Transfer factors of 31 elements in several agricultural plants collected from 150 farm fields in Aomori, Japan

Soil-to-plant transfer factors of 31 stable elements were determined by neutron activation analysis. The transfer factor is one of the important parameters used to estimate the internal radiation dose from radionuclides through food ingestion. In the present study, 12 species of agricultural plants such as root crops, fruit vegetables, green vegetables and pasture grasses, and their soils were collected from 150 farm fields in Aomori prefecture, Japan. The elements described are those that could be detected by this method, which include both essential and nonessential elements for plant growth. The concentrations of individual elements in the cultivated soil samples for each plant were similar in values and their standard deviations were within one order of magnitude, because of the relatively narrow geographic sampling area. The elements were classified into two groups, each having different transfer factor characteristics. In the first group of elements there was an inverse correlation between the transfer factors and the concentrations of elements in the soil, especially for Cl, K and Ca. In the second group, especially Sc and Co, however, the transfer factors were independent of the concentrations of elements in the soil.     

Detection of explosives and their degradation products in soil environments

Polynitro organic explosives [hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX), octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX) and 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT)] are typical labile environmental pollutants that can biotransform with soil indigenous microorganisms, photodegrade by sunlight and migrate through subsurface soil to cause groundwater contamination. To be able to determine the type and concentration of explosives and their (bio)transformation products in different soil environments, a comprehensive analytical methodology of sample preparation, separation and detection is thus required. The present paper describes the use of supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2), acetonitrile (MeCN) (US Environmental Protection Agency Method 8330) and solid-phase microextraction (SPME) for the extraction of explosives and their degradation products from various water, soil and plant tissue samples for subsequent analysis by either HPLC-UV, capillary electrophoresis (CE-UV) or GC-MS. Contaminated surface and subsurface soil and groundwater were collected from either a TNT manufacturing facility or an anti-tank firing range. Plant tissue samples were taken fromplants grown in anti-tank firing range soil in a greenhouse experiment. All tested soil and groundwater samples from the former TNT manufacturing plant were found to contain TNT and some of its amino reduced and partially denitrated products. Their concentrations as determined by SPME-GC-MS and LC-UV depended on the location of sampling at the site. In the case of plant tissues, SC-CO2 extraction followed by CE-UV analysis showed only the presence of HMX. The concentrations of HMX (<200 mg/kg) as determined by supercritical fluid extraction (SC-CO2)-CE-UV were comparable to those obtained by MeCN extraction, although the latter technique was found to be more efficient at higher concentrations (>300 mg/kg). Modifiers such as MeCN and water enhanced the SC-CO2 extractability of HMX from plant tissues.     

Surface contamination effects on leaf chemical composition in the Atlantic Forest

Summary The exogenous material that adheres to the leaf surface affects the elemental composition of the plant itself, thereby constituting one of the major error sources in plant analysis. The present work investigated the surface contamination of leaves from the Atlantic Forest. Instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) was applied to assess the efficiency of leaf EDTA-washing. Chemical element concentrations were corrected using Sc (soil tracer) since resuspended soil is the main source of contamination in leaves. As a result, EDTA-washing should be used mainly for the evaluation of terrigenous elements, while the Sc-corrected concentrations are considered satisfactory for the other elements.     

Occurrence of bromine in plants and soil

The usefulness of X-ray fluorescence analysis for the determination of bromine in soil and plants is demonstrated by comparing the results with those obtained by activation analysis. An abnormal accumulation of bromine in some soils, plants and cigarettes has been found. Volcanic ash soil accumulates bromine in its humic acid. The large ratio of chlorine to bromine in river water may be explained by the accumulation of bromine in humus of soil. The possibility of bromine contamination of food and cigarettes, due to the application of agricultural chemicals, is pointed out.     

Determination of heavy metals in soil, mushroom and plant samples by atomic absorption spectrometry

The concentrations of heavy metals in the soil, mushroom and plant samples collected from Tokat, Turkey have been determined by flame and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry after dry ashing, wet ashing and microwave digestion. The study of sample preparation procedures showed that the microwave digestion method was the best. Good accuracy was assured by the analysis of standard reference materials. The relative standard deviations for all measured metal concentrations were lower than 10%. In all cases, quantitative analytical recoveries ranging from 95 to 103% were obtained. Metal accumulation factors were calculated for mushroom and plant samples. High ratio of plants to soil cadmium, zinc and copper concentrations indicate that these elements are accumulated by mushrooms. Results obtained are in agreement with data reported in the literature.     

Determination of antidepressants in surface and waste water samples by capillary electrophoresis with electrospray ionization mass spectrometric detection after preconcentration using off-line solid-phase extraction

A method for the quantitative determination of seven major antidepressants in surface waters and sewage treatment plant effluents by CE using ESI-MS is presented. Calibration curves for the selected analytes were prepared in Milli-Q purified water and Danube river water extract covering a concentration range of at least one order of magnitude. LODs achieved were between 6 and 13 microg/L for Trazodone and 39 and 53 microg/L for Sertraline in the Milli-Q purified water and Danube river water matrix, respectively. For sample preparation eight different SPE materials were investigated. Best results were obtained for a resin based on hydrophilic divinylbenzene (recoveries from Milli-Q purified water 93-96%; from Danube river water 85-99%). Finally, a series of eight sewage treatment plant effluents were investigated with respect to their content in the selected antidepressants. Six of these samples were tested positive for antidepressants, in particular Venlafaxine, Citalopram and Trazodone in concentrations between 36 and 322 ng/L.     

Assessment of priority pesticides,degradation products,and pesticide adjuvants in groundwaters and top soils from agricultural areas of the Ebro river basin

Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) was employed for the determination of 30 widely used pesticides including various transformation products and alkylphenols in water and agricultural soils with the aim of assessing the impact of these compounds in agricultural soils and the underlying aquifer. The extraction, clean-up, and analytical procedures were optimized for both water and soil samples to provide a highly robust method capable of determining target analytes at the ppb–ppt level with high precision. For water samples, different solid-phase extraction cartridges and conditions were optimized; similarly, pressurized liquid extraction conditions were tested to provide interference-free extracts and high sensitivity. Instrumental LODs of 3–4 pg were obtained. The multi-residue extraction procedures were applied to the analysis of groundwaters and agricultural soils from the Ebro river basin (NE Spain). Most ubiquitous herbicides detected were triazines but some acetanilides and organophosphorus pesticides were also found; the pesticide additive tributylphosphate was found in all water samples. Levels varied between 0.57 and 5.37 μg/L in groundwater, whereas nonylphenol was the sole compound detected in soil. Alkylphenols are used as adjuvants in pesticide formulations and are present in sludges employed as soil fertilizers. Occurrence was found to be similar to other environmental studies.     

Application of liquid chromatography-electrospray-tandem mass spectrometry for the identification and characterisation of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates and sulfophenyl carboxylates in sludge-amended soils

A novel procedure was developed for the simultaneous determination of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) and their major metabolites, sulfophenyl carboxylates (SPC), in sludge-amended soil. After pressurised liquid extraction with methanol/water (90:10) and a clean-up on C18 solid-phase extraction cartridges, final analysis was done by ion-pair liquid chromatography-electrospray-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS). With this method, SPC with 5-13 carbon atoms in the aliphatic side chain were identified for the first time in agricultural soils treated with sewage sludge. Quantification of LAS and SPC in soil from 10 field sites, which differed in the history of sludge application, gave total concentrations of 120-2840 microg kg(-1) for LAS and of 4-220 microg kg(-1) for SPC. The data provided evidence for rapid biodegradation of LAS in the initial phase after sludge amendment with a transitory build-up of high concentrations of, mainly, short-chain SPC. Trace amounts of residual LAS and SPC were detected in soils having received the last sludge treatment 10 days to 4 years prior to sampling.     

Comparison and Evaluation of Extraction Media and Their Suitability in a Simple Model to Predict the Biological Relevance of Heavy Metal Concentrations in Contaminated Soils

Abstract

The concentrations of heavy metals in agricultural soils are increasing gradually from various diffuse sources. The metals can transfer from contaminated soils into the growing plants or may affect the respiration rate of soil microorganisms.

In the first part of this paper, the following simple model to predict the biorelevant metal concentration in anthropogenically or artificially contaminated soils is reported: log M_p = α + β log [M_NaNO3] log M_R = α' + β' log [M_NaNO3] log M_P = log Metal concentration in test plant (mg/kg dry weight) log M_R = log percent Redution in the respiration or enzyme activity [M_NaNO3] = Metal concentration in NaNO3-soil extract (mg/kg soil) α and β & α' + β' = Intercepts and slopes of the linear regression lines.

The model has been tested in laboratory experiments, in growth experiments either in a greenhouse or in the field. Also, an attempt is made to present a theoretical interpretation.

Critical concentrations are calculated with the help of the relationship between metal concentration in soil solution [M_NaNO3] and metal concentration in plants. The critical concentration, which is able to induce either phyto- or zootoxic concentrations in the plant parts (productive or vegetative) or reduce their growth or to reduce significantly the growth of soil microorganisms, are found to be uniform in a wide range of soils (pH 3 to 8 and CEC 10–50 millimol/100g soil), the critical concentrations of NaNO₃ in soil extracts are comparable with the values obtained with plant growth experiments in nutrient solution and also with the concentrations obtained from soil respiration experiments reported in literature.     

植物源生物炭材料的制备及其在农药残留领域中的应用进展北大核心CSCD

随着农药的广泛使用,其已普遍存在于环境中,对人们的身体健康产生巨大影响。因此,环境中农药残留的去除和分析检测对保护人体安全健康至关重要。同时,农药在环境中残留浓度低,需要一种对目标物有较强选择性和富集作用,并对环境影响小的前处理吸附剂。植物源生物炭是由植物源生物质作为碳源衍生得到的材料,其比表面积大、孔容量高、表面官能团可调节,且环境相容性好,其原料植物源生物质的价格低廉、来源广泛并可再生,是一种廉价高效的吸附剂。该文主要综述了近10年来植物源生物炭用于环境中农药残留去除和分析检测前处理的应用进展。其中在农药残留去除方面的应用主要包括降低农药在土壤中的移动性,修复手性农药造成的污染,负载降解农药的细菌及作为化肥的缓释载体。在农药残留分析检测前处理方面,植物源生物炭可用作分散固相萃取、固相微萃取和磁性固相萃取的吸附剂来选择性吸附水果和蔬菜中的有机磷类和三唑类农药,以及水环境中的有机氯类农药。另外,还介绍了植物源生物炭的吸附机理,详细阐述了基于计算模拟如密度泛函理论、分子动力学模拟和巨正则蒙特卡洛模拟的吸附机理研究并讨论了其优势。最后,总结了植物源生物炭在农药去除和农药残留分析检测前处理方面应用的优势,指出了其在农药残留领域应用待解决的问题。     

Rhizonin A from Burkholderia sp. KCTC11096 and its growth promoting role in lettuce seed germination

We isolated and identified a gibberellin-producing Burkholderia sp. KCTC 11096 from agricultural field soils. The culture filtrate of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) significantly increased the germination and growth of lettuce and Chinese cabbage seeds. The ethyl acetate extract of the PGPR culture showed significantly higher rate of lettuce seed germination and growth as compared to the distilled water treated control. The ethyl acetate fraction of the Burkholderia sp. was subjected to bioassay-guided isolation and we obtained for the first time from a Burkholderia sp. the plant growth promoting compound rhizonin A (1), which was characterized through NMR and MS techniques. Application of various concentrations of 1 significantly promoted the lettuce seed germination as compared to control.     

Evaluation of trace-element pollution in Barada River environment by instrumental neutron activation analysis

The impact of tanning and electroplating industry on the eastern part of Barada River environment has been evaluated. Sediment, soil and plant samples were collected from nine sites at the river near the eastern industrial complex during 1999. Results of instrumental neutron activation analysis have shown high levels of Cr in sediment collected near the tanning factories; the highest value obtained being 2692 ppm. In addition, relatively high levels of Cr were also found in the agriculture soil collected near the riverbank in the industrial complex; Cr concentrations varied between 77 ppm and 327 ppm. However, Cr concentrations in plant leaves grown at riverbank were found low and this due to strong bounding of Cr to soil. Other trace metals such as copper and nickel were also high in sediment samples. The highest concentration of copper was about 4000 ppm, which is much higher than the natural levels; electroplating shops are the main source of this element in the area. Furthermore, concentrations of the studied trace metals have decreased as the sampling site distance became far from the industrial complex. In general, other trace elements were found to be at low concentrations, but the obtained data can be used as a baseline for future monitoring.     

Evaluation of soil to tea plant elemental correlation using instrumental neutron activation analysis

Instrumental neutron activation analysis using relative and k ₀-based internal monostandard methods were employed for determination of concentrations of 12 elements in soil and tea plants collected from three different tea producing regions in India namely Assam, Darjeeling and Kangra. A total of 17 tea leaf samples along with corresponding soil samples were analyzed for elemental content. The obtained concentration data was used for the soil–plant elemental correlation studies. Positive correlation was observed between elemental concentrations of tea plants and the associated soil with Pearson correlation coefficient values in the range 0.6–0.9 for ten elements. Variations in transfer factor values were also observed according to the geo-chemical variation.     

Multielemental analysis of soil samples by fast-neutron activation

Neutron activation analysis (NAA) have been used for the determination of major, minor, and trace elements in 20 soil samples from 5 crop fields of the Crop Research Centre, Pantnagar, India. Fast neutron activation analysis (FNAA) and cyclic neutron activation analysis (CNAA) have been used to determine the concentrations of various elements. The results for minor and trace elements are compared with the level of abundances of world soils. The present study provides the basic data of elemental concentrations in soil samples of 5 major crop fields located in one of the leading agricultural universities of India for future measurements with the objectives of efficient use of fertilizers and pesticides in accordance with the high yield.     

Analysis of mineral nutrients status of whole plant and growth substratum of Phyllanthus niruri L., an anti-plasmodial herb using Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis

The mineral status of whole plant samples of Phyllanthus and its growth substratum was determined using Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis. A total of 11 elements were detected in both whole plant and soil samples with varying concentrations depending on area of collection as well plant or it soil substratum. Comparatively, the concentration of all the elements except Cl, Ca and Br was higher in the soil samples than the whole plant indicating that the plant obtained these elements from the growth substratum. For the plant samples, the concentration of tungsten (W) and arsenic (As) were below the detection limits while for the soil sample chlorine (Cl) and calcium (Ca) were below detection limits. Three of the elements namely Mg, Ca and K detected in the plant samples are macroelements and were therefore detected in higher concentrations in the plant samples. The element with the highest concentration was K and it ranged from 1,215.44 to 5,658.06 and 0.64 to 1.20 % in soil and whole plant samples respectively. Arsenic (As) is considered as a toxic element and its concentration below detection limits in the whole plant sample makes it pharmacologically safe for human consumption.     

Extraction and Characterization of Natural Cellulose Fibers from Maize Tassel

This article reports on the extraction and characterization of novel natural cellulose fibers obtained from the maize (tassel) plant. Cellulose was extracted from the agricultural residue (waste biomaterial) of maize tassel. The maize tassel fibers were obtained after treatment with NaOH and were carefully characterized while the chemical composition was determined. The chemical composition of the maize tassel fibers showed that the cellulose content increased from 41% to 56%, following alkali treatment. FT-IR spectroscopic analysis of maize tassel fibers confirmed that this chemical treatment also shows the way to partial elimination of hemicelluloses and lignin from the structure of the maize tassel fibers. X-ray diffraction results indicated that this process resulted in enhanced crystallinity of the maize tassel fibers. The thermal properties of the maize tassel fibers were studied by the TGA technique and were found to have improved significantly. The degradation temperature of the alkali-treated maize tassel fiber is higher than that of the untreated maize tassel fibers. This value convincingly showed the potential of maize tassel fibers for use in reinforced biocomposites and waste water treatment.     

Determination of arsenic species in water, soils and plants

Ion chromatographic separation coupled with ICP-MS was used to determine arsenic species in plant and soil extracts. A scheme for growth, harvesting, sample pre-treatment and analysis was developed for the arsenic species to enable determination. Preliminary results obtained with ten herb plants grown on arsenic-contaminated soil compared to non-contaminated soil show a heterogeneous pattern of accumulation rate, metabolization and detoxification mechanisms in monocots and dicots. Arsenite appears to be the major component in plants with good growth. Organic arsenic species were even detected at very low concentrations (< 150 microg kg(-1) (dry mass)).     

An Investigation on the Effect of Arsenic Poisoning on Humans,Agriculture, and Fisheries

The purpose of this investigation is to try and understand the degree of arsenic poisoning in the waste water from agricultural chemical factories which release effluents into the waterways in their vicinity. The method of determination is to use the water samples, soil, fish, clams, shell-fish, etc. found in the areas along the canals and aqueducts and those which lie upstream, midstream, and downstream and also the hair samples of people living in the contiguous areas, to check for the levels of arsenic in them by emission spectroscopy. From the analysis during a one year investigation, we find that the level of As in the water creatures of Chungkang Stream and Lu-Er-Men Stream is much higher than in the other water areas of Taiwan such as along beaches and the other rivers; the levels in the hair of the people who live nearby these water courses have a certain degree of correspondence with their eating habits and the quantity of food eaten; however, even those people who eat relatively little have almost 3% As, beyond the 2 mg/kg limit allowed for human beings. We are fully aware of the high level of food contamination on Taiwan, and this fact has been taken into consideration. The effect of As contamination in the soil on agricultural produce does not seem to have any apparent relationship. By the way, the influence of the monthly average rainfall on As contamination in the soil is not obvious.     

宜宾市翠屏区宋家乡土壤地球化学质量评价及意义

在表层土壤系统采样调查的基础上,进行了相关的灌溉水、饮用水以及土壤有机物和大气降尘等的测试,分析结果显示,宜宾市翠屏区宋家乡土壤存在重金属元素超标趋势,尤其是镉。采用地质累积指数法和污染程度分析对翠屏区宋家乡地区土壤质量进行了评价和分析,为该区土壤资源、环境评价和农业经济发展规划提供了实用地球化学信息。     

Comparative Study of Plant Drought with Account Taken of Biochemical Mobility of Heavy Metals

The impact of water deficit in the soil on the growth of Armenian semi-tooth-shaped sweet corn under various soil and climatic conditions was assessed. The plant drought response was studied by kinematic growth profiles with account taken of contrast sensitivity to stress factors depending on the soil and climatic conditions, as well as of background concentrations of some heavy metals. The drought effect is reflected in changes of the physiological growth parameters of the fifth leaf of corn. The plant drought tolerance was assessed at the seedling stage by measuring the total length of the plant and accumulation coefficients of heavy metals.