scholarly journals Construction of lysimeters for researching the leaching of potentially toxic elements from building materials

Geologija ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-280
Author(s):  
Janez Turk ◽  
Janko Urbanc ◽  
Ana Mladenovič ◽  
Alenka Pavlin ◽  
Primož Oprčkal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Toxic Elements ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Total Content ◽  
Potentially Toxic Elements ◽  
Recycled Materials ◽  
Monitoring Tools ◽  
Natural Aggregates

By using recycled waste in construction, natural materials are being replaced, thus establishing a circular economy at the local level. An important aspect is also the conservation of natural resources. This is especially important in case of earthworks (embankments, backfills), which are large consumers of materials. Compared to natural aggregates and earth, geotechnical composites based on recycled materials can contain a higher total content of potentially toxic elements (heavy metals, chloride, sulphate, fluoride, organic pollutants etc.). The prerequisite for beneficial use of such composites is that the potentially toxic elements are immobilized in the composites, meaning that they are chemically inert. Potential environmental impacts, especially those associated with transfer of potentially toxic elements from new geotechnical composites into soil (aquifer respectively), are usually evaluated on laboratory scale, while their behaviour in real environment is usually poorly investigated. For this reason, there is a demand for the development of sensitive, reliable, and cost and time efficient monitoring tools for determining mass flows of potentially toxic elements from building materials, for example geotechnical composites, which are under the influence of various environmental factors. This paper presents the construction of field laboratory, based on a system of pan lysimeters. The lysimeters are used to collect leachate from geotechnical composites based on recycled materials. They are constructed in a way to be relatively low cost and at the same time large enough to representatively reflect the processes in geotechnical fills. Obtained data on the amount and quality of leachate can be used as a basis for the study of immobilization processes and for water balance. Moreover, this data will be used as input in the geochemical numerical model for the simulation of transport of potentially toxic elements released from geotechnical fills in different types of aquifers (alluvial aquifer with intergranular porosity, aquifer in consolidated rocks with fissure porosity).

Environmental Availability of Potentially Toxic Elements in an Agricultural Mediterranean Site

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitrios Alexakis ◽  
Dimitra Gamvroula ◽  
Eleni Theofili
Keyword(s):  
Sequential Extraction ◽  
Toxic Elements ◽  
Soil Depth ◽  
Extraction Procedure ◽  
Potential Ecological Risk ◽  
Potentially Toxic Elements ◽  
Geochemical Partitioning ◽  
Exchangeable Fraction ◽  
High Bioavailability

ABSTRACT Total contents of 36 potentially toxic elements are summarized for agricultural topsoil (n = 12; soil depth = 0–20 cm), subsoil (n = 12; soil depth = 20–40 cm), and representative rock samples collected from a Mediterranean site (Megara Plain, Greece). The five-stage sequential extraction procedure for the geochemical partitioning of cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), and nickel (Ni), proposed by Tessier, was applied to topsoil and subsoil collected from the study area. Soil Cd was highly associated with exchangeable fraction, illustrating high bioavailability of this element. The order of mobility of the elements was as follows: Cd > Cu > Co > Zn > Ni > Cr > Mn. Results from sequential extraction experiments illustrated that the bioavailability of Cu, Co, and Zn is moderate, while Ni, Cr, and Mn presented low bioavailability, indicating that these elements could pose a limited threat to the quality of crops. Cadmium is the chief contamination controlling factor posing moderate potential ecological risk. The contamination sources of the examined elements are discussed.

scholarly journals Interlocking Block Masonry (ISSB) for Sustainable Housing Purposes in Thailand, With Additional Examples From Cambodia and Nepal

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Bredenoord ◽  
Wutinai Kokkamhaeng ◽  
Pichit Janbunjong ◽  
Ongarj Nualplod ◽  
Suwatchai Thongnoy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Building Material ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Structural Quality ◽  
Building Structures ◽  
Sustainable Housing ◽  
Stabilized Soil ◽  
Facility Construction

This paper is about Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (ISSB) as developed in Thailand. ISSB are seen as an eco-friendly building material for home building and structures such as water tanks and sanitation facilities. For several decades the Thai R&D Institute TISTR has worked on developing and testing ISSB, which in other countries are called compressed stabilized earth blocks or CSEB. The composition of building blocks and the quality of building structures determine together the structural quality of the house or building. If there is a need for earthquake- and storm resistance, the building blocks and the structures must have specific features. Building stacked houses is an important issue given the growing scarcity of land for housing and the increasing land prices. ISSB is not only applied in Thailand, but also in Cambodia for low-cost housing and in Nepal for home reconstruction after the 2015 earthquake. ISSB or CSEB is also applied in other countries as an alternative building material and technology to replace the use of fired bricks and concrete building blocks for housing. Reducing the use of cement in the materials and structures is important for environmental reasons, but in ISSB/CSEB the use of cement as a stabilizer cannot always be avoided. This is surely the case in areas where earthquakes, heavy storms and floods can occur. Although this paper focuses mainly on technical aspects of sustainable housing and construction, there is also a focus on social sustainability, meaning a strong involvement of local communities in the production of sustainable building materials for walls, newly developed construction technologies, and mutual house and facility construction.

scholarly journals Hyperaccumulators for Potentially Toxic Elements: A Scientometric Analysis

Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1729
Author(s):  
Dongming Zhang ◽  
Miles Dyck ◽  
Lana Filipović ◽  
Vilim Filipović ◽  
Jialong Lv ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Toxic Elements ◽  
Environmental Science ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Potentially Toxic Elements ◽  
Collaboration Network ◽  
Scientometric Analysis ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Number Of Publications ◽  
The University

Phytoremediation is an effective and low-cost method for the remediation of soil contaminated by potentially toxic elements (metals and metalloids) with hyperaccumulating plants. This study analyzed hyperaccumulator publications using data from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) (1992-2020). We explored the research status on this topic by creating a series of scientific maps using VOSviewer, HistCite Pro, and CiteSpace. The results showed that the total number of publications in this field shows an upward trend. Dr. Xiaoe Yang is the most productive researcher on hyperaccumulators and has the broadest international collaboration network. The Chinese Academy of Sciences (China), Zhejiang University (China), and the University of Florida (USA) are the top three most productive institutions in the field. China, the USA, and India are the top three most productive countries. The most widely used journals were the International Journal of Phytoremediation, Environmental Science and Pollution Research, and Chemosphere. Co-occurrence and citation analysis were used to identify the most influential publications in this field. In addition, possible knowledge gaps and perspectives for future studies are also presented.

Transfer of heavy metals to plants in technosols remediated with calcareous residues.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Pérez-Sirvent ◽  
Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez ◽  
Salvadora Martinez-Lopez ◽  
Ines Agudo ◽  
Jaime Bech
Keyword(s):  
Contaminated Soil ◽  
Toxic Elements ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Potentially Toxic Elements ◽  
Mining Operations ◽  
Limestone Filler ◽  
Transfer Factors ◽  
Reference Soil ◽  
Vegetable Soil ◽  
High Concentrations

<p>When dealing with restoration and remediation projects of zones contaminated by waste and activities derived from mining operations, all the aspects that affect the neighbouring areas dedicated to the cultivation of vegetables are especially relevant, and should be carefully considered. According to previous studies carried out, the areas of mining influence affect to a very different extent the bordering areas depending not only of the characteristics of the soil but also of the type of mining activity that was developed, and so of the primary mineralogy involved, and even of the particular type of vegetable that is being cultivated. The diversity and complexity of these factors suggest the convenient of studying the process by clarifying the mechanisms of transfer of potentially toxic elements from the soil to the biotic environment, with the soil-plant-biotic chain sequence.</p><p>In this work an experimental study was carried out with this purpose making use of experiments carried out at the greenhouse scale in order to find a model that could clarify the processes that could take place in restored soils.</p><p> </p><p>Construction and demolition residues (CDRs) as well as other residues containing high concentrations in limestone filler were used to prepare technosols, and the transfer factors (TF) and bioconcentration factors (BCF) of potentially toxic elements were measured for the selected plant species (chard and broccoli). In this way, in addition to the soil remediation, benefit can be obtained of the re-valorization of such type of  easily available, low cost residues. For the realization of the tests in the greenhouse, four technosols were prepared and experiments were planned in duplicate, which constituted eight experimental units, each one containing 21 large pots disposed in such a way that leachates were poured in the same storing tank.  </p><p>The technosols were prepared as follows:</p><ul><li>Vegetable soil or reference soil. (T1)</li> <li>Contaminated soil: 50% reference soil + 50% mine residue (T2).</li> <li>Amended Land 1: 75% contaminated soil + 25% CDR (T3).</li> <li>Amended soil 2: 75% contaminated soil + 25% Limestone filler (T4).</li> </ul><p> </p><p>A statistical study was carried out to evaluate the relationships between the levels of potentially toxic elements (Pb and Cd) found in rhizospheres and root contents and the levels present in the technosols prepared. Conclusions could be obtained as regards  the mobility of  these elements, the characteristics of the technosols and the type of cultivation. The data allows a model to be outlined that could be translated at a higher scale for an effective remediation of large zones.</p><p> </p><p> </p>

scholarly journals Soil and plant pollution by potentially toxic elements in Slovakia

2011 ◽  
Vol 51 (No. 6) ◽  
pp. 243-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Kobza
Keyword(s):  
Toxic Elements ◽  
Soil Cover ◽  
Plant Biomass ◽  
Total Content ◽  
Measured Data ◽  
Potentially Toxic Elements ◽  
Soil Samples ◽  
Soil Monitoring ◽  
Polluted Soils ◽  
Plant Pollution

The Problem of soil and plant pollution by heavy metals in Slovakia is evaluated in this study. The measured data on the main risk elements have been obtained from a soil-monitoring grid in Slovakia, which consists of 318 agricultural sites. Analytical procedures of Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, Zn, Cu (extracted by 2 mol/l HNO<sub>3</sub> and by 0.05 mol/l EDTA) as well as the total content of the described elements including Hg have been used for soil samples. Also the plants collected at the same sampling sites were analysed for their Cd, Pb, Cr and Hg contents. On the basis of the obtained results it may be concluded that significant pollution was determined only on 0.4% of the total soil cover in Slovakia. The significant correlation was determined between the soil available heavy metal content (extracted by 0.05 mol/l EDTA) and plant content. Potentially toxic elements were accumulated in the plant biomass only on heavily polluted soils

scholarly journals Immobilisation of As, Cd, Pb and Zn in agricultural soils by the use of organic and inorganic additives

2011 ◽  
Vol 48 (No. 8) ◽  
pp. 335-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Vácha ◽  
E. Podlešáková ◽  
J. Němeček ◽  
O. Poláček
Keyword(s):  
Toxic Elements ◽  
Sequential Analysis ◽  
Agricultural Soils ◽  
Ph Value ◽  
Potentially Toxic Elements ◽  
Synthetic Zeolite ◽  
Organic Additives ◽  
Fodder Plants ◽  
Cubic Structure

The efficiency of the application of organic and inorganic additives on the reduction of mobility and transfer of As, Cd, Pb and Zn from the soil into the plants was observed. The dung, compost, acid peat and muck presented organic additives. Synthetic zeolite &ndash; type Pc&nbsp;of cubic structure, loamy shale and dolomite limestone presented inorganic additives. Five soil types were used during the testing (arenic regosol, typic cambisol, dystric cambisol, typic chernozem and typic fluvisol). The changeover of the mobility of As, Cd, Pb a&nbsp;Zn in the soil (the ratio of mobile and total contents, sequential analysis) and the transfer of the elements from the soil into the plants (the vegetables, cereals and fodder plants) were investigated. The results showed the primary importance of the soil pH value on the behaviour of potentially toxic elements and their intake by the plants. The efficiency of the use of organic additives strongly depended on the quality of the organic matter. Inorganic additives on the base of the sorbents worked in the case of mobile hazardous elements (Cd, Zn). The efficiency of the soil additives was strongly influenced by the soil type.

scholarly journals Effects of waste ceramic aggregate on compressive strength of cement mortar

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 311-316
Author(s):  
MSH Sunny ◽  
MR Islam ◽  
MS Rahman ◽  
MT Hasan
Keyword(s):  
Compressive Strength ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Cement Mortar ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Curing Period ◽  
Low Load ◽  
Natural Aggregates ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Fineness Modulus

In Bangladesh, the cost of building materials is increasing gradually, available raw materials of construction are not sufficient to meet up the needs of the country. For that we have to find out cheaper and waste materials (such as ceramic waste) to reuse for construction. The study was conducted to observe the physical properties of waste ceramics and compressive strength of ceramics mortar for different curing ages. The study was done to check the probability of using waste ceramics instead of natural aggregates (sand).The fineness modulus of ceramics aggregates was 2.94. Ceramic aggregate absorbs 5.89% moisture whereas sand absorbs 14.33%. Generally, finer the aggregate shows greater the compressive strength. Though the fineness modulus of ceramics was greater than that of sand, it possessed higher compressive strength because of its self-strength. The ratio of mortar mixture was (1:2) and (1:3) for different curing periods both sand and ceramics samples. The compressive strength of sand and ceramic mortar was 2603 psi and 3500 psi respectively at the ratio of (1:2) for 3 days curing. On the other hand the compressive strength of sand and ceramics mortar was 2340 psi and 3075 psi respectively at the ratio of (1:3) for 3 days curing. Between the sand and ceramic mortar, the compressive strength of ceramic mortar was found maximum at 28 days curing period. It can be concluded that recycled ceramic aggregates will be used in comparatively low load bearing, low cost temporary and medium category farming etc. concrete structure. Progressive Agriculture 30 (3): 311-316, 2019

scholarly journals Impact of double Zn and Se biofortification of wheat plants on the element concentrations in the grain  

2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (No. 7) ◽  
pp. 316-321 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Germ ◽  
P. Pongrac ◽  
M. Regvar ◽  
K. Vogel-Mikuš ◽  
V. Stibilj ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Triticum Aestivum ◽  
Toxic Elements ◽  
Foliar Application ◽  
Triticum Aestivum L ◽  
Mineral Elements ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Potentially Toxic Elements ◽  
Wheat Grain ◽  
Element Concentrations

Optimisation of the concentrations of essential mineral elements in staple grain diet and reduction in non-essential and potentially toxic elements would considerably alleviate mineral malnutrition and improve the health of humans. Here, wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) plants were biofortified with Zn and/or Se to determine the changes across 36 elements in the grain. The element concentrations were determined by multielemental k<sub>0</sub>-instrumental neutron activation analysis (k<sub>0</sub>-INAA). In comparison to grain from non-biofortified plants, Zn fertilisation increased the grain Zn, Ca, and Mo concentrations, whereas the foliar application of Se only increased the grain Se concentrations. Double biofortification (combined Zn fertilisation and foliar Se) was more effective for the increased Se concentrations in the grain, in comparison to the Se-only biofortified plants, with the grain Zn, Ca and Mo concentrations remained at the same levels as those for the Zn-only biofortified plants. Except for Ba, Br and Rb, the concentrations of the elements analysed were below the detection limits. Double biofortification might be a feasible strategy to efficiently coordinate the mineral quality of wheat grain, although the considerable concentrations of other essential and non-essential elements should not be neglected.

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