Pollution and Potential Ecological Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals Around the Active Bukit Mendi Palm Oil Mill Area, Bera Pahang, Malaysia

The study on the impact of palm oil mill processing activities on the environment of Bukit Mendi Palm Oil Mill was conducted by determining the distribution of six heavy metal concentrations Cadmium (Cd), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn), Lead (Pb), Iron (Fe) and Zinc (Zn) and the selected pollution indices. This study provided some information on the accumulation of heavy metals in the selected area and served to identify the potential sources contributing to these heavy metals. Soil samples were collected from eight sampling sites around the palm oil mill and analysed for the selected metals using ICP-OES. Three types of pollution indices were used to observe the pollution level of the area, namely Enrichment Factor (EF), potential ecological risk index (PERI), and Contamination Factor (CF) of heavy metal content. The average total concentration of the selected metals was found to increase in the order of Fe, Mn, Zn, Cd, Pb, and Cu. The metal Fe showed the highest metal content, followed by Mn at 1573.00 mg/kg and 154.00 mg/kg, respectively. The values of EF showed that the metal was unevenly distributed throughout the sampling areas, where heavy metal content ranged from minimal to extremely high enrichment. The potential ecological risk ranging from low to severe was observed in this study. The CF values revealed that the area was heavily contaminated with Cd and only slightly contaminated with Pb. The pollution indices determined in this study suggested that the study area was moderately contaminated with metals, and the metal Cd was found to be the only metal potentially posing an ecological risk to the area.Keywords: ICP-OES, palm oil mill, heavy metals, soil pollution, pollution indices

Eucalyptus Leaves as Potential Indicators of Gold Mine in Indonesia

Eucalyptus is a plant that is able to absorb gold (Au) particles from the soil and store them in the leaves. Eucalyptus roots have the ability to penetrate the soil of the calcrete zone, which is rich in the mineral calcium (Ca). Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. and contains Au particles as impurities, making this plant a potential natural indicator (biogeochemical) of potential Au metal mining. The Au content in eucalyptus leaves can be determined by using the XRF (X-Ray Fluorescence) instrumentation material analysis method for qualitative analysis and AAS (Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy) for quantitative results. The form of XRF characterization of the intensity versus energy spectrum of certain elements from the XRF analysis results obtained is a spectrum with a peak power of 9.731 keV which indicates the presence of Au metal in the sample. The results obtained qualitatively are the Au metal content in the eucalyptus leaf sample of (9.0 ± 0.5) ppm. However, the Au metal content in each leaf sample was different. This provides information that Eucalyptus from different plants has the potential to be a biogeochemical indicator of potential Au metal mining in Indonesia

Monitoring and Ecological Risks of Heavy Metals of Urban Soils in Different Functional Areas Based on Plasma Technology

Heavy metal pollution in soil has become a global environmental problem in recent years. This study assessed heavy metals' pollution distribution, level and ecological risk in soils from different functional areas in Shihezi City, China. Heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, and Cd) were measured using atmospheric pressure discharge plasma and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. The mean concentration of all heavy metals in soil was higher than heavy metals' background values. The spatial distribution of Cr is the most different, and the distribution of Cu and Zn are similar in other functional regions. The single pollution index indicated that the heavy metals in industrial, traffic, and residential areas were enriched, and the pollution of Cd was more severe than others. The Nemerow pollution index showed that the near Manas River basin coast is alert (still clean), the industrial area is moderately polluted, and all other functional areas are lightly polluted. The potential ecological risk index demonstrated that only the nearshore Manas River Basin is at a mild ecological risk level, while all other functional areas are at a moderate ecological risk level. The determinate power of DEM, temperature, and precipitation were all over 65%, which meant that the topographic and climatic factors were the main factors affecting the change of heavy metal content. Secondly, socio-economic factors are important factors to promote the change of heavy metal content in soil.

Analysis of research methodology on the content of heavy metals in sediments on the Indonesian coastal

Heavy metal pollution is one of the problems that often occurs in Indonesian coastal waters. Comparative methods of looking at heavy metal content in coastal sediments include a way to show similarities and differences between one or more articles by using certain criteria. Different comparison methods to see the heavy metal content in sediments include the AAS (Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer) method, AAN (Netron Activation Analysis), Regression, and USEPA methods. Based on the comparison of 2 methods, namely: AAS and AAN methods, the most efficient in analyzing heavy metals in sediments in coastal areas is the Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) method compared to the Neutron Activation Analysis (AAS) method.Keywords:CoastalSedimentHeavy MetalSpectrophotometer

Metal Content and Structure of Textiles in Textile Metal Threads in Croatia from 17th to 20th Century

Textile metal threads were used to decorate historical Croatian textiles. There are three basic types of metal threads usually used on historical textiles in Croatia. These are narrow stripes, wires, and combined metal textile yarn called “srma”, made of metal thread spirally wrapped around the nonmetal textile yarn. Textile yarns were made of silk, linen, wool, or cotton. Metal threads were primarily made of gold, silver, and copper, and different alloys of these metals or threads are layered in the structure. Analysis of metal threads with three different methods was made and the most adequate method for the analysis of metal threads from historical textiles was established. Metal thread analysis was performed with scanning electron microscopy with an energy-dispersive X-ray detector (SEM-EDX), which was determined to be the most suitable for the analysis of historical textiles if cross-section analysis of metal threads is also performed. Textile threads from combined metal textile threads were analysed with a light microscope. This information of the metal threads’ content and structure as well as the composition of textile thread can lead to an understanding of the technology of production threads and also temporal and spatial dating of textile objects which is helpful to conservators and restorers of valuable historical textiles.

A Novel Recycling Route for Spent Li-Ion Batteries

In this work, a recycling route for spent Li-ion batteries (LIBs) was developed. For this, the recovery of the metal content in both electrodes (anode and cathode) was investigated. Based on these results, an economic analysis of this recycling process was carried out. The obtained results showed that more than 90% of the material contained in both electrodes was recycled. The dissolution with acetic acid of the metals present in the active cathodic material is thermodynamically viable and the addition of a reducing agent such as hydrogen peroxide improved the spontaneity of the reaction. Dissolutions close to 100% for Li and Co were obtained. In addition, it was determined that the synthesis of lithium and cobalt valuable compounds was viable from the leach liquor, recovering approximately 90% of Co as cobalt oxalate, and 92% of Li as lithium carbonate. Furthermore, carbon graphite and Cu were fully recovered (100%) from the anodes. Finally, the results of the economic analysis showed that the recovered products have a high commercial value and industrial interest, providing an environmentally and economically viable process.

Extraction of Selected Metals from Waste Printed Circuit Boards by Bioleaching Acidophilic Bacteria

Technological innovations and increased demand for electronic devices resulted in production of more and more waste with highmetal content. Worldwide, 50 million tons of WEEE (Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment) are generated each year. Giventhe metal content present in electrical waste (e-waste), it is considered to be an urban mine and, if properly treated, can serve as analternative secondary source of metals. Waste printed circuit boards (WPCBs) that constitute approx. 3-5% of WEEE by weight areof particular importance. They contain, on average, 30-40% of metals by weight, with higher purity than in minerals. With environmental and economic benefits in mind, increasing attention is being paid to the development of processes to recover metals and othervaluable materials from WPCBs. The research presented in the article aimed at assessing the usefulness of the biotechnological methodfor leaching of selected metals from e-waste. The results indicate that it is possible to mobilize metals from WPCBs using microorganisms such as Acidithiobacillus ferroxidans bacteria

TENSILE AND STRETCH OF PAPER FILLED WITH BACTERICIDAL ZEOLITES

The purpose of present work was to study tensile and stretch of paper prepared with the use of bactericide zeolite fillers containing up to 130 mg/g of silver, 72 mg/g of copper, and 58 mg/g of zinc, prepared by ion exchange reactions using heulandite-clinoptilolite from the Rkoni plot of the Tedzami deposit, Eastern Georgia. Filled papers with zeolite content up to 4 g/m2 and bactericidal activity confirmed by the colony forming unit assay were manufactured on the production lines of the GPM enterprise (Tbilisi, Georgia). The measured tensile strength and percentage elongation of filled paper depend on the nature of the filler and its metal content; the introduction of pure zeolite filler reduces the tensile and stretch of the paper, but fillers containing silver and copper increase the tensile strength. Accelerated aging results in lower tensile and stretch, but zeolite fillers generally make the paper more resistant to aging.