title: Distribution and mobility of metals in contaminated sites. chemometric investigation of pollutant profiles.
abstract: The distribution and mobility of heavy metals in the soils of two contaminated sites in Piedmont (Italy) was investigated, evaluating the horizontal and vertical profiles of 15 metals, namely Al, Cd, Cu, Cr, Fe. La, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sc, Ti, V, Y, Zn and Zr. The concentrations in the most polluted areas of the sites were higher than the acceptable limits reported in Italian and Dutch legislations for soil reclamation. Chemometric elaboration of the results by pattern recognition techniques allowed us to identify groups of samples with similar characteristics and to find correlations among the variables. The pollutant mobility was studied by extraction with water, dilute acetic acid and EDTA and by applying Tessier's procedure. The fraction of mobile species, which potentially is the most harmful for the environment, was found to be higher than the one normally present in unpolluted soils, where heavy metals are, to a higher extent, strongly bound to the matrix.
authors.affiliation: Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Ornella
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Abollino
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aceto
authors.forename: Mery
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Malandrino
authors.forename: Edoardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mentasti
authors.forename: Corrado
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sarzanini
authors.forename: Renzo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Barberis
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007558:Italy; D008452:Maximum Allowable Concentration; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012989:Soil Pollutants