scholarly journals Assessment of contamination and origin of metals in mining affected river sediments: A case study of the Aries catchment, Romania

2014 ◽  
Vol 79 (8) ◽  
pp. 1019-1036 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika Levei ◽  
Michaela Ponta ◽  
Marin Senila ◽  
Mirela Miclean ◽  
Tiberiu Frentiu

The study presents the current status of contamination with metals (Cu, Cr, Cd, Pb, Ni, Zn, As) and their anthropogenic or natural origin in the sediments of the Aries river basin, Romania, affected by mining activities. The results indicated an enrichment of metals in sediments. Different contamination levels were identified on the Aries river and its tributaries. According to sediment quality guidelines and contamination indices, sediments from the Aries river were found to be highly contaminated with Cd, Cu, As, considerably with Zn and moderately with Pb and Ni. The right-bank tributaries were found to be more contaminated than the left-bank affluents, where only a contamination with As of geogenic origin was identified. The Principal Component Analysis allowed to identify five latent factors (86 % total variability) reflecting the anthropogenic and natural origins of metals. Arsenic, Cd and partially Pb were found to have a common anthropogenic origin, different from that of Cu. The statistical approach indicated also the geogenic origin of Pb due to its association with Ca, K, Na, Sr. Chromium and Ni were attributed to natural source following their association with Mn, Fe, Al and Mg, respectively.

Minerals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 688
Author(s):  
Saravanan ◽  
Desmet ◽  
Neelakanta Pillai Kanniperumal ◽  
Ramasamy ◽  
Shumskikh ◽  
...  

An intensive surface sediment survey was carried out over 24 locations from the upstream to downstream sections of two large rivers (Adyar and Cooum) in Chennai (India) during the February dry season of 2015. Trace element concentrations were assessed on a <63 µm fraction using the Geoaccumulation Index (Igeo) and the newly proposed Geochemical Urban Footprint Index (GUFI), which can be performed to determine the pollution status of any megacity river influenced by urban development. The sediment quality of Chennai’s rivers was also compared to worldwide megacity pollution using sediment quality guidelines (SQGs), and a new megacity pollution ranking was determined. The Igeo results indicate that the Chennai rivers studied are strongly to extremely polluted regarding trace element content of sediment. Silver (Ag), Cadmium (Cd) and Mercury (Hg) are the most significant tracers of urban contamination. Chromium (Cr) concentrations show an industrial contamination gradient in relation to levels of other trace elements (As, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) at the Chennai megacity scale. The GUFI ranges from moderate to extreme contamination, particularly in the downstream stretches of the two rivers. This spatial trend is related to various point sources and identified at specific sampling stations, with a lack of identifiable buffer zones. According to the worldwide comparison of megacity pollution, Chennai is ranked in fifth position. The present position can be attributed to a number of explanations: a population explosion associated with the unplanned growth of the city and non-controlled point sources of pollution in Chennai’s waterways.


2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (11) ◽  
pp. 3903-3907
Author(s):  
Galina Marusic ◽  
Valeriu Panaitescu

The paper deals with the issues related to the pollution of aquatic ecosystems. The influence of turbulence on the transport and dispersion of pollutants in the mentioned systems, as well as the calculation of the turbulent diffusion coefficients are studied. A case study on the determination of turbulent diffusion coefficients for some sectors of the Prut River is presented. A new method is proposed for the determination of the turbulent diffusion coefficients in the pollutant transport equation for specific sectors of a river, according to the associated number of P�clet, calculated for each specific area: the left bank, the right bank and the middle of the river.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. G. Achi ◽  
A. M. Omoniyi ◽  
A. O. Coker ◽  
M. K. C. Sridhar

Abstract Heavy metals are pollutants of river sediments, and their concentration varies depending on parental material and anthropogenic inputs, thus important to distinguish between the natural and anthropogenic inputs. The objective of this study is to use different types of indexes to assess the current pollution status in Ogbere River sediment and select the best index to describe the sediment quality. The indexes used in this study were enrichment factor (EF), geoaccumulation index (Igeo) and principal component analysis (PCA). The PCA has an advantage over other index analyses as it reduces the dimensionality of the data set and thus used to support multivariate cluster analysis. From the study, a total of 12 sediment samples were collected in both seasons across six sampling location and pollution indexes indicated three things: firstly, the metal distribution profile in the sediment showed that the heavy metals analysed for were lower than the maximum allowable limits stipulated by Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR); secondly, minor to extremely severe significant levels of enrichment and thirdly, practically uncontaminated to a moderately contaminated degree of contamination in Ogbere River during the study period. The PCA is considered more sensitive in the analysis of benthic changes and as well as sediment quality. However, the heavy metal assessment indices are not only used for sediment quality. Biological testing and ecological analysis of existing community related to sediment contamination are further recommended in River Ogbere.


2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (11) ◽  
pp. 3903-3907
Author(s):  
Galina Marusic ◽  
Valeriu Panaitescu

The paper deals with the issues related to the pollution of aquatic ecosystems. The influence of turbulence on the transport and dispersion of pollutants in the mentioned systems, as well as the calculation of the turbulent diffusion coefficients are studied. A case study on the determination of turbulent diffusion coefficients for some sectors of the Prut River is presented. A new method is proposed for the determination of the turbulent diffusion coefficients in the pollutant transport equation for specific sectors of a river, according to the associated number of Péclet, calculated for each specific area: the left bank, the right bank and the middle of the river.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mihayo Sahani Nkinda ◽  
Mwemezi Johaiven Rwiza ◽  
Jasper Nathan Ijumba ◽  
Karoli Nicholas Njau

AbstractThis study investigated the levels of Pb, Hg, Cr, Cd, and As in water and sediments from the tributaries of the Mara River, Tanzania. Pollution risk of water and sediments was investigated using seven indices and five metals. During the dry period, the highest concentration of Pb, Hg, Cr, Cd, and As in sediments was 17.45 ± 1.22, 0.01, 1.56 ± 0.5, 1.3 ± 0.09, and 30.81 ± 0.02 mg/kg, respectively. During the wet period, the highest concentration of Pb, Hg, Cr, Cd, and As in sediments was 4.37 ± 0.28, 0.012, 2.58 ± 0.57, 2.25 ± 0.35, and 53 ± 0.02 mg/kg, respectively. For surface water, the respective highest concentrations of Pb, Hg, Cr, Cd, and As were 0.76 ± 0.09, 0.04, 0.68 ± 0.09, 0.74 ± 0.1, and 0.47 ± 0.06 mg/L for the dry period. The wet period max concentrations for Pb, Hg, Cr, Cd, and As in surface water were 0.56, 0.03, 0.55 ± 0.03, 0.48 ± 0.03, and 0.4 ± 0.03 mg/L, respectively. Principal component analysis results indicated dominant loadings for Pb and As in sediments during the dry period. Comparison of sediment concentrations with sediment quality guidelines revealed that As and Cd were enriched. Correlation coefficient results indicated that As had a strong negative correlation with the rest of the elements in sediments during the dry period. In the wet period, As had a significant correlation with Cd (r = 0.92, p < 0.01) in sediments. The analysis of environmental risks indicated significant enrichment of sediments with As and Cd. It is important to put in place relevant control mechanisms targeting metals in the studied tributaries, with a focus on As and Cd.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lívia R. Souza ◽  
Ana Cláudia Q. Ladeira

Sediments of the São Francisco River basin (Brazil) were investigated to determine the environmental consequences of incorrect disposal of wastes generated by a zinc industry. Surface sediments were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and chemically analyzed by X-ray fluorescence (XRF). Total organic carbon (TOC), acid volatile sulfides (AVSs), and simultaneously extracted metals (SEMs) were also determined. AVS/SEM procedure was employed to assess the bioavailability of the metals in sediments. XRD analyses indicated that the main phases in the sediments were kaolinite and quartz. The total concentration of Zn and Pb, near the old industrial discharge point, indicated high levels of contamination according to the sediment quality guidelines (SQGs). According to the AVS/SEM criteria, despite the high levels of zinc and lead in the sediments, the toxicity resulting from these metals is unlikely in most of the samples. However, in one of the samples, collected near the old industrial discharge point, the toxicity is uncertain—according to the USEPA criteria.


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