Metal fluxes at the sediment-water interface in rivers in the Turvo/Grande drainage basin, So Paulo State, Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Concentrations of Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn in tropical soils amended with sewage sludge and composted sewage sludge

Sewage sludge may be used as an agricultural fertilizer, but the practice has been criticized because sludge may contain trace elements and pathogens. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of total and pseudototal extractants of Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn, and to compare the results with the bioavailable concentrations of these elements to maize and sugarcane in a soil that was amended with sewage sludge for 13 consecutive years and in a separate soil that was amended a single time with sewage sludge and composted sewage sludge. The 13-year amendment experiment involved 3 rates of sludge (5, 10, and 20 t ha-1). The one-time amendment experiment involved treatments reflecting 50, 100, and 200 % of values stipulated by current legislation. The metal concentrations extracted by aqua regia (AR) were more similar to those obtained by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 3052 than to those obtained by EPA3051, and the strongest correlation was observed between pseudo(total) concentrations extracted by AR and EPA3052 and bioavailable concentrations obtained by Mehlich III. An effect of sewage sludge amendment on the concentrations of heavy metals was only observed in samples from the 13-year experiment. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Integrated assessment of metal contamination in sediments from two tropical estuaries

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Uso do bivalve límnico Anodontites tenebricosus (LEA, 1834) no biomonitoramento de metais do Rio Ribeira de Iguape

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Contamination of port zone sediments by metals from Large Marine Ecosystems of Brazil

Sediment contamination by metals poses risks to coastal ecosystems and is considered to be problematic to dredging operations. In Brazil, there are differences in sedimentology along the Large Marine Ecosystems in relation to the metal distributions. We aimed to assess the extent of Al, Fe, Hg, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn contamination in sediments from port zones in northeast (Mucuripe and Pecem) and southeast (Santos) Brazil through geochemical analyses and sediment quality ratings. The metal concentrations found in these port zones were higher than those observed in the continental shelf or the background values in both regions. In the northeast, metals were associated with carbonate, while in Santos, they were associated with mud. Geochemical analyses showed enrichments in Hg, Cd, Cu, Ni and Zn, and a simple application of international sediment quality guidelines failed to predict their impacts, whereas the use of site-specific values that were derived by geochemical and ecotoxicological approaches seemed to be more appropriate in the management of the dredged sediments. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Accumulation of six metals in the mangrove crab Ucides cordatus (Crustacea: Ucididae) and its food source, the red mangrove Rhizophora mangle (Angiosperma: Rhizophoraceae)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Sediment grain size distribution and heavy metals determination in a dam on the Parana River at Ilha Solteira, Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Biochemical biomarkers and metals in Perna perna mussels from mariculture zones of Santa Catarina, Brazil

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Environmental evaluation of metals in sediments and dragonflies due to sugar cane cultivation in neotropical streams

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Evaluating the use of predatory insects as bioindicators of metals contamination due to sugarcane cultivation in neotropical streams

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Conventional (MG-BR46 Conquista) and Transgenic (BRS Valiosa RR) Soybeans Have No Mutagenic Effects and May Protect Against Induced-DNA Damage In Vivo

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Biossorção de cobre, manganês e cádmio por biomassas de Saprolegnia subterranea(Dissmann) R.L. Seym. e Pythium torulosumCoker & P. Patt. (Oomycetes)

Dried biomass of the zoosporic fungi Saprolegnia subterranea and Pythium torulosum was evaluated for copper, manganese and cadmium biosorption from aqueous solutions using the "q" (mg of adsorbed metal per g of biomass) and the "R%" (percent removal) indices. The highest q values were observed when the biomass was placed in contact with high metal concentrations, whereas the highest R% values were observed at low concentrations (p< 0.05). S. subterranea SPC 1244 biomass surpassed the others for copper biosorption (q = 7.48 mg/ g; R% = 49.03), P. torulosum SPC 1425 biomass was the best for manganese biosorption (q = 4.13 mg/g; R% = 26.71), and S. subterranea SPC 1431 biomass was the best for cadmium biosorption (q = 6.75 mg/g; R% = 42.26). This is the first report on copper, manganese and cadmium biosorption by the biomass of these zoosporic fungi, indicating the potential to remove ions from diluted solutions.

Environmental implications of soil remediation using the Fenton process

This work evaluates some collateral effects caused by the application of the Fenton process to 1,1-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-2,2,2-trichloroethane (DDT) and diesel degradation in soil. While about 80% of the diesel and 75% of the DDT present in the soil were degraded in a slurry system, the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the slurry filtrate increased from 80 to 880 mg l(-1) after 64 h of reaction and the DDT concentration increased from 12 to 50 mu g l(-1). Experiments of diesel degradation conducted on silica evidenced that soluble compounds were also formed during diesel oxidation. Furthermore, significant increase in metal concentrations was also observed in the slurry filtrate after the Fenton treatment when compared to the control experiment leading to excessive concentrations of Cr, Ni, Cu and Mn according to the limits imposed for water. Moreover, 80% of the organic matter naturally present in the soil was degraded and a drastic volatilization of DDT and 2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-1,1-dichloroethylene was observed. Despite the high percentages of diesel and DDT degradation in soil, the potential overall benefits of its application must be evaluated beforehand taking into account the metal and target compounds dissolution and the volatilization of contaminants when the process is applied. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Non-nutrient heavy metals in tomato plants cultivated in soil amended with biosolid and sugar-cane bagasse compost

In this study, non-nutrient heavy metal concentrations (Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb) were measured in composts during the composting process, in compost/Red-yellow Latosol mixtures, and in tomato plants. Composts were produced using sugar-cane bagasse, biosolids and cattle manure in the proportions 75-0-25, 75-12.5-12.5, 75-25-0, 50-50-0 or 0-100-0 (composts with 0, 12.5, 25, 50 and 100% biosolids). The composts were applied to the soil, in 6 treatments and a control (mineral fertilization). Control and the 0% biosolids treatments received inorganic nitrogen and all the treatments received the same amount of N, P and K. Tomato plants were cultivated in 24-L pots, in a green house in Jaboticabal, SP, Brazil. The experiment had a split plot design, in randomized blocks. Cadmium, Cr, Ni and Pb concentrations were determined during the composting process (7, 27, 57, 97 and 127 days after compost mounting), in soil (0 and 164 days after mixing) and plants. The samples were subjected to digestion with HNO 3, H2O2 and HCl and the metals were determined by AAS. Negative correlations were observed between Cd, Cr and Pb in the compost and Cd, Cr and Pb plant uptake, as well as Ni in the compost and Ni concentration in the plants. The concentrations of Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb increased during composting. Only Cd levels increased when compost was applied to the soil. The roots accumulated Cr, Ni and Pb, the stems and leaves, Cd and Ni and the fruits did not accumulate any of the metals studied. The composts with biosolids did not increase Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb uptake by plants.

Testing extractants for Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn in tropical soils treated with sewage sludge for 13 consecutive years

In this paper, we report on a field experiment being carried out in a Typic Eutrorthox. The experiment was initiated in the 1997-98 agricultural season as a randomized block design with four treatments (0, 5, 10, and 20 t ha -1) of sewage sludge and five replicates. Compound soil samples were obtained from 20 subsamples collected at depths of 0-0.1 and 0.1-0.2 m. Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn concentrations were extracted with DTPA pH 7.3; 0.1 mol L -1 HCl, Mehlich-I, Mehlich-III, and 0.01 mol L-1 CaCl 2. Metal concentrations were determined via atomic absorption spectrometry. Diagnostic leaves and the whole above-ground portion of plants were collected to determine Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn concentrations extracted by nitric-perchloric digestion and later determined via atomic absorption spectrometry. Sewage sludge application caused increases in the concentrations of soil Cu, Fe, and Mn in samples taken from the 0-0.1 m depth evaluated by the extractants Mehlich-I, Mehlich-III, 0.01 mol L-1 HCl and DTPA pH 7.3. None of the extractants provided efficient estimates of changes in Mn concentrations. The acid extractants extracted more Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn than the saline and chelating solutions. The highest concentrations of Cu, Fe, and Zn were obtained with Mehlich-III, while the highest concentrations of Mn were obtained with HCl. We did not observe a correlation between the extractants and the concentrations of elements in the diagnostic leaves nor in the tissues of the whole maize plant (Zea mays L.). © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.