Phytoscreening and phytoextraction of heavy metals at Danish polluted sites using willow and poplar trees

The main purpose of this study was to determine typical concentrations of heavy metals (HM) in wood from willows and poplars, in order to test the feasibility of phytoscreening and phytoextraction of HM. Samples were taken from one strongly, one moderately, and one slightly polluted site and from three reference sites. Wood from both tree species had similar background concentrations at 0.5 mg kg(−1) for cadmium (Cd), 1.6 mg kg(−1) for copper (Cu), 0.3 mg kg(−1) for nickel (Ni), and 25 mg kg(−1) for zinc (Zn). Concentrations of chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) were below or close to detection limit. Concentrations in wood from the highly polluted site were significantly elevated, compared to references, in particular for willow. The conclusion from these results is that tree coring could be used successfully to identify strongly heavy metal-polluted soil for Cd, Cu, Ni, Zn, and that willow trees were superior to poplars, except when screening for Ni. Phytoextraction of HMs was quantified from measured concentration in wood at the most polluted site. Extraction efficiencies were best for willows and Cd, but below 0.5 % over 10 years, and below 1 ‰ in 10 years for all other HMs. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11356-013-2085-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

The monostandard method in thermal neutron activation analysis

A simple method is described for instrumental multielement thermal neutron activation analysis using a monostandard. For geological and air dust samples, iron is used as a comparator, while sodium has advantages for biological materials. To test the capabilities of this method, the values of the effective cross sections of the 23 elements determined were evaluated in a reactor site with an almost pure thermal neutron flux of about 9 $\cdot$ 10$^{12}$ n $\cdot$ cm$^{-2}$ $\cdot sec$^{-1}$ and an epithermal neutron contribution of less than 0,03 %. The obtained values were found to agree mostly well with the literature best values ofthermal neutron cross sections. The results of an analysis by activation in the same site agree well with the relative method using multielement standard and for several standard reference materials with certified element contents. A comparison of the element contents obtained by the monostandard and relative methods together with corresponding precisions and accuracies is given. A brief survey of the monostandard method is presented

Metal contamination in urban street sediment in Pisa (Italy) can affect the production of antioxidant metabolites in Taraxacum officinale Weber

Taraxacum officinaleWeber (dandelion) is a very ubiquitous species and it can grow in urban environments on metal polluted sediments deposited in the gutters. This study represents a preliminary step to verify the presence of metals in sediments collected in urban streets in Pisa and to assess the alteration in dandelion metabolites in order to understand its adaptation to polluted environments. The soil and sediments were collected at three urban streets and analyzed for total and extractable Cr, Pb, Cu, Ni, Zn. The total values of Pb and Zn in street sediments exceeded the limits for residential areas of soils. Zn was the most mobile of the metals analysed. Floating cultivations trials were set up with dandelion seedlings and street sediments. The metals were analysed in roots and leaves. Antioxidant power, anthocyanins, polyphenols, nonprotein thiols (NP-TH) and chlorophylls were measured in dandelion leaves. The first two parameters (anthocyanins and antioxidant power) were higher in the polluted samples compared to the control; chlorophyll content was lower in the treated samples, whereas NP-TH showed no differences. NP-TH groups determined in roots were associated with the root content of Zn and Pb. These results indicate that dandelion can tolerate plant stress by altering its metabolite conten