title: Source identification of eight heavy metals in grassland soils by multivariate analysis from the Baicheng-Songyuan area, Jilin Province, Northeast China.
abstract: The characterization of the concentration, chemical speciation and source of heavy metals in soils is an imperative for pollution monitoring and the potential risk assessment of the metals to animal and human health. A total of 154 surface horizons and 53 underlying horizons of grassland soil were collected from the Baicheng-Songyuan area in Jilin Province, Northeast China, in which the concentrations and chemical fractionations of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn were investigated. The mean concentrations of heavy metals in grassland topsoil were 7.2, 0.072, 35, 16.7, 0.014, 15.2, 18.3 and 35 mg kg(-)(1) for As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn, respectively, and those averaged contents were lower than their China Environmental Quality Standard values for the Soils, implying that heavy metal concentrations in the studied soils were of the safety levels. The mobility sequence of the heavy metals based on the sum of the soluble, exchangeable, carbonate-bound and humic acid-bound fractions among the seven fractions decreased in the order of Cd 50.4%)>Hg (39.8%)>Cu (26.5%)>As (19.9%)>Zn (19.1%)>Ni (15.9%)>Pb (14.1%)>Cr (4.3%), suggesting Cd and Hg may pose more potential risk of soil contamination than other metals. Multivariate statistical analysis suggested that As, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, Cd and Hg had the similar lithogenic sources, however, Cd and Hg were more relevant to organic matter than other heavy metals, which was confirmed by the chemical speciation analysis of the metals. The study provides a base for local authority in the studied area to monitor the long term accession of heavy metals into grassland soil.
authors.affiliation: College of Geosciences, Jilin University, Changchun 130061, China.
authors.forename: Yuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chai
authors.affiliation: College of Geo-exploration Science and Technology, Jilin University, Changchun 130026, China.
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: College of Geo-exploration Science and Technology, Jilin University, Changchun 130026, China. Electronic address: chaisl@jlu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Sheli
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chai
authors.affiliation: College of Geo-exploration Science and Technology, Jilin University, Changchun 130026, China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.affiliation: College of Geosciences, Jilin University, Changchun 130061, China.
authors.forename: Linfu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xue
authors.affiliation: College of Earth Sciences, Quilin University of Technology, Guilin 541004, China.
authors.forename: Qingwei
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002104:Cadmium / Q000032:analysis; D002254:Carbonates / Q000032:analysis; D002681:China; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D020387:Food Chain; D005843:Geography; D065948:Grassland; D006801:Humans; D006812:Humic Substances / Q000032:analysis; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008628:Mercury / Q000032:analysis; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D006109:Poaceae / Q000187:drug effects; D025341:Principal Component Analysis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry*; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D002254:Carbonates; D006812:Humic Substances; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D002104:Cadmium; D008628:Mercury
keywords: Chemical speciation; Grassland soil; Heavy metals; Multivariate analysis; Northeast China