2,418 research outputs found

    Ősi mállási kéreg Északkelet-Lengyelország bázisos kristályos alapkőzetein

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    Trace Elements in Abiotic and Biotic Environments

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    Trace Elements in Abiotic and Biotic Environments helps readers understand the fundamental principles and phenomena that control the transfer of trace elements. This book describes the occurrence and behavior of trace elements in rocks, soil, water, air, and plants, and also discusses the anthropogenic impact to the environment. In addition, it covers the presence of trace elements in feeds, as either contaminants or as nutritional or zootechnical additives, and their transfer across the food chain to humans. Also discussed is international legislation on trace elements for both micronutrients and contaminants in soil and plant food. A special focus is placed on the human health effects of both trace element deficiency and excess. All trace elements are covered—from aluminum to zirconium—as well as rare-earth elements (actinides and lanthanides)

    Arsenic Fixation in Polluted Soils by Peat Applications

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    Soil arsenic (As) pollution is still a major concern due to its high toxicity and carcinogenicity, thus, the study of decontamination techniques, as the organic amendment applications, keeps upgrading. This research evaluates the potential remediation of peat in di erent As-polluted soils, by assessing the decrease of As solubility and its toxicity through bioassays. Obtained reduction in As solubility by peat addition was strongly related to the increase of humic substances, providing colloids that allow the complexation of As compounds. Calcareous soils have been the least e ective at bu ering As pollution, with higher As concentrations and worse biological response (lower soil respiration and inhibition of lettuce germination). Non-calcareous soils showed lower As concentrations due to the higher iron content, which promotes As fixation. Although in both cases, peat addition improves the biological response, it also showed negative e ects, hypothetically due to peat containing toxic polyphenolic compounds, which in the presence of carbonates appears to be concealed. Both peat dose tested (2% and 5%) decreased drastically As mobility; however, for calcareous soils, as there is no phytotoxic e ect, the 5% dose is the most recommended; while for non-calcareous soils the e cient peat dose for As decontamination could be lower.Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities RTI 2018-094327-B-I00 FPU-18/0290

    Trace element uptake by herbaceous plants from the soils at a multiple trace element-contaminated site

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    The uptake of trace elements by wild herbaceous plants in a multiple trace element-contaminated site was investigated. The bioaccumulation factor (BF) of trace elements was markedly variable among the different plant species. On average, the BF for various trace elements was in the following decreasing order: Zn > Cu > Mn > Ni > As > Pb > Cr. The translocation factor among the investigated plant species was also considerably variable and showed the following decreasing order: Mn > Zn > Ni > Cu > Cr > As > Pb. Several hyperaccumulating plants were identified: Artemisia vulgaris for As, Mn and Zn, Phalaris arundinacea for Mn and Ni, Heracleum sphondylium for Cr and Zn, and Bistorta officinalis for Mn and Zn. The marked accumulation of trace elements in the plant tissue suggests that the site may not be suitable for urban agricultural production. The plant tissue-borne trace elements could affect microbial activities and consequently interfere with the ecosystem functioning in the affected areas

    Heavy metals accumulation in willows growing on Spolic Technosols from the abandoned Imperina Valley mine in Italy

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    Human activities such as metals mining and milling operations provide one of the most important sources of contamination in the environment. Abandoned mines can be an important source of toxic elements. The threat of heavy metal pollution posed by mine soils generally concerns more than one metal. The aim of this study was to assess total concentration of six potentially toxic metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Zn and Fe) in the soil and plant samples of three dominant willow species (Salix purpurea L., Salix caprea L. and Salix eleagnos Scop.) collected from abandoned mixed sulphide mine dumps (Imperina Valley, North-east Italy).Results demonstrate that metal concentrations in soils are in general above the Italian average limits and they are also significantly (except Cr), as compared with controls (p≤0.05), with averages of 2.12mgCdkg-1, 2267mgCukg-1, 9552mgPbkg-1, 1243mgZnkg-1 and 299,973mgFekg-1. The phytoremediation ability of selected Salix species for heavy metals was estimated. The results have revealed significant differences among willow species (p. ≤. 0.05) regardless of the species selected. The transfer factor and bioaccumulation coefficient of selected metals varied among plant species and from different sites. Some of the investigated species have potential for soil stabilization and extraction of heavy metals. The results indicate that there is an increasing need for further research projects mainly focused on the mechanisms whereby such willows are able to survive in contaminated soil

    REE, Uranium (U) and Thorium (Th) contents in Betula pendula leaf growing around Komsomolsk gold concentration plant tailing (Kemerovo region, Western Siberia, Russia)

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    The article deals with the research findings of peculiarities of REE, Uranium and Thorium distribution in the territory surrounding the tailing of former Komsomolsk gold concentration plant according to the data from Betula pendula leaf testing. In the leaf element composition the slight deficiency of MREE and substantial excess of HREE are presented. In the nearest impacted area around the tailing, La, Yb, U and Th content, and Th/U ratio are lower than in the distant buffer area. It is shown, that value of Th/U ratio and REE can be an indicator for geochemical transformations of technogenic landscapes in mining districts. The results of the research can be used for biomonitoring of the territory around the tailing

    Assessing environmental pollution in birds: a new methodological approach for interpreting bioaccumulation of trace elements in feather shafts using geochemical sediment data

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    Environmental trace element composition can have an important impact on ecosystem and population health as well individual fitness. Therefore, carefully assessing bioaccumulation of trace elements is central to studies investigating the ecological impact of pollution. Colonial birds are important bioindicators since non-invasive sampling can easily be achieved through sampling of chick feathers, which controls for some confounding factors of variability (age and environmental heterogeneity). However, an additional confounding factor, external contamination (ExCo), which remains even after washing feathers, has frequently been overlooked in the literature. We developed a new method to reliably interpret bioaccumulation of 10 trace elements (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Se, Sn and Zn) in feathers using chicks of a colonial species: the Greater Flamingo, Phoenicopterus roseus. First, only shafts were used to remove ExCo retained in vanes. Secondly, we applied a thorough washing procedure. Thirdly, we applied a new analytical method to control for ExCo, which assumes that ExCo is mainly due to adhered sediment particles and that the relative concentration of each trace element will be similar to the sediment geochemical composition of sampling sites. We validated this new methodology by comparing trace element composition and particle composition (by scanning electron microscopy and mass spectrometry) of washed and unwashed feathers. The washing procedure removed >99% of K indicating that most of the ExCo from salt was removed. Scanning electron microscopy and mass spectrometry revealed that some sediment particles remained after washing, especially clays which are likely to severely bias bioaccumulation interpretation. We successfully controlled for ExCo by calculating the ratio of ExCo due to sediment using the geochemical fingerprint of sediment samples. Our methodology leads to conservative estimates of bioaccumulation for As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Se, Sn and Zn. We have validated a new more reliable method of analysing trace element concentrations in feathers, which effectively controls for ExCo, if geochemical sediment data can be meaningfully compared to ExCo of feathers. We have demonstrated that overlooking ExCo leads to potentially erroneous conclusions, and we urge that the method applied in this study be considered in future studies.Peer Reviewe
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