Assessing the uptake and accumulation of heavy metals and particulate matter from ambient air by some tree species in Isfahan Metropolis, Iran

Abstract Particulate matter (PM) is one of the most dangerous pollutants in the air. Urban vegetation, especially trees and shrubs, accumulate PM and reduce its concentration in ambient air. The aim of this study was to examine 10 tree and shrub species common for the Indian city of Jodhpur (Rajasthan) located on the edge of the Thar Desert and determine: (1) the accumulation of surface and in-wax PM (both in three different size fractions), (2) the amount of epicuticular waxes on foliage, (3) the concentrations of heavy metals (Cd and Cu) on/in the leaves of the examined species, and (4) the level of heme oxygenase enzyme in leaves that accumulate PM and heavy metals. Among the investigated species, F. religiosa and C. myxa accumulated the greatest amount of total PM. F. religiosa is a tall tree with a lush, large crown and leaves with wavy edge, convex veins and long petioles, while C. myxa have hairy leaves with convex veins. The lowest PM accumulation was recorded for drought resistant S. persica and A. indica, which is probably due to their adaptation to growing conditions. Heavy metals (Cu and Cd) were found in the leaves of almost every examined species. The accumulation of heavy metals (especially Cu) was positively correlated with the amount of PM deposited on the foliage. A new finding of this study indicated a potentially important role of HO in the plants’ response to PM-induced stress. The correlation between HO and PM was stronger than that between HO and HMs. The results obtained in this study emphasise the role of plants in cleaning polluted air in conditions where there are very high concentrations of PM.

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Removal of Particulate Matter from Ambient Air by Four Evergreen Tree Species in Dhaka, Bangladesh

ISEE Conference Abstracts ◽

10.1289/isee.2021.p-588 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Saif Shahrukh ◽

Muhammad Nurul Huda ◽

Md. Mominul Islam ◽

Shahid Akhtar Hossain ◽

Mohammad Enayet Hossain

Keyword(s):

Particulate Matter ◽

Tree Species ◽

Ambient Air ◽

Evergreen Tree

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Elemental Characteristics of Respirable Particulate Matter in the Urban Atmosphere of Dehradun, Uttrakhand, India

Current World Environment ◽

10.12944/cwe.16.1.32 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 319-328

Author(s):

Sohni Sinha ◽

Rajdeo Kumar ◽

Amit Ranjan Kumar ◽

Vignesh Prabhu ◽

Ram Pravesh Kumar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Factor Analysis ◽

Particulate Matter ◽

Anthropogenic Activities ◽

Monsoon Season ◽

Ambient Air ◽

Urban Atmosphere ◽

Mitigation Measures ◽

Substantial Contribution ◽

Respirable Particulate

To evaluate the ambient air quality of the Dehradun city, respirable particulate matter was collected using respirable dust sampler (RDS) and analysed for the heavy metal content using atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). The morphology of particulates were determined using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and the elemental composition was determined through SEM- energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). Particulate matter mass concentration ranged from 65.00 µg m-3 to 337.33 µg m-3. Quantified heavy metals in particulate matter were Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Cobalt (Co), Manganese (Mn), Iron (Fe), Nickel (Ni), Chromium (Cr), Lead (Pb) and Cadmium (Cd). The order of concentration of heavy metals were found to be in the trend of Fe>Zn>Cu>Pb>Cr>Ni>Mn>Co>Cd. Maximum concentration of PM10 was found at commercial site during summer, winter and monsoon season. Enrichment factor analysis showed substantial contribution of anthropogenic activities on PM10. Source apportionment (varimax rotated factor analysis method) showed dominance of incineration and uncontrolled burning of waste and refuses, resuspended dust with vehicular emission and crustal sources as the dominant sources in Dehradun. Plantation drive strategy have major role in ambient particulate matter mitigation measures and carbon sequestration from climate change and global problem worldwide. This study will be help to mitigate or decrease the load of air pollution by the using of various trees for sustainable human development on the marvellous earth planet.

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Multivariate analysis and spatial distribution of suspended particulate metals of Abakaliki and Enugu in Southeastern Nigeria

Bulletin of the National Research Centre ◽

10.1186/s42269-021-00618-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 45 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Bright Chigozie Ichu ◽

Alexander Iheanyichukwu Opara ◽

Emmanuel Nnamdi Ejike ◽

Amarachi Udoka Nkwoada ◽

Francis Chizoruo Ibe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Multivariate Analysis ◽

Particulate Matter ◽

Suspended Particulate Matter ◽

Ambient Air ◽

Anthropogenic Sources ◽

Ambient Air Quality ◽

Southeastern Nigeria ◽

Suspended Particulate ◽

Concentration Levels

Abstract Background The atmosphere is usually contaminated by heavy metals from different natural and anthropogenic sources. The levels of heavy metals in the atmosphere often become harmful and cause environmental pollution with serious health consequences to humans when their concentrations exceed certain threshold limits. The determination of the atmospherically suspended particulate matter in general and toxic trace metallic concentrations in particular, is, therefore, necessary for the evaluation of the sources and fate of atmospherically deposited suspended particulate matter. The assessment of the concentration levels of suspended particulate trace metals like Zn and Pb in the cities of Enugu and Abakaliki southeastern Nigeria was performed to assess the concentrations of atmospherically suspended metals in the area, their sources, and their pollution status. Results Results of the study showed that Zn concentration levels were not significant at all the sampling points, while the concentrations of Pb particulate matter which ranged from 0.11 to 0.91 µg/m3 exceeded the international revised EPA Pb standard of 0.15 µg/m3 but within the approved Federal Ministry of Environment (FMEnv) Nigeria, 24 h long duration of 1 µg/m3, and National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) 1 h duration (1 µg/m3). The enrichment factor (EF) showed that Pb had a dominant crustal source, while Zn was determined to be of minor to moderate crust enrichment. The multivariate analysis carried out using principal component analysis (PCA) based on varimax rotation and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) plotted in biplot and dendrogram diagrams revealed the levels of dependency and grouping, whereas Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient (PC) revealed a strong link between the two metallic pollutants Conclusion This study therefore which applied statistical and pollution assessment of atmospherically suspended particulate matter has revealed the importance of monitoring atmospherically suspended materials resulting from anthropogenic sources like mining, quarrying, construction, etc. Similarly, the use of statistical techniques like PCA, HCA, and Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient to the study of ambient air quality has proved to be a useful tool in the assessment of atmospheric pollution. The findings of the present study therefore will be invaluable in the monitoring of particulate matter pollution of the atmosphere and their control measures, especially in mining districts.

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Analysis of deposition of heavy metal dust on the leaves of few selected tree species in Kanchipuram town, Tamil Nadu, India

Journal of Applied and Natural Science ◽

10.31018/jans.v13i3.2739 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (3) ◽

pp. 1011-1019

Author(s):

Sumathi Ramesh ◽

Sriram Gopalsamy

Keyword(s):

Heavy Metals ◽

Heavy Metal ◽

Tree Species ◽

Tamil Nadu ◽

Anthropogenic Activities ◽

Ambient Air ◽

Economic Methods ◽

Pongamia Glabra ◽

Metal Dust

Biomonitoring of heavy metals is one of the economic methods to identify and improve the quality of air. The aim of this work was to identify the concentration of nine heavy metals viz. Fe, Pb, Cu, Zn, Al, Cd, As, Cr and Mn in the ambient air deposited on the leaves of five tree species such as Saraca asoca, Terminalia catappa, Syzygium cumini, Ficus religiosa and Pongamia glabra collected from six sites such as Pallavarmedu (Site I), CSI hospital (Site II), Moongilmandapam (Site III), Collectrate (Site IV), Near Cancer Institute (Site V) and VellaGate (Site VI) of the Kanchipuram town of TamilNadu State, in the months of February - March 2019. Even with some differences in the concentration of nine heavy metals on the species, few were identified with significant correlation, suggesting that these pollutants were emitted from similar sources. The deposition of iron (235.53mg/kg) and aluminium (157.91mg/kg) were higher on the leaves of S.asoca compared with other species. The metals such as Cu, Cd, As, Pb and Cr were nil and not detected on the leaves, but Pb concentration was high (185.79 mg/kg) only on P. glabra at Site 2 and Cr (2.37 mg/kg) was found on the leaves of S. asoca at Site 1. The heavy metal dust deposited on the leaf surface was probably due to vehicular emission and other anthropogenic activities. The analysis showed that all the selected tree species acted as a biomonitor and should be grown that may help to improve the air quality of the area.

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