are applied widely. However, for avoiding metal secondary pollution from sediment release, ex situ remediation should be the hot point in future research.

Phytoremediation of heavy metals from fly ash pond by Azolla caroliniana.

Science.gov (United States)

Pandey, Vimal Chandra

2012-08-01

Abundance of naturally growing Azolla caroliniana (water fern) on the surface of metal enriched fly ash (FA) pond reflects its toxitolerant characteristics. Results indicate the efficiency of A. caroliniana for phytoremediation of FA pond because of its higher bioconcentration factor. The metal concentration ranged from 175 to 538 and 86 to 753mgkg(-1) in roots and fronds, respectively. Bioconcentration factor (BCF) values of all metals in root and frond ranged from 1.7 to18.6 and 1.8 to 11.0, respectively, which were greater than one and indicates the metal accumulation potential of A. caroliniana. Translocation factor (TF) ranged from 0.37 to 1.4 for various heavy metals. The field result proved that A. caroliniana is a potential accumulator for the examined heavy metals and can be used for phytoremediation of FA pond. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The phytoremediation potential of heavy metals from soil using Poaceae energy crops: A review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melissa PRELAC

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Phytoremediation is a method that use plants which can remove or stabilize pollutants in the environment. The aim of the polluted area remediation is to return ecosystems into original condition. Phytoremediation is a green technology used for a wide range of pollutants as well as on various lands, low costs and reduced environment impacts. Energy crops are relatively new in this field of researches and insufficiently explored. However, the results so far show their potential in heavy metal removal. The aim of this research was to examine the available literature and determine the phytoremediation potential of cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel and zinc from the soil using Arundo donax, Miscanthus x giganteus, Panicum virgatum, Pennisetum purpureum, Sida hermaphrodita and Sorghum x drummondii. According to the researches conditions, studied energy crops are reccomended in heavy metals phytoextraction, rhizofiltration, stabilization and accumulation. Still, those plants accumulate higher concentrations of heavy metals in the rhizosphere which makes them heavy metals excluders since heavy metals are not translocated into the plants' shoot system and favorable in the implementation of rhizofiltration as well.

[Heavy Metals Accmultio in the Caofeidian Reclamation Soils: Indicated by Soil Magnetic Susceptibility].

Science.gov (United States)

Xue, Yong; Zhou, Qian; Li, Yuan; Zhang, Hai-bo; Hu, Xue-feng; Luo, Yong-ming

2016-04-15

The environmental magnetism method has been widely applied to identify soil heavy metal pollution, which is characterized by simplicity, efficiency, non-destructivity and sensitivity. The present study used magnetic susceptibility to assess the accumulation of heavy metals in soils of the Caofeidian industrial zone which is a typical reclamation area in northern China. The study area was divided into three sub-zones based on the function, including industrial zone, living zone, natural tidal flat and wetland. A total of 35 topsoil samples (0-10 cm) and 3 soil profiles were collected from the three sub-zones. Magnetic susceptibility (X(lf)), iron oxide (Fe2O3) contents and heavy metals contents (Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Pb, Mn and V) of the samples were analyzed. The results showed that X(lf) values and heavy metals contents exhibited higher spatial variability in the top soil of the industrial zone, indicating the severe impacts of industrial activities. In the soil profiles of the industrial and living zones, all heavy metals were enriched to different degrees in the upper layer (0-20 cm). However, there was no significant change of heavy metal contents in the soil profiles of tidal flat which was far from the industrial area. The X(lf) value was significantly (P soil. This indicated that X(lf) could be used as an indicator for heavy metal accumulation in the industrial zone. However, the X(lf) value was not suitable to be an indicator to show the heavy metal accumulation in the soils of living zone and natural tidal flat. This might be associated with the different sources of magnetic materials among the different sub-zones and the special characteristics of the soils in the tidal flat and wetland.

Classification of Plants According to Their Heavy Metal Content ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Plants like other living organisms respond differently under different environmental conditions. An elevated level of heavy metals is one of the stresses which results into three classes of plants depending on their heavy metal content. The classes of plant species according to their accumulated heavy metals around North ...

Removal of heavy metals from kaolin using an upward electrokinetic soil remedial (UESR) technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, J.-Y.; Huang, X.-J.; Kao, Jimmy C.M.; Stabnikova, Olena

2006-01-01

An upward electrokinetic soil remedial (UESR) technology was proposed to remove heavy metals from contaminated kaolin. Unlike conventional electrokinetic treatment that uses boreholes or trenches for horizontal migration of heavy metals, the UESR technology, applying vertical non-uniform electric fields, caused upward transportation of heavy metals to the top surface of the treated soil. The effects of current density, treatment duration, cell diameter, and different cathode chamber influent (distilled water or 0.01 M nitric acid) were studied. The removal efficiencies of heavy metals positively correlated to current density and treatment duration. Higher heavy metals removal efficiency was observed for the reactor cell with smaller diameter. A substantial amount of heavy metals was accumulated in the nearest to cathode 2 cm layer of kaolin when distilled water was continuously supplied to the cathode chamber. Heavy metals accumulated in this layer of kaolin can be easily excavated and disposed off. The main part of the removed heavy metals was dissolved in cathode chamber influent and moved away with cathode chamber effluent when 0.01 M nitric acid was used, instead of distilled water. Energy saving treatment by UESR technology with highest metal removal efficiencies was provided by two regimes: (1) by application of 0.01 M nitric acid as cathode chamber influent, cell diameter of 100 mm, duration of 18 days, and constant voltage of 3.5 V (19.7 kWh/m 3 of kaolin) and (2) by application of 0.01 M nitric acid as cathode chamber influent, cell diameter of 100 cm, duration of 6 days, and constant current density of 0.191 mA/cm 2 (19.1 kWh/m 3 of kaolin)

Heavy metals in the cell nucleus - role in pathogenesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Sas-Nowosielska, Hanna; Pawlas, Natalia

2015-01-01

People are exposed to heavy metals both in an occupational and natural environment. The most pronounced effects of heavy metals result from their interaction with cellular genetic material packed in form of chromatin. Heavy metals influence chromatin, mimicking and substituting natural microelements in various processes taking place in the cell, or interacting chemically with nuclear components: nucleic acids, proteins and lipids. This paper is a review of current knowledge on the effects of heavy metals on chromatin, exerted at the level of various nuclear components.

[Leaching characteristics of heavy metals and utilization of filter media in BAF].

Science.gov (United States)

Zou, Jin-long; Dai, Ying

2007-10-01

A series of leaching tests were conducted to study the solidification of heavy metals in biological filter media made with dried sludge as an additive. The maximum leaching contents of Cd, Cr, Cu and Pb are obtained when pH is 1; leaching contents of heavy metals have an obvious decrease as pH is greater than or equal to 3; and it can be concluded from the results that pH has a significant influence on the leaching characteristic of heavy metals at leaching time of either 24 h or 30 d. X-ray diffraction analysis performed on filter media reveal the main compounds of the 4 heavy metals are Pb2O(CrO4), CdSiO3 and CuO, and the heavy metals are solidified in the mesh structure of Si--O. Heavy metals (such as Cd, Cr, Cu and Pb) can be solidified in filter media through a series of crystalline phase changes and chemical reaction after high temperature sintering. The new filter media (obtained in test) were used in biological aerated filter (BAF) to treat wastewater (C/N about 11.5 and 25.5) in a simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (SND) system. Based on the mechanism of SND, the average removal efficienciesof NH4(+)-N and TN filled with the new filter media (obtained in test) are about 85.5%, 90.3%, 46.6% and 49.6%, respectively, and it is higher than those of other 3 medias (Jiangxi ceramsite, Guangzhou ceramsite and Shanxi activated carbon). The results provide a better understanding of factors that may affect the immobilization and leaching characteristics of heavy metals in ceramsite, which promotes the extensive use of filter media in BAF.

EDGA amendment of slightly heavy metal loaded soil affects heavy metal solubility, crop growth and microbivorous nematodes but not bacteria and herbivorous nematodes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bouwman, L.A.; Bloem, J.; Römkens, P.F.A.M.; Japenga, J.

2005-01-01

Phytoextraction of heavy metals is a promising technology to remediate slightly and moderately contaminated soils. To enhance crops' uptake of heavy metals, chelates such as EDGA are being tested as soil additives. Heavy metal loaded EDGA can affect soil organisms such as bacteria and nematodes in

Multiple heavy metal removal using an entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana.

Science.gov (United States)

Gola, Deepak; Dey, Priyadarshini; Bhattacharya, Arghya; Mishra, Abhishek; Malik, Anushree; Namburath, Maneesh; Ahammad, Shaikh Ziauddin

2016-10-01

Towards the development of a potential remediation technology for multiple heavy metals [Zn(II), Cu(II), Cd(II), Cr(VI) and Ni(II)] from contaminated water, present study examined the growth kinetics and heavy metal removal ability of Beauveria bassiana in individual and multi metals. The specific growth rate of B. bassiana varied from 0.025h(-1) to 0.039h(-1) in presence of individual/multi heavy metals. FTIR analysis indicated the involvement of different surface functional groups in biosorption of different metals, while cellular changes in fungus was reflected by various microscopic (SEM, AFM and TEM) analysis. TEM studies proved removal of heavy metals via sorption and accumulation processes, whereas AFM studies revealed increase in cell surface roughness in fungal cells exposed to heavy metals. Present study delivers first report on the mechanism of bioremediation of heavy metals when present individually as well as multi metal mixture by entomopathogenic fungi. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Gender identity and the electric guitar in heavy metal music

OpenAIRE

Kelly, Philip

2009-01-01

In this chapter I will attempt to outline the gendered characteristics of heavy metal and the electric guitar and address the question: has society’s impression of heavy metal as a primarily masculine pursuit been so imbedded in Western culture that we will never see a female heavy metal band achieve the same level of success as a male heavy metal band?

Heavy metal concentrations in soils and vegetation in urban areas of Quezon City, Philippines.

Science.gov (United States)

Navarrete, Ian A; Gabiana, Christella C; Dumo, Joan Ruby E; Salmo, Severino G; Guzman, Maria Aileen Leah G; Valera, Nestor S; Espiritu, Emilyn Q

2017-04-01

Limited data have been published on the chemistry of urban soils and vegetation in the Philippines. The aim of this study is to quantify the concentrations of heavy metals (i.e., Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Pb) in soils and vegetation in the urban landscape of Quezon City, Philippines, and to elucidate the relationships between soil properties and the concentration of heavy metals pertaining to different land uses [i.e., protected forest (LM), park and wildlife area (PA), landfill (PL), urban poor residential and industrial areas (RA), and commercial areas (CA)]. Soil (0-15 cm) and senescent plant leaves were collected and were analyzed for soil properties and heavy metal concentrations. Results revealed that the concentrations of heavy metals (i.e., Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Pb) in urban soils were higher in areas where anthropogenic activities or disturbance (PL, RA, and CA) were dominant as compared to the less disturbed areas (LM and PA). Organic matter and available phosphorous were strongly correlated with heavy metal concentrations, suggesting that heavy metal concentrations were primarily controlled by these soil properties. The average foliar heavy metal concentrations varied, ranging from 0 to 0.4 mg/kg for Cd, 0-10 mg/kg for Cr, 2-22 mg/kg for Cu, 0-5 mg/kg for Pb, and 11-250 mg/kg for Zn. The concentrations of Cd and Cr exceeded the critical threshold concentrations in some plants. Leaves of plants growing in PL (i.e., landfill) showed the highest levels of heavy metal contamination. Our results revealed that anthropogenic activities and disturbance caused by the rapid urbanization of the city are major contributors to the heavy metal accumulation and persistence in the soils in these areas.

Heavy metal speciation and their accumulation in sediments of Lake ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

UFUOMA

African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Vol. 5(4), pp. 280-298, April ..... present study gave higher values due to the effect of increasing ...... on The Heavy Metal. Pollution of Guanabara Bay Sediments and Evaluation of The.

Distribution and source analysis of heavy metal pollutants in sediments of a rapid developing urban river system.

Science.gov (United States)

Xia, Fang; Qu, Liyin; Wang, Ting; Luo, Lili; Chen, Han; Dahlgren, Randy A; Zhang, Minghua; Mei, Kun; Huang, Hong

2018-09-01

Heavy metal pollution of aquatic environments in rapidly developing industrial regions is of considerable global concern due to its potential to cause serious harm to aquatic ecosystems and human health. This study assessed heavy metal contamination of sediments in a highly industrialized urban watershed of eastern China containing several historically unregulated manufacturing enterprises. Total concentrations and solid-phase fractionation of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr and Cd were investigated for 39 river sediments using multivariate statistical analysis and geographically weighted regression (GWR) methods to quantitatively examine the relationship between land use and heavy metal pollution at the watershed scale. Results showed distinct spatial patterns of heavy metal contamination within the watershed, such as higher concentrations of Zn, Pb and Cd in the southwest and higher Cu concentration in the east, indicating links to specific pollution sources within the watershed. Correlation and PCA analyses revealed that Zn, Pb and Cd were dominantly contributed by anthropogenic activities; Cu originated from both industrial and agricultural sources; and Cr has been altered by recent pollution control strategies. The GWR model indicated that several heavy metal fractions were strongly correlated with industrial land proportion and this correlation varied with the level of industrialization as demonstrated by variations in local GWR R 2 values. This study provides important information for assessing heavy metal contaminated areas, identifying heavy metal pollutant sources, and developing regional-scale remediation strategies. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Identification of Heavy Metal Pollution Derived From Traffic in Roadside Soil Using Magnetic Susceptibility.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Pingguo; Ge, Jing; Yang, Miao

2017-06-01

The study integrates surface and vertical distribution of magnetic susceptibility and heavy metal contents (Pb, Cu, Zn and Fe) to characterize the signature of vehicle pollutants in roadside soils at Linfen city, China. Sites with reforestation and without vegetation cover were investigated. The results showed that magnetic susceptibility and heavy metal contents were higher at the roadside without trees than in the reforest belt. The variations of magnetic susceptibility and heavy metal contents decreased both with distance and with depth. The maximum value was observed at 5-10 m away from the roadside edge. The vertical distribution in soil revealed accumulation of pollutants in 0-5 cm topsoils. The average contents were higher than the background values and in the order Fe (107.21 g kg -1 ), Zn (99.72 mg kg -1 ), Pb (90.99 mg kg -1 ), Cu (36.14 mg kg -1 ). Coarse multi domain grains were identified as the dominating magnetic particles. Multivariate statistical and SEM/EDX analyses suggested that the heavy metals derived from traffic sources. Trees act as efficient receptors and green barrier, which can reduce vehicle derived pollution.

Spatial patterns of heavy metals in soil under different geological structures and land uses for assessing metal enrichments.

Science.gov (United States)

Krami, Loghman Khoda; Amiri, Fazel; Sefiyanian, Alireza; Shariff, Abdul Rashid B Mohamed; Tabatabaie, Tayebeh; Pradhan, Biswajeet

2013-12-01

One hundred and thirty composite soil samples were collected from Hamedan county, Iran to characterize the spatial distribution and trace the sources of heavy metals including As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, V, Zn, and Fe. The multivariate gap statistical analysis was used; for interrelation of spatial patterns of pollution, the disjunctive kriging and geoenrichment factor (EF(G)) techniques were applied. Heavy metals and soil properties were grouped using agglomerative hierarchical clustering and gap statistic. Principal component analysis was used for identification of the source of metals in a set of data. Geostatistics was used for the geospatial data processing. Based on the comparison between the original data and background values of the ten metals, the disjunctive kriging and EF(G) techniques were used to quantify their geospatial patterns and assess the contamination levels of the heavy metals. The spatial distribution map combined with the statistical analysis showed that the main source of Cr, Co, Ni, Zn, Pb, and V in group A land use (agriculture, rocky, and urban) was geogenic; the origin of As, Cd, and Cu was industrial and agricultural activities (anthropogenic sources). In group B land use (rangeland and orchards), the origin of metals (Cr, Co, Ni, Zn, and V) was mainly controlled by natural factors and As, Cd, Cu, and Pb had been added by organic factors. In group C land use (water), the origin of most heavy metals is natural without anthropogenic sources. The Cd and As pollution was relatively more serious in different land use. The EF(G) technique used confirmed the anthropogenic influence of heavy metal pollution. All metals showed concentrations substantially higher than their background values, suggesting anthropogenic pollution.

Heavy metals in packaging : a literature survey

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Putten EM; IMG

2011-01-01

The use of the heavy metals cadmium, mercury, chromium and lead in packaging is forbidden internationally for some years because these substances are harmful to the environment. In 2002 the Dutch national Inspectorate for the Environment determined the presence of heavy metals in packaging for

A Drinking Water Sensor for Lead and Other Heavy Metals.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Wen-Chi; Li, Zhongrui; Burns, Mark A

2017-09-05

Leakage of lead and other heavy metals into drinking water is a significant health risk and one that is not easily detected. We have developed simple sensors containing only platinum electrodes for the detection of heavy metal contamination in drinking water. The two-electrode sensor can identify the existence of a variety of heavy metals in drinking water, and the four-electrode sensor can distinguish lead from other heavy metals in solution. No false-positive response is generated when the sensors are placed in simulated and actual tap water contaminated by heavy metals. Lead detection on the four-electrode sensor is not affected by the presence of common ions in tap water. Experimental results suggest the sensors can be embedded in water service lines for long-time use until lead or other heavy metals are detected. With its low cost (∼$0.10/sensor) and the possibility of long-term operation, the sensors are ideal for heavy metal detection of drinking water.

Heavy metal accumulation in arctic hares (Lepus arcticus) in Nunavut, Canada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pedersen, Simen [Department of Biology, University of Tromso, N-9037 Tromso (Norway)]. E-mail: simenpeders1@gmail.com; Lierhagen, Syverin [Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Tungasletta 2, N-7485 Trondheim (Norway)

2006-09-15

Accumulation of cadmium, mercury, lead, copper and zinc was studied in muscle, liver and kidney of 9 adult and 7 juvenile arctic hares (Lepus arcticus), collected in 2003 in the southwestern part of Nunavut, Canada. Our objective was to determine the level of heavy metal accumulation, and distribution among age groups and tissue. Concentrations of all metals varied among tissues, and concentrations of Cd, Hg and Zn were higher in adults compared to juveniles. We found correlations in metal content among tissues, and among metals in kidneys. We also found the hares to have low concentration of most heavy metals except cadmium. We suggest that the high cadmium levels might be caused by the local geology, and the hares being adapted to these levels. The low levels of the other metals are probably due to low input of atmospheric contaminants. Only one of the individuals had Cd content slightly above the maximum contaminant levels recommended for human consumption of meat. There were no levels in meat above the recommended maximum for the rest of the metals surveyed. However the Cd levels in liver and kidney are orders of magnitude higher than the recommended maximum, and consumption of these organs should be avoided.

Ecotoxic heavy metals transformation by bacteria and fungi in aquatic ecosystem.

Science.gov (United States)

Chaturvedi, Amiy Dutt; Pal, Dharm; Penta, Santhosh; Kumar, Awanish

2015-10-01

Water is the most important and vital molecule of our planet and covers 75% of earth surface. But it is getting polluted due to high industrial growth. The heavy metals produced by industrial activities are recurrently added to it and considered as dangerous pollutants. Increasing concentration of toxic heavy metals (Pb(2+), Cd(2+), Hg(2+), Ni(2+)) in water is a severe threat for human. Heavy metal contaminated water is highly carcinogenic and poisonous at even relatively low concentrations. When they discharged in water bodies, they dissolve in the water and are distributed in the food chain. Bacteria and fungi are efficient microbes that frequently transform heavy metals and remove toxicity. The application of bacteria and fungi may offer cost benefit in water treatment plants for heavy metal transformation and directly related to public health and environmental safety issues. The heavy metals transformation rate in water is also dependent on the enzymatic capability of microorganisms. By transforming toxic heavy metals microbes sustain aquatic and terrestrial life. Therefore the application of microbiological biomass for heavy metal transformation and removal from aquatic ecosystem is highly significant and striking. This paper reviews the microbial transformation of heavy metal, microbe metal interaction and different approaches for microbial heavy metal remediation from water bodies.

Sublethal Heavy Metal Stress Stimulates Innate Immunity in Tomato

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nilanjan Chakraborty

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Effect of sublethal heavy metal stress as plant biotic elicitor for triggering innate immunity in tomato plant was investigated. Copper in in vivo condition induced accumulation of defense enzymes like peroxidase (PO, polyphenol oxidase (PPO, phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL, and β-1,3 glucanase along with higher accumulation of total phenol, antioxidative enzymes (catalase and ascorbate peroxidase, and total chlorophyll content. Furthermore, the treatment also induced nitric oxide (NO production which was confirmed by realtime visualization of NO burst using a fluorescent probe 4,5-diaminofluorescein diacetate (DAF-2DA and spectrophotometric analysis. The result suggested that the sublethal dose of heavy metal can induce an array of plant defense responses that lead to the improvement of innate immunity in plants.

Phytoremediation of heavy metals with several efficiency enhancer ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

USER

2010-06-21

Jun 21, 2010 ... Key words: phytoremediation, heavy metal, plant growth promoting rhizobacteria, multi-functional method. ... population in the twentieth century, heavy metal ... This natural and environmental friendly technology is.

Metal transformation as a strategy for bacterial detoxification of heavy metals.

Science.gov (United States)

Essa, Ashraf M M; Al Abboud, Mohamed A; Khatib, Sayeed I

2018-01-01

Microorganisms can modify the chemical and physical characters of metals leading to an alteration in their speciation, mobility, and toxicity. Aqueous heavy metals solutions (Hg, Cd, Pb, Ag, Cu, and Zn) were treated with the volatile metabolic products (VMPs) of Escherichia coli Z3 for 24 h using aerobic bioreactor. The effect of the metals treated with VMPs in comparison to the untreated metals on the growth of E. coli S1 and Staphylococcus aureus S2 (local isolates) was examined. Moreover, the toxic properties of the treated and untreated metals were monitored using minimum inhibitory concentration assay. A marked reduction of the treated metals toxicity was recorded in comparison to the untreated metals. Scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis revealed the formation of metal particles in the treated metal solutions. In addition to heavy metals at variable ratios, these particles consisted of carbon, oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen elements. The inhibition of metal toxicity was attributed to the existence of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon dioxide in the VMPs of E. coli Z3 culture that might responsible for the transformation of soluble metal ions into metal complexes. This study clarified the capability of E. coli Z3 for indirect detoxification of heavy metals via the immobilization of metal ions into biologically unavailable species. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

[Heavy metal pollution characteristics and ecological risk analysis for soil around Haining electroplating industrial park].

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jiong-Hui; Weng, Shan; Fang, Jing; Huang, Jia-Lei; Lu, Fang-Hua; Lu, Yu-Hao; Zhang, Hong-Ming

2014-04-01

The pollution status and potential ecological risks of heavy metal in soils around Haining electroplating industrial park were studied. Hakanson index approach was used to assess the ecological hazards of heavy metals in soils. Results showed that average concentrations of six heavy metals (Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, Cd and Cr) in the soils were lower than the secondary criteria of environmental quality standard for soils, indicating limited harmful effects on the plants and the environment in general. Though the average soil concentrations were low, heavy metal concentrations in six sampling points located at the side of road still exceeded the criteria, with excessive rate of 13%. Statistic analysis showed that concentrations of Cu and Cd in roadside soils were significantly higher than those in non-roadside soils, indicating that the excessive heavy metal accumulations in the soil closely related with traffic transport. The average potential ecological hazard index of soils around Haining electroplating industrial park was 46.6, suggesting a slightly ecological harm. However, the potential ecological hazard index of soils with excessive heavy metals was 220-278, suggesting the medium ecological hazards. Cd was the most seriously ecological hazard factor.

Leaching Properties of Naturally Occurring Heavy Metals from Soils

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, M.; Hoshino, M.; Yoshikawa, M.; Hara, J.; Sugita, H.

2014-12-01

The major threats to human health from heavy metals are associated with exposure to arsenic, lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury, as well as some other elements. The effects of such heavy metals on human health have been extensively studied and reviewed by international organizations such as WHO. Due to their toxicity, heavy metal contaminations have been regulated by national environmental standards in many countries, and/or laws such as the Soil Contamination Countermeasures Act in Japan. Leaching of naturally occurring heavy metals from the soils, especially those around abandoned metal mines into surrounding water systems, either groundwater or surface water systems, is one of the major pathways of exposure. Therefore, understanding the leaching properties of toxic heavy metals from naturally polluted soils is of fundamentally importance for effectively managing abandoned metal mines, excavated rocks discharged from infrastructure constructions such as tunneling, and/or selecting a pertinent countermeasure against pollution when it is necessary. In this study, soil samples taken from the surroundings of abandoned metal mines in different regions in Japan were collected and analyzed. The samples contained multiple heavy metals such as lead, arsenic and chromium. Standard leaching test and sequential leaching test considering different forms of contaminants, such as trivalent and pentavalent arsenics, and trivalent and hexavalent chromiums, together with standard test for evaluating total concentration, X-ray Fluorescence Analysis (XRF), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) tests were performed. In addition, sequential leaching tests were performed to evaluate long-term leaching properties of lead from representative samples. This presentation introduces the details of the above experimental study, discusses the relationships among leaching properties and chemical and mineral compositions, indicates the difficulties associated with

Effect of heavy metal and EDTA application on heavy metal uptake ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Yomi

2012-04-12

Apr 12, 2012 ... Cadmium, lead and ... removal of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn (Prasad and ... collected for the analysis of heavy metal concentrations of Cd, Cr ... One hundred millgram (100 mg) of leaf tissues ..... Variability for the fatty acid.

THE INFLUENCE OF SELECTED FACTORS ON THE LEACHING OF HEAVY METALS FROM SMELTER WASTE

OpenAIRE

Kamila Mizerna; Anna Król

2015-01-01

The paper presents the results of leaching research of selected heavy metals (Pb, Cu, Zn, Ni, Cd, Cr) from industrial waste. The impact of waste fragmentation on the level of heavy metals leaching was analyzed. The decrease of copper and zinc release and the increase of nickel leaching were observed with increasing grain size fraction of waste. Furthermore, release of contaminants in different ratio of liquid to solid (L/S = 10 dm3/kg and 2 dm3/kg) was studied. Higher concentrations of heavy ...

Fractionation, characterization and speciation of heavy metals in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Speciation of heavy metals in soils determines the availability for metals for plant uptake and potential for contamination of groundwater following application of composts to agricultural lands. Methods used to characterize heavy metals in solid phase of composts and compost amended soils include physical fractionation ...

Expressing a bacterial mercuric ion binding protein in plant for phytoremediation of heavy metals.

Science.gov (United States)

Hsieh, Ju-Liang; Chen, Ching-Yi; Chiu, Meng-Hsuen; Chein, Mei-Fang; Chang, Jo-Shu; Endo, Ginro; Huang, Chieh-Chen

2009-01-30

A specific mercuric ion binding protein (MerP) originating from transposon TnMERI1 of Bacillus megaterium strain MB1 isolated from Minamata Bay displayed good adsorption capability for a variety of heavy metals. In this study, the Gram-positive MerP protein was expressed in transgenic Arabidopsis to create a model system for phytoremediation of heavy metals. Under control of an actin promoter, the transgenic Arabidpsis showed higher tolerance and accumulation capacity for mercury, cadium and lead when compared with the control plant. Results from confocal microscopy analysis also indicate that MerP was localized at the cell membrane and vesicles of plant cells. The developed transgenic plants possessing excellent metal-accumulative ability could have potential applications in decontamination of heavy metals.

Breeding performance of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) and great tits (Parus major) in a heavy metal polluted area

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eeva, T., E-mail: tapio.eeva@utu.f [Section of Ecology, University of Turku, FIN-20014 Turku (Finland); Ahola, M.; Lehikoinen, E. [Section of Ecology, University of Turku, FIN-20014 Turku (Finland)

2009-11-15

We compared heavy metal levels, calcium levels, breeding parameters and condition of nestling and adult Cyanistes caeruleus and Parus major along a heavy metal pollution gradient. Both species started laying earlier and showed inferior nestling growth and smaller fledging probability in the polluted areas, which are phenologically advanced in spring due to sparse forests. The major inter-specific difference in the responses was that the clutch size and hatching success were decreased in the polluted area in P. major, but not in C. caeruleus. Heavy metal profiles in nestling feces were relatively similar in the two species, though Ni and Pb levels were higher in C. caeruleus than in P. major. However, the latter species showed markedly higher fecal calcium concentrations. Lower calcium levels and higher levels of some heavy metals in C. caeruleus suggest that in Ca-deficient environments this species might be more susceptible to negative pollution effects than P. major. - Breeding performance in two Parid species near a Cu smelter.

Breeding performance of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) and great tits (Parus major) in a heavy metal polluted area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eeva, T.; Ahola, M.; Lehikoinen, E.

2009-01-01

We compared heavy metal levels, calcium levels, breeding parameters and condition of nestling and adult Cyanistes caeruleus and Parus major along a heavy metal pollution gradient. Both species started laying earlier and showed inferior nestling growth and smaller fledging probability in the polluted areas, which are phenologically advanced in spring due to sparse forests. The major inter-specific difference in the responses was that the clutch size and hatching success were decreased in the polluted area in P. major, but not in C. caeruleus. Heavy metal profiles in nestling feces were relatively similar in the two species, though Ni and Pb levels were higher in C. caeruleus than in P. major. However, the latter species showed markedly higher fecal calcium concentrations. Lower calcium levels and higher levels of some heavy metals in C. caeruleus suggest that in Ca-deficient environments this species might be more susceptible to negative pollution effects than P. major. - Breeding performance in two Parid species near a Cu smelter.

[Distribution of Urban Soil Heavy Metal and Pollution Evaluation in Different Functional Zones of Yinchuan City].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, You-qi; Bai, Yi-ru; Wang, Jian-yu

2016-02-15

Surface soil samples (0-20 cm) from eight different functional areas in Yinchuan city were collected. There were 10 samples respectively in each functional area. The urban soil heavy metals (Zn, Cd, Pb, Mn, Cu and Cr) pollution characteristics and sources in eight different functional areas were evaluated by mathematical statistics and geostatistical analysis method. Meanwhile, the spatial distributions of heavy metals based on the geography information system (GIS) were plotted. The average values of total Zn, Cd, Pb, Mn, Cu and Cr were 74.87, 0.15, 29.02, 553.55, 40.37 and 80.79 mg x kg(-1), respectively. The results showed that the average value of soil heavy metals was higher than the soil background value of Ningxia, which indicated accumulation of the heavy metals in urban soil. The single factor pollution index of soil heavy metals was in the sequence of Cu > Pb > Zn > Cr > Cd > Mn. The average values of total Zn, Cd, Pb and Cr were higher in north east, south west and central city, while the average values of Mn and Cu were higher in north east and central city. There was moderate pollution in road and industrial area of Yinchuan, while the other functional areas showed slight pollution according to Nemoro synthesis index. The pollution degree of different functional areas was as follows: road > industrial area > business district > medical treatment area > residential area > public park > development zone > science and education area. The results indicated that the soil heavy metal pollution condition in Yinchuan City has been affected by human activities with the development of economy.

Competitive adsorption of heavy metal by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) extracted from sulfate reducing bacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jin; Li, Qing; Li, Ming-Ming; Chen, Tian-Hu; Zhou, Yue-Fei; Yue, Zheng-Bo

2014-07-01

Competitive adsorption of heavy metals by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) extracted from Desulfovibrio desulfuricans was investigated. Chemical analysis showed that different EPS compositions had different capacities for the adsorption of heavy metals which was investigated using Cu(2+) and Zn(2+). Batch adsorption tests indicated that EPS had a higher combined ability with Zn(2+) than Cu(2+). This was confirmed and explained by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and excitation-emission matrix (EEM) spectroscopy analysis. FTIR analysis showed that both polysaccharides and protein combined with Zn(2+) while only protein combined with Cu(2+). EEM spectra further revealed that tryptophan-like substances were the main compositions reacted with the heavy metals. Moreover, Zn(2+) had a higher fluorescence quenching ability than Cu(2+). Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analysis of physical composition and heavy metals pollution of municipal solid waste (MSW) in Beijing

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, H. B.; Zhang, H. Y.; Wang, G. Q.; Bai, X. J.

2018-03-01

By using on-site sampling and physical-chemical analysis, the physical composition and the contents of heavy metals in Beijing MSW were researched. The result showed that the main components of MSW in Beijing are mainly kitchen waste, the average content of kitchen waste are more than 60% and 50% in summer and in winter, respectively. The pollution of Cu, Hg and Cr are all more serious for MSW in Haidian and Dongcheng district. The heavy metal pollution of MSW in summer is higher than that in winter in Beijing. Seasonal impacts should be taken into consideration when dealing with MSW. The content of heavy metals in MSW exceeded the background value of soil in Haidian and Dongcheng districts. In order to reduce heavy metal pollution, the MSW should be separated collection and treated.

Heavy metals in surface sediments of the Jialu River, China: Their relations to environmental factors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fu, Jie [State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Environmental Engineering Program, Department of Civil Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849 (United States); Zhao, Changpo [State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Luo, Yupeng [Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849 (United States); Liu, Chunsheng, E-mail: liuchunshengidid@126.com [College of Fisheries, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070 (China); Kyzas, George Z. [Laboratory of General and Inorganic Chemical Technology, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki 54124 (Greece); Luo, Yin [State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Zhao, Dongye [Environmental Engineering Program, Department of Civil Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849 (United States); An, Shuqing [State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Zhu, Hailiang, E-mail: zhuhl@nju.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China)

2014-04-01

Highlights: • Zhengzhou City had major effect on the pollution of the Jialu River. • TN, OP, TP and COD{sub Mn} in water drove heavy metals to deposit in sediments. • B-IBI was sensitive to the adverse effect of heavy metals in sediments. - Abstract: This work investigated heavy metal pollution in surface sediments of the Jialu River, China. Sediment samples were collected at 19 sites along the river in connection with field surveys and the total concentrations were determined using atomic fluorescence spectrometer and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer. Sediment samples with higher metal concentrations were collected from the upper reach of the river, while sediments in the middle and lower reaches had relatively lower metal concentrations. Multivariate techniques including Pearson correlation, hierarchical cluster and principal components analysis were used to evaluate the metal sources. The ecological risk associated with the heavy metals in sediments was rated as moderate based on the assessments using methods of consensus-based Sediment Quality Guidelines, Potential Ecological Risk Index and Geo-accumulation Index. The relations between heavy metals and various environmental factors (i.e., chemical properties of sediments, water quality indices and aquatic organism indices) were also studied. Nitrate nitrogen, total nitrogen, and total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons concentrations in sediments showed a co-release behavior with heavy metals. Ammonia nitrogen, total nitrogen, orthophosphate, total phosphate and permanganate index in water were found to be related to metal sedimentation. Heavy metals in sediments posed a potential impact on the benthos community.

Heavy metals in surface sediments of the Jialu River, China: Their relations to environmental factors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fu, Jie; Zhao, Changpo; Luo, Yupeng; Liu, Chunsheng; Kyzas, George Z.; Luo, Yin; Zhao, Dongye; An, Shuqing; Zhu, Hailiang

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Zhengzhou City had major effect on the pollution of the Jialu River. • TN, OP, TP and COD Mn in water drove heavy metals to deposit in sediments. • B-IBI was sensitive to the adverse effect of heavy metals in sediments. - Abstract: This work investigated heavy metal pollution in surface sediments of the Jialu River, China. Sediment samples were collected at 19 sites along the river in connection with field surveys and the total concentrations were determined using atomic fluorescence spectrometer and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer. Sediment samples with higher metal concentrations were collected from the upper reach of the river, while sediments in the middle and lower reaches had relatively lower metal concentrations. Multivariate techniques including Pearson correlation, hierarchical cluster and principal components analysis were used to evaluate the metal sources. The ecological risk associated with the heavy metals in sediments was rated as moderate based on the assessments using methods of consensus-based Sediment Quality Guidelines, Potential Ecological Risk Index and Geo-accumulation Index. The relations between heavy metals and various environmental factors (i.e., chemical properties of sediments, water quality indices and aquatic organism indices) were also studied. Nitrate nitrogen, total nitrogen, and total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons concentrations in sediments showed a co-release behavior with heavy metals. Ammonia nitrogen, total nitrogen, orthophosphate, total phosphate and permanganate index in water were found to be related to metal sedimentation. Heavy metals in sediments posed a potential impact on the benthos community

Phytoremediation of water bodies contaminated with radioactive heavy metal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yan Zhen; Yuan Shichao; Ling Hui; Xie Shuibo

2012-01-01

The sources of the radioactive heavy metal in the water bodies were analyzed. The factors that affect phyto remediation of water contaminated with radioactive heavy metal were discussed. The plant species, mechanism and major technology of phyto remediation of water contaminated with radioactive heavy metal were particularly introduced. The prospective study was remarked. (authors)

Migration of heavy metals in soils in a uranium mining area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Ruixia; Gao Bai; Hu Baoqun; Feng Jiguang

2009-01-01

Contents of several heavy metals (Zn,Ni,Cu,Cd,Pb) in soil samples collected from different depths of the soil sections in a uranium mining area were analyzed, and vertical migration dis-ciplines of heavy metals were obtained. The results show that the concents of heavy metals in vertical direction decrease as the soil increases in thickness and there is a trend of facies-cumulation for the heavy metals. The accumulation status of each heavy metal in soils differs, which is dependent on the content and migration velocity of the heavy metal itself, the local natural environment about the soil, etc. (authors)

Growth performance and haematology of the laboratory rat, rattus norvegicus fed on protein supplements and heavy metals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Omotoso, O.T.; Sanya, B.T.

2007-01-01

Laboratory rat Rattus norvegicus. fed on poultry growers mash plus additional protein supplements and some heavy metals, was studied for the growth and the haematological parameters. All the dietary supplements resulted in an increase in the growth of the rats. The rats, fed on growers mash and prawn meal showed the best growth within 7 weeks. Effects of diets were significantly, correlated at 0.01 level. Weight loss was recorded in case of all heavy Metal-laced diets, however, calcium sulphate-laced diets resulted in an increase in growth. Mercurous chloride was the most toxic salt which resulted in the greatest weight loss. Haematological analysis of rats revealed that RBC/sub s/ were higher in the case of heavy metal-laced diets than heavy metal-free diets. Generally, RBC counts were higher in females than in males within a group. Fish meal and prawn meal feeding. (author)

The relationship of heavy metals and condition indices of green-lipped mussel perna viridis from contaminated and uncontaminated environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahmad Ismail; Yap Chee Kong

1999-01-01

Heavy metal concentrations and condition indices of green-fipped mussel Perna viridis were detemiined at two different sites of Peninsular Malaysia. Significant negative correlations (p< 0.001) between condition indices and heavy metals were observed. Samples from Kuala Perlis which relatively showed high heavy metals concentrations in mussels exhibited lower condition index while Kg. Tg. Batu with lower heavy metal levels, showed higher condition index. The environmental stress is believed to be responsible for the different physiological index in green-fipped mussel P. viridis. (author)

Heavy metal removal and recovery using microorganisms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wilde, E.W. (Westinghouse Savannah River Co., Aiken, SC (United States)); Benemann, J.R. (Benemann (J.R.), Pinole, CA (United States))

1991-02-01

Microorganisms -- bacteria, fungi, and microalgae -- can accumulate relatively large amounts of toxic heavy metals and radionuclides from the environment. These organisms often exhibit specificity for particular metals. The metal content of microbial biomass can be a substantial fraction of total dry weight with concentration factors (metal in dry biomass to metal in solution) exceeding one million in some cases. Both living and inert (dead) microbial biomass can be used to reduce heavy metal concentrations in contaminated waters to very low levels -- parts per billion and even lower. In many respects (e.g. specificity, residual metal concentrations, accumulation factors, and economics) microbial bioremoval processes can be superior to conventional processes, such as ion exchange and caustic (lime or hydroxide) precipitation for heavy metals removal from waste and contaminated waters. Thus, bioremoval could be developed to contribute to the clean-up of wastes at the Savannah River Site (SRS) and other DOE facilities. However, the potential advantages of bioremoval processes must still be developed into practical operating systems. A detailed review of the literature suggests that appropriate bioremoval processes could be developed for the SRS. There is great variability from one biomass source to another in bioremoval capabilities. Bioremoval is affected by pH, other ions, temperature, and many other factors. The biological (living vs. dead) and physical (immobilized vs. dispersed) characteristics of the biomass also greatly affect metal binding. Even subtle differences in the microbial biomass, such as the conditions under which it was cultivated, can have major effects on heavy metal binding.

Heavy metal removal and recovery using microorganisms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilde, E.W.; Benemann, J.R.

1991-02-01

Microorganisms -- bacteria, fungi, and microalgae -- can accumulate relatively large amounts of toxic heavy metals and radionuclides from the environment. These organisms often exhibit specificity for particular metals. The metal content of microbial biomass can be a substantial fraction of total dry weight with concentration factors (metal in dry biomass to metal in solution) exceeding one million in some cases. Both living and inert (dead) microbial biomass can be used to reduce heavy metal concentrations in contaminated waters to very low levels -- parts per billion and even lower. In many respects (e.g. specificity, residual metal concentrations, accumulation factors, and economics) microbial bioremoval processes can be superior to conventional processes, such as ion exchange and caustic (lime or hydroxide) precipitation for heavy metals removal from waste and contaminated waters. Thus, bioremoval could be developed to contribute to the clean-up of wastes at the Savannah River Site (SRS) and other DOE facilities. However, the potential advantages of bioremoval processes must still be developed into practical operating systems. A detailed review of the literature suggests that appropriate bioremoval processes could be developed for the SRS. There is great variability from one biomass source to another in bioremoval capabilities. Bioremoval is affected by pH, other ions, temperature, and many other factors. The biological (living vs. dead) and physical (immobilized vs. dispersed) characteristics of the biomass also greatly affect metal binding. Even subtle differences in the microbial biomass, such as the conditions under which it was cultivated, can have major effects on heavy metal binding

Changes in the biological activity of heavy metal- and oil-polluted soils in urban recreation territories

Science.gov (United States)

Trifonova, T. A.; Zabelina, O. N.

2017-04-01

Urban recreation areas of different sizes were investigated in the city of Vladimir. The degree of their contamination with heavy metals and oil products was revealed. The content of heavy metals exceeded their maximum permissible concentrations by more than 2.5 times. The total content of heavy metals decreased in the sequence: Zn > Pb > Co > Mn > Cr > Ni. The mass fraction of oil products in the studied soils varied within the range of 0.016-0.28 mg/g. The reaction of soils in public gardens and a boulevard was neutral or close to neutral; in some soil samples, it was weakly alkaline. The top layer of all the soils significantly differed from the lower one by the higher alkalinity promoting the deposition of heavy metals there. As the content of Ni, Co, and Mn increased and exceeded the background concentrations, but did not reach the three-fold value of the maximum permissible concentrations, the activity of catalase was intensified. The stimulating effect of nickel on the catalase activity was mostly pronounced at the neutral soil reaction. The urease activity increased when heavy metals and oil products were present together in the concentrations above the background ones, but not higher than the three-fold maximal permissible concentrations for heavy metals and 0.3 mg/g for the content of oil products. The nitrifying activity was inhibited by oil hydrocarbons that were recorded in the soils in different amounts.

Study on adsorption and remediation of heavy metals by poplar and larch in contaminated soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xin; Jia, Youngfeng

2010-08-01

Field experiments at the Shenyang Experimental Station of Ecology were conducted to study the adsorption, accumulation, and remediation of heavy metals by poplar and larch grown in artificially contaminated soil. The soil was spiked with a combination of Cd, Cu, and Zn at concentrations of 1.5, 100, and 200 mg.kg(-1), respectively. The results showed that the biomass of poplar (Populus canadensis Moench) was lower by 26.0% in the soil spiked with a mixture of Cd, Cu, and Zn, compared with the control. Concentrations of Cd in poplar leaf and Cu in poplar roots in the treated soil were 4.11 and 14.55 mg kg(-1), respectively, which are much greater than in corresponding controls. The migration of heavy metals in woody plant body was in the order Cd > Zn > Cu. Poplar had higher metal concentrations in aboveground tissues and a higher biomass compared with larch of the same age and therefore is potentially more suitable for remediation. In the heavy metal-polluted soil of this study, phytoremediation by poplar may take 56 and 245 years for Cd and Cu, respectively, for meeting the soil standards of heavy metals, and the corresponding phytoremediation times by larch would take 211 and 438 years. The research findings could be used as a basis to develop ecological engineering technologies for environmental control and remediation of pollution caused by heavy metals in soils.

Heavy metals in surface sediments of the Jialu River, China: their relations to environmental factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Jie; Zhao, Changpo; Luo, Yupeng; Liu, Chunsheng; Kyzas, George Z; Luo, Yin; Zhao, Dongye; An, Shuqing; Zhu, Hailiang

2014-04-15

This work investigated heavy metal pollution in surface sediments of the Jialu River, China. Sediment samples were collected at 19 sites along the river in connection with field surveys and the total concentrations were determined using atomic fluorescence spectrometer and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer. Sediment samples with higher metal concentrations were collected from the upper reach of the river, while sediments in the middle and lower reaches had relatively lower metal concentrations. Multivariate techniques including Pearson correlation, hierarchical cluster and principal components analysis were used to evaluate the metal sources. The ecological risk associated with the heavy metals in sediments was rated as moderate based on the assessments using methods of consensus-based Sediment Quality Guidelines, Potential Ecological Risk Index and Geo-accumulation Index. The relations between heavy metals and various environmental factors (i.e., chemical properties of sediments, water quality indices and aquatic organism indices) were also studied. Nitrate nitrogen, total nitrogen, and total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons concentrations in sediments showed a co-release behavior with heavy metals. Ammonia nitrogen, total nitrogen, orthophosphate, total phosphate and permanganate index in water were found to be related to metal sedimentation. Heavy metals in sediments posed a potential impact on the benthos community. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tracing heavy metals in 'swine manure - maggot - chicken' production chain.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Wanqiang; Zhang, Wenjuan; Wang, Xiaoping; Lei, Chaoliang; Tang, Rui; Zhang, Feng; Yang, Qizhi; Zhu, Fen

2017-08-21

With the development of large-scale livestock farming, manure pollution has drawn much attention. Conversion by insects is a rapid and cost-effective new method for manure management. Swine manure conversion with maggots (Musca domestica larvae) has developed, and the harvested maggots are often used as animal feed. However, the flow of heavy metals from manure to downstream processes cannot be ignored, and therefore, heavy metal content was measured in untreated raw manure, maggot-treated manure, harvested maggots and maggot-eating chickens (chest muscle and liver) to evaluate potential heavy metal risks. The levels of zinc, copper, chromium, selenium, cadmium and lead had significant differences between untreated raw manure and maggot-treated manure. The concentrations of all detected heavy metals, except for cadmium and selenium, in maggots met the limits established by the feed or feed additive standards of many countries. The bioaccumulation factor (BAF) of heavy metals decreased with the increase of the maggot instar, indicating that heavy metals were discharged from the bodies of maggots with the growth of maggots. Also, the contents of overall heavy metals in chickens fed harvested maggots met the standards for food. In conclusion, regarding heavy metals, it is eco-safe to use maggots in manure management.

Heavy Metals Accumulation Characteristics of Vegetables in Hangzhou City, China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

GU Yan-qing

2015-08-01

Full Text Available A field survey of heavy metal concentrations in soils and vegetables grown in 30 vegetable farmlands of Hangzhou City were carried out. Through calculating the bioconcentration factor(BCFand transfer factor(TFfor different heavy metals(Cu, Zn, Cd, Cr and Pbin 27 kinds of different vegetables which belong to leafy vegetables, root vegetables or eggplant fruit vegetables, assessing their accumulation characteristics of heavy metals according to the differences of the bio-concentration factor, the reasonable proposals were put forward to optimize the planting structure of vegetables in mild and middle-level heavy metal contamination soils. The experimental results were as follows: In soils with mild and middle-level heavy metal contamination, leafy vegetables, such as crown daisy, cabbage, celery and Chinese long cabbage, had relatively low enrichment ability of heavy metals, so as the root and fruit vegetables like white radish, carrot, tomatoes, hence these vegetables could be planted preferentially. In contrast, some kinds of vegetables, including white amaranth, red amaranth, tatsoi, broccoli, gynura, brassica juncea and lettuce of leafy vegetables, lactuca sativa, taro, red radish and cherry radish of rhizome vegetables and sweet pepper of fruit vegetables, had relatively high accumulation ability of heavy metal, which should be avoided to be planted in soils with mild and middle-level heavy metal contamination.

Effects of heavy metal Cd pollution on microbial activities in soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Weilin; Ma, Xiying

2017-12-23

Heavy metal contamination of soil occurs when heavy metals are introduced to soil through human activities, leading to the gradual deterioration of the ecology and environment. Microorganism activity reflects the intensity of various biochemical reactions in soil, and changes in it reflect the level of heavy metal pollution affecting the soil. The effects were studied of heavy metal Cd on the microbial activity of soil at different concentrations by investigating the respiratory intensity, urease activity, and catalase activity in forest soil and garden soil. The results showed that the respiratory intensity, urease and catalase activities in the garden soil were all higher than in the forest soil. Cd has obvious inhibitory effects on microbial activities. The three parameters exhibited a downward trend with increasing concentrations of Cd. Catalase activity increased when the mass concentration of Cd reached 1.0 mg/kg, indicating that low concentrations of Cd can promote the activity of some microorganisms. Respiratory intensity and urease activity also increased when the concentration reached 10.0 mg/kg, showing that respiratory intensity and urease activity have strong response mechanisms to adverse conditions. The effective state of Cd in soil, as well as inhibition of microbial activity, decreased with incubation time.

Effects of heavy metal Cd pollution on microbial activities in soil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weilin Shi

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Heavy metal contamination of soil occurs when heavy metals are introduced to soil through human activities, leading to the gradual deterioration of the ecology and environment. Microorganism activity reflects the intensity of various biochemical reactions in soil, and changes in it reflect the level of heavy metal pollution affecting the soil. The effects were studied of heavy metal Cd on the microbial activity of soil at different concentrations by investigating the respiratory intensity, urease activity, and catalase activity in forest soil and garden soil. The results showed that the respiratory intensity, urease and catalase activities in the garden soil were all higher than in the forest soil. Cd has obvious inhibitory effects on microbial activities. The three parameters exhibited a downward trend with increasing concentrations of Cd. Catalase activity increased when the mass concentration of Cd reached 1.0 mg/kg, indicating that low concentrations of Cd can promote the activity of some microorganisms. Respiratory intensity and urease activity also increased when the concentration reached 10.0 mg/kg, showing that respiratory intensity and urease activity have strong response mechanisms to adverse conditions. The effective state of Cd in soil, as well as inhibition of microbial activity, decreased with incubation time.

Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals Contamination in Paddy Soil, Plants, and Grains (Oryza sativa L.) at the East Coast of India

Science.gov (United States)

Satpathy, Deepmala; Reddy, M. Vikram; Dhal, Soumya Prakash

2014-01-01

Heavy metals known to be accumulated in plants adversely affect human health. This study aims to assess the effects of agrochemicals especially chemical fertilizers applied in paddy fields, which release potential toxic heavy metals into soil. Those heavy metals get accumulated in different parts of paddy plant (Oryza sativa L.) including the grains. Concentrations of nonessential toxic heavy metals (Cd, Cr, and Pb) and the micronutrients (Cu, Mn, and Zn) were measured in the paddy field soil and plant parts. Mn and Cd are found to be accumulated more in shoot than in root. The metal transfer factors from soil to rice plant were significant for Pb, Cd, Cu, Cr, Mn, and Zn. The ranking order of bioaccumulation factor (BAF) for heavy metals was Zn > Mn > Cd > Cu > Cr > Pb indicating that the accumulation of micronutrients was more than that of nonessential toxic heavy metals. The concentrations of heavy metals were found to be higher in paddy field soils than that of the nearby control soil but below permissible limits. The higher Health Index (HI) values of rice consuming adults (1.561) and children (1.360) suggest their adverse health effects in the near future. PMID:24995308

Assessment of heavy metal pollution in vegetables and relationships with soil heavy metal distribution in Zhejiang province, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Xuezhu; Xiao, Wendan; Zhang, Yongzhi; Zhao, Shouping; Wang, Gangjun; Zhang, Qi; Wang, Qiang

2015-06-01

There are increasing concerns on heavy metal contaminant in soils and vegetables. In this study, we investigated heavy metal pollution in vegetables and the corresponding soils in the main vegetable production regions of Zhejiang province, China. A total of 97 vegetable samples and 202 agricultural soil samples were analyzed for the concentrations of Cd, Pb, As, Hg, and Cr. The average levels of Cd, Pb, and Cr in vegetable samples [Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris spp. Pekinensis), pakchoi (Brassica chinensis L.), celery (Apium graveolens), tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), cucumber (Colletotrichum lagenarium), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo L.), and eggplant (Solanum melongena)] were 0.020, 0.048, and 0.043 mg kg(-1), respectively. The Pb and Cr concentrations in all vegetable samples were below the threshold levels of the Food Quality Standard (0.3 and 0.5 mg kg(-1), respectively), except that two eggplant samples exceeded the threshold levels for Cd concentrations (0.05 mg kg(-1)). As and Hg contents in vegetables were below the detection level (0.005 and 0.002 mg kg(-1), respectively). Soil pollution conditions were assessed in accordance with the Chinese Soil Quality Criterion (GB15618-1995, Grade II); 50 and 68 soil samples from the investigated area exceeded the maximum allowable contents for Cd and Hg, respectively. Simple correlation analysis revealed that there were significantly positive correlations between the metal concentrations in vegetables and the corresponding soils, especially for the leafy and stem vegetables such as pakchoi, cabbage, and celery. Bio-concentration factor values for Cd are higher than those for Pb and Cr, which indicates that Cd is more readily absorbed by vegetables than Pb and Cr. Therefore, more attention should be paid to the possible pollution of heavy metals in vegetables, especially Cd.

Novel polymer-based nanocomposites for application in heavy metal pollution remediation

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Kotzé-Jacobs, L

2012-10-10

Full Text Available and kidney damage and also cancer ? Heavy metals can accumulate in food sources through heavy metal contamination of soil and plants ? CSIR 2012 Slide 3 Removal of heavy metals ? Small volume applications: ion exchange ? Larger volumes eg. acid mine... pollution, treatment shortfalls at municipalities and contaminated surface water discharges ? Accumulation of heavy metals and endocrine disrupters ? CSIR 2012 Slide 2 Introduction: Heavy metals ? Cr, Ni, Cu, Pb, As etc. ? Exposure can cause liver...

Heavy metal displacement in chelate-irrigated soil during phytoremediation

Science.gov (United States)

Madrid, F.; Liphadzi, M. S.; Kirkham, M. B.

2003-03-01

Heavy metals in wastewater sewage sludge (biosolids), applied to land, contaminate soils. Phytoremediation, the use of plants to clean up toxic heavy metals, might remove them. Chelating agents are added to soil to solubilize the metals for enhanced phytoextraction. Yet no studies follow the displacement and leaching of heavy metals in soil with and without roots following solubilization with chelates. The objective of this work was to determine the mobility of heavy metals in biosolids applied to the surface of soil columns (76 cm long; 17 cm diam.) with or without plants (barley; Hordeum vulgare L.). Three weeks after barley was planted, all columns were irrigated with the disodium salt of the chelating agent, EDTA (ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid) (0.5 g/kg soil). Drainage water, soil, and plants were analyzed for heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, Zn). Total concentrations of the heavy metals in all columns at the end of the experiment generally were lower in the top 30 cm of soil with EDTA than without EDTA. The chelate increased concentrations of heavy metals in shoots. With or without plants, the EDTA mobilized Cd, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn, which leached to drainage water. Drainage water from columns without EDTA had concentrations of these heavy metals below detection limits. Only Cu did not leach in the presence of EDTA. Even though roots retarded the movement of Cd, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn through the EDTA-treated soil from 1 d (Cd) to 5 d (Fe), the drainage water from columns with EDTA had concentrations of Cd, Fe, Mn, and Pb that exceeded drinking water standards by 1.3, 500, 620, and 8.6 times, respectively. Because the chelate rendered Cd, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn mobile, it is suggested that the theory for leaching of soluble salts, put forward by Nielsen and associates in 1965, could be applied to control movement of the heavy metals for maximum uptake during chelate-assisted phytoremediation.

Metabolic Demands of Heavy Metal Drumming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bryan Romero

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Background: The drum set involves dynamic movement of all four limbs. Motor control studies have been done on drum set playing, yet not much is known about the physiological responses to this activity. Even less is known about heavy metal drumming. Aims: The purpose of this study was to determine metabolic responses and demands of heavy metal drumming. Methods: Five semi-professional male drummers (mean ± SD age = 27.4 ± 2.6 y, height = 177.2 ± 3.8 cm, body mass = 85.1 ± 17.8 kg performed four prescribed and four self-selected heavy metal songs. Oxygen consumption (VO2, minute ventilation (VE and respiratory exchange ratio (RER were measured using a metabolic cart.  Heart rate (HR was measured using a heart rate monitor. VO2max was determined using a graded cycle ergometer test. Results: The results indicated a metabolic cost of 6.3 ± 1.4 METs and heart rate of 145.1 ± 15.7 beats·min-1 (75.4 ± 8.3% of age-predicted HRmax. VO2 peak values reached approximately 90% of the drummer’s VO2max when performing at the fastest speeds. According to these results, heavy metal drumming may be considered vigorous intensity activity (≥ 6.0 METs. The relative VO2max of 40.2 ± 9.5 mL·kg·min-1 leads to an aerobic fitness classification of “average” for adult males. Conclusions: The metabolic demands required during heavy metal drumming meet the American College of Sports Medicine guidelines for the development of health related fitness.  Keywords: Drum set, Exercise physiology, VO2, Music

[Resistance to heavy metals in ruminal staphylococci].

Science.gov (United States)

Lauková, A

1994-01-01

Ruminal, coagulase-negative, urease and bacteriocin-like substances producing staphylococci were screened for their heavy metal ions and antibiotics resistance. All strains tested were resistant to disodium arsenate at a minimal inhibition concentration (MIC > 5 g/l) and cadmium sulphate (MIC > 4 g/l). MIC = 50-60 mg/l was determined in eight staphylococci screened in mercury chloride resistance test (Tab. I). Silver nitrate resistance was detected in seven of the bacteria used (MIC = 40-50 mg/l). All strains were novobiocin resistant. Staphylococcus cohnii subsp. urealyticum SCU 40 was found as a strain with resistance to all heavy metal ions and 5 antibiotics (Tab. II). In addition, this strain produced bacteriocin-like substance which inhibited growth of six indicators of different origin (Tab. II). The most of staphylococci were detected as heavy metal ion polyresistant strains and antibiotic polyresistant strains producing antimicrobial substances with inhibition effects against at least one indicator of different origin. These results represent the first information on heavy metal ion resistance in ruminal bacteria. They also show relation or coresistance between heavy metal ions and antibiotics. Resulting from this study, staphylococci can be used as a bioindicator model for animal environmental studies. In addition, it can be used for specific interactions studies within the framework of ruminal bacterial ecosystem and also mainly with regard to molecular genetic studies.

Experimental testing facilities for ultrasonic measurements in heavy liquid metal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cojocaru, V.; Ionescu, V.; Nicolescu, D.; Nitu, A.

2016-01-01

The thermo-physical properties of Heavy Liquid Metals (HLM), like lead or its alloy, Lead Bismuth Eutectic (LBE), makes them attractive as coolant candidates in advanced nuclear systems. The opaqueness, that is common to all liquid metals, disables all optical methods. For this reason ultrasound waves are used in different applications in heavy liquid metal technology, for example for flow and velocity measurements and for inspection techniques. The practical use of ultrasound in heavy liquid metals still needs to be demonstrated by experiments. This goal requires heavy liquid metal technology facility especially adapted to this task. In this paper is presented an experimental testing facility for investigations of Heavy Liquid Metals acoustic properties, designed and constructed in RATEN ICN. (authors)

Heavy metals in trees and energy crops - a literature review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnsson, Lars

1995-12-01

This literature review deals with the use of energy crops for cleaning of soils from heavy metals. It also deals with the use of low accumulating energy crops to be used on strongly contaminated soils where a low uptake of heavy metals is preferred, for example on mining deposits. In addition to the efforts to reduce the sources for heavy metal contamination of soils (for example commercial fertilizers and atmospheric deposition) the uptake and removal of heavy metals from the soils by the use of energy crops have recently been discussed as a method for cleaning of soils. Species from the Salix family (willow) have a greater potential for accumulating heavy metals than cereals which makes them interesting for this purpose. The Salix family consists of species with a great genetic variation. This will probably make it possible to find or develop clones with different characteristics suitable for cleaning of contaminated soils as well as for plant covering of soils that are extremely contaminated by heavy metals. In the former case an accumulation of heavy metals in the harvested parts, the shoots, is preferred. In the later case clones that do not accumulate heavy metals and maybe also clones with only root accumulation are preferred. There are also Salix clones with a specific accumulation of heavy metals which makes it possible to clean soils from a toxic metal and at the same time avoid the risk for deficiency of essential metals, for example Zn. The greatest potential to clean soils by the use of energy crops, is when the contamination levels in the soils are low, the areas to clean are large and when the time needed for cleaning is of minor importance. The most suitable soils are those where the metal contamination is located in the top soil layer and where the heavy metal concentrations in the sub soil layer are still low. 58 refs, 8 tabs, 1 fig

Assessment of heavy metal pollution in wetland soils from the young and old reclaimed regions in the Pearl River Estuary, South China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bai Junhong; Xiao Rong; Cui Baoshan; Zhang Kejiang; Wang Qinggai; Liu Xinhui; Gao Haifeng; Huang Laibin

2011-01-01

Soils were sampled in three types of wetlands from the young (A) and old (B) reclaimed regions of the Pearl River Estuary. They were analyzed for total concentrations of heavy metals to investigate their distributions and pollution levels in both regions. Results showed that most heavy metals in ditch and riparian wetlands did not significantly differ from those in reclaimed wetlands in A region, while significantly lower for Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn in reclaimed wetlands in B region, suggesting higher effects of long-term reclamation. Iron, Cr and Cu were identified as metal pollutants of primary concern and had higher contributions to the total toxic units compared to other metals. Almost all metals exceeded their lowest effect levels and Fe and Cr even exceeded the severe effect levels. Multivariate analysis shows that Fe and Mn are controlled by parent rocks and other metals mainly originate from anthropogenic source. - Research highlights: → Fe, Cr and Cu have higher contributions to the sum of toxic units. → More than 75.4% soil samples have moderate toxicity in PRE. → Heavy metals in typical soil profiles exceed the LEL thresholds. → Heavy metals (except Fe and Mn) mainly originate from anthropogenic source. → Long reclamation history can lead to greater heavy metal loss in wetland soils. - The findings of this study reveal higher effects of long-term reclamation on heavy metal pollution of wetland soils and contribute to coastal wetland management in subtropical regions.

Influence of temperature and salinity on heavy metal uptake by submersed plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fritioff, A. [Department of Botany, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm (Sweden)]. E-mail: fritioff@botan.su.se; Kautsky, L. [Department of Botany, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm (Sweden); Greger, M. [Department of Botany, Stockholm University, S-106 91 Stockholm (Sweden)

2005-01-01

Submersed plants can be useful in reducing heavy metal concentrations in stormwater, since they can accumulate large amounts of heavy metals in their shoots. To investigate the effects of water temperature and salinity on the metal uptake of two submersed plant species, Elodea canadensis (Michx.) and Potamogeton natans (L.), these plants were grown in the presence of Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb at 5, 11, and 20 deg. C in combination with salinities of 0, 0.5, and 5%o. The metal concentrations in the plant tissue increased with increasing temperature in both species; the exception was the concentration of Pb in Elodea, which increased with decreasing salinity. Metal concentrations at high temperature or low salinity were up to twice those found at low temperature or high salinity. Plant biomass affected the metal uptake, with low biomass plants having higher metal concentrations than did high biomass plants. - Metal concentrations increase with increasing temperature and decreasing salinity in two aquatic plants.

Influence of temperature and salinity on heavy metal uptake by submersed plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fritioff, A.; Kautsky, L.; Greger, M.

2005-01-01

Submersed plants can be useful in reducing heavy metal concentrations in stormwater, since they can accumulate large amounts of heavy metals in their shoots. To investigate the effects of water temperature and salinity on the metal uptake of two submersed plant species, Elodea canadensis (Michx.) and Potamogeton natans (L.), these plants were grown in the presence of Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb at 5, 11, and 20 deg. C in combination with salinities of 0, 0.5, and 5%o. The metal concentrations in the plant tissue increased with increasing temperature in both species; the exception was the concentration of Pb in Elodea, which increased with decreasing salinity. Metal concentrations at high temperature or low salinity were up to twice those found at low temperature or high salinity. Plant biomass affected the metal uptake, with low biomass plants having higher metal concentrations than did high biomass plants. - Metal concentrations increase with increasing temperature and decreasing salinity in two aquatic plants

Changes in fatty acid content and composition between wild type and CsHMA3 overexpressing Camelina sativa under heavy-metal stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Won; Feng, Yufeng; Kim, Hyojin; Suh, Mi Chung; Ahn, Sung-Ju

2015-09-01

Under heavy-metal stress, CsHMA3 overexpressing transgenic Camelina plants displayed not only a better quality, but also a higher quantity of unsaturated fatty acids in their seeds compared with wild type. Camelina sativa L. belongs to the Brassicaceae family and is frequently used as a natural vegetable oil source, as its seeds contain a high content of fatty acids. In this study, we observed that, when subjected to heavy metals (Cd, Co, Zn and Pb), the seeds of CsHMA3 (Heavy-Metal P1B-ATPase 3) transgenic lines retained their original golden yellow color and smooth outline, unlike wild-type seeds. Furthermore, we investigated the fatty acids content and composition of wild type and CsHMA3 transgenic lines after heavy metal treatments compared to the control. The results showed higher total fatty acid amounts in seeds of CsHMA3 transgenic lines compared with those in wild-type seeds under heavy-metal stresses. In addition, the compositions of unsaturated fatty acids-especially 18:1 (oleic acid), 18:2 (linoleic acid; only in case of Co treatment), 18:3 (linolenic acid) and 20:1 (eicosenoic acid)-in CsHMA3 overexpressing transgenic lines treated with heavy metals were higher than those of wild-type seeds under the same conditions. Furthermore, reactive oxygen species (ROS) contents in wild-type leaves and roots when treated with heavy metal were higher than in CsHMA3 overexpressing transgenic lines. These results indicate that overexpression of CsHMA3 affects fatty acid composition and content-factors that are responsible for the fuel properties of biodiesel-and can alleviate ROS accumulation caused by heavy-metal stresses in Camelina. Due to these factors, we propose that CsHMA3 transgenic Camelina can be used for phytoremediation of metal-contaminated soil as well as for oil production.

Effects of biochars on the availability of heavy metals to ryegrass in an alkaline contaminated soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Guixiang; Guo, Xiaofang; Zhao, Zhihua; He, Qiusheng; Wang, Shuifeng; Zhu, Yuen; Yan, Yulong; Liu, Xitao; Sun, Ke; Zhao, Ye; Qian, Tianwei

2016-11-01

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of biochars on the availability of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) to ryegrass in an alkaline contaminated soil. Biochars only slightly decreased or even increased the availability of heavy metals assesses by chemical extractant (a mixture of 0.05 mol L -1 ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid disodium, 0.01 mol L -1 CaCl 2 , and 0.1 mol L -1 triethanolamine). The significantly positive correlation between most chemical-extractable heavy metals and the ash content in biochars indicated the positive role of ash in this extraction. Biochars significantly reduced the plant uptake of heavy metals, excluding Mn. The absence of a positive correlation between the chemical-extractable heavy metals and the plant uptake counterparts (except for Mn) indicates that chemical extractability is probably not a reliable indicator to predict the phytoavailability of most heavy metals in alkaline soils treated with biochars. The obviously negative correlation between the plant uptake of heavy metals (except for Mn) and the (O + N)/C and H/C indicates that biochars with more polar groups, which were produced at lower temperatures, had higher efficiency for reducing the phytoavailability of heavy metals. The significantly negative correlations between the plant uptake of Mn and ryegrass biomass indicated the "dilution effect" caused by the improvement of biomass. These observations will be helpful for designing biochars as soil amendments to reduce the availability of heavy metals to plants in soils, especially in alkaline soils. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Heavy metal toxicity and iron chlorosis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

DeKock, P C

1956-01-01

The toxicity of copper, nickel, cobalt, zinc, chromium, and manganese to mustard was studied in water culture, utilizing either the ionic form or the EDTA chelate of the metal in the presence of either ferric chloride or ferric EDTA. In presence of ferric chloride the activity of the metals in producing chlorosis was as given above, i.e. in the order of stability of their chelates. In the presence of ferric versenate, toxicity of the ionic metal was much reduced. The metal chelates gave very little indication of toxicity with either form of iron. It was found that the ratio of total phosphorus to total iron was higher in chlorotic plants than in green plants, irrespective of which metal was causing the toxicity. Copper could be demonstrated in the phloem cells of the root using biscyclohexanone-oxalydihydrazone as histochemical reagent. It is postulated that transport of iron probably takes place in the phloem as an active process. It would appear that as a major part of the iron in plant cells is attached to nucleo- or phospho-proteins, the heavy metals must be similarly attached to phospho-proteins.

Heavy metals phytoremediation potential of Hevea brasiliensis in Bentong, Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Yusof, Muhammad Jefri Mohd; Latif, Mohd Talip; Yusoff, Siti Fairus Mohd

2018-04-01

Biomonitoring uses living organisms to assess environmental quality and being preferred over conventional methods that use fully or semi-automatic gauges for its lower cost and practicality. Recently, higher plants are widely used for biomonitoring purposes by means of their species identification simplicity, larger availability of biological substantial, and easy to sample. In this study, samples of Hevea brasiliensis (i.e leaves, barks, and latex as well as surrounding soils) from outskirts of Pelangai, Bentong were tested for heavy metals by using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). Enrichment factor of soils indicated that some metals (B, Ca, Cu, Mn, Pb, Zn, As and Na) were anthropogenic which most likely originated from traffic emissions. In addition, leaves trapped the most heavy metals compared to barks and latex. The accumulation of pollutants in those samples has identified biomonitoring abilities of Hevea brasiliensis.

Spatial patterns of heavy metal accumulation in sediments and macrophytes of Bellandur wetland, Bangalore.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramachandra, T V; Sudarshan, P B; Mahesh, M K; Vinay, S

2018-01-15

Heavy metals are one among the toxic chemicals and accumulation in sediments and plants has been posing serious health impacts. Wetlands aid as kidneys of the landscape and help in remediation through uptake of nutrients, heavy metals and other contaminants. The analyses of macrophytes and sediment samples help in evaluating pollution status in aquatic environment. In this study concentration of six heavy metals (Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), Copper (Cu), Nickel (Ni), Lead (Pb) and Zinc (Zn)) were assessed in sediment and dominant macrophyte samples collected from Bellandur Lake, largest Lake of Bangalore, India. Sediment samples reveal of heavy metals in the inlet regions and shore samples. The accumulation of metals in sediments were in the order of Zn > Cu > Cr > Pb > Ni > Cd. All metals exceeded the critical limits of metals in the sediment. Concentration of different metals in the macrophyte samples ranked as: Cr > Cu > Zn > Pb > Ni > Cd. Chromium and Copper were found to be more than critical range. Typha angustata had the higher accumulation of all metals except chromium. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microbes in Heavy Metal Remediation: A Review on Current Trends and Patents.

Science.gov (United States)

Mishra, Geetesh Kumar

2017-01-01

Heavy metal pollution in the environmental samples like soil, water and runoff water is a worldwide problem. Such contamination of environmental matrices by the heavy metals accumulates due to various activities involving human driven sources and industries, although agriculture and sewage disposal are the largest source for the heavy metal contamination. Disposal of heavy metals or waste products containing heavy metals in the environment postures a trivial threat to public safety and health. Heavy metals are persistence and they can also cause biomagnifications and accumulate in food chain. Microbial bioremediation of heavy metal is emerging as an effective technique. Microbial bioremediation is a highly efficient environmental friendly procedure which also reduces the cost of cleanup process associated with heavy metal contamination. New methods for removal of heavy metals from the environmental samples are under development and most recent advancements have been made in exploring the knowledge of metal-microbes interactions and its use for heavy metal remediation. This review paper will focus on the microbial bioremediation process and highlight some of the newly developed patented methods for microbial bioremediation of the heavy metals from the environmental samples using microbial populations. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Heavy metal atmospheric emissions from coal-fired power plants - Assessment and uncertainties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lecuyer, I.; Ungar, A.; Peter, H.; Karl, U.

2004-01-01

Power generation using fossil fuel combustion (coal and fuel-oil) participates, with other sectors, to heavy metal atmospheric emissions. The dispersion of these hazardous pollutants throughout the environment is more and more regulated. In order to assess the annual flows emitted from EDF coal-fired power plants, a computerized tool has been developed, based on the methodology defined by IFARE/DFIU in 1997. The heavy metal partition factors within the plant unit are determined according to the type of unit and the coal characteristics. Heavy metals output flows, and especially those emitted with flue gas at the stack, are then deduced from the actual coal consumption and chemical composition. A first inventory of heavy metal emissions from EDF coal-fired power plants has been achieved for year 2001. Values are accurate (± 40 %) for nonvolatile elements (Cr, Cu, Co, Mn, Ni, V) and for PM 10 and PM 2.5 (particulate matter below 10 μm and 2.5 μm). The uncertainty is higher (± 80 %) for volatile elements (As, Pb, Zn). Excess indicative values are given for elements which are both volatile and at low concentrations in coal (Hg, Se, Cd). (author)

Implication of heavy metals distribution for a municipal solid waste management system - a case study in Shanghai

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Hua; He Pinjing; Shao Liming

2008-01-01

Heavy metal contamination in municipal solid waste (MSW) is of increasing concern. The occurrence and distribution of heavy metals in MSW and their implications for the integrated MSW management system in mega-cities have been investigated by means of material flow analysis based on a case study of Shanghai in China. A good statistical basis was provided through a one-year monitoring program on the mass and metals composition of the waste from three MSW treatment facilities. The results showed that the main heavy metals in the MSW were Zn, Cr, Cu, and Pb (on average > 100 mg kg -1 ), followed by Ni, Cd, and Hg. The MSW contained higher levels of Cu and Ni in metals, Cr and Pb in plastics, and Pb and Zn in the inorganic fractions. Regardless of the sources, the statistically similar heavy metal contents in the organic fractions indicated that effective blending and diffusion of heavy metals had taken place throughout the MSW collection, transfer, transportation, and storage, leading to cross-contamination of the waste fractions. PU (composed of putrescible waste and miscellaneous indistinguishable particles) contributed the majority of the heavy metals to the MSW, followed by plastics, as a result of the predominance in the overall composition of PU and plastics rather than from differences in their heavy metal contents. Therefore, manual or mechanical separation of some significantly heavy metal-rich fractions alone is not sufficient to reduce the heavy metal contents in the MSW. Source separation of organic waste and the diversion of tailored inorganic waste such as hazardous components, construction and demolition waste, etc., are proposed to control the heavy metal contamination in MSW. For the mixed MSW management system, physicochemical fractionation to exclude particles containing high levels of heavy metals can be conducted

Implication of heavy metals distribution for a municipal solid waste management system - a case study in Shanghai

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang Hua [State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092 (China); He Pinjing [State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092 (China)], E-mail: solidwaste@mail.tongji.edu.cn; Shao Liming [State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai 200092 (China)

2008-09-01

Heavy metal contamination in municipal solid waste (MSW) is of increasing concern. The occurrence and distribution of heavy metals in MSW and their implications for the integrated MSW management system in mega-cities have been investigated by means of material flow analysis based on a case study of Shanghai in China. A good statistical basis was provided through a one-year monitoring program on the mass and metals composition of the waste from three MSW treatment facilities. The results showed that the main heavy metals in the MSW were Zn, Cr, Cu, and Pb (on average > 100 mg kg{sup -1}), followed by Ni, Cd, and Hg. The MSW contained higher levels of Cu and Ni in metals, Cr and Pb in plastics, and Pb and Zn in the inorganic fractions. Regardless of the sources, the statistically similar heavy metal contents in the organic fractions indicated that effective blending and diffusion of heavy metals had taken place throughout the MSW collection, transfer, transportation, and storage, leading to cross-contamination of the waste fractions. PU (composed of putrescible waste and miscellaneous indistinguishable particles) contributed the majority of the heavy metals to the MSW, followed by plastics, as a result of the predominance in the overall composition of PU and plastics rather than from differences in their heavy metal contents. Therefore, manual or mechanical separation of some significantly heavy metal-rich fractions alone is not sufficient to reduce the heavy metal contents in the MSW. Source separation of organic waste and the diversion of tailored inorganic waste such as hazardous components, construction and demolition waste, etc., are proposed to control the heavy metal contamination in MSW. For the mixed MSW management system, physicochemical fractionation to exclude particles containing high levels of heavy metals can be conducted.

Atmospheric heavy metal deposition in Europe estimated by moss analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ruehling, Aa. [Swedish Environmental Research Inst., Lund (Sweden). Dept. of Ecology

1995-12-31

Atmospheric heavy metal deposition in Europe including 21 countries was monitored in 1990-1992 by the moss technique. This technique is based on the fact that the concentrations of heavy metals in moss are closely correlated to atmospheric deposition. This was the first attempt to map heavy metal deposition in this large area. The objectives of the project were to characterise qualitatively and quantitatively the regional atmospheric deposition pattern of heavy metals in background areas in Europe, to indicate the location of important heavy metal pollution sources and to allow retrospective comparisons with similar studies. The present survey is a follow-up of a joint Danish and Swedish project in 1980 and an extended survey in 1985 within the framework of the Nordic Council of Ministers. In Sweden, heavy-metal deposition was first mapped on a nation-wide scale in 1968-1971 and 1975. (author)

Atmospheric heavy metal deposition in Europe estimated by moss analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ruehling, Aa [Swedish Environmental Research Inst., Lund (Sweden). Dept. of Ecology

1996-12-31

Atmospheric heavy metal deposition in Europe including 21 countries was monitored in 1990-1992 by the moss technique. This technique is based on the fact that the concentrations of heavy metals in moss are closely correlated to atmospheric deposition. This was the first attempt to map heavy metal deposition in this large area. The objectives of the project were to characterise qualitatively and quantitatively the regional atmospheric deposition pattern of heavy metals in background areas in Europe, to indicate the location of important heavy metal pollution sources and to allow retrospective comparisons with similar studies. The present survey is a follow-up of a joint Danish and Swedish project in 1980 and an extended survey in 1985 within the framework of the Nordic Council of Ministers. In Sweden, heavy-metal deposition was first mapped on a nation-wide scale in 1968-1971 and 1975. (author)

Heavy metal and pesticide content in commonly prescribed individual raw Chinese Herbal Medicines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Harris, Eric S.J., E-mail: eric.sj.harris@gmail.com [Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, 240 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Osher Research Center, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Cao, Shugeng [Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, 240 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Littlefield, Bruce A. [Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, 240 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Osher Research Center, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Craycroft, Jane A.; Scholten, Robert [Osher Research Center, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Kaptchuk, Ted [Osher Research Center, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Department of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215 (United States); Fu, Yanling [International Cooperation Center, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, 11 Bai San Huan Dong Lu, Chao Yang District, Beijing 100029 (China); Wang, Wenquan; Liu, Yong [School of Chinese Pharmacy, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, No. 6 Wangjing Zhong Huan Nan Lu, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100102 (China); Chen, Hubiao; Zhao, Zhongzhen [School of Chinese Medicine, Hong Kong Baptist University, 7 Baptist University Road, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (China); Clardy, Jon [Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Harvard Medical School, 240 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115 (United States); Woolf, Alan D. [Children' s Hospital Boston, 300 Longwood Avenue and Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02118 (United States); and others

2011-09-15

Heavy metal and pesticide contamination has previously been reported in Chinese Herbal Medicines (CHMs), in some cases at potentially toxic levels. This study was conducted to determine general patterns and toxicological significance of heavy metal and pesticide contamination in a broad sample of raw CHMs. Three-hundred-thirty-four samples representing 126 species of CHMs were collected throughout China and examined for arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, and mercury. Of the total, 294 samples representing 112 species were also tested for 162 pesticides. At least 1 metal was detected in all 334 samples (100%) and 115 samples (34%) had detectable levels of all metals. Forty-two different pesticides were detected in 108 samples (36.7%), with 1 to 9 pesticides per sample. Contaminant levels were compared to toxicological reference values in the context of different exposure scenarios. According to a likely scenario of CHM consumption, only 3 samples (1%) with heavy metals and 14 samples (5%) with pesticides were found with concentrations that could contribute to elevated background levels of contaminant exposure. According to the most conservative scenario of CHM consumption, 231 samples (69%) with heavy metals and 81 samples (28%) with pesticides had contaminants that could contribute to elevated levels of exposure. Wild collected plants had higher contaminant levels than cultivated samples. Cadmium, chromium, lead, and chlorpyrifos contamination showed weak correlations with geographic location. Based on our assumptions of the likely mode of consumption of raw CHMs, the vast majority (95%) of the 334 samples in this study contained levels of heavy metals or pesticides that would be of negligible concern. However, given the number of samples with detectable contaminants and the range between the more likely and more conservative scenarios of contaminant exposure, more research and monitoring of heavy metals (especially cadmium and chromium) and pesticide residues

Heavy metal and pesticide content in commonly prescribed individual raw Chinese Herbal Medicines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harris, Eric S.J.; Cao, Shugeng; Littlefield, Bruce A.; Craycroft, Jane A.; Scholten, Robert; Kaptchuk, Ted; Fu, Yanling; Wang, Wenquan; Liu, Yong; Chen, Hubiao; Zhao, Zhongzhen; Clardy, Jon; Woolf, Alan D.

2011-01-01

Heavy metal and pesticide contamination has previously been reported in Chinese Herbal Medicines (CHMs), in some cases at potentially toxic levels. This study was conducted to determine general patterns and toxicological significance of heavy metal and pesticide contamination in a broad sample of raw CHMs. Three-hundred-thirty-four samples representing 126 species of CHMs were collected throughout China and examined for arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, and mercury. Of the total, 294 samples representing 112 species were also tested for 162 pesticides. At least 1 metal was detected in all 334 samples (100%) and 115 samples (34%) had detectable levels of all metals. Forty-two different pesticides were detected in 108 samples (36.7%), with 1 to 9 pesticides per sample. Contaminant levels were compared to toxicological reference values in the context of different exposure scenarios. According to a likely scenario of CHM consumption, only 3 samples (1%) with heavy metals and 14 samples (5%) with pesticides were found with concentrations that could contribute to elevated background levels of contaminant exposure. According to the most conservative scenario of CHM consumption, 231 samples (69%) with heavy metals and 81 samples (28%) with pesticides had contaminants that could contribute to elevated levels of exposure. Wild collected plants had higher contaminant levels than cultivated samples. Cadmium, chromium, lead, and chlorpyrifos contamination showed weak correlations with geographic location. Based on our assumptions of the likely mode of consumption of raw CHMs, the vast majority (95%) of the 334 samples in this study contained levels of heavy metals or pesticides that would be of negligible concern. However, given the number of samples with detectable contaminants and the range between the more likely and more conservative scenarios of contaminant exposure, more research and monitoring of heavy metals (especially cadmium and chromium) and pesticide residues

Distribution of heavy metals in peri-urban agricultural areas soils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iram, S.; Ahmad, I.; Akhtar, S.

2012-01-01

In industry oriented peri-urban areas, the heavy metals accumulation in soils caused by industrialization has become a potential threat. The top soil sample from 48 agricultural fields were collected from a typical industry based peri-urban areas (Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan, Kasur, Islamabad, Wah Cantt.) of Punjab, Pakistan to study the accumulation and distribution of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni and Zn) by atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The aim of the study was to investigate influence of an industrialized environment on the accumulation of heavy metals in peri-urban agricultural soils. The results of the study showed that the Pb content in the soil ranged from 17.24 to 126.4 mg/kg and the highest Pb content was observed in Islamabad soil samples, and the lowest in that of Multan area. The Cd content ranged from 1.1 to 4.0 mg/kg in Lahore while the highest Cr concentration level was 210.2 mg/kg and it was observed in Kasur and lowest 30.60 in that of Multan. The Cu content ranged from 31.2 to 127.9 mg/kg (Kasur-Lahore). The highest Ni concentration (82.0 mg/kg) was observed in Lahore from the urban area and the lowest level of 12.15 mg/kg was observed in Multan. The Zn content ranged from 42.5 to 267.7 mg/kg (Faisalabad-Wah Cantt). The study concluded that the concentration level of the heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cu, Ni, Cr, Zn) in the studied peri-urban areas was higher as compared to heavy metal content of normal Dutch soil. High automobile traffic and industrial waste both are the most likely sources of the contamination of the peri urban areas of Pakistan. (author)

Heavy metals' data in soils for agricultural activities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T.A. Adagunodo

2018-06-01

Full Text Available In this article, the heavy metals in soils for agricultural activities were analyzed statistically. Ten (10 soil samples were randomly taken across the agricultural zones in Odo-Oba, southwestern Nigeria. Ten (10 metals; namely: copper (Cu, lead (Pb, chromium (Cr, arsenic (As, zinc (Zn, cadmium (Cd, nickel (Ni, antimony (Sb, cobalt (Co and vanadium (V were determined and compared with the guideline values. When the values were compared with the international standard, none of the heavy metals in the study area exceeded the threshold limit. However, the maximum range of the samples showed that Cr and V exceeded the permissible limit which could be associated with ecological risk. The data can reveal the distributions of heavy metals in the agricultural topsoil of Odo-Oba, and can be used to estimate the risks associated with the consumption of crops grown on such soils. Keywords: Agricultural soils, Heavy metals, Contamination, Environment, Soil screening, Geostatistics

Determination of Heavy Metals in Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. Collected from Different Cultivation Regions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dan Zhou

2016-01-01

Full Text Available 20 batches of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. were collected from Yunnan, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan province in China. The contents of heavy metals of As, Hg, Pb, Cd, and Cu were determined and compared. The results indicated that geographical source might be a major factor to influence the contents of heavy metals of arsenic (As, mercury (Hg, lead (Pb, cadmium (Cd, and copper (Cu in Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. Compared to the criteria of heavy metals, the contents of As, Hg, Pb, and Cd in almost all the samples were in accordance with The Green Trade Standards. The contents of Cu were higher than the criteria for heavy metals except the samples from Changxing town, Qiongzhong county, Maoyang town, Qiongzhong county, Wupo town, Tunchang county, and Nanlv town, Tunchang county, in Hainan province. The best cultivation regions of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. were from Changxing town, Qiongzhong county, Maoyang town, Qiongzhong county, Wupo town, Tunchang county, and Nanlv town, Tunchang county, in Hainan province. This research would provide the scientific basis for quality control and standardization of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq.

Determination of Heavy Metals in Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. Collected from Different Cultivation Regions.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Dan; Fu, Yurong; Lai, Weiyong; Zhang, Junqing

2016-01-01

20 batches of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. were collected from Yunnan, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Hainan province in China. The contents of heavy metals of As, Hg, Pb, Cd, and Cu were determined and compared. The results indicated that geographical source might be a major factor to influence the contents of heavy metals of arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and copper (Cu) in Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. Compared to the criteria of heavy metals, the contents of As, Hg, Pb, and Cd in almost all the samples were in accordance with The Green Trade Standards. The contents of Cu were higher than the criteria for heavy metals except the samples from Changxing town, Qiongzhong county, Maoyang town, Qiongzhong county, Wupo town, Tunchang county, and Nanlv town, Tunchang county, in Hainan province. The best cultivation regions of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq. were from Changxing town, Qiongzhong county, Maoyang town, Qiongzhong county, Wupo town, Tunchang county, and Nanlv town, Tunchang county, in Hainan province. This research would provide the scientific basis for quality control and standardization of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq.

Biosorption of heavy metals and uranium from dilute solutions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schneider, I.A.H.; Misra, M.; Smith, R.W.

1995-01-01

Eichhornia crassipes approaches being a scourge in many parts of the world, choking waterways and hindering transport upon them. At the same time it is known to readily abstract heavy metal ions from water and, thus, aids in the removal of heavy metals found in such waters. This paper considers the possibility of using specific parts of the plant as an inexpensive adsorbent for the removal of heavy metals from contaminated chemical and mining industry waste waters. In particular the root of the plant was found to be an excellent accumulator of heavy metal ions including uranium from solution. It is also suggested that dried roots of the plant might be placed in simple bags and used in a very low cost metal ion removal system

Proceedings of 15th International Conference on Heavy Metals in the Environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barganska, Z.; Beyer, A; Klimaszewska, K.; Namiesnik, J.; Tobiszewski, M.; Rutkiewicz, I.

2010-01-01

15 th International Conference on Heavy Metals in the Environment (15 th ICHMET) is a continuation of a series of conferences that have been held since 1975. These conferences typically draw 500-1000 participants from countries in many parts of the world. The ICHMETs are the only forum that provide an integrated perspective on research and policy initiatives on all heavy metals in a trans-disciplinary context. There is a need to understand not only the unique features and behavior of individual heavy metals but also the differences, similarities and interactions of different metals at the ecosystem, systemic and cellular levels if we are to deal with the problems of global heavy metal pollution in a sustainable manner. The presented contributions concerned problems: (1) trend tracking/analysis of heavy metals data; (2) analytical tools and techniques; (3) heavy metals in the marine environment; (4) accumulation in foods and crops; (5) soil contamination; (6) heavy metals in sediments and remediation technologies; (7) effects on human health; (8) heavy metals in the atmosphere; (9) sources, emissions and control of heavy metals; (10) phytoremediation; (11) wastewater treatment; (12) heavy metals in the historical pollution record.

ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS AND CRUDE PROTEIN ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

UNICORN

to quantify heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Pb and Cd) and crude protein content of these species that are sold in ... in protein, omega 3 and low fat content. Furthermore ... high levels of cadmium can cause kidney and liver damage in man [6]. Motivation .... analysis. Determination of heavy metals in the edible tissues of the organisms.

THE HEAVY METALS CONNTENT IN VEGETABLES FROM MIDDLE SPIŠ AREA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marek Slávik,Tomáš Tóth

2014-02-01

Full Text Available In the middle area of Spiš, it is significantly burden by heavy metals what is documented by radical content of Hg in soil from Rudňany 58.583645 mg.kg -1. On the content of heavy metals in vegetables grown in this soil it has the same effect. 61.5% samples exceeded the limit value of heavy metals. The most dangerous vegetables were Lactuca sativa L. The limit value was exceed in all determine heavy metals - Hg, Cd, Pb and Cu in this vegetables. In the case of Hg, the limit value exceed 93.86 times. For relatively safety is growing of Pisum sativum L., where there was no exceed any limits values. The root vegetables are dangerous, where the sample of Raphanus sativus L. exceed 6.71978 times the limit values for Pb although the content of lead in the soil was under hygienic limits. Transfer of heavy metals into consume parts of vegetables was no limited by high content of humus into soil. Transfer of heavy metals into consume parts of vegetables was no limited by weakly alkaline soil reaction. These factors are considered for factors limited mobility and input heavy metals into plants. We determined heavy metals by AAS method on a Varian 240 FS and method AMA 254.

Magnetic evidence for heavy metal pollution of topsoil in Shanghai, China

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Guan; Liu, Yuan; Chen, Jiao; Ren, Feifan; Chen, Yuying; Ye, Fangzhou; Zhang, Weiguo

2018-03-01

This study presents the results obtained from magnetic susceptibility and heavy metal (Cu, Zn, Pb, and Cr) concentration measurements of soil profiles collected from arable land and urban parks in Baoshan District, an industrial district of Shanghai, China. The study focuses on the investigation of vertical variations in magnetic susceptibilities and heavy metal concentrations and on correlations between magnetic susceptibilities and heavy metal concentrations in soil profiles. The results demonstrate that magnetic enhancement in the surface layer of the soil profile is associated with increased heavy metal pollution. The enrichment factors (EF) and the Tomlinson Pollution Load Index (PLI-EF) are calculated for estimating the level of heavy metal pollution of soil profiles in the study. The significant positive correlations between heavy metal contents, enrichment factors (EF), Tomlinson pollution load index (PLI-CF), modified Tomlinson pollution load index (PLI-EF), and magnetic susceptibility (c) indicate that much of the heavy metal contamination in the study area is linked to combustion derived particulate emissions. The results confirm that the combined magnetic measurement and heavy metal concentration analysis could provide useful information for soil monitoring in urban environments. However, the use of magnetic technique to locate the heavy metal pollution boundary in the soil profile of this studied area should be confirmed by further geochemical analysis.

Customizable Biopolymers for Heavy Metal Remediation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kostal, Jan; Prabhukumar, Giridhar; Lao, U. Loi; Chen Alin; Matsumoto, Mark; Mulchandani, Ashok; Chen, Wilfred

2005-01-01

Nanoscale materials have been gaining increasing interest in the area of environmental remediation because of their unique physical, chemical and biological properties. One emerging area of research has been the development of novel materials with increased affinity, capacity, and selectivity for heavy metals because conventional technologies are often inadequate to reduce concentrations in wastewater to acceptable regulatory standards. Genetic and protein engineering have emerged as the latest tools for the construction of nanoscale materials that can be controlled precisely at the molecular level. With the advent of recombinant DNA techniques, it is now possible to create 'artificial' protein polymers with fundamentally new molecular organization. The most significant feature of these nanoscale biopolymers is that they are specifically pre-programmed within a synthetic gene template and can be controlled precisely in terms of sizes, compositions and functions at the molecular level. In this review, the use of specifically designed protein-based nano-biomaterials with both metal-binding and tunable properties for heavy metal removal is summarized. Several different strategies for the selective removal of heavy metals such as cadmium and mercury are highlighted

Analysis of heavy metal accumulation in fish from the coastal waters of Terengganu, Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Rosli, M. N. R.; Samat, S. B.; Yasir, M. S.

2018-04-01

Bioaccumulation of toxic metals in fish causes serious threats to the human when they are consumed. Thus, the detection of toxic element concentration levels in fish is important. The accumulation of four heavy metal concentration of Cd, Cu, Mn and Zn in fish was determined. Five fish species namely Epinephelus lanceolatus, Rastrelliger, Megalaspis cordyla, Bramidae and Siganus canaliculatus were collected from the coastal waters of Terengganu, Malaysia. The analysis was done using inductive coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) technique. The accumulation of the four heavy metals in muscle tissues of the fish are lower compared to liver and gill tissues. Cd concentration was higher in liver tissues except in Megalaspis cordyla. Meanwhile Cu concentration was higher in liver for all selected fishes. Mn concentration was higher in gill tissues of all fish studied while Zn concentration was higher in gill tissues except in Epinephelus lanceolatus and Rastrelliger. The highest average level of heavy metal recorded in fish is Zn (11.05 × 10-2 ± 1.44 × 10-2 mg kg-1) followed by Mn (1.81 × 10-2 ± 0.58 × 10-2 mg kg-1), Cu (0.70 × 10-2 ± 0.10 × 10-2 mg kg-1) and Cd (0.52×10-2 ± 0.27 × 10-2 mg kg-1). The metal concentration found in this study was lower than the national and international Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for human consumption. Long term monitoring system of metal bioaccumulation in fishes need to be done to provide useful information for the assessment of the potential health risks of metals in Malaysia.

Selective heavy metals removal from waters by amorphous zirconium phosphate: behavior and mechanism.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Bingcai; Zhang, Qingrui; Du, Wei; Zhang, Weiming; Pan, Bingjun; Zhang, Qingjian; Xu, Zhengwen; Zhang, Quanxing

2007-07-01

Selective removal of heavy metals from water has been of considerable concern for several decades. In the present study, the amorphous zirconium phosphate (ZrP) was synthesized and characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron micrography (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) as well as pH-titration experiments. Uptake of heavy metals including lead, cadmium, and zinc onto ZrP was studied by using a polystyrene sulfonic-acid exchanger D-001 as a reference sorbent and Ca(2+) as a competing cation due to its ubiquity in natural or industrial waters. The results indicated that the uptake of heavy metals onto ZrP is essentially an ion-exchange process and dependent upon solution pH. In comparison with D-001, ZrP exhibited more favorable sorption of heavy metals particularly in terms of high selectivity, as indicated by the distribution coefficients of ZrP even several orders higher than D-001 towards heavy metals when calcium ion coexisted at a high level in solution. The Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopic investigation indicated that the uptake of calcium, cadmium, and zinc ions onto ZrP is only driven by the electrostatic interaction, while that of lead ion is possibly dependent upon the inner-sphere complex formation with ZrP. XPS results further elucidated that ZrP displays different sorption affinity towards heavy metals in the same order as selectivity sequence of Pb(2+)>Zn(2+) approximately Cd(2+)>Ca(2+), which can be explained by hard and soft acids and bases (HASB) theory. Moreover, uptake of heavy metals onto ZrP approached to equilibrium quickly and the used ZrP could be readily regenerated for reuse by the dilute HCl solution. Thus, all the results suggest that amorphous ZrP has excellent potential as a sorption material for water treatment.

Serpentine soils affect heavy metal tolerance but not genetic diversity in a common Mediterranean ant.

Science.gov (United States)

Frizzi, Filippo; Masoni, Alberto; Çelikkol, Mine; Palchetti, Enrico; Ciofi, Claudio; Chelazzi, Guido; Santini, Giacomo

2017-08-01

Natural habitats with serpentine soils are rich in heavy metal ions, which may significantly affect ecological communities. Exposure to metal pollutants results, for instance, in a reduction of population genetic diversity and a diffused higher tolerance towards heavy metals. In this study, we investigated whether chronic exposure to metals in serpentine soils affect accumulation patterns, tolerance towards metal pollutants, and genetic diversity in ants. In particular, we studied colonies of the common Mediterranean ant, Crematogaster scutellaris, along a contamination gradient consisting of two differently contaminated forests and a reference soil with no geogenic contamination. We first evaluated the metal content in both soil and ants' body. Then, we tested for tolerance towards metal pollutants by evaluating the mortality of ants fed with nickel (Ni) solutions of increasing concentrations. Finally, differences in genetic diversity among ants from different areas were assessed using eight microsatellite loci. Interestingly, a higher tolerance to nickel solutions was found in ants sampled in sites with intermediate levels of heavy metals. This may occur, because ants inhabiting strongly contaminated areas tend to accumulate higher amounts of contaminants. Additional ingestion of toxicants beyond the saturation threshold would lead to death. There was no difference in the genetic diversity among ant colonies sampled in different sites. This was probably the result of queen mediated gene flow during nuptial flights across uncontaminated and contaminated areas of limited geographical extent. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adsorption of Heavy Metal Ions from Aqueous Solutions by Bentonite Nanocomposites.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Jing; Su, Guojun; Zhang, Xueping; Huang, Wen

2016-08-01

A series of bentonite nanocomposites have been synthesized by modifying bentonite with hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTMAB) and the common complexing agents, complexone (ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid, EDTA) or mercaptocomplexant (2-Mercaptobenzothiazole, MBT). These adsorbents are used to remove heavy metal ions (Cu(2+), Zn(2+), Mn(2+),Co(2+)). The Bent-CTMAB-MBT adsorbed metal ions are higher than Bent-CTMAB-EDTA under the same ion concentration in AAS. Compared with the single ion system, the adsorption of the mixed ion system of Cu(2+), Zn(2+), Mn(2+), Co(2+) had decreased differently. In the mixed system, the adsorption of Mn(2+) is significantly lower, but the adsorption of Cu(2+) was highest. The adsorption sequence of these four metal ions was Cu(2+) > Zn(2+) > Co(2+) > Mn(2+), and the selective adsorption was closely related to the hydration energy of heavy metal ions. We could remove more metal ions in different stages with the adsorption sequence.

[Analysis and assessment of atmospheric pollution based on accumulation characterization of heavy metals in Platanus acerifolia leaves].

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Ling; Fang, Yan-Ming; Wang, Shun-Chang; Xie, Ying; Wang, Cheng-Run

2014-03-01

The present work was aimed to evaluate the heavy metal pollution in the atmosphere of Huainan City. We measured and clustered the accumulation of six heavy metals in Platanus acerifolia leaves in 20 sampling fields with six types of environmental conditions, and analyzed the EF value of heavy metal enrichment in the leaves. The results showed that the accumulations in Platanus acerifolia leaves varied according to different types of metals, following the order of Zn > Cu > Cr > Ni > Pb > Cd. Environmental conditions also had great influence on the accumulation of heavy metals. Cd and Cu were mostly found in cement plant and mine, respectively, and Cr, Ni, Pb and Zn were significant higher in main road, compared with other environmental conditions. The average values of EF for all the metals expect Cr in scenic and village area were over 1. The average values of EF for all the metals in mine, power plant, main road and cement plant were above 3. The overall pollution condition of heavy metals in Huainan City followed the order of Cd > Cu > Zn > Ni > Pb > Cr.

Health risks of heavy metals in contaminated soils and food crops irrigated with wastewater in Beijing, China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, S.; Cao, Q.; Zheng, Y.M.; Huang, Y.Z.; Zhu, Y.G.

2008-01-01

Consumption of food crops contaminated with heavy metals is a major food chain route for human exposure. We studied the health risks of heavy metals in contaminated food crops irrigated with wastewater. Results indicate that there is a substantial buildup of heavy metals in wastewater-irrigated soils, collected from Beijing, China. Heavy metal concentrations in plants grown in wastewater-irrigated soils were significantly higher (P ≤ 0.001) than in plants grown in the reference soil, and exceeded the permissible limits set by the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) in China and the World Health Organization (WHO). Furthermore, this study highlights that both adults and children consuming food crops grown in wastewater-irrigated soils ingest significant amount of the metals studied. However, health risk index values of less than 1 indicate a relative absence of health risks associated with the ingestion of contaminated vegetables. - Long-term wastewater irrigation leads to buildup of heavy metals in soils and food crops

Temporal variations and spatial distributions of heavy metals in a wastewater-irrigated soil-eggplant system and associated influencing factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Ai, Shiwei; Liu, Bailin; Yang, Ying; Ding, Jian; Yang, Wenzhi; Bai, Xiaojuan; Naeem, Sajid; Zhang, Yingmei

2018-05-30

Heavy metal pollution in farmlands is highly concerned as crops' easy-uptake of heavy metal can ultimately affect consumers. In order to offer suggestions on cultivating safe quality vegetable, specifically eggplant which is widely consumed for its nutritional value and antioxidant activity, a field study was undertaken to investigate the temporal variations and spatial distributions of heavy metals in a wastewater-irrigated soil-eggplant system. In the present study, eggplants were planted in the farmlands of Weichuan village (WC) (relatively unpolluted field), Liangzhuang village (LZ) (moderately polluted field) and Minqin village (MQ) (seriously polluted field) to elucidate their temporal uptake processes of heavy metals described by the sigmoid model. Eggplant tissues from severely polluted farmlands were found with higher heavy metal concentrations and lower yields compared with other two groups. What is more, 25 farmlands along the Dongdagou stream (heavy metals polluted stream) were chosen to analyze the spatial distribution of heavy metals in soils and eggplants. Heavy metal concentrations in eggplants decreased with the decline of heavy metal concentrations in soil from upstream (pollution source) to downstream. Moreover, several methods were employed to assess bioavailability of heavy metals in soils. All the bioavailable heavy metals were found in linear positive correlations with heavy metal concentrations. Meanwhile, linear correlations were found between heavy metals in soils and eggplants. At last, redundancy analysis was used to investigate the effects of soil properties (pH, organic matter and texture of soils) and heavy metals on eggplants' uptake. The results indicated that soil heavy metals had a dominant impact on their accumulations in eggplant fruit, with a variance contribution of 78.0%, while soil properties had a regulatory effect, with a variance contribution of 5.2%. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Compost as a source of microbial isolates for the bioremediation of heavy metals: In vitro selection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vargas-García, María del Carmen; López, María José; Suárez-Estrella, Francisca; Moreno, Joaquín

2012-01-01

Heavy metal pollution has become a major environmental concern nowadays and the bioremediation of polluted habitats is an increasingly popular strategy due to both its efficiency and safety. A screening and selection protocol based on different composting processes was designed in order to isolate heavy metal-resistant microorganisms. A collection of 51 microorganisms was obtained and most of them showed the capability to tolerate heavy metals in multi-polluted aqueous systems (Cd(II), Cr(VI), Ni, Pb, Zn(II)), as well as to remove them. The highest detoxification ratios were observed for Pb. Some of the isolates detoxifying more than a 90% of this metal, while the other metals were removed in a range between 20% and 60%. The best isolates (Graphium putredinis, Fusarium solani, Fusarium sp. and Penicillium chrysogenum) were further assayed in order to determine the predominant removal mechanism and the potential use of their dead biomass as a biosorbent. Intracellular accumulation was the prevalent mechanism for most isolates and metals, with the exception of Ni. In this case, the proportion removed by extracellular adsorption was similar or even higher than that removed by intracellular accumulation. Thus, the efficiency of living cells was higher than that of dead biomass except in the case of Ni. - Highlights: ► Composting is a good reservoir for the isolation of HM-resistant microorganisms. ► Pb was the most removed heavy metal in multi-polluted aqueous systems. ► Intracellular accumulation was the predominant mechanism for heavy metal removal. ► Graphium putredinis, which detoxifies organic pollutants, was the most efficient isolate.

Heavy metals contamination and human health risk assessment around Obuasi gold mine in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Bempah, Crentsil Kofi; Ewusi, Anthony

2016-05-01

Gold mining has increased the prevalence and occurrence of heavy metals contamination at the Earth's surface and is causing major concern due to the potential risk involved. This study investigated the impact of gold mine on heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Hg, Ni, Fe, Mn, and Zn) pollution and evaluated the potential health risks to local residents via consumption of polluted groundwater, agricultural soils, and vegetable crops grown at three community farms surrounding the mine at Obuasi municipality of Ghana. The results showed levels of As, Cd, Cr, Hg, Fe, and Mn higher than the allowable drinking water standards. The vegetable samples analyzed showed high accumulation of As and Ni above the normal value. Bioaccumulation factors of heavy metals were significantly higher for vegetables grown in the Sanso soils. Estimated average daily intake and hazard quotient for As in drinking water as well as As, Pb, and Hg in vegetable samples exceeded permissible limit. Unacceptable non-cancer health risk levels were found in vegetable samples analyzed for As, Pb, and Hg. An unacceptable cancer risk was found via drinking of groundwater, in consumption of vegetables, and in soil. The hazard index for vegetables was higher than 1, indicating very high health risk to heavy metals contamination through consumption of vegetables grown around the sampling sites. The results recommend the need for regular monitoring of groundwater and food crops to protect consumers' health.

620 ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS, pH AND EC IN EFFLUENT ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Osondu

evaluated metals were Cu, Fe, Ni, Mn, Cr, Zn, Cd, Co, and Ag. The pH, EC, TDS, DO ... heavy metals, but the high heavy metal concentrations in the soil could seriously ... Key words: Heavy metals, AAS, contamination, floriculture and effluents.

Both heavy metal-amendment of soil and aphid-infestation increase Cd and Zn concentrations in phloem exudates of a metal-hyperaccumulating plant.

Science.gov (United States)

Stolpe, Clemens; Giehren, Franziska; Krämer, Ute; Müller, Caroline

2017-07-01

Plants that are able to hyperaccumulate heavy metals show increased concentrations of these metals in their leaf tissue. However, little is known about the concentrations of heavy metals and of organic defence metabolites in the phloem sap of these plants in response to either heavy metal-amendment of the soil or biotic challenges such as aphid-infestation. In this study, we investigated the effects of heavy metal-exposure and of aphid-infestation on phloem exudate composition of the metal hyperaccumulator species Arabidopsis halleri L. O'Kane & Al-Shehbaz (Brassicaceae). The concentrations of elements and of organic defence compounds, namely glucosinolates, were measured in phloem exudates of young and old (mature) leaves of plants challenged either by amendment of the soil with cadmium and zinc and/or by an infestation with the generalist aphid Myzus persicae. Metal-amendment of the soil led to increased concentrations of Cd and Zn, but also of two other elements and one indole glucosinolate, in phloem exudates. This enhanced defence in the phloem sap of heavy metal-hyperaccumulating plants can thus potentially act as effective protection against aphids, as predicted by the elemental defence hypothesis. Aphid-infestation also caused enhanced Cd and Zn concentrations in phloem exudates. This result provides first evidence that metal-hyperaccumulating plants can increase heavy metal concentrations tissue-specifically in response to an attack by phloem-sucking herbivores. Overall, the concentrations of most elements, including the heavy metals, and glucosinolates were higher in phloem exudates of young leaves than in those of old leaves. This defence distribution highlights that the optimal defence theory, which predicts more valuable tissue to be better defended, is applicable for both inorganic and organic defences. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Investigation of heavy metals release from sediment with bioturbation/bioirrigation.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Yi; Men, Bin; Yang, Xiaofang; Li, Yaxuan; Xu, Hui; Wang, Dongsheng

2017-10-01

Bioturbation/bioirrigation can affect the remobilization of metals from sediments. In this study, experiments were performed to examine the effect of bioturbation/bioirrigation by different organisms on cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn) and lead (Pb) releasing from the spiked sediment. The diffusive gradient in thin films technique (DGT) revealed that at the end of exposure time, the labile heavy metals concentrations in the pore water for all metal and organisms combinations except Cu and chironomid larvae were much lower than that in the control group. However, the concentrations of heavy metals detected by the DGT were virtually indistinguishable among the treatments with tubificid, chironomid larvae and loach. The correlation analysis of heavy metals with iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) suggested that Cd, Zn and Pb were most likely bound as Fe-Mn oxidation form in the pore water, but Cu was in other forms. After 28 d of exposure, bioturbation/bioirrigation produced a significant release of particulate heavy metals into the overlying water, especially in the treatment with loach. The bioturbation/bioirrigation impact on the Pb remobilization was less than the other three heavy metals. The effects of bioturbaiton/bioirrigation on the heavy metals remobilization in the sediment were complex that with studying the heavy metals remobilization in the sediment and water interface, the biological indicators should be recommended. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Heavy metal pollution of agricultural soils

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jarvis, S.C.

1975-01-01

Inputs of heavy metals to soils have increased recently and there is much concern that they may be toxic at various stages along the food chain and ultimately to man. Cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, zinc, chromium, nickel, cadmium and lead move from geochemical sources to plants and then to animals and man; they then are returned in various forms to soil to complete the cycle. The ways in which heavy metals may be added to soils are reviewed. They include: aerial inputs by air pollution, fertilizers, pesticides, farm slurries and sewage sludge. Possibly the source of contamination which is to have the most impact on soils used for the production of crops is sewage sludge. The fate of heavy metal added to soils is discussed in relation to form, mobility, uptake by plants, effect of soil conditions on availability to plants, and toxicity to animals. 56 references.

Heavy metal vaporization and abatement during thermal treatment of modified wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rio, S.; Verwilghen, C.; Ramaroson, J.; Nzihou, A.; Sharrock, P.

2007-01-01

This study examines the vaporization percentage and partitioning of heavy metals Cd, Pb and Zn during thermal treatment of wastes with added PVC, heavy metals or phosphate, and the efficiency of sorbents for removal of these metallic compounds in flue gas of an industrial solid waste incinerator. Firstly, vaporization experiments were carried out to determine the behavior of heavy metals during combustion under various conditions (type of waste, temperature, presence of chloride or phosphate ...). The experimental results show relatively high vaporization percentage of metallic compounds within fly ash and limestone matrix while heavy metals within sediments treated with phosphoric acid are less volatile. Vaporization of metals increases with increasing temperature and with chloride addition. The thermal behavior of the selected heavy metals and their removal by sorbents (sodium bicarbonate, activated carbon) was also studied in an industrial solid waste incinerator. These pilot scale experiments confirm that heavy metals are concentrated in fly ashes and cyclone residues, thus effectively controlling their release to the atmosphere

Heavy metal accumulation by carrageenan and agar producing algae

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burdin, K.S. [Moscow State Univ. (Russian Federation). Faculty of Biology; Bird, K.T. [North Carolina Univ., Wilmington, NC (United States). Center for Marine Science Research

1994-09-01

The accumulation of six heavy metals Cu, Cd, Ni, Zn, Mn and Pb was measured in living and lzophilized algal thalli. The agar producing algae were Gracilaria tikvahiae and Gelidium pusillum. The carrageenan producing macroalgae were Agardhiella subulata and the gametophyte and tetrasporophyte phases of Chondrus crispus. These produce primarily iota, kappa and lambda carrageenans, respectively. At heavy metal concentrations of 0.5 mg L{sup -1}, living thalli of Gracilaria tikvahiae generally showed the greatest amount of accumulation of the 6 heavy metals tested. The accumulation of Pb was greater in the living thalli of all four species than in the lyophilized thalli. Except for Agardhiella subulata, lyophilized thalli showed greater accumulation of Ni, Cu and Zn. There was no difference in heavy metal accumulation between living and lyophilized thalli in the accumulation of Cd. Manganese showed no accumulation at the tested concentration. There did not appear to be a relationship between algal hydrocolloid characteristics and the amounts of heavy metals accumulated. (orig.)

Heavy metal removal from water/wastewater by nanosized metal oxides: A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hua, Ming; Zhang, Shujuan; Pan, Bingcai; Zhang, Weiming; Lv, Lu; Zhang, Quanxing

2012-01-01

Nanosized metal oxides (NMOs), including nanosized ferric oxides, manganese oxides, aluminum oxides, titanium oxides, magnesium oxides and cerium oxides, provide high surface area and specific affinity for heavy metal adsorption from aqueous systems. To date, it has become a hot topic to develop new technologies to synthesize NMOs, to evaluate their removal of heavy metals under varying experimental conditions, to reveal the underlying mechanism responsible for metal removal based on modern analytical techniques (XAS, ATR-FT-IR, NMR, etc.) or mathematical models, and to develop metal oxide-based materials of better applicability for practical use (such as granular oxides or composite materials). The present review mainly focuses on NMOs’ preparation, their physicochemical properties, adsorption characteristics and mechanism, as well as their application in heavy metal removal. In addition, porous host supported NMOs are particularly concerned because of their great advantages for practical application as compared to the original NMOs. Also, some magnetic NMOs were included due to their unique separation performance.

Indicators of Lake Temsah Potential by some heavy metals Heavy Metals in Sediment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdel Sabour, M.F.; Aly, R.O.; Khalil, M.T.; Attwa, A.H.A.

1999-01-01

The Environmental impact of industrial, agricultural and domestic waster on heavy metals sediment content in lake Temsah has been investigated. Seven sites were chosen, differ in nature of activity and quantity of wastes, namely from south to north-west; Arab contractors shipyard workshop(A), The junction between the western logon and the lake(B), El-Temsah workshop (C), El-Temsah shipyard (private workshop) (D), El-Karakat workshop for SCA (E), El-Forsan drain out fall to the lake (F) and SCA Press outlet (G). Eight of heavy metal concentrations of concern (Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Co, Ni, Cd and Pb) were estimated in sediment samples collected from different chosen sites during the seasons; summer , autumn 1995 and winter , spring 1996. Results of this study reveal that pollution is directly related to the type of the activity in each site. Sediment samples results showed that the most suffering sites were found to be in the order of B> D> C> G> F, and the least polluted ones were E> A. And the highest polluted season was summer, whereas the least one was winter. It is obvious that the general mean values of Cu, Ni and Cd are exceeding the allowed concentrations documented for diverse trace components in coastal sediments. Strict regulations that must be followed in order to minimize this pollution specially, by heavy metals from marine workshop

Heavy metal pollution of man and environment - A historical perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaworowski, Zbigniew

1989-01-01

'Normal' levels of heavy metals are disturbingly close to toxic levels. This may be a man-made or natural phenomenon. The man-made exposure to heavy metals started thousands of years ago. In some European populations in the past the lead level was orders of magnitude higher than now, where it is comparable with the prehistoric level. The former high contamination of human populations was due to intake of metals from immediate sources (utensils, drugs, etc) not to their dispersion in the environment. A dramatic decrease of lead level in man occurred recently, when the majority of the immediate sources disappeared, but when at the local (but not at the global) scale the environmental level of metals increased. The current flow of metals into the global atmosphere, similar to the pre-industrial flow, is still dominated by natural processes, such as biological methylization of metals. This leads to an enrichment of the airborne particles in metals up to several orders of magnitude above the crustal abundances. It is not the magnitude of emissions of metals into the global atmosphere that marks a new role of man in the biosphere, but the mass of anthropogenic mobilization of raw materials now reaching the geological dimensions. (author)

Heavy metals in soil at a waste electrical and electronic equipment processing area in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Weihua; Bai, Jianfeng; Yao, Haiyan; Zhao, Jing; Zhuang, Xuning; Huang, Qing; Zhang, Chenglong; Wang, JingWei

2017-11-01

For the objective of evaluating the contamination degree of heavy metals and analysing its variation trend in soil at a waste electrical and electronic equipment processing area in Shanghai, China, evaluation methods, which include single factor index method, geo-accumulation index method, comprehensive pollution index method, and potential ecological risk index method, were adopted in this study. The results revealed that the soil at a waste electrical and electronic equipment processing area was polluted by arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, zinc, and chromium. It also demonstrated that the concentrations of heavy metals were increased over time. Exceptionally, the average value of the metalloid (arsenic) was 73.31 mg kg -1 in 2014, while it was 58.31 mg kg -1 in the first half of 2015, and it was 2.93 times and 2.33 times higher than that of the Chinese Environmental Quality Standard for Soil in 2014 and the first half of 2015, respectively. The sequences of the contamination degree of heavy metals in 2014 and the first half of 2015 were cadmium > lead > copper > chromium > zinc and cadmium > lead > chromium > zinc > copper. From the analysis of the potential ecological risk index method, arsenic and cadmium had higher ecological risk than other heavy metals. The integrated ecological risk index of heavy metals (cadmium, copper, lead, zinc, and chromium) and metalloid (arsenic) was 394.10 in 2014, while it was 656.16 in the first half of 2015, thus documenting a strong ecological risk.

Assessment of heavy metals in Averrhoa bilimbi and A. carambola fruit samples at two developmental stages.

Science.gov (United States)

Soumya, S L; Nair, Bindu R

2016-05-01

Though the fruits of Averrhoa bilimbi and A. carambola are economically and medicinally important, they remain underutilized. The present study reports heavy metal quantitation in the fruit samples of A. bilimbi and A. carambola (Oxalidaceae), collected at two stages of maturity. Heavy metals are known to interfere with the functioning of vital cellular components. Although toxic, some elements are considered essential for human health, in trace quantities. Heavy metals such as Cr, Mn, Co, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Pb, and Cd were analyzed by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). The samples under investigation included, A. bilimbi unripe (BU) and ripe (BR), A. carambola sour unripe (CSU) and ripe (CSR), and A. carambola sweet unripe (CTU) and ripe (CTR). Heavy metal analysis showed that relatively higher level of heavy metals was present in BR samples compared to the rest of the samples. The highest amount of As and Se were recorded in BU samples while Mn content was highest in CSU samples and Co in CSR. Least amounts of Cr, Zn, Se, Cd, and Pb were noted in CTU while, Mn, Cu, and As were least in CTR. Thus, the sweet types of A. carambola (CTU, CTR) had comparatively lower heavy metal content. There appears to be no reason for concern since different fruit samples of Averrhoa studied presently showed the presence of various heavy metals in trace quantities.

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Can Benefit Heavy Metal Tolerance and Phytoremediation

Science.gov (United States)

Forgy, David

2012-01-01

Sites contaminated by heavy metals, such as industrial waste sites, create unwelcoming environments for plant growth. Heavy metals can have a wide range of toxic effects such as replacing essential elements or disrupting enzyme function. While some heavy metals are essential to plant nutrition at low concentrations, high concentrations of any…

Heavy metals – a silent threat to health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karolina Kosek-Hoehne

2017-01-01

Environmental pollution makes it impossible to produce goods and food from products completely free from heavy metals contamination. That is why we should focus on reducing the amount of heavy metals to the minimum when it comes to the world around us.

Natural Radionuclides and Heavy Metals Pollution in Seawater at Kuala Langat Coastal Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sabarina Md Yunus; Zaini Hamzah; Ab Khalik Hj Wood; Ahmad Saat

2015-01-01

Rapid industrial developments along the Langat river basin play an important role in contributing to the increases of pollution loading at Kuala Langat coastal area. The major pollutant sources in this area may be originating from human activities such as industrial discharge, domestic sewage, construction, agriculture and pig farming near the tributaries that affects the water quality. In addition, Langat and Semenyih rivers flow through the mining and ex-mining area, which is related to the source of natural radionuclides contamination. Heavy metals in the aquatic environment and more likely to enter the food chain. This study is focusing to the levels of radionuclides and heavy metals in seawater. The samples were collected using appropriate water sampler, which is then acidified until pH 2 and filtered using cellulose acetate 0.45 μm. The concentration of these radionuclides and heavy metals were determined using Inductive Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICPMS) after dilution. In general, the radionuclides and heavy metals concentrations are lower than Malaysia Marine Water Quality Standard (MMWQS) except for few locations where the concentration levels above the standards. The higher concentration of pollutant in the seawater may have a toxic effect on sensitive plants and living organisms. The results of pollution levels of these radionuclides and heavy metals were also compared with other studies. (author)

Effects of heavy metal pollution on red wood ant (Formica s. str.) populations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eeva, T.; Sorvari, J.; Koivunen, V.

2004-01-01

We studied the species composition, mound population densities, relative abundance and colony sizes of red wood ants along a well known air pollution gradient of a copper smelter in Southwest Finland. The dominant species, Formica aquilonia, was further studied for heavy metal (Al, Cu, Cd, Ni, Zn, As, Pb, Hg) levels and morphological characters (body mass, head width, labial gland disease) of workers. We found five species belonging to Formica s. str., and two of them showed changes in their relative abundance, which could not be explained by natural habitat differences. Nest mound volumes were 34% smaller in the polluted area, suggesting that smaller colonies can be maintained there. The heavy metal levels in F. aquilonia workers were higher in the polluted area for all metals, except Hg. The largest relative differences between the study areas (polluted/unpolluted) were found for As (4.1), Ni (2.4), Cu (2.1) and Pb (1.8). Morphological characters of workers were not related to the heavy metal levels. Our data showed that red wood ants can tolerate relatively high amounts of heavy metals and maintain reproducing colonies even in a heavily polluted area, but on the basis of smaller colony sizes, pollution stress may also cause trade-offs in reproduction. - Capsule: Five species of red wood ants vary in their sensitivity to heavy metal pollution but all of them had smaller colonies in a polluted area

Immobilisation of heavy metal in cement-based solidification/stabilisation: A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Q.Y.; Tyrer, M.; Hills, C.D.; Yang, X.M.; Carey, P.

2009-01-01

Heavy metal-bearing waste usually needs solidification/stabilization (s/s) prior to landfill to lower the leaching rate. Cement is the most adaptable binder currently available for the immobilisation of heavy metals. The selection of cements and operating parameters depends upon an understanding of chemistry of the system. This paper discusses interactions of heavy metals and cement phases in the solidification/stabilisation process. It provides a clarification of heavy metal effects on cement hydration. According to the decomposition rate of minerals, heavy metals accelerate the hydration of tricalcium silicate (C 3 S) and Portland cement, although they retard the precipitation of portlandite due to the reduction of pH resulted from hydrolyses of heavy metal ions. The chemical mechanism relevant to the accelerating effect of heavy metals is considered to be H + attacks on cement phases and the precipitation of calcium heavy metal double hydroxides, which consumes calcium ions and then promotes the decomposition of C 3 S. In this work, molecular models of calcium silicate hydrate gel are presented based on the examination of 29 Si solid-state magic angle spinning/nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS/NMR). This paper also reviews immobilisation mechanisms of heavy metals in hydrated cement matrices, focusing on the sorption, precipitation and chemical incorporation of cement hydration products. It is concluded that further research on the phase development during cement hydration in the presence of heavy metals and thermodynamic modelling is needed to improve effectiveness of cement-based s/s and extend this waste management technique

Biomonitoring of heavy metals: Definitions, possibilities and limitations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Markert, B.; Oehlmann, J.; Roth, M.

2000-01-01

Increasing attention given to heavy metals as components of the pollutant load in ecosystems makes it necessary to find reliable biological indicators. Fundamental investigations into the effect of heavy metals on organisms are therefore required. Different organisms (mosses, snails, etc.) were chosen as indicator organisms to optimize the indication of heavy metal loads at the physiological and biochemical level. All current programmes are designed to observe and measure pollutant inputs on a short or long-term basis. However, the changes in the environment of a phenological, physiological, sociological, genetic and physiological/biochemical nature have been investigated by biologists since the beginning of biological scientific research. So far excellent scientific results have been produced by qualification of the heavy metal status in ecosystems. Until now, the quantification of the results with regard to pollutant inputs in ecosystems (mass balances) and their action in these ecosystems have been investigated inadequately. (author)

Removal of dissolved heavy metals and radionuclides by microbial spores

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Revis, N.W.; Hadden, C.T.; Edenborn, H.

1997-01-01

Microbial systems have been shown to remove specific heavy metals from contaminated aqueous waste to levels acceptable to EPA for environmental release. However, systems capable of removing a variety of heavy metals from aqueous waste to environmentally acceptable levels remain to be reported. The present studies were performed to determine the specificity of spores of the bacterium Bacillus megaterium for the adsorption of dissolved metals and radionuclides from aqueous waste. The spores effectively adsorbed eight heavy metals from a prepared metal mix and from a plating rinse waste to EPA acceptable levels for waste water. These results suggest that spores have multiple binding sites for the adsorption of heavy metals. Spores were also effective in adsorbing the radionuclides 85 strontium and 197 cesium. The presence of multiple sites in spores for the adsorption of heavy metals and radionuclides makes this biosorbent a good candidate for the treatment of aqueous wastes associated with the plating and nuclear industries. 17 refs., 4 tabs

Human health risk assessment: heavy metal contamination of vegetables in Bahawalpur, Pakistan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hafiza Hira Iqbal

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Dietary exposure of toxic metals is a vital concern for human health through vegetable consumption, especially in developing countries. Aim of the current study was to determine the health risk related to vegetables contamination of heavy metals by irrigated with sewage and turbine water. Irrigation water sources, soils and vegetables were analyzed for selected metals viz: Pb, Cd, Cr and Ni. Heavy metals in water samples were within the permissible limits except Cd in sewage water. The concentration of heavy metals in soil and vegetables irrigated with turbine water were lower than the safe limits. In case of vegetables irrigated with sewage water, Cd was higher in soil while Pb, Cd and Cr were higher in most of the vegetables. Daily intake of metals, health risk index and Bio-concentration factor was also determined. Health risk index values for Cd, Pb and Ni were exceeded the permissible limits (European Union, 2002. Bio-concentration factor (BCF found to be maximum (16.4 mg/kg in Coriandrum sativum cultivated with sewage water. Raphanus caudatus, Coriandrum sativum, Daucus carota, Allium sativum and Solanum tuberosum showed Health Risk Index of Cd > 1 in adults and children. Allium sativum also showed HRI of Pb > 1 in children. We conclude that the quality of vegetables irrigated with sewage water is poor and not fit for human health, evident from the high concentration of Pb, Cd and Cr. Urgent measures are required to prevent consumption and production vegetables irrigated with of sewage water in the study area.

Heavy metals anthropogenic pollutants in Austria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anderl, M.; Gager, M.; Gugele, B.; Huttunen, K.; Kurzweil, A.; Poupa, S.; Ritter, M.; Wappel, D.; Wieser, M.

2004-01-01

Several heavy metals from anthropogenic sources are emitted in the atmosphere damaging the air quality and the human health, besides they accumulate on the soil and lately are transmitted into the human food chain. Therefore at international level there is a concern to reduce them. Austrian heavy metals emissions (cadmium, mercury and lead) during 1990-2002 are given including an analysis of causes and sources. Lead is the main pollutant and the main sector responsible is the industry. 5 figs. (nevyjel)

Improved inventory for heavy metal emissions from stationary combustion plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Malene; Nielsen, Ole-Kenneth; Hoffmann, Leif

On behalf of the Ministry of the Environment DCE at Aarhus University annually reports heavy metals (HM) emissions to the UNECE CLRTAP (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution). This report presents updated heavy metal emission factors......-2009. The report also include methodology, references and an uncertainty estimate. In Denmark, stationary combustion plants are among the most important emission sources for heavy metals. Emissions of all heavy metals have decreased considerably (73 % - 92 %) since 1990. The main HM emission sources are coal...

Possibility of clinical usefulness of heavy metal filter combinations in digital chest radiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawaji, Yasuyuki; Ideguchi, Tadamitsu; Ikeda, Hirotaka; Sakamoto, Hiromi; Higashida, Yoshiharu; Toyofuku, Fukai

2003-01-01

We have investigated the potential usefulness of the heavy metal filters with higher atomic numbers by comparing their patient exposures, tube loadings, radiographic contrasts, and the visual detection of simulated nodules in computed radiography (CR) with those of a combination of copper and aluminum. Seven heavy metal filters were used for this study. As for a tungsten filter, two filters different in thickness were used. One is 0.05 mm thick, and the other 0.10 mm. The other metal filters were respectively combined with a tungsten filter with a thickness of 0.05 mm. Among the all filters, tungsten with 0.1 mm thick and tungsten with 0.05 mm+barium which showed larger advantages in patient exposure and tube loading than those of the other filters were used for detection task of simulated nodules in chest radiography. The results indicated that the use of heavy metal filters can improve detectability of simulated nodules over that obtainable with conventional copper and aluminum filter. (author)

Heavy metals in the surface sediments of lakes on the Tibetan Plateau, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Bixi; Liu, Yongqin; Zhang, Fan; Hou, Juzhi; Zhang, Hongbo; Li, Chaoliu

2018-02-01

Heavy metal contamination has affected many regions in the world, particularly the developing countries of Asia. We investigated 8 heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Cr, Co, Ni, and As) in the surface sediments of 18 lakes on the Tibetan Plateau. It was found that the distributions of the heavy metals showed no clear spatial pattern on the plateau. The results indicated that the mean concentrations of these metals in the sediment samples diminished as follows: Cr > As > Zn > Ni > Pb > Cu > Co > Cd. The results of geoaccumulation index (I geo ) and potential ecological risk factor (E i r ) assessments showed that the sediments were moderately polluted by Cd and As, which posed much higher risks than the other metals. The values of the potential ecological risk index (RI) showed that lake Bieruoze Co has been severely polluted by heavy metals. Principal component analysis, hierarchical cluster analysis, and Pearson correlation analysis results indicated that the 8 heavy metals in the lake surface sediments of the Tibetan Plateau could be classified into four groups. Group 1 included Cu, Zn, Pb, Co, and Ni which were mainly derived from both natural and traffic sources. Group 2 included Cd which mainly originated from anthropogenic sources like alloying, electroplating, and dyeing industries and was transported to the Tibetan Plateau by atmospheric circulation. Group 3 included Cr and it might mainly generate from parent rocks of watersheds. The last Group (As) was mainly from manufacturing, living, and the striking deterioration of atmospheric environment of the West, Central Asia, and South Asia.

Assessing potential dietary toxicity of heavy metals in selected vegetables and food crops.

Science.gov (United States)

Islam, Ejaz ul; Yang, Xiao-e; He, Zhen-li; Mahmood, Qaisar

2007-01-01

Heavy metals, such as cadmium, copper, lead, chromium and mercury, are important environmental pollutants, particularly in areas with high anthropogenic pressure. Their presence in the atmosphere, soil and water, even in traces can cause serious problems to all organisms, and heavy metal bioaccumulation in the food chain especially can be highly dangerous to human health. Heavy metals enter the human body mainly through two routes namely: inhalation and ingestion, ingestion being the main route of exposure to these elements in human population. Heavy metals intake by human populations through food chain has been reported in many countries. Soil threshold for heavy metal toxicity is an important factor affecting soil environmental capacity of heavy metal and determines heavy metal cumulative loading limits. For soil-plant system, heavy metal toxicity threshold is the highest permissible content in the soil (total or bioavailable concentration) that does not pose any phytotoxic effects or heavy metals in the edible parts of the crops does not exceed food hygiene standards. Factors affecting the thresholds of dietary toxicity of heavy metal in soil-crop system include: soil type which includes soil pH, organic matter content, clay mineral and other soil chemical and biochemical properties; and crop species or cultivars regulated by genetic basis for heavy metal transport and accumulation in plants. In addition, the interactions of soil-plant root-microbes play important roles in regulating heavy metal movement from soil to the edible parts of crops. Agronomic practices such as fertilizer and water managements as well as crop rotation system can affect bioavailability and crop accumulation of heavy metals, thus influencing the thresholds for assessing dietary toxicity of heavy metals in the food chain. This paper reviews the phytotoxic effects and bioaccumulation of heavy metals in vegetables and food crops and assesses soil heavy metal thresholds for potential dietary

Can heavy metal pollution defend seed germination against heat stress? Effect of heavy metals (Cu(2+), Cd(2+) and Hg(2+)) on maize seed germination under high temperature.

Science.gov (United States)

Deng, Benliang; Yang, Kejun; Zhang, Yifei; Li, Zuotong

2016-09-01

Heavy metal pollution, as well as greenhouse effect, has become a serious threat today. Both heavy metal and heat stresses can arrest seed germination. What response can be expected for seed germination under both stress conditions? Here, the effects of heavy metals (Cu(2+), Cd(2+) and Hg(2+)) on maize seed germination were investigated at 20 °C and 40 °C. Compared with 20 °C, heat stress induced thermodormancy. However, this thermodormancy could be significantly alleviated by the addition of a low concentration of heavy metals. Heavy metals, as well as heat stress induced H2O2 accumulation in germinating seeds. Interestingly, this low concentration of heavy metal that promoted seed germination could be partly blocked by DMTU (a specific ROS scavenger), irrespective of temperature. Accordingly, H2O2 addition reinforced this promoting effect on seed germination, which was induced by a low concentration of heavy metal. Furthermore, we found that the NADPH oxidase derived ROS was required for seed germination promoted by the heavy metals. Subsequently, treatment of seeds with fluridone (a specific inhibitor of ABA) or ABA significantly alleviated or aggravated thermodormancy, respectively. However, this alleviation or aggravation could be partly attenuated by a low concentration of heavy metals. In addition, germination that was inhibited by high concentrations of heavy metals was also partly reversed by fluridone. The obtained results support the idea that heavy metal-mediated ROS and hormone interaction can finally affect the thermodormancy release or not. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Environmental assessment of heavy metal and natural radioactivity in soil around a coal-fired power plant in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xinwei Lu; Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an; Wen Liu; Caifeng Zhao; Cancan Chen

2013-01-01

Concentrations of heavy metals and natural radionuclides in soil around a major coal-fired power plant of Xi'an, China were determined by using XRF and gamma ray spectrometry, respectively. The measured results of heavy metals show that the mean concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Co and Cr in the studied soil samples are higher than their corresponding background values in Shaanxi soil, while the mean concentrations of Mn, Ni and V are close to the corresponding background values. The calculated results of pollution load index of heavy metals indicate that the studied soils presented heavy metal contamination. The concentrations of 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K in the studied soil samples range from 27.6 to 48.8, 44.4 to 61.4 and 640.2 to 992.2 Bq kg -1 with an average of 36.1, 51.1 and 733.9 Bq kg -1 , respectively, which are slightly higher than the average of Shaanxi soil. The air absorbed dose rate and the annual effective dose equivalent received by the local residents due to the natural radionuclides in soil are slightly higher than the mean values of Shaanxi. Coal combustion for energy production has affected the natural radioactivity level and heavy metals (Cu, Pb, Zn, Co and Cr) concentrations of soil around the coal-fired power plant. (author)

Heavy metal pollution in drinking water - a global risk for the human ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Fabian Fernandez

parts of the world heavy metal (HM) concentrations in drinking water are higher than some international guideline values. ..... become the basis for several drinking water treatment approaches ...... physiological and hygienic needs. Monitoring ...

Concentration and transportation of heavy metals in vegetables and risk assessment of human exposure to bioaccessible heavy metals in soil near a waste-incinerator site, South China.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Ning; Kang, Yuan; Pan, Weijian; Zeng, Lixuan; Zhang, Qiuyun; Luo, Jiwen

2015-07-15

There is limited study focusing on the bioaccumulation of heavy metals in vegetables and human exposure to bioaccessible heavy metals in soil. In the present study, heavy metal concentrations (Cr, Ni, Cu, Pb and Cd) were measured in five types of vegetables, soil, root, and settled air particle samples from two sites (at a domestic waste incinerator and at 20km away from the incinerator) in Guangzhou, South China. Heavy metal concentrations in soil were greater than those in aerial parts of vegetables and roots, which indicated that vegetables bioaccumulated low amount of heavy metals from soil. The similar pattern of heavy metal (Cr, Cd) was found in the settled air particle samples and aerial parts of vegetables from two sites, which may suggest that foliar uptake may be an important pathway of heavy metal from the environment to vegetables. The highest levels of heavy metals were found in leaf lettuce (125.52μg/g, dry weight) and bitter lettuce (71.2μg/g) for sites A and B, respectively, followed by bitter lettuce and leaf lettuce for sites A and B, respectively. Swamp morning glory accumulated the lowest amount of heavy metals (81.02μg/g for site A and 53.2μg/g for site B) at both sites. The bioaccessibility of heavy metals in soil ranged from Cr (2%) to Cu (71.78%). Risk assessment showed that Cd and Pb in soil samples resulted in the highest non-cancer risk and Cd would result in unacceptable cancer risk for children and risk. The non-dietary intake of soil was the most important exposure pathway, when the bioaccessibility of heavy metals was taken into account. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Phytoextraction of heavy metals from municipal sewage sludge by Rosa multiflora and Sida hermaphrodita.

Science.gov (United States)

Antonkiewicz, Jacek; Kołodziej, Barbara; Bielińska, Elżbieta Jolanta

2017-04-03

The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of the multiflora rose var. "Jatar" (Rosa multiflora Thunb. ex Murray) and the Virginia fanpetals (Sida hermaphrodita Rusby) to phytoextract heavy metals from municipal sewage sludge. The 6-year field experiment involved four levels of fertilization with sewage sludge at doses of 0, 10, 20, 40, and 60 Mg DM (Dry Mass) sludge ha -1 . The increasing doses of sewage sludge were found to significantly increase the yield of multiflora rose and Virginia fanpetals biomass. They also significantly increased the content of heavy metals in these plants. The highest uptake of heavy metals by the multiflora rose and Virginia fanpetals crops was recorded at the fertilization dose of 60 Mg DM ⋅ ha -1 . Our investigations show that the Virginia fanpetals was more efficient in the phytoextraction of Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Cd from the sewage sludge than the multiflora rose, due to the greater yields and higher heavy metal uptake by the former plant. In turn, the multiflora rose phytoextracted greater amounts of Pb from the sewage sludge. The analyses indicate that the Virginia fanpetals can be used for phytoremediation (phytoextraction) of heavy metals contained in sewage sludge.

Assessment of heavy metal removal technologies for biowaste by physico-chemical fractionation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veeken, A.H.M.; Hamelers, H.V.M.

2003-01-01

In the Netherlands, the heavy metal content of biowaste-compost frequently exceeds the legal standards for heavy metals. In order to assess heavy metal removal technologies, a physico-chemical fractionation scheme was developed to gain insight into the distribution of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Pb and

Stabilization of heavy metals in Tehran agricultural land

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Torabian, A.; Sadeghi, Sh.

2001-01-01

In order to prevent contamination of heavy metals accumulation in soil, plant, and ground water, several methods of prevention are studied, and tested worldwide. One of the method which has not been studied and applied in Iran is stabilization of heavy metals in soil by using clay minerals. Clay minerals due to hydration properties can adsorb organic and inorganic substances. Two clay minerals were used in this research: Bentonite with chemical structure of 2 to 1 (Two layers of silica and one layer of Aluminium) with CEC equal to 85 m eq/100 grams and Kao line with chemical structure of one to one (one layer silica and one layer Aluminum) and CEC=3 m eq/100 grams of soil. The physical and chemical properties of these two kinds of clays were different. Stabilization of heavy metals with different percentages of these two clays (7%, 15%, 22%) with different p H (4,7,8,11.5) were studied. The results indicate that with increasing of stabilizing agent at p H=7.8 and greater, stabilization of heavy metals increased significantly. The results also indicate the stabilization of heavy metals decreased rapidly at p H 4 and lower. The results of this study agree with the work of pervious researchers

Predicting toxic heavy metal movements in upper Sanyati catchment ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Water samples from boreholes located in areas where mining, mineral processing and agricultural activities were dominant, yielded the highest values of toxic heavy metals. Dilution Attenuation Factor (DAF) for each toxic heavy metal was calculated to observe metal behaviour along the contaminant path for each season.

Heavy metals content in the stem bark of Detarium microcarpum ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The heavy metal analysis was carried out on the stem bark of D. microcarpum using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The heavy metals screened for include: lead, chromium, manganese, zinc and iron. The levels of manganese, zinc and iron were 13.91, 4.89 and 21.89 mg/L respectively. These heavy metals ...

Monitoring of heavy metal levels in the major rivers and in residents' blood in Zhenjiang City, China, and assessment of heavy metal elimination via urine and sweat in humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Sheng, Jianguo; Qiu, Wenhui; Xu, Bentuo; Xu, Hui; Tang, Chong

2016-06-01

The coastal areas of China face great challenges, owing to heavy metal contamination caused by rapid industrialization and urbanization. To our knowledge, this study is the first report of the levels of heavy metals in the major rivers of Zhenjiang, one of the most important cities of the Yangtze River Delta in China. In addition, we measured heavy metal levels in the blood of 76 residents of Zhenjiang. The results suggest that the presence of heavy metals in the blood may threaten human health and the distribution appeared to correspond to most highly populated areas and/or areas with high traffic. We also found that the concentration of heavy metals in human blood showed an accumulation effect with increase in age. Moreover, the levels of most heavy metals were lower in participants who regularly exercised than in those who did not. We studied heavy metal levels in the urine and sweat of another 17 volunteers to monitor the elimination of bioaccumulated heavy metal. Heavy metals were found in the urine and sweat of all the 17 participants and were more concentrated in sweat. Induced micturition and sweating appear to be potential methods for the elimination of heavy metals from the human body.