Using geoaccumulation index to study source profiles of soil dust in China

Source apportionment studies of TSP （atmospheric particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters ≤ 100 μm） and PM10 （atmospheric particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters ≤ 10 μm） have revealed that soil dust is an important source of these particulates in China. In this study, the contamination of soil dust was assessed through the use of a geoaccumulation index （Igeo）. The mass concentration profiles of 17 elements （Na, Mg, Al, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Br, Ba, and Pb） were established for urban soil dusts. Geochemical compositions of soils from 15 cities were used to represent background urban soil compositions. The results of this study indicated that a number of cities are severely polluted by particulates containing Ca, Cr, Ni, and Cu in both size fractions （TSP and PM10）. Contamination with Zn, Pb, Co, and Br was moderate to severe （Igeo 〉 2）. The Al and Fe concentrations were not high enough for them to be considered contaminants.

Application of Principal Component Analysis, Cluster Analysis, Pollution Index and Geoaccumulation Index in Pollution Assessment with Heavy Metals from Gold Mining Operations, Tanzania

Gold mining is now widely acknowledged as one of the significant sources of soil pollution in developed countries. In developing countries, the sources and levels of soil contamination have not been thoroughly addressed. Thus, this study was intended to determine the source of soil pollution and the level of contamination in the active and closed gold mining areas. The research paper presents the pollution load of heavy metals (lead-Pb, chromium-Cr, cadmium-Cd, copper-Cu, arsenic-As, manganese-Mn, and nickel-Ni) in 90 soil samples collected from the studied sites. Multivariate statistical analysis, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Cluster Analysis (CA), coupled with correlation coefficient analysis, was performed to determine the possible sources of pollution in the study areas. The results indicated that Pb, Cr, Cu and Mn come from different sources than Cd, As and Ni. The results obtained from the metal pollution assessment using the Pollution Index (PI) and the Geoaccumulation Index (Igeo) confirmed that soils in the mining areas were contaminated in the range from moderately through strongly to highly contaminated soils. This study verified that soil contamination in the gold mining areas results from natural and anthropogenic processes. The current study findings would enhance our knowledge regarding the soil contamination level in the mining areas and the source of contamination. It is recommended to use PCA, CA, PI and Igeo to assess and monitor the heavy metal contaminated soil in gold mining areas.

Comprehensive assessment of heavy metal pollution in river and lake sediments using face graph and index of geoaccumulation

Surface sedimental samples were collected from(1)Le An River in Jiangxi Province, south of China,and(2)several lakes located in southwest of Germany.Concentrations of heavy metals in these samples were determined.Moreover,the situations of heavy metal pollution in two regions were comprehensively assessed by combined index of geoaccumulation with visualized multi- variate graphical method——modified Chernoff Face Graph.Face graphs intuitively demonstrated strong heavy metal contamination in Le An River,especially copper pollution.However,in lakes' sedimental samples,contamination of other heavy metals showed mild or clean except cadmium and chromium.

Potential risk of soil irrigation with treated wastewater over 40 years:a field experiment under semi-arid conditions in northeastern Tunisia

In Tunisia,water scarcity is only adding pressure on water demand in agriculture.In the context of sustainable development goals,Tunisia has been reusing treated wastewater(TWW)as a renewable and inexpensive source for soil fertigation and groundwater(GW)recharge.However,major risks can be expected when the irrigation water is of poor quality.This study aims for evaluating the potential risk of TWW and GW irrigation on soil parameters.Accordingly,we evaluated the suitability of water quality through the analysis of major and minor cations and anions,metallic trace elements(MTEs),and the sodium hazard by using the sodium adsorption ratio(SAR)and the soluble sodium percentage(SSP).The risk of soil sodicity was further assessed by SAR and the exchangeable sodium percentage(ESP).The degree of soil pollution caused by MTEs accumulation was evaluated using geoaccumulation index(Igeo)and pollution load index(PLI).Soil maps were generated using inverse spline interpolation in ArcGIS software.The results show that both water samples(i.e.,TWW and GW)are suitable for soil irrigation in terms of salinity(electrical conductivity<7000μS/cm)and sodicity(SAR<10.00;SSP<60.00%).However,the contents of PO_(4)^(3-),Cu^(2+),and Cd^(2+)exceed the maximum threshold values set by the national and other standards.Concerning the soil samples,the average levels of SAR and ESP are within the standards(SAR<13.00;ESP<15.00%).On the other hand,PLI results reveal moderate pollution in the plot irrigated with TWW and no to moderate pollution in the plot irrigated with GW.Igeo results indicate that Cu^(2+)is the metallic trace element(MTE)with the highest risk of soil pollution in both plots(Igeo>5.00),followed by Ni^(2+)and Pb^(2+).Nevertheless,Cd^(2+)presents the lowest risk of soil pollution(Igeo<0.00).Statistical data indicates that Ca^(2+),Na+,Ni^(2+),and Pb^(2+)are highly distributed in both plots(coefficient of variation>50.0%).This study shows that the use of imagery tools,such as ArcGIS,can provide important information for evaluating the current status of soil fertility or pollution and for better managing soil irrigation with TWW.

Status, Distribution and Ecological Risk Assessment of Persistent Toxic Substances in Suburban Agricultural Soils in Hohhot City, North China

A total of 52 soil samples of Hohhot City were collected and four heavy metals and eight organochlorine pesticides were analyzed. The results showed that Cr, Cu, Zn, and Pb in soil were in range of 20.54 - 48.15 mg/kg, 40.10 - 94.60 mg/kg, 35.14 - 110.48 mg/kg, 38.86g - 245.36 mg/kg, with a mean value of 37.24 mg/kg, 60.76 mg/kg, 80.49 mg/kg, and 145.99 mg/kg, respectively. The high degree of variation of Pb, Zn, and Cu, reflected that the heavy metals were mainly interfered by human factors. The content values of ∑DDTs ranged from 5.01 ng/g to 105.08 ng/g with a mean of 36.94 ng/g, while the ∑HCHs ranged from 6.52 ng/g to 48.65 ng/g with an average of 23.29 ng/g, indicated that DDTs were highly used than HCHs in the study area. The relatively low α-HCH/γ-HCH ratio and relatively high o,p’-DDT/p,p’-DDT ratio indicated the application of lindane and dicofol on regional agricultural soil. The mean Igeo values was Pb (2.9) > Cu (1.5) > Cr (-0.31) > Zn (-0.35), revealing that the soil in Hohhot City was not polluted by Cr and Zn (Igeo 0), moderate polluted by Cu (1 Igeo 2), moderate to heavy pollution by Pb (2 Igeo 3). The range of potential ecological risk index of metals was from 35.02 to 132.96, indicating low to moderate potential ecological risk. HCHs in all soil samples were less than 50 ng/g, which could be considered as unpolluted, while DDTs in several samples were between 50 and 500 ng/g, which could be regarded as having low pollution.

Heavy metal pollution in intertidal sediments from Quanzhou Bay, China

The concentrations of eight heavy metals （Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Cr, Ni, Hg, and As） in the intertidal surface sediments from Quanzhou Bay were determined to evaluate their levels and spatial distribution due to urbanization and economic development of Quanzhou region, southeast China. The ranges of the measured concentrations in the sediments are as follows： 24.8-119.7 mg/kg for Cu, 105.5-241.9 mg/kg for Zn, 34.3-100. 9 mg/kg for Pb, 0.28-0. 89 mg/kg for Cd, 51.1-121.7 mg/kg for Cr, 16.1-45.7 mg/kg for Ni, 0.17-0.74 mg/kg for Hg, and 17.7-30.2 mg/kg for As. The overall average concentrations of above metals exceed the primary standard criteria but meet the secondary standard criteria of the Chinese National Standard of Marine Sediment Quality. Several contents of Cu and Hg exceed the secondary standard criteria at some stations. The results of geoaccumulation index （Igeo） show that Cd causes strong pollution in most of the study area. There are no significant correlations among most of these heavy metals, indicating they have different anthropogenic and natural sources. Some locations present severe pollution by heavy metals depending on the sources, of which sewage outlets, aquatic breeding, and commercial ports are the main sources of contaminants to the area.

Environmental behaviors of selenium in soil of typical selenosis area,China

Daba Mountain area is one of the two endemic selenosis areas in China,which may relate with the environmental behaviors of selenium (Se) in soil.This study focuses on the concentraion and distribution of Se and its relationships with some other elements in natural soil in the area.The average concentration of Se in Daba Mountain soils was 14.3 times higher than the value cited for natural soil background worldwide,suggesting that soils in the region were contaminated by the element.The finding was confirmed...

Risk Factor Assessment of Coal Mine Drainage Water on Surrounding Agricultural Soil: A Case Study at Barapukuria in Bangladesh

This study is performed to know the contamination level of heavy metals on the surrounding agricultural soils at the site of Barapukuria Coal Mine Company Limited (BCMCL). Total concentrations of eight heavy metals (Cu, As, Cd, Zn, Pb, Cr, Ni and Mn) were measured in that soil. To calculate the contamination level, the enrichment factor (EF), geoaccumulation index (Igeo) and Hakanson potential ecological risk index were done. Igeo values indicated that the study areas at all stations were suffering from moderate contamination with As. The results of enrichment factor revealed that soils in all stations were in extremely high enrichment condition by As metal. Under Hakanson potential ecological risk index, the contamination coefficient () and potential ecological risk index () were calculated. The degree of contamination at BCMCL area reflects moderate contamination. By considering the ecological risk index of a particular heavy metal, the order is as follows: Cd > As > Cu > Pb > Ni > Cr > Zn and Cd has the highest risk index and poses the greatest damage to the BCMCL area’s soil. EF, Igeo values and potential ecological risk index indicate that there is considerable As and Cd pollution, mainly caused by coal mine drainage water.

Pollution assessment of heavy metals along the Mekong River and dam effects

The resource development and changes of hydrological regime, sediment and water quality in the Mekong River basin have attracted great attentions. This research aimed to enhance the study on transboundary pollution of heavy metals in this international river. In this study, eight sampling sites were selected to collect the bed sand samples along the mainstream of the Mekong River. In addition, the contents of 5 heavy metal elements and their spatial variability along the mainstream of the river were analyzed. The geoaccumulation index （l^eo） and potential ecological risk analysis were employed to assess heavy metal pol- lution status in the mainstream of the Mekong River. The results show that the average con- tent of the heavy metal elements Zn is 91.43 mg/kg, Pb is 41.85 mg/kg, and As is 21.84 mg/kg in the bed sands of the Upper Mekong River, which are higher than those （Zn 68.17 mg/kg, Pb 28.22 mg/kg, As 14.97 mg/kg） in the Lower Mekong. The average content of Cr in the Lower Mekong is 418.86 mg/kg, higher than that in the Upper Mekong （42.19 mg/kg）. Luang Prabang has a very high Cr concentration with 762.93 mg/kg and Pakse with 422.90 mg/kg. The concentration of Cu in all of the 8 sampling sites is similar, except for in Jiajiu with 11.70 mg/kg and Jiebei with 7.00 mg/kg. The results of the geoaccumulation index reveal that contaminations caused by Zn and Pb while Pb and As are more than those by Zn in Upper Mekong. Cr is the primary pollutant in the Lower Mekong, especially at Luang Prabang and Pakse. Slight pollution with As also occurs in Pakse. The potential ecological risk index indi- cates that the potential ecological risk of heavy metals in the mainstream of the Mekong River is low. We argue that the pollution of water quality and contamination of heavy metals in bed sediment caused by mining of mineral resources or geochemical background values in the Mekong is not transmitted from the Upper to the Lower Mekong because of the reservoir sedimentation and dilution along the river.

Spatial distribution and source identification of heavy metal pollution in roadside surface soil:a study of Dhaka Aricha highway,Bangladesh

Introduction:In this study,metal pollution and their sources in surface soils were evaluated by pollution indices and multivariate statistical techniques in association with a geographical information system(GIS).Methods:Surface soil samples were collected in dry season from different locations of Dhaka Aricha highway and analyzed by energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence(EDXRF).Results:Thirteen different metals were found in the tested samples.Pollution indices are determined by enrichment factor in an order of Zr>Sn>P>Mn>Zn>Rb>Fe>Ba>Sr>Ti>K>Ca>Al.The resulting geoaccumulation index(Igeo)value shows the following order:Sn>Zr>P>Mn>Zn>Rb>Fe>Ba>Ti>Sr>K>Ca>Al.Contamination factors(CFs)of the metals range from 1.422 to 3.979(Fe);0.213 to 1.089(Al);0.489 to 3.484(Ca);1.496 to 2.372(K);1.287 to 3.870(Ti);2.200 to 14.588(Mn);5.938 to 56.750(Zr);0.980 to 3.500(Sr);2.321 to 4.857(Rb);2.737 to 6.526(Zn);16.667 to 27.333(Sn);3.157 to 16.286(P);and 0.741 to 3.328(Ba).Pollution load index calculated from the CFs indicates that soils are strongly contaminated by Zr and Sn.Principal component analysis(PCA)of parameters exhibits three major components.R-mode cluster analysis reveals three distinct groups in both site and metal basis clustering that shows a similar pattern with the PCA.Conclusions:These results might be helpful for future monitoring of further increase of heavy metal concentrations in surface soils along highways.